The Netball Diaries, part two

A week or two after starting netball class I happened to bump into Morgan. “Hear there’ve been some big changes in your life,” she remarked.

“Er, yes!” I managed, suddenly somewhat short of breath. “Taken up netball,” I added, attempting an easy laugh, then confessed awkwardly: “I mean, it’s been a bit of a tease so far, you know what girls are like, but I really think once I get the hang of it I won’t have quite such a hard time.”

“I’ve so got to come and watch that,” Morgan resolved, making me start to panic. “Only you know that’s not what I meant!”

“I still really like you, Morgan,” I told her earnestly. “But Jenny’s closer my age, and I’ve known her longer, and - ”

Lazily, Morgan stretched while I was talking. What her sweater did ended my sentence mid-way in a big gulp.

She moved her sweet cherry soda smell nearer, the flippy tips of her fair hair bouncing softly from the half-step towards me.

“So when’s netball?” was her pink bubblegum breath.

I stammered my way through the time of the next session and Morgan wafted off without another word, leaving me very weak.

So it was that next session as Emily was driving me and Suzette there, I felt I ought to mention it, shy as I was. I so didn’t feel grown-up enough for the front seat, and knew I’d feel it even more if I ever took Emily up on her offer to sit beside her, so always meekly opted to sit on the back seat with Suzette as if I was as little as her.

“So, um, there’s this teenager I know who might come to watch today,” I informed them, my voice a little thin and high.

I saw Emily’s pretty pencilled eyebrows raise in the rear-view mirror. “Oh-ho,” said she. “A boy or girl teenager?” she asked innocently.

I was sure she must have seen me blush in that same mirror! “Um, erm, well actually a girl,” I just about managed to get out.

“Ha ha!” cawed Suzette at once, and sang tauntingly: “You’ve got a cru-uuu-ush!”

After issuing the usual pointless command, Emily went on, “I think that’s sweet. Well, good luck, little Romeo! Do your best today and you’re certain to impress her.”

After a subsequent five minutes of coaxing I submitted to telling her the girl in question’s name, and exclamations over how pretty it was lasted Emily the rest of the journey. Nor did it end there! For sure enough, guess-who had got there before we did and Emily went straight over to her beaming.

“You must be Morgan Merridew,” she introduced herself. “We’ve been hearing about nothing but you all the way over!”

I burned in the cheeks, not knowing what to do with my feet on the court, and couldn’t even bring myself to meet Morgan’s expression. I could picture it well enough as it was!

“You’re just like I imagined you,” Emily went on. “Fab sweater. Ooh, I’m jealous! Wish I still had that kind of bounce!”

As far as I knew it had always looked to me like Emily still did! It made them and Suzette laugh together though, so clearly Emily had the magic touch. It took a lot for any adult to get on so well with a teen of Morgan’s charming personality! That said, it might have been because Emily was the least like an adult of anyone her age I’d ever met. Morgan on the other hand always behaved exactly as you’d expect from a girl her age!

“Come back with us and have tea afterwards, Morgan,” Emily made her promise. This made me cringe!

So it was that Suzette got to ride in the front on the way back, which doubtless made her feel extremely grown-up and smug, while I was stuck in the back with Morgan. After I’d squirmed all through tea Emily insisted “we two little lovebirds” take some time alone in the garden, and it was only then Morgan was at liberty to roll her eyes and say, “OMG, what’s she like?”

“I know,” I cried, because I was still blushing. “Um, sorry,” I added limply. “I so didn’t know you’d end up having to do this.”

“That’s your story, little lovebird,” Morgan teased. “You smell at netball, by the way.”

I sure didn’t have to take that from some girl! Morgan however with a final smirk turned from me and stretched herself out on front-down on the sunny grass, kicking up her feet ankles-crossed. Even when she wore a skirt, like today, Morgan didn’t mind in the least if her underwear was seen.

“Don’t,” I begged her in a kind of moan.

Morgan glanced at me over her shoulder, contemptuously. “What are we going to do with you?” she demanded.

“You could start by not pushing your panties in my face like that, Merridew,” I grumbled, and threw myself down on the grass facing her. Next second her pink-glossed lips were touching mine.

“The question’s more what we’re going to do with you!” I declared once we were done.

A short, soft, lingering touch of her lips to mine followed. Her long-lashed eyes were lowered. She did it so well it made me shiver.

“You shouldn’t,” and I gulped and had to start again, “you shouldn’t really do it like that, Morgan. It’s, um, it’s n-not really fair.”

She just smiled, as if with amusement, and did it again in exactly the same way. This time it really did come close to getting too much!

“What do you feel like doing?” she asked me in a low voice.

Morgan was going much too far! Crossly I scrambled to my feet.

“If you’re only going to be horrid…!” I began, voice quavering.

“Doesn’t feel horrid to me,” remarked the girl, and prettily stood. Next second she was in my arms and we kissed a third time, the exact same way only standing.

“We’d start like that,” she whispered. “On our wedding-night I mean, only I’d make sure I smelled twice as nice. Just for you.”

“Then what?” I asked her timidly. The press of her sweater against my thin netball tee was the next best thing to cupping her in my hands the way I longed to.

“You’ll have to marry me to find out,” Morgan said sweetly, then left.