Suga Babies

Dade

I sat at the lunch table, talking to the captain of the cheer-leading squad. she was pretty, with blonde hair that she straightened every morning to be pin straight, and big blue eyes. She was wearing her cheer vest and a jean skirt with 4 inch heels, making her 5' 4". Without the heels, she barely makes five foot even. She's got a dainty figure. She smart and pretty. But not my type. She likes to think I want to date her but in all actuality, I don't.

"Sherman!" my soccer coach called from the caf entrance.

"I'll be back, Callie." I said and got up, following Webber to his office. Coach Webber is the gym coach so he gets his own office.

"What's up, Webber?" I asked, lounging in the seat across from him.

"Sherman, you're my best sweeper. You know that."

"Yes, sir."

"But... I need to find a sweeper for next season, since you'll be graduation. So I need you to pick out some of the JV defense and see what they got. Can you do that?"

"Yes sir."

"Good."

I got up and left, walking through the gym. I waved to some of the guys on the team who were messing around while they shot some hoops. I wandered the halls instead of heading straight back to the loud, noisy cafeteria. I was turning the corner into the foreign language wing when I slammed straight into Liliana Catalina Rivera, or as everyone calls her, the Ghost. But the more polite name by some nicer students, Cat.

"Jesus, Sherman! Watch where you're going next time!" she snapped. I growled under my breath.

"How about you watch it, Cat?"

"What're you gonna do about it, Dade?"

I glared and she glared right back.

"Drop dead, Rivera." I shot and walked away.

"I can't, Dade. You'd enjoy that too much and I live to make your life miserable." she called. I flipped her the bird and kept walking the circle to get back to the cafeteria. I finally found my way to the caf and over to our table, resuming my seat next to Callie.

"What's wrong, Dade?" the right midfielder, Josh Turner asked. I looked at him, his black hair in his blue eyes and he had a goulash sauce mustache.

"I ran into Ghost."

"Did she threaten your life again?" the foreign exchange student from Australia, Maynard Lewis asked. I love Maynard, he's awesome.

"Other way around." I said softly.

"Damn!" Josh said.

"I can't wait to get away from here."

LATER

My parents and the Rivera's are really good friends so they have a diner every Thursday night. That means Liliana comes along. It switches back and forth as to which family hosts. That week, it was our turn. I started dinner while Mom and Dad (or you know them as Cooper and Todd Sherman) were cleaning the house. Dinner was turkey burgers and potato salad. Mom and Dad can cook but I like to for whatever reason. So I make dinner most night's when Dad's still working a shift at the hospital and Mom's on her way home from her office where she designs the latest trends for her own fashion line. It's never anything big and fancy but for Thursday, I always cook, not matter who's home.

"Remember, Nikki's allergic to celery and Jose doesn't li-" Mom started.

"Mom, I know! You've told me this every Thursday since I started cooking when I was 12." I told her. She nodded and left me alone. I rolled my eyes and finished the burgers just as the doorbell rang of our two story suburban home. I sighed.

Here we go again!

It's the same every week, almost ritualistic. Dad answers the door and welcomes the Rivera's in while Mom's finishes cleaning. I'm stuck in the kitchen until Mom comes in for drinks, then we go out and join Dad for small talk. It's the same boring conversations week after week. Then they'll ask when Liliana and I are gonna get together and have cute Italian-Mexican babies. Then they'll blush and when they move on, we have pointed glares towards one another. Finally, we move into the dining room and I bring out the food before I sit next to Liliana, I hug her and she whispers a threat in my ear and they leave. I go upstairs and the night is over.

Tradition sucks.