And sure enough, my friends reacted to the news as if I’d just dropped an atomic bomb.
“He...he what?” Lexi jumped forward, clapping her hands with excitement.
“Oh my goodness, it’s really happening.” Charlotte followed Lexi’s lead with the jumping, tugging on my arm as she bounced. “I was totally shipping you two, from the moment Mr. Hart made you partners in class. I knew there was chemistry there.”
I grabbed them both by the arms and my worried gaze bounced between them. “No, you don’t understand. He told me I was amazing. And then he kissed me. This isn’t a good thing.”
They stopped jumping and confusion ran over their faces.
“What?” Charlotte blew a stray strand of hair out of her face. “Why isn’t this a good thing?”
Tensing all the muscles in my face, I tried to hold back the quiver in my voice as I looked for the right way to put this. “Because...because he’s obviously doing this to torture me. Somehow he found out about me catfishing him and he’s paying me back. I’m sure he and Michael are just dying with laughter. I mean, why else would he do it?”
It had taken me a single hour of tossing beneath my sheets Saturday night to come to that conclusion. There was no way Gabriel actually liked me. First of all, I was so not his type. Not that I paid much attention to who the Corrigan brothers dated, but I knew they weren’t girls that looked like me. If anything, the twins went for girls like Lexi and Charlotte. Small girls. Girls who put on makeup every day and did something with their hair besides running a comb through it.
And then there was the fact that he’d basically been in every terrible memory of school I had since middle school. A background figure, playing the part of the silent bodyguard. What was to stop him from taking an active role in making fun of me? This whole thing had to be some kind of massive joke. Payback for daring to dream of being the best gamer in this year’s tournament.
I wasn’t going to be naive about it anymore.
“Oh, Bethy.” Lexi’s eyes slanted down with sympathy. She patted the side of my arm and tsked with her tongue. “You can’t really believe that.”
“Of course I do. It all makes sense now. That’s why he’s been so nice to me. He was laying the foundation to their prank. I mean, it’s genius, really. They really upped their game with this one. Try to make me fall for one of them and then publicly reject and humiliate me? I couldn’t have come up with anything better.”
“No way.” Lexi crossed her arms over her chest, anger flaring in her voice. “You can’t seriously think he’d sink that low.”
“Why not?” I stared at her, my heart thudding painfully in my chest. “That’s pretty much what I was planning to do to them, except without the whole falling for me part. It’s the perfect plan. Utter public humiliation.”
Desperation clawed at my throat, making it hard to breathe or swallow. I shifted my feet, blinking back the angry tears that threatened to spill. Emotions didn’t come easy to me. I had two settings: sassy or sassier. This whole hurt and humiliated dimension of emotion was definitely not my fave.
“Girly, I think you’re missing the obvious here.” Charlotte bit her bottom lip when I forced myself to look at her. “There’s no way he and Michael found out about the catfishing. It’s just not possible.”
I exhaled a hesitant breath. “You really think so?”
Lexi nodded, her top bun wiggling. “There’s no way. Char and I would take that secret to the grave. And you didn’t tell anyone either, right?”
“No...”
“Well, then, he must really like you.”
I sealed my eyes shut and shook my head. Even if Gabriel hadn’t found out about the catfishing, it just didn’t make sense. Why me? Why the girl his brother hates? Why not any of the other dozens of girls at Rock Valley High who would gladly go with him to the Winter Ball and swoon as he swept her up in his arms? That girl wasn’t me. I wasn’t the dress and swooning type. He could have anyone.
Closing my eyes was a mistake. Every time I did, I felt the tingling sensation of his lips against mine again. Soft and gentle. So very unlike the fearsome boy I’d seen skating down the rink like his life depended on it.
“I just want to forget about that stupid kiss,” I said breathlessly, opening my eyes to banish the memory from my thoughts. “I just want to go back to the plan and dominate the tournament. Prove to them all that girls can win. Why can’t I just do that?”
“You can.” Charlotte gently cupped my elbow and leaned closer, sympathy shining in her eyes. “You can, Beth. But is that what you really want?”
“I don’t know.” I threw my hands up in the air. “Why can’t guys just come with a floating marquee over their heads, telling us all of their thoughts, so this wouldn’t be such a guessing game?”
A wry smile popped on Lexi’s face. “Because I’m pretty sure none of us wants to know everything going on inside their heads. It would be too disturbing.”
Maybe that was true, but I would’ve given anything for a marquee of Gabriel’s thoughts on Saturday. Was that kiss for real? Or was it just another way for Michael to get back at me?
“I’m not sure what I want to do,” I said, my voice getting quiet. My gaze shifted back and forth between them. “I’m only used to taking chances in the virtual world. In the real world, my armor...isn’t as strong as it looks.”
It was a confession that took every ounce of my strength. I clenched my hands together in my hoodie pocket, fighting the instant desire to add something snarky, throwing a layer of defense between me and the most vulnerable side of myself I’d ever let myself be with my two best friends. Their expressions softened and they both came in for a hug.
“We’ll be your armor,” Lexi murmured against the sleeve of my sweatshirt.
“Agreed,” Charlotte said on the other side.
I squeezed them both, feeling a bit of relief. No matter what happened with Gabriel, at least I had them. That was enough.
“So, what do I do now?” I asked, chewing on my inner cheek.
“Well...maybe you need the next best thing to a marquee,” Lexi said, her brow arching as mischief entered her eyes.
I chuckled. It was hilarious to see her plotting face. “Like what?”
“Well, we all agree there’s no way he could know about the catfish thing, right?” she asked. Charlotte and I nodded. She’d been right. Outside of this room, no one had a clue. I’d been freaking out about the wrong thing. “Well, maybe your online character just needs to ask some of the right questions...”
The blood drained from my face as I realized what she meant. “You want me to ask him as CurrerBFighting if he likes me?”
She jumped with excitement. “Exactly!”
“No! No way.” I waved my hands in front of my torso. “I wouldn’t even know where to begin. I’d probably give myself away.”
“Well, Lexi and I can be there to help,” Charlotte jumped in.
I shot her a flat look. “You can’t seriously be in favor of this.”
She grinned. “I’m all in. And we’ll be there to help every step of the way. Trust us, Beth. We’ll get you all of the answers you need.”
Doubt and suspicion clouded my head, but it was pushed aside by yet another vision of Gabriel leaning in to kiss me only days ago. I seriously couldn’t get rid of it. And yet, seeing that memory again only made me want to know more. Did he really like me? There was only one way to find out and as much as I hated to admit it, Lexi was right.
“Fine.” I grabbed my backpack I’d abandoned in the shadows and flung it over my shoulder. With a warning glare in each of their directions, I turned toward the exit. “We’re doing this. But whatever happens is on you, so I hope you’re ready for this.”
I didn’t miss their high-pitched squeals of excitement as I exited the rear stage. All I could do was shake my head and hope I hadn’t just given myself over into the hands of two masters of mayhem.
Whatever happened tonight, I wasn’t going
to let it change me or my goals.
I still had a game to win.
Chapter Thirteen
“Guys, I don’t know about this.”
I stared at my computer screen, my palms suddenly getting sweaty. Gabriel hadn’t logged in yet. We’d both agreed to be there ten minutes before the game started to make sure we didn’t repeat the near miss of the first round. We were up against a sophomore and a junior from Rock Valley. While both had decent stats, I was confident that we could take them down. What I wasn’t sure about was whether I wanted to continue with this crazy plan of interrogating Gabriel about me.
“Come on, Beth, he won’t suspect a thing.” Lexi sat perched on the desk next to my laptop, wearing a cream mini skirt and yellow tights. She was chewing on a pen and practically vibrating with excitement. “You can trust us.”
Riiiiiight. I seriously doubted whether Lexi had the same kind of concern for my self-preservation as I did. She lived for the match. She’d practically thrown Charlotte and Hunter together last summer. I’d seen her matchmaking styles. They were haphazard, at best.
“If he likes you, maybe he’ll ask you to the winter ball,” Charlotte said excitedly, her gaze scanning the screen.
“Ooooh, good idea, Char.” Lexi squealed and rubbed her hands together. “Triple date. Perfection.”
I rolled my eyes. That was so far from anything on my current list of fears and anxieties. We didn’t need to add a high school dance to the mix. Where would I find a dress this late in the game? Did I even know how to dance? And was Gabriel the school dance type?
Ugh—I didn’t even know for sure if he liked me and already I was worried about it. This was getting ridiculous. That’s what I got for hanging out with two girly girls all of the time.
But I didn’t have to worry about it for much longer. Battlescar13’s username lit up at that moment, sending a jolt of fear through me.
“Look, he’s on.” I leaned closer to the monitor, pushing off the sudden desire to throw up. “What do I do? Tell me what to do.”
“Be calm.” Charlotte put a hand on my shoulder. “Wait until he says something first.”
I nodded numbly. She was right. There was no use rushing into this situation. Better to let Gabriel take the lead. Just like he had the other day when he’d kissed me.
Pressing my knuckles to my lips, I grimaced into my fist. Miracle of miracles, somehow today I’d managed to avoid Gabriel at school. Tomorrow, I wouldn’t be so lucky. We had anatomy class together. For the first time in a long time, I was seriously considering playing hooky. Or maybe even dropping out altogether. Maybe I could convince my parents that getting my GED early would be the way to go. At least it would save me from all of this embarrassment.
Battlescar13: Hey partner — what’s shaking? Ready to rock this thing?
I stared hard at Gabriel’s casual greeting. Lexi and Charlotte had pretty much convinced me yesterday that there was no way Gabriel could know this was me. At the same time, I couldn’t help but wonder how our dialogue would’ve been different if he’d known there was a girl on the other end. Would we have gotten so comfortable with each other over the past few months? Would I have ever gotten to the know the real him?
“I got this,” Lexi said, sliding off the desk and forcing my rolling desk chair out of the way. I watched helplessly as she typed out a response.
CurrerBFighting: Not much. Just having some girl problems, lately.
Had to shake that off before the big battle.
She sent them before I could protest.
“Wait!” I rolled my chair closer, my eyes running over the words she’d typed. “Don’t you think that’s too obvious? He’s going to see right through it.”
Sitting back on her heels, she gave a satisfied smack of her lips. “Nope. It’s the perfect opening. Now, we’ll be able to ask him anything. You’ll see.”
We all waited several agonizingly long seconds before a new message appeared on the screen. I was pretty sure I was going to chew my nails down to nubs. Leaning closer, I squinted at his message.
Battlescar13: Man, I hear you. Same problems here.
My heart jerked in my chest. So he admitted to having issues. Was that about me? What problems was he talking about?
“Take it easy, B.” Charlotte pulled my hand away from my mouth and frowned at my ragged nail. “You’re making me even more nervous.”
“Sorry.” I pulled my cap a little tighter over my ears and tried to lean back casually in my chair.
“See, what did I tell you?” Lexi grinned at the screen, flexed her fingers, and then typed again. “Master manipulator right here. We’ll get the story out, whether he likes it or not.”
I tried not to glare at the back of her perfectly curled hair as she typed in a reply to my battle partner.
CurrerBFighting: You got a girl? What she like?
This time, we didn’t have to wait as long for a reply, which was a balm to my ready-to-explode heart.
Battlescar13: She’s sexy. And crazy smart. And definitely not my girl.
Charlotte and Lexi both let out some whoops and hollers as they prodded me in the sides. I twisted my lips to one side, unconvinced by his answer.
“He could be talking about anyone,” I said, pointing at the screen. “You don’t know that’s about me.”
“Right.” Lexi rolled her eyes. “Because that description doesn’t fit you perfectly.”
Maybe the smart bit was on key, but sexy? Not in a million years. He had to be talking about someone else. I gave her a dry stare. She huffed and went back to the keyboard to reply.
CurrerBFighting: Why haven’t you snapped her up?
The pressure was starting to get to me. I hopped out of the chair and paced my floor, until the dinging of an incoming message had me rushing back to view the screen between Charlotte and Lexi’s heads.
Battlescar13: Well...we kissed on Saturday.
And then she ran away as fast as she could.
Pretty sure that’s a sign that she hates me.
Am I crazy?
I did a double take on the computer screen, my insides squirming with excitement. He did mean me! I was the sexy and crazy smart girl he’d been talking about. I felt so pleased that it was as if my feet were floating five inches about the carpet. No one had ever called me that. Gabriel liked me. Me!
But it didn’t take long for that elation to be replaced by a guilty sort of misery, bringing me back down to the ground hard. I reread Gabriel’s words over and over again, imprinting them like scars on my soul. I’d been so worried about myself since our date at the ice rink that I hadn’t even stopped to consider what my running out had done to Gabriel. He thought I hated him. He shouldn’t have been so hard on himself. None of this was his fault. It was my own stupid hang-ups causing all the issues.
“Told you!” Lexi pointed at the screen and laughed maniacally. “Can I call them, or what? He totally likes you.”
I looked up at both of them, my eyes wide. “He really does?”
Charlotte rubbed a hand across my back. “Looks like it. And how does that make you feel?”
I could sense the tone beneath her question. They were both looking for something more than a quick okay or fine, like I would’ve normally given them. How did this make me feel? Only a couple weeks ago, I’d been convinced that Gabriel was as terrible as his brother. Since then, so much had changed. He wasn’t terrible. He was kind and sweet and attracted to me, for whatever reason. He made me feel...wanted. In a way I’d never felt before. And I couldn’t push off this feeling I got whenever we were together. It was a magnetic desire. One that had me rethinking all of my previous conceptions.
Gabriel liked me.
It wasn’t just a fake kiss.
He really had wanted me.
And I wanted him.
It was like someone had turned on full force the water faucet to my feelings for Gabriel. They hit me all at once, like a tidal wave of ooey gooey sensations that I would’ve died
before ever confessing to. I liked Gabriel. I really did. And I wanted to kiss him again.
I felt like I could fly. Or dance. Or scream with happiness. That was, until I looked at the clock and realized we had two minutes left until game time.
And I was reminded what this game meant to our relationship.
“I feel...” Swallowing hard, I stared at the screen. “I feel like I’m going to have to drop out of this competition.”
Lexi’s jaw dropped and Charlotte nearly fell from where she leaned on the desk. They both stood up straight, demanding that I explain myself. Honestly, until the words had left my mouth, I hadn’t understood their implications. But now, everything was starting to fall together in one warped, horrible version of an expert level first player shoot-out. There was nowhere left to go. Only me and the bots I’d created to destroy myself.
“Think about it.” I began pacing again, the warm bubbly feelings inside my chest fighting with the sense of dread I got every time I looked at the screen. “If I fight the final battle, I’m going to have to reveal my identity. Gabriel will know that I’m CurrerBFighting. And then, he’ll realize that I manipulated him into confessing that he liked me.”
“Maybe he won’t care,” Charlotte offered.
I shot her a harsh look. “Doubt it. Can you imagine if I’d found out Gabriel was pumping me for information online? I’d never trust him again. Maybe he would’ve forgiven me before now—if I’d confessed that it was me on the other side of the computer. But now, he’s going to know that I used him to get information out of him. He’s going to think I played him, not only for the tournament, but also with his feelings.”
“No that’s ridicu—” Lexi’s face fell as she began to understand. “Oh, no. You’re right. I didn’t think this far ahead.”
“But you can’t give up the tournament. You can’t give up being the first girl at Rock Valley to win. It’s your dream.” Charlotte looked about ready to cry.
I paced the room some more, the seconds ticking down until the battle began. My head was swirling with accusations and pleading. I couldn’t believe I’d let this catfishing thing get so out of hand. All I’d wanted was to prove myself. And maybe get a little justice on the side. Now, either way I went, I lost out on something. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. I wasn’t the one who was supposed to lose.
Dare You to Catfish the Hockey Player (Rock Valley High Book 6) Page 10
