“Beth, you don’t have to make a decision today.” Lexi rolled my chair back in front of the keyboard and nodded at it. “Fight this battle. Make it into the finals. And then, you can decide what you’re going to do.”
Relief washed over me. She was right. I could battle today. It was the last round that mattered. The round that I finally had to show my face. That cleared a bit of the noise going on inside of my head. With a grateful nod at her, I took my seat and looked up at the clock. Fifteen seconds to battle. That was all the time I had left to give to worrying. After that, it was all about the game.
My hands hesitated over the keyboard for a second, before I typed a quick reply to my partner.
CurrerBFighting: I’m sure she doesn’t hate you.
Maybe this girl just needs some time to figure out what she feels.
Don’t hate on yourself.
You’re a good guy.
I hated the fact that I’d made Gabriel doubt himself. And now with this battle raging inside of me, things weren’t about to get any easier. I wished I could just walk up to him and tell him he wasn’t crazy. That there was a connection between us. If only I’d been brave enough to do that before manipulating him online.
Battlescar13: Thanks.
I hope you’re right.
“You know, maybe in the end, Gabriel really won’t care,” Charlotte suggested, kneeling next to me.
I smiled sadly at her, although my heart was pretty sure she was wrong. I’d been so worried about Gabriel playing me and look where it got me. I was using the sweetest, kindest boy at Rock Valley for my own ends. If I were him, I would never forgive myself.
“Thanks, girls, but it’s time for me to focus,” I said, clicking on my weapons stores. “Just make sure to save me a pint of double chocolate chip for after the game. I’m going to need it.”
The game had changed.
No longer was this about getting revenge on Gabriel and Michael. It was about figuring out a way to undo the damage I’d done.
And decide what I wanted more: Gabriel or justice.
Chapter Fourteen
I thought I knew what torture was. I’d watched enough war movies with my dad to have a pretty good idea of torture techniques used to get a prisoner of war to talk. The slow drip, drip, drip of a drop of water on a prisoner’s face. A little psychological warfare. That was nothing, nothing compared to walking into anatomy class the next day and seeing Gabriel sitting at our shared desk.
How I wished I could tell him that I liked him, too, but we’d won our battle last night. And now, we were both headed to the championship round at the club on Saturday morning—every man and woman for themselves. So if I went down that road and told Gabriel that I liked him too, I’d have to drop out of the competition here and now. Because there was no way he’d ever like me after he found out my online identity.
I wasn’t ready to give up on my dream. Not yet.
But it didn’t help that Gabriel was looking completely delicious in a ¾ zipped red sweater with a popped collar. He’d mussed his hair and neglected to shave, giving him the slightest shadow along his chin. It was a good look. One that made my knees quiver slightly. And when he looked up from his phone to make eye contact with me across the room, I just about fell to the ground.
Suddenly, I wished I’d rethought my outfit this morning. I’d worn a black Harry Potter cardigan with the Gryffindor symbol on the chest, black denim skirt, and fleece-lined black tights. It was about as fancy as I got. But now, I felt utterly despondent. This was nothing like the other girls in class were wearing. They had bright colors and frills and lace. They’d combed their hair into fancy updos and braids. All I’d managed to do was wrestle my curls into something that fell over my shoulders in a way that didn’t look like I’d been hit by lightning on the way to school.
Stop it, I told myself as I forced my feet forward. I could’ve kicked myself for being so pathetic. He likes you. You read it yourself last night. Stop comparing yourself to everyone else.
Still, it wasn’t easy. Confirming that Gabriel liked me might have changed most everything in my world, but it didn’t change my own struggles with my insecurities. If anything, it had magnified them. After all, there was no telling when Gabriel would open up his eyes, take a good look at me, and realize he’d been crazy to fall for someone like me.
I had to stop doing that. Lexi would’ve slapped me for having such thoughts. No one talked like that about her friends, she would say.
“Hey,” I said, plopping my backpack down on the desk. I slid into my seat, not daring to look at him. A thousand pounds weighed on my shoulders. All the lies and secrets and memories of a sweet kiss pressing down at once.
“Cool sweater.” He exhaled with a hint of hesitance. “You look...you look really nice today.”
“I do?” I looked up at him to find him staring at me with what looked like a combination of regret and hunger in his eyes. My cheeks burned hot and I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. “Thanks.”
“I’m a Gryffindor, too.” He lifted up his backpack to show me a gold lion pinned on his strap. “We’re the best.”
“Yes, we are.” I grinned to myself, the self-conscious thoughts about my outfit melting away. Gabriel liked it. Maybe I wasn’t so bad at this after all.
“Hey, Frye, where’s the funeral at?” Michael called from his seat, immediately drowning my good mood. “You look like you’re going to a wake. Didn’t someone tell you that the whole emo thing is out?”
He threw a crumpled up piece of paper at me. It landed on the desk and slid to a stop. I flattened it and on the front was one little word: Poser. My face burned again, but this time, it was anger rising to the surface. I took the paper in my hand and crushed it into a ball as hard as I could. Charlotte turned in her seat to give me a concerned look. She probably knew exactly all the ugly thoughts running through my head right then.
“Ignore him,” Gabriel whispered in my ear. The soft tickling sensation of his warm breath against my ear made me shiver. “He’s in a mood today. You look great.”
I was caught between my hatred for Michael and the way his twin was causing my stomach to do somersaults. Standing up from my seat, I considered whether I should throw the paper back in Michael’s face. It would feel good and Mr. Hart hadn’t arrived to class, yet. Plus, Michael was watching me, his haughty grin egging me on to make some kind of drastic move. But instead of giving him the satisfaction, I marched toward the trash, kept solid eye contact with him, and dropped it in the basket with a smirk.
“Nice,” Gabriel said as I took my seat again next to him.
I glared at Michael one last time before turning my attention to getting my textbook out. “Well, you know, someone’s got to stand up to him.”
It took me several seconds before I realized the silence between us had grown heavy. I glanced over at Gabriel to see him glaring at his book as if he’d like to drill a hole through it with the power of his mind. That little tension line between his eyebrows was back and deeper than ever.
“That wasn’t meant to be a punch at you,” I said quickly, reaching over to place my hand on his arm. “I was just frustrated.”
His gaze shot straight to my hand where it rested partially on his sleeve and two of my fingertips brushing against his wrist. I could’ve sworn the tips of his ears reddened. Electricity pulsed up my arm and straight to my head, where I was quickly trying to think of all the reasons why I should drop out of the tournament and abandon it all for the boy sitting next to me. Pulling my arm away, I swallowed hard and hid my hands in my lap. No more touching. Not until I knew exactly what I wanted.
“All right, folks, quiet down,” Mr. Hart announced as he walked into the room. Behind him trailed a portly man wearing a stark white lab coat. “Since I know you’re all working hard on your projects with your partners and getting ready to present on Tuesday, I thought we could have a special guest today. I’d like to introduce Mr. Boyer. He’s a lab tech at our clinic in town
and he’s going to show you all how to test your partner for their blood type today. Come grab a finger stick and a test.”
I jumped up, grateful for the distraction. Everyone in the class grabbed their supplies and eventually made their way back to their seats. Mr. Boyer gave an in-depth lecture about blood types and what they meant, but I was having a hard time focusing on what he was saying. Every time Gabriel shifted next to me, his knee would bump mine and cause a thrill to go through me. I wasn’t sure if he was doing it on purpose, but I was about to miss out on an entire class-worth of test material because of him.
“Are you ready?” he asked suddenly.
I blinked over at him, unsure what had just happened. “For what?”
“To test our blood.” His lip quirked into a half grin. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of a little needle.”
“Never.” I rolled up the sleeve of my cardigan and displayed the bluish veins at the crook of my elbow. I never wanted anyone to be able to call me a sissy. Especially not the boy next to me. “I’m ready when you are.”
He arched a brow and chuckled. “Easy, tiger. Put the guns away. It’s just a finger poke.”
“Oh, right.” I blushed and yanked my sleeve down. That was what I got for not paying attention to the lecture. I reached for the finger prick and fumbled with it. “How’s this thing supposed to work?”
I was totally losing my mind. I was going to make a fool of myself in front of Gabriel. That was what I got for messing with him last night. I should’ve just let the whole thing go. If I’d gone on letting myself think that he was just playing me, I wouldn’t have been acting like such a klutz. Instead, my mind would be solidly on the final round of the gaming tournament on Saturday morning instead of trying to figure this dang contraption out.
“Here, let me.”
Gabriel gently took the poker thing from my hand and held out his hand, palm up. My gaze flicked up to his and back down to his palm as I slid my hand into his. If touching knees was distracting, that was nothing to having him cradle my hand in his. Softly, his hand closed around mine and maneuvered my fingers so that he could aim the device at the edge of my pointer finger.
“It doesn’t hurt as much if you prick the side of your finger,” he explained. With a last glance up at me, he gave me a solemn expression. “Ready?”
I nodded, unable to speak with him looking at me like that. He held my hand steady and then pressed the button on the top of the device, which released a spring action needle into the side of my finger. Gabriel was right, it barely stung. And when he let go of my hand, a bright red droplet of blood sat on top of my finger.
“Here.” He slid a testing strip over to me.
I caught the drop of blood on the strip and then used a cotton ball to dab my finger. In the meantime, Gabriel didn’t flinch as he did his own finger pricking with a new contraption and test. I was kind of in awe at the confident way he moved. It was as if he’d done this a thousand times before. Looking around the classroom, most of the other kids were still figuring out how to use their pokes or get up the courage.
“How did you know how to do that?” I asked.
He shrugged then smiled at me. “My mom’s a home health care nurse. Once in a while, I stop by to see her on her weekend shifts. She’s got a couple diabetics who have to do this all the time.”
“Wow. That’s intense.”
“It can be.” He shrugged again. “But she loves the people. And it’s pretty much a guarantee that I can’t see one of her clients without leaving with a plastic container full of cookies.”
“Ha! Now we know the real reason why you act all sweet. It’s for the sugar, isn’t it?”
“Got me.” He chuckled and then glanced hesitantly over at me. “You think I’m sweet? After the way you ran out on Saturday, I wasn’t so sure you’d even want to be in the same room as me anymore.”
My heart stuttered to a stop. I flapped my mouth uselessly, grasping for the right words to say. What I would’ve given to be able to come all clean to him. To put everything out on the table. But I knew I couldn’t. Not now. Not after I’d manipulated him.
“It’s okay, Beth.” Gabriel chuckled, although there wasn’t any humor in the sound. “We’re still friends, right?”
The hope in his eyes was enough to make me want to kick myself. He tried to mask it with an easy-going smile, but it was still there. Wanting more, but happily settling for something less.
“Of course, we’re friends.” I nodded.
“Good.” He stared down hard at our test strips and then grabbed mine. “Hey look, you’re AB negative.”
I scanned the info sheet we’d been given with the test strips. “What’s that mean?”
“It means you’re the rarest blood type in the world. It figures.”
My gaze shot up to his. “What figures?”
He put the test down and then winked at me. “I always knew there was something special about you.”
A balloon filled with liquid warmth burst right beneath my ribcage. I ducked my head, trying to hide my pink cheeks. How many times could a girl blush in a matter of an hour? It had to be a condition. An unhealthy one. My face was starting to feel sunburnt.
“By the way, are you free tomorrow night?” Gabriel asked, looking at his own test and scribbling something in the margins.
Excitement danced in my stomach. Did he want to get together? Was he asking me out? Wednesday night was a little weird for a date, but I wasn’t opposed to a school night. Or any night with Gabriel. It would give me the extra time I needed to make up my mind on what I wanted to do.
I sat up a little taller and leaned forward on the desk. “Yeah, I’m totally free.”
“Good, let’s get together after practice and finish our anatomy project,” he said, folding the paper in half.
It was a good thing he was so intent on his test because he didn’t get to see the way my face fell. I sat back in my seat, feeling the disappointment wash over me. Totally not a date.
“Yeah, that works. At the rink again?”
“That works for me.” He slid the folded paper toward me on the table. The bell rang and he jumped up, pulling his bag over his shoulder. “See you then.”
“See you.” I watched him walk toward the exit, feeling utterly helpless at the sight.
He definitely knew how to make me forget about the tournament and that whole world domination thing. It was far too tempting to abandon my plans whenever he touched me. Or smiled. Or even looked at me.
When he was finally gone, I opened the paper he’d slid to me and stared down at the doodle he’d scribbled in the margin. It was a picture of a girl with a Gryffindor logo on her chest and a cape flapping out behind her. She held her fist high and her wavy hair fell over her shoulders. She was smiling victoriously, as if she had everything in the world figured out.
A smile touched my lips. I folded the paper drawing back up and hugged it close to my chest, feeling the warmth that it brought spread to my limbs.
“Whatcha got there?” Charlotte asked, bouncing toward my desk with her textbook in her arms.
“Oh, it’s nothing. Just my blood type results.”
Suppressing my smile, I followed her out of the classroom and down the hall. All the while, my heart and brain were whirling.
I’d figure out what to do.
One way or another.
Chapter Fifteen
My attention wasn’t into the algebra or AP History homework I’d brought home to do tonight. It wasn’t into the dozens of TV channels I flipped through on my TV in my room after supper. It kept wandering toward the doodle I’d pinned up on my cork board—the one Gabriel had slid across the desk toward me after class. Every time I looked at that thing I couldn’t help but grin and feel a fuzzy warm glow in my stomach. I wanted to see him again. Tomorrow was too far away for a study date. I needed to talk to him now.
And so when my computer suddenly dinged with an incoming message, I scrambled to the keyboard, near
ly overshooting the seat of my chair. It was from the Battlegrounds app. I pulled it up and bit back a smile when I saw Battlescar13’s name blinking with an unread message.
Battlescar13: Hey what up?
So maybe this wasn’t exactly my preferred way of communicating with the boy who’d gotten me all dizzy, but it was better than nothing. I typed in my reply and stared eagerly at the screen.
CurrerBfighting: Not much.
Avoiding homework. You?
Battlescar13: Same.
Want to battle?
I could use some more practice before the final this weekend.
CurrerBfighting: Heck yes!
You’re gonna do so awesome.
Battlescar13: Honestly, I’m just gunning for second.
We both know you’ll take first.
I smiled to myself, picturing Carl handing me the trophy while Michael stood nearby, his face tomato red with envy. What a beautiful image.
CurrerBfighting: Whatever happens, happens.
But I do hope we’re both in the top two.
As Gabriel set up the battle ring for us, my gaze darted back up to the drawing. I wished I could ask him about that. What did it mean? Was that how he saw me? As some kind of Wonder Woman? I didn’t hate it. Not at all. But CurrerBfighting wouldn’t know about that drawing. If I mentioned it, Gabriel would immediately become suspicious. There had to be another way. I hesitated for a moment, an idea playing in my head, but typed the words out before I could stop myself.
CurrerBfighting: What happened to that girl from the other night?
The one that ran away?
There was a long wait between when Gabriel got the fight set up and when he finally answered. Each second was agony.
Battlescar13: We’ve got a study date for tomorrow night.
My heart sped up a little at the sight of his message. He called it a date! A study date, but still, at least he hadn’t permanently shoved me into the friend zone after our last disaster of a study date.
Dare You to Catfish the Hockey Player (Rock Valley High Book 6) Page 11
