by K. Walker
“People expect us to…what?” I couldn’t believe he had just said that.
“Yeah. You’re my girl. You’re wearing my jacket. You should be where I am,” he said matter of factly, like he was stating a universal truth that had escaped me.
“In that case,” I said and slipped out of the jacket, “you can have this back.”
“No, don’t do that.” He stopped me and slipped it back up my arms and around my shoulders. He looked around nervously, and then smiled. “Look, you can sit where you want, but I love when you’re near me is all.” He leaned in close and kissed me on the cheek.
I sighed. “Yeah. You’re going to have to miss me a little bit today. I’ll hang with you later after the game, okay?”
“It’s a date,” he said before he tipped my face and kissed me.
I watched him walk away and then turned back to the girls. “No comments, please,” I told them. I didn’t need the shady commentaries.
“Now that’s how you handle a man,” Alexi replied with a broad grin.
I laughed and then the others did, too. “Nobody tells me what to do,” I said boldly, and dived into my salad.
“That’s my girl.” Alexi beamed and winked.
“So, any of you girls up for going with me to the lacrosse game later?” I knew I was asking them a lot, but they were my girls. They should go with me.
“Hell to the no!” Liz blurted out. “No way am I going there.”
“Come on, Liz. I would go with you to a football match.”
She sat up straight and gave me her best poker face. “Is that so? You don’t think Wes would mind you showing up to watch your ex playing a game?”
“No,” I said slowly and very uncertainly. “Besides, I wouldn’t be there to watch Chad. I would be there to support you watching your boyfriend.”
“Don’t be naïve, Sophia,” Liz scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Wes would have your head if you ever did anything he didn’t like. He’s not Chad.”
“He’s not Chad?”
“Liz, you’re going too far,” Amanda intervened.
“No, but she needs to know,” Liz argued, her eyes turning to slits in her face. “Your boyfriend is a piece of shit.”
“My boyfriend?” I asked, tapping my chest for emphasis. “What about all the things your boyfriend did to mine?”
She wrinkled her brows. “What are you talking about?”
“Nothing,” I replied and got up again. “I need to go.”
“No!” Alexi stood and blocked me. “You’re not leaving until you two make up. This is stupid!”
I glanced back at Liz. She raised her eyes briefly and nodded. I did the same. “There.”
“What kind of fucked up apology is that?” Alexi asked indignantly.
“One that’s not necessary,” Amanda replied. “They’re both right. It’s a conflict of interest, so I’ll go with you, Sophia.”
“Thanks, Amanda. You’re a true friend,” I replied, hurling my words at Liz.
Liz only narrowed her eyes some more and turned around.
“I’ll come, too,” Alexi said, “but only for a short while. My shift starts at five.”
“Thanks, girls. It means a lot to me.”
“Can’t,” Stacey said last. “Got an errand to run. And a project to start.”
“It’s cool.”
The bell rang, rescuing us from the end of a painful conversation. I knew I wasn’t really mad at Liz for not wanting to go to the game with me. Besides, she would probably be out with Cody and the boys, anyway.
And I knew Wes wouldn’t want to see me at a football game, even if I wasn’t cheering for Chad.
Speaking of which, I looked across the room and noticed he was already gone. Pity. I’d hoped he would be there – I could do with a little bit of him before class.
It was weird how he could be an ass sometimes, like ordering me in a creepy way to go back to the table with him, but when he wasn’t around, I would miss him.
Liz remained upset with me for the rest of the day. She didn’t say a single word until the last period when Cody threw his arm around her and they walked away. Maybe I deserved that for what I insinuated – the whole Robby thing and them setting up Wes. But I doubted she knew any of that and I didn’t want her to start doubting her boyfriend.
I would have to make up with her sooner than later.
“Like me, it’ll wear off,” Alexi promised me with a smile.
“Yeah, maybe,” I replied. “She seems pretty upset.”
“Well, you did say some mean things,” Alexi said in her defense as we walked off towards the field.
“I said some mean things?”
“Come on.” Alexi rubbed my shoulders as we walked. “You didn’t really expect her to sit there and watch you cheering for Wes, did you?”
“Yes, I did. Not cheering for Wes but being there with me. She’s supposed to be my girl.”
Amanda ran up to us right as we were about to exit the building. “Hey, why are you two leaving me?”
“We weren’t leaving you. You know where the field is,” Alexi grinned. “And please explain to Sophia why Liz couldn’t come.”
“Well, you just came to this school. It has history,” Amanda said with a roll of her eyes.
“Nuff said,” Alexi stated. “Now, let’s go watch some hot, sexy boys running around a field chasing each other with sticks.”
I laughed. “Wow. What a way to downplay a sport.”
Amanda giggled. “That’s exactly what it is, but they still look hot doing it.”
I spotted Wes as soon as we entered the stands, and he waved and jogged over. “Kiss me good luck.”
I reached up and pressed my lips to his. “Knock ‘em dead,” I whispered against them.
“Just for you, babe.”
I was back in heaven. Chad or no Chad, Wes was a damn hot catch. I cheered when the team was announced, and they ran onto the pitch.
“Okay, he’s your man, we get it,” Alexi stated the obvious and dragged me back to a sitting position. “Now sit and watch like the rest of us. I bet you don’t even know what’s going on.”
I laughed. “A little. You carry the ball with the lacrosse stick down the field and you avoid your opponents and score. Most points win.” I grinned at her and Amanda laughed at me.
“Yeah, that sums it up,” Amanda laughed and rocked into me. “I don’t need to know more than that.”
“Me neither,” I agreed, and started screaming again when I saw Wes collect a ball from Oliver and run down the field before he was tackled and went sprawling to the ground. “Ouch!” I winced and covered my face.
“Ah, he’s back up,” Alexi laughed.
The cheer squad hollered and hooted, shaking their pom poms and running up and down the sidelines.
“I don’t know how they do that.” I said with a shake of my head. I would rather play lacrosse.”
Alexi giggled. “Me. Too.”
“You are all terrible,” Amanda snickered. “But speaking of cheer idiots, Callie seems to have backed off of you. I thought for sure she would have blown up your car already or something.”
“Me, too. But I guess she was just lashing out because I was with Chad. We broke up so nothing to fuss over again.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right. Wes does serve a purpose after all.”
“Oh, he does more than that.” I winked.
“What?” Alexi leaned over and asked. “You fucked him?!”
“Sshh!” I whispered. “No. Not yet. But it’s going to happen, for sure. We need to get to third base first.”
“Ugh!” Alexi groaned. “I’m so afraid of those boys. They do dumb shit all the time. I hope you don’t get caught up in it.”
“You and me both. But he’s been nothing but sweet,” I told them. “Maybe he’s just a tough cookie on the outside, and nothing but caramel inside.”
“For your sake, I hope you’re right. You don’t mess with those guys and get away with it,
” Amanda pointed out. “That’s why I was so mad in the beginning.”
“I know.”
But they both had a point. As I watched Wes and his team demolishing the Santa Barbara players, I wondered what he would do if I told him I wanted to break up. I shuddered at the thought.
Why would I want to, anyway?
Chapter 15
I hated school even more. I hated arriving and seeing that damned Mustang parked where my car had been for the entire year.
Sure, it had been his spot before he went away, but it had been claimed. And now, I had to be competing for it.
I ground my teeth into my gums as I turned and parked under the tree instead. At least I had that spot. And I didn’t have to look hard to realize the Mini Cooper was not there, which meant she had probably come to school with him.
They were really getting to be an item, and it was fucking getting on my last nerve. She was my girl. I hit the car alarm and walked off, not stopping to check where the other guys were.
I needed a distraction, and there was only one place I would get it.
“Hi, Chad.” I knew that voice. I stopped and turned.
“Kelly. Hey.”
She swished her hips as she walked, her toned legs glistening in the morning sun, as she came up to me. “So, I was wondering, do you have any plans later?”
She must be out of her mind. She had been like every guy’s sex toy. “Yeah. Gym.”
“Pity,” she replied and bit her really red lower lip. She looked more like a stripper named Jasmine, than a high school senior named Kelly. “I had plans for that car.” She winked and trailed her hand over my chest as she circled me.
“Kelly, it’s not going to happen.” I turned around again, and saw as Wes threw his arm around Sophia. Kelly chose the wrong time to want a slutty conversation.
“Not like you have a girl or nothin’,” she insisted.
“Not fucking you in my car,” I answered and walked off. Girls like her always ended up alone – way too easy.
She had been my ‘one fuck and done’ chick before. She’d been one of many. But then there had been Sophia, and my head was screwed on all wrong afterward. Couldn’t even fuck another girl without her face drifting into my mind.
At that rate, I would lose my reputation, and I still didn’t have her. But that was going to end. I was Chad fucking Minor. Nobody toyed with me and got away with it.
I took out my phone and searched for Callie’s number.
Chad: Bitch, where are you?
Callie: You forget who you’re talking to.
Chad: Just answer the fucking question.
Callie: Fine. In homeroom.
Chad: Don’t move.
I clenched my jaw as I stormed off. I could see nothing but my hands wrapped around her freakin’ neck. She had been a nuisance for weeks, and it was about time it ended.
She was standing outside the doors of her homeroom when I entered the hallway. I took angry, giant steps over to her, snatched her by the elbow and pulled her over to the opposing wall.
“Callie, this shit ends right now!” I snarled at her.
Her blue eyes flashed with anger as she yanked her hand back. “Really? I guess your dad found another job.”
“You’ve made your point. Sophia and I are not together anymore. You can stop this bullshit!”
“I don’t think so,” she said and tried to turn her long blond hair falling over her shoulder.
I stepped in front of her and glared into her eyes. “You really don’t want to fuck with me any longer. I’ve had it. We’re done. And if you come after me, you’ll be so sorry.” I brushed past her, knowing all too well I didn’t have a plan of attack, but I was sick of her and this game she was playing.
“You know what?” she called after me. “It doesn’t matter anymore. I won. Sophia did me one better by hooking up with Wes.” I turned to look at her, and she was all smiles. “She doesn’t want you anymore.” She shrugged nonchalantly and walked off.
I stood in the middle of the hallway fuming. Not if I can help it.
I reached for my phone and tapped the Sophia icon. I still had her picture saved in my contacts.
Chad: I need to see you, please.
Sophia: Nope. Not happening.
Chad: Sophia, it’s important.
Sophia: Chad, it’s over. There’s nothing to talk about.
I knew it would be a waste of time trying to convince her to come and see me again. I would have to get inventive. I knew her class schedule like it was my own – I knew how to get to her, and when.
I fidgeted for the first two periods, just watching the time. I had never been so nervous in my life – not even when I had been in the car with Robby and so close to death. That had been all adrenaline and fight or flight mode.
This was something else altogether. And it felt worse. But this was my last shot with Sophia, and it was time she knew everything.
I stood by the supply closet, the one I knew she had to pass to get to her class. She was usually alone, and I hung back, hidden from view until she came into sight. When she neared the closet, I slunk over to her, took her by the arm and slipped inside the dark space before she knew what was happening.
“What the hell? Chad?” I tugged on the light switch and tried to cup her face with my hands. She slapped them away. “What are you doing?”
“I need to talk to you, and you left me no choice,” I told her. “I didn’t leave you because I wanted to.”
She folded her arms across her chest. “It doesn’t matter now how or why you dumped me. It’s over. I’m with Wes. There’s nothing more for us to talk about.” She started for the door and I stopped her.
“It was Callie. She threatened my father.” I watched as she turned to face me, her eyes bulged and her lips fell open. I raked my hair back. “If I didn’t break up with you, they would make my dad lose his license, his reputation, his status – ruin him basically. And then, there was your mother.”
“What about my mother?” she asked as she unwittingly came closer to me, as if to pry the words out of my mouth.
“Callie was going to have her fired.”
“That bitch!” Sophia snarled. “When I get my hands on her…”
“No worries. Leave her to me. But that’s why I had to end it, not because I wanted to. I’ve watched you with that snake for weeks and it’s been killing me. I want you back, Sophia,” I said and pulled her to me.
Before she could answer, I crushed my lips onto hers. I had missed her, and her lips felt like home as they touched mine. My body started to come alive, and everything inside me awakened.
Right before she pried herself away and pulled back. “No, Chad, we can’t do this. I’m still with Wes.”
“Drop his punk ass, babe. You know what we had.”
“I know,” she said softly and hugged herself. Her eyes glistened like she was on the verge of tears. “But I didn’t know any of this. I was hurt, and you were…Chad, you said some shitty things. You really hurt me.”
“I understand, Sophia. I didn’t have a choice. If I could change it I would. A lot of those things were said to keep you away from him. He’s not what you think, Sophia. He’s bad news.” I looked at her searching for anything. “I’ve never felt like this before. I really care for you.”
She sighed. “It still doesn’t change anything. We’ve moved on. You gave me no choice.”
I took her hand. “I haven’t moved on. I have to get you back. You were the only thing that made sense to me.” The tears slipped down her cheeks and punctured my heart. “No, don’t do that,” I told her and wiped them away. “Don’t cry.”
“We can probably be friends, but I can’t promise anything more than that.” She brushed away the remnants of her tears and turned to the door. “I have to go, Chad. I’m sorry.”
I didn’t want to force her into anything. I couldn’t have, but I still didn’t have her back, and I was pissed.
Cody wrinkled his brows when h
e saw me exiting the closet. “Don’t ask,” I told him. “Where you headed?”
“Lunch,” he replied. “I was just looking for you. You’ve been off all morning.”
“Yeah,” I said and glanced in the direction Sophia had just gone. “I just told Sophia why I broke up with her.”
Cody’s eyes followed her, too. “How did she take it? She wanna be your girl again?”
“Not yet,” I replied with disappointment. “But I’m going to get her back. Where’s everyone else?”
“Cafeteria,” Cody answered.
“Come on,” I told him and walked off.
The others were already waiting in the cafeteria when we got there, and I crashed onto the table and placed my feet on the seat. “Just told Sophia about what Callie did.”
“Man, I still can’t believe she did that. She is such a bitch!” Zeke spat and turned to growl at her. I looked too, and by the look on her face, she could tell they knew. She turned away quickly.
“I know,” I sighed. “I don’t know what I saw in her.”
“Well, good call on the breakup,” Jake added. “She’s got it coming.”
“You got that right. She’s not going to get away with it.”
“But what about Sophia? She gonna leave that punk ass?”
I cracked my knuckles and stared at the floor. “I don’t know. She’s pretty confused right now. She’s still with Wes, but she said we can be friends.”
“Friends?” Zeke scoffed. “Can you do that?”
“What kinda stupid question is that?” Cody asked him. “How the fuck can he be friends with her?”
I looked up and spotted her sitting on Wes’ lap. She glanced up and saw me, and I could see the discomfort as it traveled across her face. She shifted on his lap and whispered something in his ear before she got up and joined her girls.
Wes was staring at me when my eyes wandered back to the table. His scowl was deep when he stood and walked over to my table. I hopped off the table, desperate for something to channel my rage into. His face would do.
“She’s my girl, Minor!” he said and came up in my face. I pushed him back, just as the guys stood and his team hurried over.
“For a tough guy, you’re really insecure,” I mocked him. “Maybe you should tie her up. See if that will make her want you more, huh?”
