by A. R. Perry
“God forbid.”
“The other day Mom straight up told me that I’ll never get a boyfriend if I keep acting like one of the guys.” She wipes her hands on a dishtowel and turns toward me. “First of all, I had a boyfriend freshman year—”
“That lasted a week, right?” I close the door to the dishwasher, moving to lean on the counter next to her.
“He was a Browns fan. That’s unacceptable. But whatever. It’s already proven her wrong. He appreciated my love of sports and that I could crush him in any video game setting.”
“Must have been nice to beat someone for a change.”
She pushes off the counter, snapping me with the dishtowel. “For your information, Ryan has never beaten me. And I’m pretty sure I whooped your butt hard last week in Fortnite.”
True, but I’ll never admit it. “What was the point of this tale again?”
“Right.” She slashes her hand through the air and grabs an empty can of soda off the counter. “My point is, a dress doesn’t change who I am. Deep down I’ll still know all the stats of this year’s draft and have my roster planned out weeks in advance for fantasy football.”
“Though planning didn’t save you from being crushed this year.” I wince as she punches my shoulder. Growing up with three brothers, the girl knows how to hit with the perfect amount of force.
“And prancing around in pink won’t win me the guy, right? Isn’t it better to just be me and let the right guy find me?”
My stomach does a somersault souring the taste of the lasagna. Truth is, I’ve been waiting two years for her to realize I’m her perfect match but it seems I’m so deep in the friend zone I’m not even a blip on her radar.
“Jax, for example,” she carries on not noticing the pained expression on my face when she drops his name. The guy is a tool not worthy of thinking about Ry. “He said I had mad basketball skills when he saw me in PE. Scrubbed out and sweaty as all hell. Tell me that’s not a great foundation for a relationship.”
“Jax dates cheerleaders. Girls who don’t know the first thing about sports besides how to shake a pom-pom and do the splits.”
“That’s not true. I actually had a conversation with Hannah and she matched my level of knowledge when it comes to football. You’re just bitter because Haylee turned you down for homecoming.”
“To go out with Jax.”
Her lower lip juts out in the most adorable pout. “So you’re agreeing with my mom. To get a guy, I need to change who I am.”
“No.” I gather the rest of the garbage off the counter and throw it into the bin with a bit too much force. “What I’m saying is that you need to find the right guy. One who appreciates you for you.”
“But the only guy who does is you.”
Exactly! I scream inside my head.
“And even you date the exact same girl you just described for Jax. So what, am I going to be alone forever doomed to live with ten cats who eventually eat me when I die and no one notices all because I got stuck with three brothers and a dad who had a football jersey picked out for me before the doctor delivered the blow of me being a girl?” She takes a deep breath after her epic one-breath rant.
I place my hands on her shoulders and give them a shake. “What I think is that you should focus on getting through this wedding. Then we can go through the yearbook one page at a time so I can tell you why each guy at our school isn’t worthy of your attention. Especially Jax.”
Rylee’s face lights with a smile as I pull her in for a hug.
I’m going to miss this.
“I gotta get home. Need my beauty sleep.” I throw a wink over my shoulder as I slip out the side door.
My dad’s car is still gone. He’s been staying at the local Holiday Inn. No clue what they’re going for, but soon our neighbors will notice his absence. They can keep the separation quiet for only so long.
And when it blows up, I’ll have to tell Rylee that our plan of ruling Roseville High senior year then running off to Oregon State is about as likely as the Browns winning the Super Bowl.
Or as likely as her realizing I’m the right guy she’s been wishing for.
“How’d you do on the pop quiz?” I ask Spencer as we make our way down the jam-packed hallway. It’s Friday and everyone is so ready to get out of here.
“Crashed and burned. Mrs. Miller said she’ll be offering extra credit next week. I’ll need it so I don’t have to take world history again.”
“And pass eleventh grade.” I sidestep a group of kids loitering by the exit. “I’d hate to leave you behind when I run off to Oregon.”
Spencer flashes me a tight smile and rubs the back of his neck. As of late, that’s his reaction every single time I bring up college. If he has other plans, he’d better tell me soon because I’m banking on him being there with me as freshman.
“So. Wedding tomorrow.” Spencer twists his baseball hat around and squints at me. “What level of stress monster will your mom be?”
“Twelve.”
“The scale only goes to ten.”
“Exactly.” I drop my new board on the ground and place a foot on it. “You know how she is with these kinds of things. Always the perfect family. One of these times I swear I’m going to roll up in some ripped jeans and let loose an F-bomb. Watch her face melt right off.”
“No, you won’t. Not until you’re about to move out, that is.”
“Truth-bomb and run? Sure to make holidays awkward for the foreseeable future.”
I push off with my right foot, rolling down the crowded sidewalk, zigzagging in and out of people as Spencer follows behind. We will ultimately end up at the skate park, but we hate waiting in traffic to get out of school. Plus, riding around on campus usually pisses off a few teachers, which is a happy bonus.
Hey, they piss us off daily with their pop quizzes and group projects where only one person does the bulk of the work. We have to take our shots where we can.
“Movie night tonight?” Spencer asks from behind me.
I swivel my head his way then crash into something, feeling the impact in my stomach before losing my footing. Air leaves my body as I tumble to the ground, catching my forearm on the cement first and sending a jolt through the rest of my arm. A faint groan follows the collision alerting me to the fact that it was someone I ran into and not something.
With a palm on my throbbing forehead, I sit up and first see Spencer jogging toward me, with concern written all over his face. The fall was brutal so I’m sure it looked nasty. And if it was nasty for me, I can only imagine what the poor bystander felt.
“I’m so sor—” My gaze lands on a face that has made a nightly appearance in my dreams the past few months. All words leave me as gorgeous blue eyes stare back at me…with a large dose of irritation.
“Jax,” I sigh and dust the dirt off the knees of my jeans hoping he didn’t hear the longing in my voice. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t see you there.”
“Looking helps with that.” Jax pushes up the muscles in his forearms flexing from the effort and offers me a hand. “You okay?”
The second my skin touches his rainbows shoot across the sky. Unicorns fart glitter. Fireworks erupt in every single one of my nerves…and I lose the ability to think straight.
“Uh, yeah. Great,” I stammer, trying and failing to regain my composure. “Well, not great. Kinda feels like I ran into a wall. Which, hey, good for you.” I land a soft punch to his arm then cringe.
Stop talking.
Spencer returns to my side, holding my board. It must have flown off somewhere in the crash. Thank goodness he found it before a car crushed it because I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to convince my dad to sneak me another advancement to replace it.
“So…” Jax pivots toward the school his eyes ticking between Spencer and me and I swear he looks as if I might give him cooties or run him over again. “See you later?” He doesn’t wait for any kind of response before walking away toward a group of guys laughing their as
ses off.
I let my head drop into my cupped hands. “I’m such an idiot.”
“Not an idiot. Just…awkward.”
I glare at him through my splayed fingers. “So much better.”
Spencer hands over my board and shrugs. “Why do you care?”
“Uh, hello. I mowed over the guy I’m in love with.” The last part comes out as a whisper. I know Jax can’t hear me since he’s rounded the corner and I’ve lost sight of him, but still. Can’t be too safe.
Spencer’s nose wrinkles. “In love? Come on, you’ve said a total of thirty words to the guy. How are you in love?”
“Shut up!” I shove him, my whole face burning because, Jesus, he kinda screamed the whole me loving Jax thing. “Keep your voice down.”
“Okay.” Spencer holds his hands up and laughs. “But seriously. Crushes aren’t the same as love. You gotta know someone way better than that to love them.”
“Says Mr. Two Semi-Serious Girlfriends?”
“That’s a long pet name.” Spencer nudges me and walks off toward the parking lot.
I jog after him, grimacing at the pain in my knee. Walking in heels tomorrow should be fun.
“Just admit that you have no clue what being in love feels like.” I catch up to him and fall in line with his wide strides. Glad I got my father’s height. “You’ve dated two girls all of high school and have gone out with a handful of other girls once.”
“Which gives me more experience to say you can’t fall in love with someone you don’t know.”
“Jax hangs out with Will all the time.”
Spencer unlocks his car with a sigh. “And you hide in your room or over at my house. Again, having a crush doesn’t equal love.”
“I don’t hide.” He throws me a yeah, sure, look. “Okay, fine.” I toss my bag and board into his back seat. “But that’s only because my mouth freaks out every single time he’s around and I either go mute or can’t stop words from flying out and smacking his eardrums with my stupidity.”
Spencer’s boisterous laugh fills the cab of the car as he pulls out of the parking spot and turns toward the road. “If only you could find a guy you are comfortable talking to without going into spaz mode.”
“Never going to happen. The only people who fall into that category are my brothers—gross—and you.” My phone dings in my pocket and I reach to grab it, not quite catching whatever grumbly thing Spencer mumbles.
I groan and bang my head on the seat when I see my mom’s text. “No skate park today. Mom says I already have enough bumps and bruises.”
“Well…there goes our afternoon.” Spencer taps his chin as we pull up to a red light. “Movie night?”
“Only if we stop at Edwin’s first for an Oreo shake.”
“Think your mom will approve what with you having to fit into a dress tomorrow?”
The devious smile Spencer throws my way makes his brown eyes sparkle. Geez, if I notice it, no wonder girls are always throwing themselves at him. Over the past few years, he’s transformed from a gangly kid into well, hot. Okay, yes, I think my best friend is hot. I would have to be blind not to see it. But where his smile melts the rest of the female population into a pile of goop, it just bounces right off my Spencer shield. The shield that popped up the day he ate a worm from my backyard. And, okay, I did dare him, but still.
That was the day he cemented his title as best friend. Even if I felt differently there’s nothing in the world that would make me risk that. Not even his perfect smile that became braces free last year but never lost the mischief. Or the way he makes me feel safe with every hug.
Spencer is my constant and I’ll never compromise what we have.
“Why are we watching this again?” Spencer whines as he fluffs my pillows and leans against the wooden headboard my dad made last year.
“Because it’s my favorite.” I tuck my legs underneath me as I scroll through our available titles, searching for tonight’s entertainment.
“How are you not sick of watching it?”
“Beautiful cars. Paul Walker. There will never be another combo quite like that.” I press Play when I reach The Fast and the Furious and fall back on my now pillowless bed. “Think I can have one of those?” I tug on the corner of my black pillowcase, but Spencer doesn’t budge.
“No way. If I have to suffer through this again, then you can be just as uncomfortable as me.” He sighs and stretches, bringing his hands to rest behind his head.
“Spencer.” I lean over him but all he does is smirk. No fear anymore. It used to be so much easier beating him up when I weighed more than him.
“I’ll trade you. A pillow for a new movie.”
The opening scene plays behind me but I’ve focused solely on my bed-hogging best friend. “You’re bargaining my pillows in my bedroom? I could just kick you out.”
He pinches my chin between his thumb and forefinger. “But you would never do that.”
A car revs and I really want to turn my attention to Paul Walker, but Mr. Smug needs to be dealt with. “And if I ask you to leave and never come back?” I lean forward until our noses are touching.
Spencer sucks in a sharp breath. “Then you would spend your nights with your mom. Face it, Everett, you need me here as a buffer. Besides, how boring would your life be without me?”
“I’d say it would be an improvement.” I reach for my pillow again, but Spencer is faster and snags my wrist. “Bad move, Hendricks.” With a hand behind his head and the other holding my wrist, he leaves himself open for the one thing he’s never grown out of.
My fingertips dig into his ribs and he immediately convulses under me, almost bucking me off the bed. His free hand shoves into my shoulder, but I lean into it doubling my efforts until he’s laughing so hard his eyes are watering.
“Give me a pillow!”
“Nev…er…” he gasps and rolls to the side, crumpling in a ball and cutting off my access to his ribs. He’s breathing heavily and the look he throws over his shoulder screams of revenge.
I yelp and try to roll away, but he’s way faster. Before I know what’s happening, I’m pinned under his full weight and he’s going for the one spot on my body where I’m ticklish. The one spot I can’t protect. My stupid knee.
I mean, who is ticklish on the knee?
Tears spring to my eyes as I fight the laughter and him. This is the exact reason I miss being taller and bigger than him. When he was a runt, I could take him down no problem.
We must have been louder than I thought because my door bangs open and Will’s annoyed face comes into view.
“Didn’t Mom say no boys in your bedroom? Oh wait, it’s just Spencer.” Will leans against the doorframe and grins. “Do you both wear date repellant or something? It’s Friday night—why are you home?”
“You’re home.” I shove Spencer off me and sit up. “But I’d wager a guess that’s just your face that’s a repellant.”
Spencer laughs but covers it up with a cough. For some reason, he’s always been a little scared of Will.
“For your information, Mom made me cancel a date because she wants me all rested for the wedding. I’m guessing you’re home because no one wants to spend time around you. Especially when you’re together.”
Spencer drops his gaze to the bed and my cheeks heat with anger. Before I can come up with a comeback Will is shutting the door.
“You might as well date each other. No one else will want you,” Will calls and then the door clicks shut.
“Ass,” I mumble and smooth out my hair. “He’s just grumpy because Ellie dumped him last week.
Spencer nods and glances at the clock above my TV. “I should get home—it’s pretty late.”
“It’s nine.”
He stands and ruffles my hair. “Yeah, but much like Will, I need my beauty rest.”
“Try to look better than me tomorrow.”
“Impossible.” His eyes find mine for a second before he sighs. “See ya tomorrow.”
After he leaves, I grab all the pillows that went flying during the war of the bed and pile them up. I try to concentrate on the movie, but Will’s voice keeps wiggling its way into my thoughts. Nothing would be better than making him eat his own words. Maybe it’s time I tried the whole dating thing again.
“Laugh and you die.”
Spencer stands by the front door looking amazing as always in his deep blue suit and black tie. To my surprise, his hair is slicked back giving me an unobstructed view of his face, which at the moment is trying to remain passive.
I adjust the evil contraption that is a push-up bra for the thousandth time since putting it on. Whoever invented underwire should be hung. With underwire.
I clutch the matching blush-colored heels my mom bought yesterday as I trudge down the rest of the steps. Didn’t trust myself not to get caught on the carpet and swan dive onto the hardwood floor.
Although a hospital visit is a far better alternative than another stupid wedding.
To my dismay, Spencer can no longer hide the amusement on his face when I stop at the base of the stairs. His lips are pinned between his teeth and I swear he’s seconds from suffocating on his own laugh.
“Tell me I’m beautiful.” I sink down on the bottom step and slide my right foot into the thing of death Mom calls slingbacks.
“Only you could pull off that shade of pink.” Spence extends a hand once my shoes are on, knowing I could break an ankle if I got up on my own.
“Hideous, right?” I smooth out the front, then adjust the satin bow at my waist. I would never admit it out loud, but the dress isn’t as hideous on. It gives me curves I never knew I had and my mom was smart enough to buy something with quarter sleeves and a longer hemline to cover my inevitable bruises.
Tell me again why she made a big deal about the scratch on my elbow?
“It looks great even though I can tell you’re itching to throw on a pair of Chucks.” He tucks one of the curls my mom spent way too long creating behind my ear, making me smile. If she knew someone was messing with her work, her head would explode.
