Andrea and the 5-Day Challenge

by Cindy K. Green

  I tried to repress it, but recollections of the incident from last year assailed me. I couldn’t go through another Jeff and Kasey entanglement. Being with Luke had been no picnic. After only a day, I already regretted pretty much everything…well, except the memories of last night. Those were really good, and I’d cherish them forever.

  But then he had to ruin the sacredness of our time by mortifying me in front of the entire student body. Now a hell-bent cheerleader wanted my head on a platter. And when I broached the subject of a date with my parents more heads would fly. Maybe I should just call it off. Wouldn’t that be easier?

  Out of nowhere, a flare of heat swept up from my chest and into my face. Possessiveness reigned in my heart as I remembered Steph’s words “Luke might have a distinctive change of heart by Friday.” I couldn’t let Stephanie steal Luke away from me. I’d been scared to allow myself to like Luke, but it was too late now. I had to face it. I’d fallen and fallen hard.

  Yesterday I’d stood up to Stephanie. I’d just have to find a way to do it again. Maybe I could make her understand. She had to have a soft spot somewhere. She was a human being and had to have a story behind the kind of person she had become.

  Well, I had two more class periods to work it out. I entered the classroom, keeping my eyes high so as not to make contact with Stephanie.

  Oh man, I forgot to read the first five chapters of The House of Seven Gables, and we’d probably have a pop quiz.

  ~*~

  I stared down the hall and realized the line in the sand had been drawn. I could almost hear the Old West music in the background. The only question which remained was if I’d cross it. Stephanie Ruiz had officially become my adversary. She had to know that I’d feel this way. It couldn’t be a surprise. Or maybe she really did think I was so in awe of her that I’d just roll over and play dead.

  I peeked out behind my locker door as Stephanie touched Luke’s arm and looked all beguiling into his eyes and laughing at whatever it was he said. Anger revved up inside me again. I was like a volcano about to erupt. Who knew I had such pent up rage. She’d better watch out; I just might discover that I’m a fire-starter.

  “Disgusting, isn’t it?”

  I barely noticed that Amy had come up next to me.

  “What?” This I said as my gaze remained glued to the couple several feet down the hall from me.

  “Stephanie. Just because she’s jealous of Dion and me.”

  “You and Dion?” This time I looked at her. “Do you really think she’s doing this just to get back at Dion?”

  “Well, sure. At least that’s part of it. Dion is homecoming king, and she missed her chance to be a part of the royal Aubrey court because Alisha was voted junior princess.”

  “And the other part?”

  “Katie Mulligan.”

  Now she had my undivided attention. “How is Katie involved?”

  “I heard she told Stephanie if she didn’t show up at homecoming with someone appropriate she was out.” Amy did that slashing motion in front of her neck like heads would be rolling.

  “Out? You mean kicked off the squad?”

  “No, not even head cheerleader Katie can do that, but she can demote Stephanie from co-captain.”

  Now it all made sense, and I didn’t feel one iota better about the situation.

  Stephanie had decided to punish me because of her cheer pecking order.

  “But why did she pick Luke?”

  “The same reason I mentioned to you earlier this week. He’s new, he’s cute and until today he was available.”

  I loved the way she overemphasized the “was.” Meaning he is now taken by me. At least for that one night. I tried to stifle the smile on my face.

  Observing Stephanie with Luke still made me want to hurl, but at least to some extent I understood what was happening. It wasn’t all about Luke as much as saving her reputation and maintaining her place of power.

  “You know what you should do?” Amy raised her eyebrows as though she had answers to all the world’s problems. And truly, she really believed she did.

  “What?” I said dryly. I usually got tired of Amy telling me what I should do. However, this time I was really curious.

  “Just breeze by them as if you couldn’t care less that Luke is talking to her. Smile even. And then, mark my words, Luke will leave her high and dry and follow you out the exit. She’ll be left standing there like the total troublemaker that she is.”

  “You really think so?” I focused on Luke as he closed his locker and slung his backpack over his right shoulder.

  “Absolutely.”

  I still wasn’t sold on what I should do. As angry as Stephanie had made me, I didn’t want to be mean to her. That wasn’t the right reaction, either. Figuring out how to handle her wasn’t going to happen right now.

  “Hey, what’s going on?”

  I glanced over to see Dion had joined us. “Nothing, nothing’s going on,” I said to him.

  “Nothing yet,” Amy added in a lowered tone.

  “And on that note, I’m off.” I smiled at Amy.

  “You’ll be awesome,” she whispered.

  I inhaled a hefty breath and started my trek toward Luke. Almost instantaneously, his gaze was on me.

  My chest quivered, but I could do this. I granted Luke a nice, big, flirtatious smile. Who knew I had it in me? It’s not like I was flirting with Luke exactly. I wasn’t trying to play with his affections or anything. That was Stephanie.

  Well, at least if I followed Amy’s advice and didn’t say anything to her, I wouldn’t regret anything, either. “Hey, Luke,” I said to him in as breezy a tone as I could manage. I barely slowed down as I continued down the hallway and headed for the exit.

  Wouldn’t you know it, Amy was totally right.

  Before I even got to the door, Luke had caught up to me.

  How had Amy gotten so smart about boys? Probably the same time that she caught Dion Washington’s attention. That was still a quandary, but a topic for another time.

  Right now, I had to carry on a conversation with Luke and at some point share with him all the thoughts I had going through my head at lunch.

  ~*~

  “Hey, you seem quiet.” Luke gave me a quick glance, and then returned his attention to driving.

  “I do?”

  “I mean, it’s not like you chew my ear off or anything. You just seem kind of distracted. Does this have anything to do with what you wanted to talk about earlier?” He flicked a quick glimpse at me.

  “Um, yes, I guess it does.” I sat up a little straighter in the car seat. “Luke…”

  “Yes?” This time he turned his head and totally smiled.

  That smile made me almost forget what I needed to say. “I…I don’t even know how to say this to you.”

  “So, just tell me. We’re old friends now, right?”

  “Is that all we are—friends?”

  He didn’t say anything. He didn’t even give me a glance.

  It felt like my heart fell into my lap and my stomach grew queasy. What did that mean? He did just think of me as a friend—after everything…after the cake! I shut my eyes. How could I be such an idiot? And now I was stuck here in his car with no place to escape. Why had I chosen this exact moment to have this conversation? Stupid! Stupid!

  We stopped at a red light.

  Luke gave me his full attention. “We’re friends, of course, but I thought after last night and everything that you might think of me as more than that.” He searched my face like a scientist examining a new strand of the flu virus. Luke does have these deep, intense moments. It’s like in these fleeting flashes he lets me see the real him.

  I started to answer him to tell him “Yes, yes, a thousand times yes.” But I restrained myself because this wasn’t a melodramatic period film. Besides, it might kind of weird him out.

  The light flared green and we took off.

  Luke turned onto my street.

  I had like a minute b
efore my house came into view. “I do, I mean, you are…” I covered my face with my hands. “Sorry. I don’t even know what I’m saying.”

  Luke parked the car in front of my neighbor’s house and turned off the engine. My hands still covered my face and Luke didn’t say a word. Was he waiting for me to go on or was he hoping I’d just get out of the car and leave him? He did basically say that he liked me as more than a friend. He’d said it last night, too. The intense looks, the homecoming invite, even the cake had meant he liked me—right? Maybe I could finally accept the fact.

  He gently touched my shoulder. “Andrea.”

  Shivers shot down my back just from the tone of his voice. That and the physical contact.

  He turned my shoulder so I had to face him. “I’m not good with this girl-guy stuff.”

  Was he kidding? I’m a member of the relationship challenged club. He, on the other hand, couldn’t have been more perfect.

  “You could have fooled me, Luke Ryan.” I gave him a teasing smile—my usual way of deflecting my true emotions.

  His mouth turned into a quick smile. “So, you aren’t upset?”

  “No, not at you. Myself, however…”

  “Don’t be mad at yourself. I’m the idiot here.”

  How cute was he, taking the blame for my neuroses. I just started smiling at him, and I may have possibly let out a sigh.

  “I’ve never asked a girl out before.” He looked away as he made the confession. “And I might have been trying too hard this week, but I just wanted you to know how I felt.”

  So, he really had been trying to woo me this week. Oh, my goodness! Calm, keep it together, Andrea. “You’ve never asked anyone out before? I can’t believe that.”

  He peered over at me again. “I mean, yeah, I’ve asked a girl out on a date or to a school activity, but I’ve never had a…a girlfriend.” He cleared his throat, and I could tell he was having a hard time swallowing after that.

  He’d never had a full-time girlfriend before? How was that even possible? I mean, he’s great looking, talented, smart, funny, considerate…seriously I could go on all day. How could he have never had a girlfriend?

  “Why me?” I couldn’t help asking. It sounded pathetic, but I had to know. Of all the girls he’d ever known, why had he chosen me? There was nothing special about me.

  He picked up my hand and pulled it back to his lap. “You make me laugh.” He looked down and started rubbing his thumb over the back of my hand for a moment. His head lifted back up and he looked me straight in the eyes. “You were a friend to me before you knew who I was.”

  He totally knocked me speechless. I don’t think I could have spoken at that moment even if my life depended on it. How did this absolutely wonderful person care about me like this? It just wasn’t possible. That was when a completely insane person took over my body. I leaned near him and covered his hand with my other hand.

  Luke grinned at me “Does this mean you’re saying yes?”

  “To what?”

  “To being my girlfriend.”

  “Are you asking me to be your girlfriend?” I couldn’t help playing with him as I tilted my head slightly and leaned back in my seat.

  “Uh, yeah, Andrea. I am.”

  “Then my answer is yes.”

  He smiled again and as usual, the sun made his eyes sparkle like a precious jewel.

  “What are you going to do now?” I asked him.

  “Keeping tabs on me already?”

  How I loved it when he smiled at me. My boyfriend was smiling at me. My boyfriend! “No. I just wondered.” I tried to sound cool and not at all possessive.

  “Probably go to the batting cages. My mom doesn’t get home until five or six from work.”

  “Can I go with you…to the batting cages?”

  “Really, you want to go?”

  “Sure, I mean, you did promise to teach me more about baseball.”

  “Yeah, I did. OK, let’s go.” Luke started up the car, and we drove across town.

  The next two hours were spent hitting balls, and it was actually kind of cool. It was especially nice having Luke teach me the proper way to take my stance and raise my arms. By the end, I was making some hits. Who knew playing baseball could actually be fun?

  When we got back to my house later that evening, it was nearly dinnertime. Luke gave me quick kiss on the cheek. It was kind of weird only because I’ve never had a guy do that before, but I had a feeling I could get used to it really easily.

  I took in the time in his car clock. Wow! How was it already after 4:45? We’d been sitting here far too long. I wondered if my mother had seen us. If so, I was so dead. Plus, the fact that I totally blew off piano practice. “I have to go.”

  “I know. That’s why we’re at your house.”

  “Ah, now you’re the funny one.”

  “Can I see you later?”

  “I totally have to practice for Saturday. I promised my dad.”

  “Oh, yeah, the recital. Well, call me later or something. Can I pick you up for school tomorrow?”

  “No.”

  “No?” He looked surprised and a little hurt at my answer.

  “I have a dentist appointment in the morning. So, I won’t be at school until lunch.”

  “Bummer.”

  “Tell me about it.”

  “Well, call me. I’ll give you more batting advice.”

  “Can’t wait.” I grabbed my bag and got out of his car. Why was it so hard leaving him? I’d see him tomorrow, but it felt like I’d never see him again. How silly was that?

  He did a U-turn in my driveway and took off for home.

  Then I just stood there for a minute more taking everything in. I really had a boyfriend! One of the cutest boys in school totally likes me! I had to call Amy.

  I turned to walk up the driveway and that’s when I saw her.

  My mother. She’d evidently been spying on me, and she looked like she was ready to read me the riot act this time.

  16

  Mom shoved open the door and let me inside the house. She didn’t say a word as she slowly slid the door closed. It was like she had begun mentally reviewing her opening statements on a particularly complicated case. Except that this wasn’t a case. It was my life.

  And I knew exactly what she was going to say. Well, not exactly, because it wasn’t like I’d ever come home with a boy before. But I had an idea of the direction things were going to go.

  “Andrea.” My name came out low and drawn out. It was the commencement to a long speech. I could tell.

  Her lips pressed together so tight I couldn’t even see them anymore. But she didn’t look angry. In fact, she looked almost like she repressed a smile. Could it be true? My mother might actually be happy her daughter had finally caught the attention of a boy? Wouldn’t that be switch around here?

  “Was that the Luke you mentioned before?” She clasped her hands together.

  I figured honesty and directness would be the best plan of action. “Yes.” I raised my chin so that we looked pretty much eye to eye. Mom and I were both on the tall side.

  “And he drove you home after school, I take it.”

  “Well, obviously.”

  Her mouth slanted and her right eyebrow rose. I guess she didn’t exactly appreciate my sarcasm. “Except you didn’t come right home. It’s almost time for dinner.”

  “I know it is.” My voice wasn’t sounding very respectful at the moment.

  “Where have you been?”

  “Just the batting cages.”

  “The batting cages?” She didn’t look like she believed me.

  I hated when she put on the parental mantle. I much preferred when she tried to be my friend and took me out for cappuccinos and shopping at the mall. “Yes, the batting cages. Luke is like an all-star baseball player.”

  “I see. And then you came home.”

  “Yes, Mom. That was it. I promise.”

  “What about that kiss?” Something similar to
humor moved into her face as she spoke. “Is this something the two of you do on a regular basis?”

  “Mom!” I tried to infuse as much shock as I could into my tone. “I don’t think that’s any of your business.”

  “It’s very much my business, and I’m sure your father would agree.”

  I rubbed my forehead. “You’re going to tell Dad?”

  “Of course.” She released a deep breath. “It goes without saying that you already know the rules around here. I don’t need to restate them.”

  “I know, Mom. It was Luke Ryan. He’s new from California. He asked me to homecoming and I accepted.”

  “You accepted?” She wasn’t trying very hard to mask her surprise. “I assume you were you going to ask permission to attend this event at some point?”

  “I was going to ask you…tonight.”

  “Andrea, you know your recital is the day after tomorrow.”

  “I know. Do you really think I’m not aware of that fact?” I crossed my arms and leaned into the staircase banister.

  “And you promised your dad you’d practice today since you took last night off.”

  “I know. I’ll still practice.”

  “And do your homework?”

  “Yes.”

  Mom started shaking her head and her gaze exhibited her disappointment. I hated that look. I’d rather she yelled at me than to see the disappointment staring back at me.

  “So I guess I’m forbidden to go to the dance with Luke.”

  “Let’s go sit in the den and discuss this.” She’d folded her hands back together and spoke calm and diplomatic. This was the problem in having a previous litigator for a mother. My mom is way good at the cross examination, and I so wasn’t going there.

  “Why, Mom? I mean, what’s the point? You are just going to tell me no—that I don’t have time for a dance, that boys are just a distraction and I’ll lose focus from the goal.”

  “Andrea!” Now she used the shocked tone.

  OK, I guess I can’t blame her as I’d spoken rather loudly.

  “That’s not what I was going to say.”

  “Don’t worry, Mom. I’m not on a rebellious streak. I’ll break it off with Luke and be your perfect angel once again complete with my spinster halo.” With that, I grabbed my bag and ran up the stairs to my room.