How to Speak Boy

by Tiana Smith

  I shrugged his comment off, but tucked the information away for later. Because the fact was, I wouldn’t put it past Grayson to do something underhanded to get ahead. Maybe it was his modus operandi for anything involving a competition to seduce the enemy and distract her into sabotaging her chances.

  “I just … I care about you. So, yeah.”

  I didn’t respond to his comment. There really wasn’t anything to say.

  “I’ll walk you to your room,” Carter said. I nodded as I picked up my bag with the letter inside. The letter from the same guy who had inspired my speech for this tournament.

  It was time to focus on speech and debate. I had a better chance of beating Grayson at this tournament than I’d probably get all year. So why could I not stop thinking about 15211’s letter?

  Chapter Eight

  Pity parties are hard to pull off when you’re wearing a power suit and heels, but somehow I managed. Problem was, there were too many people around to witness it. I had to get farther away. Much, much farther. The auditorium doors swung shut behind me, somewhat muffling the sound of clapping. I turned left down the empty hallway, left again, and walked all the way to the end, where a flickering fluorescent light was my only company. Sinking down against the wall, I sat on the linoleum floor and finally let my head drop between my knees.

  I sucked in a breath and slowly let it out, counting to ten. Again. Then I released my hair from its French twist, letting it tumble to my shoulders. Now that the speech and debate tournament was officially over—and my poor standing in the still-going awards ceremony was proof of that—I didn’t need the headache from all the bobby pins. I gathered them in a pool at my feet, focusing on the tiny ridges instead of the dull burn forming behind my eyes. I. Would. Not. Cry.

  So what if I lost to Grayson Hawks? So what if he got first place and I got eighth? Eighth. That was literally the worst I could get while still being in the finals. Last place. I was used to placing in the top three, every time. That was expected. So when the middle-aged guy with a microphone had said, “Eighth place, Quinn Edwards,” it took me a full ten seconds to realize it was my name he’d called. I’d made a gamble, and I’d lost. Grayson was right, and that fact stung more than actually losing to him.

  Another faint wave of clapping made its way from the auditorium to where I sat. They must have announced the winners of another event. Mentally, I calculated how much longer I could stay out here. They hadn’t gotten to any of the debate events yet, which meant I had at least another half hour to feel sorry for myself. I pulled my knees to my chest and dropped my head onto my arms.

  I’d have to write another speech for the next tournament, and this time, I’d have to think of something the judges actually wanted to hear. If I wanted to beat Grayson, that is.

  And, oh, how I wanted to beat Grayson. It shouldn’t have been this important to me, but every time he won, I felt my competitive nature get a little bit worse.

  The sound of footsteps made me lift my head.

  I sighed when I saw who it was. “Did you come to gloat?”

  Grayson was the last person I wanted to see right now. Verbally sparring with Grayson took wit, and right now I was running on empty.

  “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” Grayson eased himself down so he was sitting beside me, and I tensed at the proximity. I could practically feel his body heat through his suit coat. He was so close, and a traitorous part of me couldn’t help but react to the good way he smelled. Now wasn’t the time to think about things like that, though, not when I still had to come up with a way to beat him.

  “Why would I like that?” I asked.

  “Because then I’d be the jerk you could bad-mouth to all your friends.”

  Despite myself, I grinned. Grayson’s voice was deep and smooth—perfectly controlled, like his polished performances. He’d been amazing, and I couldn’t fault him for winning. Carter hadn’t broken into finals, so at least I didn’t have to live with the knowledge that someone had beaten me who’d been new to the event.

  “What makes you think I talk about you?” My voice shook a little as I said it, and I hoped Grayson blamed it on me being emotional over losing, rather than how close he was sitting. He’d never sat this close before, and suddenly, it was the only thing I could focus on.

  Grayson raised an eyebrow, like he knew I was lying. I pushed his shoulder and he laughed.

  “Maybe I followed you because you looked upset,” he said when he’d finished laughing. “And I thought you could use a friend.”

  Was that what we were now? Before becoming co–team captains, we’d only been competitors. But I found myself looking forward to our little spats, as much as I’d never admit it to anyone, least of all Grayson. He pushed my buttons and distracted me constantly, but I kind of liked it? It didn’t make sense to me, so I didn’t even try to untangle that hot mess in my mind.

  “You can say ‘I told you so.’ I know you want to.” I snuck a glance at him, but he didn’t seem smug about his victory. Just casual. One corner of his mouth lifted up at the edge and he sighed.

  “Well, now you know my secret to success, so it’s only a matter of time before you’re outranking me.”

  “You mean, your secret of giving the judges what they want? So original. I don’t think anyone has ever thought of that before you.”

  “You wound me.” He held a hand to his chest in mock horror. “You know, if you want to give me a chance at beating you again, you can always tell me what you plan to speak on next. I’ll prepare accordingly.”

  “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” I asked, echoing his statement from earlier. He caught my reference and smiled.

  “Well, you know the judges can’t resist me.” He smirked. “So do your worst.”

  “So cocky, aren’t we?” I said. “Want to do another gamble?”

  Grayson looked cautious, which was flattering considering I’d come in last place at this weekend’s tournament. He quickly recovered, plastering on false bravado like a second skin.

  “Oh please, you don’t stand a chance,” he said.

  “Yeah? You’re so sure you can win no matter what? Let’s let the other person pick our speech topics for the next meet. What do you say?”

  I was betting on his sympathy here. I’d just lost, so really, it’d be cruel of him to stick me with a boring topic like world peace or the importance of washing your hands. He wasn’t that heartless, was he?

  We didn’t typically have a new speech for each tournament. We usually did two or three for the entire season, but I figured he’d choose a different topic now that I was too. It was hard to capitalize on someone’s failure if they stopped giving you the opportunity. Maybe he’d wanted to go back to his original speech he’d planned before our chat in his car, but I wasn’t about to let that happen if I could stop it. I needed at least one win to boost my ego.

  “The tournament in two weeks?” he asked. I could see he was actually considering my offer, and I tried to hide my grin. “Are you going to that one?”

  The next meet was on the same day as our school’s fall fling. It was the only meet that wasn’t mandatory. But Grayson should know me better to know speech came first. Not that I’d been asked to the dance anyway.

  “I’m going to the tournament,” I said. “You?” It was pointless to ask. Someone as popular Grayson would be going to the dance, for sure. But Grayson nodded, surprising me.

  Another faint round of clapping made it to where we sat under the flickering light. Someone else’s dreams were either made or crushed. But the clapping didn’t make me feel as bad as it had earlier.

  “I already have a topic picked out for you,” Grayson said. His grin spread from ear to ear.

  I swallowed. So we were doing this, then. It was what I’d hoped for and dreaded at the same time. I squared my shoulders.

  “Let’s hear it.”

  “You’re going to talk about saving the whales, and you’re going to love it.”

 
; That wasn’t so bad. Obviously, there were better topics out there, but I could make it work.

  “Aw, you gave up too easily,” I said joyfully. “I’m going to make your topic so much worse!”

  “Saving the whales isn’t bad enough for you?” he asked. “You’re hard-core, Edwards.”

  I nodded solemnly. “That I am, Hawks. That I am. Let’s see now.” I rubbed my palms together. “What topic should I give to you?” A flash of inspiration hit and I snapped my fingers. “Women’s rights in the workforce!”

  “You do realize that the judges will love me,” he said. “A guy talking about how women should receive equal treatment?”

  I shook my head. “Oh, no, you’re getting this all wrong.” I laughed. “You have to argue the opposite side. You have to say women shouldn’t be in the workplace or receive equal pay. That’s your topic.”

  He blanched, and I smiled gleefully.

  “You’re a monster,” he said. He shook his head but smiled as if this whole exchange was all a game to him. “Well played.”

  I bowed from my waist and he laughed.

  “Looks like I’ll have to brush up on my nautical knowledge,” I said. “And you’ll have to try not to look like a jerk. I know how hard that will be for you.” I raised my eyebrows and Grayson laughed.

  “Well, you know what they say.” Grayson ran a hand through his hair. “All’s fair in love and war.”

  Was this a war tactic of his? Buddying up to the competition? I remembered Carter’s warning clearly in my mind. People said he set Zara up by dumping her before the student body elections went live. They said he’d learned the trick from his mother, who had a “take no prisoners” approach to politics. But was Grayson really capable of something like that? I used to think yes.

  I searched his face, suddenly unsure of everything.

  Someone cleared their throat at the end of the hall and my head snapped to the left.

  Carter was standing there, hands in his pockets as he leaned against the wall in the flickering light.

  Grayson stood up, but he wasn’t in a hurry about it.

  “I’ll catch you around,” Grayson said. He was grinning at Carter as he nudged my foot with his.

  I rubbed my arm, unsure of how to interpret the gesture.

  Grayson passed Carter, who came to sit at my side.

  “You two seemed pretty cozy.” Thankfully, he waited to say anything until Grayson was out of earshot. Carter adjusted his legs so he was sitting crisscrossed and turned his head to face me. “I’m telling you, he’s trying to play you. My warning still stands.”

  I shook my head. “Don’t worry. You know I don’t have time for boys,” I said, realizing something. Carter had given me the perfect opportunity to let him down gently. If he was flirting. By turning down Grayson, I could turn down Carter at the same time without him knowing it was about him or feeling offended. It wasn’t like I wanted to hurt my friend’s feelings.

  Carter nodded but didn’t say anything, leaving it up to me to fill the awkward silence.

  “I really need to focus on school right now. My mom needs my help with her photography business and it’s taking me a really long time to figure out how to build a website. Plus, there’s speech and debate. You saw how I did today.”

  Carter shook his head. “Winning isn’t everything, you know. Unless you’re after that scholarship. Is that it?”

  Whoever won first place at the state speech and debate tournament received a financial scholarship to the college of their choice. Sure, it was on my radar, but the competition alone was enough for me. The simplicity of beating Grayson was all I needed. But if I said that, Carter would think I was obsessed with the guy.

  So I nodded, hoping he’d let the subject drop once and for all. I was starting to wonder if maybe I was a little obsessed, and not in the way I’d originally thought. That thought made me all kinds of squirmy.

  “What’s so great about going away to college?” he asked. “I’ve heard you and Naomi fantasize about going to Hawaii, but it’s friends that make college great. You don’t need the scholarship. You could stay here like me and go to community college. Think of all the fun we’d have.” He wiggled his eyebrows and I laughed.

  “You know I don’t think there’s anything wrong with community college,” I said. It wasn’t even like I was planning on going away, but now wasn’t the time to inform Carter of that fact. Maybe it’d be better for him to think I was going away. Of course, as soon as I thought that, I felt awful. Since when did I keep things from Carter? I almost confessed right then and there, but I was starting to see what Naomi meant, and I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

  The truth of the matter was, I’d likely go to Boise State so I could stay close to my mom. She was the only family I had. Well, except for a deadbeat dad that I never saw who lived somewhere in California. Boise State also had a great business program where I could focus on marketing. I could get a concentrated education on something that fascinated me, without having to move away. Naomi was the one who wanted to go to Hawaii, and let’s face it, who could blame her?

  “Lots of our classmates are planning on going to a community college, you included. But it doesn’t have the program I want.”

  “What program?” Carter scoffed. “The only thing you’re really interested in is speech and debate.”

  “Not true,” I said. “I want to do marketing. Besides, does our community college have a speech and debate team?” Answer: It did not. But Boise State did. Two birds, one stone.

  I shook my head. “It’s a moot point. It’s not like I did well back there.”

  “I thought you did great.”

  “You must be a better judge at Improv,” I said. “Because what you saw me perform was not great.” I laughed at my own expense. “But thanks for trying to cheer me up. You’re a good friend.”

  He smiled. “I try. We should go. They’re probably missing us in the auditorium.” He scooped up the bobby pins and placed them in my palm. I put them in my suit pocket with a sigh. He stood up, then held his hand out for me as well. Once standing, I squared my shoulders and we started back to the rest of the group. Sure, maybe I’d tanked this meet. But with the bet Grayson and I had made, the next tournament had my name written all over it. Those whales wouldn’t know what was coming.

  Chapter Nine

  Dear 15211,

  I never thought I’d say it, but I’m actually glad it’s Monday. That means the weekend is finally over. Without giving too much away, I … struggled … this weekend. It’s like I need lessons on how to, shall we say, be more of a people person. Any ideas?

  That little request was because most of my judges had left comments saying I didn’t appear personable. But how were you supposed to come across as personable in a formal memorized speech?

  How to be a people person, a list by 15211:

  (And yes, I’m just guessing here, but here’s what I think).

  1. Smile. A lot.

  2. Don’t be a downer.

  3. Look people in the eye. (But don’t be creepy about it.)

  4. Don’t take yourself too seriously.

  5. When in doubt, make a joke.

  I made sure to write plenty of jokes into my next speech. My favorite was “when there’s a whale there’s a way.” Yeah, totally lame, but at least I wasn’t taking myself too seriously. With a topic like “saving the whales,” humor was my only chance. And while it was hard to smile while speaking, I practiced nonstop.

  15211 was like a fountain of knowledge. Anytime I had a question, he somehow knew the perfect response. How to win an argument? Know what can be used against you. How to appear confident? Square your shoulders, don’t make excuses, and again with the smiling and eye contact. He was really big on those two things.

  He’d ask me for advice too, and I always felt like a superstar when I could help out.

  How do you apologize to girls? Or if I admit I was a jerk, will that only make things worse?

 
I wrote back.

  You know how you said, when in doubt, make a joke? Whatever you do, don’t do that. Since you like lists so much, I’ll make this easy for you.

  1. Fess up and admit you were wrong.

  2. Don’t do it again.

  That’s it.

  All his advice helped me in speech and debate, so without even realizing it, I started trusting him with other things as well. Like my love life.

  Another question for you: How do you kindly hint to a guy friend that he’ll always be in the friend zone? Especially if I’m not even completely certain he’s trying to flirt with me? I don’t want to hurt him.

  15511

  P.S. I realized I never answered you earlier about twenty questions. Yes, I’ll play if you still want. Even though I might regret it later.

  After class ended, I put my letter in 15211’s cubby before I could chicken out of playing twenty questions and answering whatever he asked me. Then I retrieved my assignment from my own cubby and shoved it in my bag, but not before catching sight of my score. A big, fat C-minus stood out on top, so my day kept getting better and better.

  At least I had tonight to look forward to, where I was going to research SEO tactics for my mom’s site. My friends thought I was weird, but hey, it was interesting. Hopefully speech practice wouldn’t be too bad either. Ah, who was I kidding. I’d come in eighth place at the opening tournament. Practice today wasn’t going to be great. A week had passed since then, but because Coach was out of town, we hadn’t had practices. Maybe enough time had passed that people would forget. But probably not.

  Naomi came over to where I was waiting and I was glad for the distraction from my thoughts.

  “I hope you wrote him something scandalous,” she said, slinging her bag over her shoulder and craning her neck to look at the cubby I’d just placed a letter in. “It’s about time you two moved things to the next level.”

  “Oh, you mean writing in cursive? I’m not sure we’re ready for that. Or are you talking about dedicated stationary?” I waggled my eyebrows and Naomi pushed me away playfully.