He moved so he was on his side, and his hand went to his knee. “I think I’m okay. Just banged up.” Meeting my eyes, he said, “That was a good shot.”
I smiled. “You stopped it.”
We looked to his knee, and Miguel and Samantha joined us.
It was scraped pretty bad, but luckily, it didn’t look too serious. “I think you’re gonna live,” I teased.
Coach came over, and he clutched at his chest in relief when he heard it was just a scrape. “Get it taken care of,” he said. “You know where the first aid kit is.”
Miguel helped Ian up, who put his weight on the opposite knee.
I grabbed his arm, helping him stand steady. “I’ll go with you.”
I led Ian off the field and toward the locker room.
Chris called to us. “You two better be back in five minutes,” he teased.
Ian looked sheepishly at me, and I rolled my eyes. “When do you think the teasing and talk will stop?” I asked as we walked into the locker room.
Ian sat down on one of the benches, and I went for the first aid kit.
He said, “I don’t know. I didn’t think us going out would end up being such a big deal.”
I sat down next to him and opened the first aid kit, grabbing some hydrogen peroxide and swabs. “Yeah, me too.”
“You are a catch,” he said. “I mean, how many guys have asked you out?” he said with a smile.
I scoffed. “Whatever.”
I didn’t quite know what else to say without things becoming awkward.
When he didn’t say anything, I looked up, staring into his bright blue eyes for a second too long, my heart beating like I was chasing a ball instead of hardly moving. Blinking rapidly, I focused on Ian’s knee again.
Then I dabbed his knee with the hydrogen peroxide swab.
But I couldn’t get that thought off my mind. Everyone being surprised about us and yet also saying they should have seen it coming all along.
I wondered how much truth there was in that. I couldn’t quite make sense of it. The thought of Ian and me for real felt weird, like a pair of socks that didn’t quite match.
Or eating pizza with fries. Fries belonged with burgers, not pizza.
Ian and I were like that. Two opposites who had somehow become close friends.
He was quiet and humble. A nice guy.
Meanwhile, I was loud and crazy and said things I often regretted.
No way we belonged together.
No way.
Seven
After I patched both of us up, Ian and I hobbled back to practice but not for long.
The previously gray sky had turned dark, and pretty soon, fat drops of cold rain hit us full force.
Coach blew his whistle, but both teams were already picking up cones like madmen and madwomen. We raced back to the shelter of the locker rooms, grins on our faces.
Practice had ended half an hour early, a rare treat.
After we grabbed our stuff, the girls and guys buzzed about going out to eat and hanging out before going home.
Katie called from her car, “Shake Shack, everyone? See you there!” Several people waved or called back as they ran in the rain toward their cars. Then Katie rolled up her window and drove off.
Using my hand to shield my eyes from the pouring rain, I looked for Ian and saw him climbing into his car a few feet away. Wondering if he was heading to the Shake Shack too, I ran over to his car and hopped in on the front passenger side, dropping my gym bag at my feet.
Surprise etched his face. “Hey,” he said.
“Hey,” I replied. “You joining everyone else? What’s the plan?”
He didn’t say anything for a second, just stared at something on his phone.
I cocked a brow. “You know, we’re supposed to be boyfriend girlfriend now. In fact,” I said, settling back into the seat and getting comfortable, “you really should be driving me everywhere. That would be the right thing to do, you know,” I teased.
But his grim expression remained. He showed me what was on his phone, and my smile faltered.
An Instagram post of Bethany and some older looking guy, both of them looking pretty cozy.
Ian tossed his phone on the dash with a heavy sigh. Then he stared out the windshield, at the raindrops hitting the glass. His eyes traced the rain running down in streams in front of him.
“I’m really sorry,” I said quietly.
He bit his lip, shaking his head. “Just…I miss Bethany.” His fingers grazed his hair before he put his hands on the steering wheel and he leaned forward. “How can she just move on like that? I don’t get it.”
He looked at me like I might have the answer, but I had nothing. Nothing that would help him feel better anyway.
After a minute of just listening to the rain patter on his car, I put my hand on his arm, I said, “You’re gonna get through this, you know. No matter what.”
“We were supposed to go to Homecoming together,” he said.
“I’ll go with you,” I said, and my stomach got this weird feeling as I heard the words come out of my mouth. “Who cares if we’re still doing this dare or not. I’m going to make sure you have a great time. No staying home alone to mope and eat junk food.”
A small smile finally cracked his face. “But why? That sounds so much better.” He looked at me.
“Nope,” I said, smiling back, glad he was goofing off with me now. “We’re going to get all dressed up and have a great time, me and you. And I’m sure you’ll have a long line of girls wanting to dance with you.”
Now his grin grew a little bigger, and just seeing it made me feel like all was right in the world again. “Nah, I just want to hang out with you.”
I gave him my best smile back, ignoring the somersault my stomach did just then. “So what about grabbing a bite with everyone? Do you want to go? Feed me French fries in front of everyone, maybe?” I wiggled my brows up and down so he could clearly see how enticing this offer was.
But he deflated like a balloon.
“Sorry, Lena,” he said. “I’m not sure I’m up for it. Maybe we can pretend we’re hanging out on our own or something. But I think I just want to go home. It’s been a tough day.”
I nodded, trying to understand and not pout. Hanging out with everyone would have been fun, but the cute French fry thing would have to wait.
He tried to smile but faltered. “Walk you to your car?” he asked. The rain began coming down hard again.
I sat up. “No, thanks. Even if you could use a shower. See you tomorrow?” I said, my hand on the door.
He gave a quick nod, sticking his key in the ignition. “Yeah.”
Pushing the door shut behind me, I ran back to my car in the rain.
When his car pulled away, I stared after it, wishing Ian would forget all about Bethany.
And go back to being the Ian I used to know.
That night, after a hot shower and getting into my favorite pair of pajamas, I turned on the TV in my room.
I looked for my go-to post-practice veg show: Friends.
A few minutes later, Ross screamed, “WE WERE ON A BREAK!”
Usually Ross cracked me up, but tonight, all I could think about was Ian and how upset he’d been earlier.
No way were we going to keep up the charade for long.
This whole thing had been a bad idea.
My phone went off, and I picked it up.
Ella’s picture appeared on my phone. I tapped the green button and her face smiled back at me. Then Rey’s.
I gave a wave. “Hey, guys. What’s up?”
Tori and Harper popped in too.
Ella looked like she was in her room, laying on her own bed. “Well, you guys, I was thinking. We’re a few months into senior year—”
Tori gave a small scream. “Can’t believe it!”
“Me neither,” Harper said with a smile.
Ella laughed. “I was thinking, we really need to start thinking about—”
> “ Our senior prank?” I guessed loudly.
Ella furrowed her brow. “—submitting our college applications.”
I groaned loudly. “I should have known this was the reason for your video call. You are such a nerd,” I said, laughing.
Tori cracked up too. “In a good way.”
Harper spoke up, nodding. “Definitely in a good way. I’m so going to need your help, Ella. I have no idea what I’m supposed to do or where I should apply.”
Rey raised her hand. “Same. Help.”
I was way too tired to even think about something like college right now. “Ella, we all know you already have like a full ride to whatever school you want. How about you just fill out my applications for me?” I gave her a sweet smile, but she shook her head. “Besides, I can hardly think about college right now.”
Rey said, “Too busy thinking about the new boyfriend, huh?” She winked.
I scoffed. “Hardly. Except that he’s just not being himself. He got upset after Bethany posted a picture of her with her new beau or whatever.”
Harper blinked back at me. “He’s taking the breakup hard, huh?” she asked.
I nodded. “I guess I didn’t really think about that when I agreed to this whole thing.”
They didn’t say anything so I kept talking, thinking out loud really.
“I just wish he realized the fact that he’s too good for her. Ugh.” I stared up at the ceiling, hating how my voice sounded saying those words out loud. And how they made me feel.
Harper brought me back to the conversation. “It must be hard watching him go through all this when you guys have been friends for a while. I bet you’re torn between telling him how you feel and just being there for him.”
How did she always know the right thing to say? It had to be a gift. “Exactly. Like he begged me to do this. I couldn’t say no. But at the same time, I hate that I’m helping him get her back.”
I turned over and buried my face into my pillow, holding my phone up with my hand so my friends could see just how torn I was.
When I was done venting my frustrations into my pillow, I found my friends staring back at me.
Tori bit her lip. “Are you sure that’s the only reason you’re upset?”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
She shook her head. “Nothing.”
Ella started talking about college applications again.
Meanwhile, I wondered how I was going to get through the rest of this fake relationship.
Part of me wondered if I’d come out of it in one piece, but I immediately thought: why wouldn’t I?
Eight
The only thing on my mind the next day at school, though, was how Ian had done a complete one-eighty.
He was no longer extra quiet or obviously heartbroken like before.
Instead, he seemed to be back to his old self. And really taking his role as my fake boyfriend seriously.
On our way to lunch, he insisted we talk about the things we were each required to do.
“I’ll keep walking you to class,” he said. “That’s expected.”
I observed the way he bit the inside of his mouth as he thought. “But you’ll be late to Science if you do that. It’s across campus from my second period.”
“So? I’ll run. That’s what a good boyfriend does,” he said, wagging his brows.
I laughed. “Well, just be careful. Don’t run over any poor freshmen on your way to class.”
“Will do.” He paused. “Or won’t do,” he said. I giggled. He snapped his fingers. “And we should write notes and stuff. Not just the usual texting. We should go old school, don’t you think?” He waited for me to respond, his expression full of hope and enthusiasm. I tried to guess why.
Was he just really serious about making Bethany jealous? Was this his way of moving on? Having fun while he was at it?
I nodded as we walked. “Okay. We can slip them into each other’s lockers.”
“Yeah, good idea. Or I can slip them into your back pocket.” Was that a mischievous twinkle in his eye?
I stopped. “Slip them into my back pocket?” I asked, raising my brows.
He shrugged, a growing smile on his face. “Sure. If you don’t mind.”
Not sure how I felt about that, I said, “Hm, I’ll get back to you on that.”
We arrived at the cafeteria, and he held out his hand. I took it, not quite sure how I felt about walking in with him, hands held.
Then I reminded myself that this was just a game, a dare. Just a role I was playing.
We got in line, and I glanced around.
But Ian was still brainstorming ideas. “I can drive you home too, you know? After practice.”
“What about my car?” I asked. I’d just gotten it a few months ago, and I liked driving it. Especially to school in the mornings. “I really don’t want to take the bus to school.”
But he had an answer ready. “I’ll pick you up in the morning,” he whispered with a smile, leaning in close like he was telling me a big secret.
“Pick me up?” I asked. I knew for a fact that he used to pick up Bethany every morning, and there came that weird feeling in my stomach again.
He nodded. “Maybe we can pick up coffee? Skip the one-star breakfast here and grab some real food instead?”
Coffee? Breakfast? “Now you’re talking,” I said.
He handed me a tray, letting me go first in line.
I grabbed a sandwich here, an apple there, thinking about everything Ian was saying.
It sounded like life as Ian’s girlfriend could be pretty good.
I always knew that Ian was a gentleman. Respectful, nice, always opened a door for you. But I didn’t realize how romantic he was too.
Writing notes to each other? I had no idea what I would say, but I guess it didn’t matter.
It was all just a show, right?
We reached the end of the line, where the lunch lady at the cash register waited for me to pay up, and I glanced back at Ian. “What? You’re not paying for my lunch?”
A look like realization hit his face, and he set his tray down and reached for his wallet.
He could not be serious. “I’m kidding!” I said with a laugh. “Sheesh.”
I was still laughing about it a minute later when I set my tray down at the #BFF table. Ian was right beside me. The girls gave him a wave, and he gave a cool, “Hey.”
Then he turned to me. I expected him to say he’d see me later or something.
What I didn’t expect was for him to lean down and kiss me on the forehead.
Or the way my stomach flipped when he did it. In front of the entire lunchroom.
But I couldn’t help but smile. At least this version of Ian, the sweet and doting kind, was way better than the one from yesterday afternoon.
I finally sat down, my gaze on the girls.
Ella smiled. “That was just about the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Tori eyed me. “Lena, is that a subtle blush, I see?” she asked, amused.
The other #BFFs giggled.
“No,” I insisted, throwing a French fry at her.
But maybe they were right.
Ian was my friend, sure. But he was also pretty handsome.
And he’d just kissed me. What girl in her right mind wouldn’t blush?
Right?
Having Ian pick me up for school was weird.
By the time, he got there, my parents were already off for work, so I waited on the steps of our porch.
A few minutes later, his shiny navy blue Mazda pulled in, and I raised a brow. Very nice.
Way nicer than my sensible used ’05 Honda sitting in the driveway.
Why couldn’t my parents get me a car like this?
I strode up to the car, but Ian was already there, with the door open. I smiled. “You don’t have to do this. No one’s around.”
He winked. “Good morning to you too.”
After that, we stopped at the drive-thru for b
reakfast and coffee, as promised.
I was very impressed.
And cruising while Ian took the wheel definitely beat having to get to school while dodging morning traffic.
By first period, I was perfectly chipper and in a great mood. It was probably the coffee talking, but it sure felt like the start of a great day.
Not even Bethany’s most annoyed facial expression could ruin it, try as she might in between classes.
I was pretty sure I saw her actually fume when Ian slipped me a note in front of our lockers before our last class of the day.
It was great.
When I sat down and the teacher started handing back last week’s homework, I unfolded it.
Ian’s small yet neat handwriting stared back at me.
Roses are red.
Violets are blue.
You’re pretty cute
And I wish that you knew
Haha. Best I could do. What do you think? ;)
* * *
-Ian
I laughed out loud, but a curious look from the teacher had me putting my hand over my mouth and hiding Ian’s note under my notebook.
But not before stealing one last look at the misshapen heart he’d drawn at the bottom of the paper.
The entire note looked like a second grader had written it. But it was just about the cutest thing I’d ever gotten.
No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t stop smiling like I’d just won a million dollars the rest of the period.
By the end of soccer practice, Ian and I made our way back to his car. We waved goodbye to everyone else, and once again, he had the car door open for me.
He got inside too.
“That note you sent me,” I said. “Cheesiest thing ever.”
He stopped, letting his keys hang from the ignition. “You liked it?”
I laughed. “Sure,” I replied. But then I saw the way his face lit up. “I sure did. Have you always been such a die-hard romantic?”
He shrugged. “It’s what any good boyfriend does, right?” Then he started up the car, and we left the school in silence.
#TheBoyfriendDare Page 4