He says ‘you’ and looks at me as if I were the cause of all the trouble.
“The way I see it, Coach, it's quite simple. Reece needs to keep his dirty paws off my rally girl. I heard the rumours around school. That you and the others are supposed to all be fucking her. I don't believe it. Not even for a sec. She looks too innocent to be fucking all three of you. And I called Alex and he told me she's practically been secluded in a convent until the end of the summer. You spread that rumour when you heard that I asked coach to assign Abi as my rally girl. News flash: if you and those other motherfuckers want a go, you need to wait until I’m done with her. And if you don't piss me off, I might allow you to take my sloppy seconds.”
I grip the wooden arms of my chair so tightly, that I think I might break them.
I don't even look at Max because if I did, I’d have to wipe off the arrogant smirk I know he has on his face right now.
He used to do that last year before a game: trash talk the other teams to get under their skin.
I didn't like it then and I fucking hate it now.
“Coach, do you allow this kind of talk? He’s talking about Abi as if she were a piece of meat. She’s your rally girl, not ...”
Coach doesn't look at me when he speaks again.
“Son, you know better than me that these girls would do anything to be on the arm of a popular football player. No one’s telling them to do things. But if they want to cross certain lines to lift the ... morale of my team ...”
Unbelievable!
Now the irony of this isn't lost on me.
I know I called Abi my fuck toy to her face, but I was fucking mad for what she’d done. When I realised that despite running that pretty little mouth of hers, she was a fucking virgin and as inexperienced as humanly possible, I took a giant step back.
Do I eventually wanna fuck her?
You betcha!
But I respect women: I wanted her to be my girlfriend when I met her, at first.
Now things are complicated because of the lies she's been spreading and my distrust of her but I’m not letting anyone bully her, or any other girl, into performing sexual acts they don't want.
“Coach, you know better than me that a lot of these girls cross those lines because they feel that's expected of them ...”
“Look, Abbot: I don't care and I don't get involved in which rally girl gives head to which football players. Not until there are claims that it's not consensual.”
The way he looks at me ...
He thinks the guys and I are guilty of what we were accused of and he can barely hide his disgust.
He’s implying that if anything nonconsensual ever happened, the culprits would be me or my brothers.
But he’s fine with the team to toe the line and demand blowjobs and all sorts of other things from the cheerleaders.
He’s as hypocritical as my father: as long as things look clean on the outside, it doesn't matter if they're rotten to the core.
“Coach, a lot of those girls do those things because they hope to be in a relationship. And you should encourage the guys to act more respectfully.”
Coach sneers.
“Don't be naive, Abbot! How am I supposed to make anyone buy the cow if they're getting the milk for free? Just don't touch other players’ rally girls without their permission and we're peachy. Ok?”
Fucking staunch, chauvinistic asshole!
But I don't say that.
“Look, Coach, Abi is close with me, Chaz, and Pryce. Can she just be assigned to one of us? Max can have his pick of Lissa, Marlene or Kylie. And I know for sure that two of ‘em are more than happy to do anything in their power to help their player.”
“You sort that out between you, boys. I’m not changing anything. If you decide to swap, let me know later. Now, I have a meeting to go to. Here’s permission slips to go directly to lunch. See you at practice.”
And he walks out of his office, leaving me and my former brother to face off.
Max has a satisfied smirk on his face when he speaks next.
“I requested Abi for a reason. Because I know you like her. I saw the way all you three look at her. You know asshole, when you fucked my girl, I hadn't even slept with her. Now, I’m gonna get you back. I’ll fuck yours but with a difference: I’m gonna have her beg me to fuck her. I don't need to roofie girls to give it up to me, like you and those two other losers!”
He walks out of the room and I’m panicking: he’s gonna use Abi to hurt us.
There are only two things I can do to stop him: give Abi up to take away the appeal ... but somehow I doubt that Max would fall for it.
Or make sure that she wants us and not Max.
Max
THE LUNCH PERIOD BELL is about to ring: I wait by the A-Class door and as soon as I see Abi come out with Gabbie, I grab my rally girl’s hand.
I walk quickly down the corridor dragging her along with me and sneak into an empty classroom, locking the door behind me.
“Hey Abi ...”
I give her my most seductive smile.
“Hey, Max ...”
She looks a little worried, she keeps her eye on the door I’m blocking with my back.
“How are you? Did you have a good weekend?”
She nods.
“Listen, first of all I wanted to thank you for that breakfast burrito. It was so sweet of you to find out what my favourite was. It really helps me play at my best knowing that you care.”
She doesn't say anything and still keeps her eyes on the door.
With her long blonde hair, her blue eyes and her petite but soft figure, she looks like an angel.
But way hotter, I’ve never seen angels with those legs and those tits.
“And I was wondering if you’d like to be my date to the party at Marlene’s house on Friday night? The thought of hanging out with you, would definitely help me play at my best ...”
She seems surprised by my invitation but she doesn't immediately jump on it, like every other girl at BHPA would if QB1 asked her out.
“Uhm ... thank you. But I already have a date.”
Shit!
She’s lying to me.
She can't already have a date because Marlene doesn't even know about the party yet.
I’ve just decided that's where we’ll all go after the game.
I’d rather take Abi out to dinner or something more private but I was afraid she’d say no and that she’d feel more comfortable in a group setting.
But it seems that she's gonna make me work hard for it anyway.
Good!
I like a challenge.
Emily was the same: she couldn't decide among us and winning her over made the whole thing more exciting.
“Can I ask you who are you going with?”
She hesitates for a second.
“Reece, Chaz, and Pryce.”
I clench my fists: I’m sure she's heard the rumours by now.
“Abi, you wanna be careful about who you hang out with here at school. Reece and the others aren't nice guys and being associated with them will damage your reputation.”
She shakes her head.
“Well, Max ... I don't know if you’ve noticed but as reputations go, mine’s already ruined. People are saying that I’m having sex with the A-Team. And the guys think that I started the rumour.”
She looks pained, so I have to ask.
“And you haven't? I saw a Facebook post from you.”
“That's not my profile, I’ve no idea who did that. But everyone was horrible to me after that post and I have to thank Reece if people stopped. So, regardless of who he thinks started the rumours, I need to show them that it wasn't me.”
“Abi, you don't need them to protect you. I can do that too, you know? You're my rally girl and we could be good friends ...”
I keep my eyes on hers and take a step closer.
“We could be a lot more than friends ...”
“I’d like to be friends, Max. But not out
of an obligation because I’m your rally girl. And not if you're in a war with Reece. Now, Gabbie’s waiting for me in the cafeteria, can I please go?”
I open the door and walk away: this is gonna be harder than I thought.
Fuck!
I wanna hurt Reece by making Abi choose me but at the same time ...
I fucking like her for real!
Reece
I LOOK FOR HER IN THE cafeteria but I can't see her: she isn't with Gabbie, so I walk back to class in search of her.
No sign of Abi anywhere.
But I see Max exiting the media room and decide to check.
She’s there and I almost lose it, tormented by jealousy and worry.
What if he said something to her?
What if she believes that I really did the awful things Max accused me of?
After all, I was a real asshole to her: I tried to bully her into having sex with me and the guys.
I would never force her to do anything but I certainly tried to persuade her to give herself to us for the wrong reasons.
I don't know if I can trust her but after all, can she trust me?
I hate rumours, they can ruin your life and even if Abi did start that rumour about sleeping with us, I just wanna be sure that she learned her lesson.
The truth sets you free, always.
Even when it hurts.
I step closer to her, so close that we’re almost touching but not quite.
She doesn't move, she's leaning against a wall and she's observing me, waiting for my next move.
And I’m conflicted: my fear of what Max might've said is a powerful motivation to scowl and yell at her.
To tell her that I don't want her near him but I saw that Abi is sweet and innocent but she's no doormat.
If she doesn't want something, she'll make herself heard without any possibility of misunderstanding.
“Hey, is everything all right?”
She nods.
I don't look in her eyes when I ask her what she was doing with Max.
“He asked me out on a date.”
I move so that our fronts touch, my fingers grip her chin, forcing her eyes to look into mine but trying with everything I have not to be too rough.
I’m so angry but not at Abi. And Pryce is right that if I don't get my reactions under control, we’ll lose her.
“Did you say yes?”
She doesn't even try to look away.
“No. I told him that I’m with you ... you three.”
I’m about to say something but she continues, worried about my reaction.
“I’m sorry. I didn't mean to make things worse or spread that rumour even more but I didn't wanna go out with him. Please don't be mad ...”
I drag my thumb on her bottom lip.
“I’m not mad. You did right. I don't think Max wants you for the right reasons. If he did, and you wanted him, I’d find a way to accept it. But not the way he’s trying to claim that he has a right to you as his rally girl. That's fucked up.”
She nods.
“Yeah. He thinks that I should be dying to go out with him because he's our quarterback. He doesn't understand that I couldn't care less that every girl at school wants to date him. Whatever you might think about me, Reece, I don't care about popularity. I find loyalty a lot more attractive.”
Her eyes look huge and deep: I like the way she's looking at me.
Like she believes me, like she sees who I am.
Not the popular jock, the rich boy, the self-entitled monster who could ever take advantage of an unconscious girl.
People stop at the outer layer and will believe what makes sense on a superficial level.
This is why I don't blame the people at school for believing that my brothers and I could've assaulted Emily at that party.
All they saw was the popular jocks, the A-Team.
The guys who screwed all the cheerleaders and ruled BHPA satisfying their every whim.
To them it made sense that if a girl had rejected us, we’d take what we wanted anyway.
But I blame Max for even considering that idea after growing up with us, after sharing every success and every defeat.
After he saw us at our strongest but especially at our weakest.
He should've known us better.
My gaze softens and my hand leaves her chin and caresses her delicate jaw.
I don't care if she lied about sleeping with us in a moment of foolishness.
She cares to know the real me, so I’ll work on forgiveness and maybe we should start whatever this is on a clean slate.
“Come home with me and the guys today ...”
I whisper it against her brow, inhaling her sweet scent of violets and lilies.
Reece
“THAT MOTHERFUCKER ASKED you out on a date?”
Chaz slams his fist against the glass coffee table and I thank God that it's strong, tempered glass.
“Yeah, but I told him that I don't wanna date him. I don't care about these rally girl traditions. I just wanted to cheer for the team, wear a pretty uniform, feel like I belong. I wasn't prepared for these rally girl obligations. Some of the girls take it really a little too seriously. To the point that it's weird.”
She blushes up to the roots of her blonde hair.
Pryce smirks.
“You're right on that! At lunch I spent fifteen minutes trying to get it into Marlene's head that it isn't her duty to give me a blowjob. I thanked her for the offer but I told her that a batch of cookies says “go Pryce! You're the best!” A blow job? I don't know, I think that I’m over that life of meaningless hookups and wild parties. I knew that with Emily ...”
He mentions the girl that almost destroyed us and for the first time, hearing her name hurts but it's not unbearable.
“Yeah.”
Chaz chimes in, dragging his hand through his dark brown hair.
“Plus trust me dude, I think Marlene and Lissa have an agenda anyway. They like control. They think that if they blow you, you’ll decide to date them or something.”
Abi nods.
“Yeah, they have all these steps: how to bag a boyfriend on the team. You know I slept over at Gabbie’s last weekend ...”
We all nod: we missed her.
“Well, on Saturday morning Lissa showed up in a limo. She whisked us away to a spa day and gave us a check list to make us ‘rally ready’.”
“A WHAT?”
I’m perplexed: I knew that Lissa was really into this rally girl thing last year and I might've hooked up with her once or twice, before we met Emily but this is something on another level.
Abi produces a thick pink sheet of paper that spreads glitter all over Chaz’s wooden floors.
When I open the ‘rally ready checklist’ I don't know if I have to laugh, be in awe or question the cheerleading captain’s mental sanity.
RALLY READY CHECKLIST
by Lissa Fillmore
Spa days: a flawless, perfectly groomed look is of the utmost importance to keep your football player happy and enticed.
Make sure that the following is done and maintained on a regular basis:
Hair colour and cut ✓
Perfectly applied makeup, refreshed as needed✓
Eyebrows shaped perfectly ✓
Mani-pedi ✓
Waxing:
Legs✓
Armpits✓
Upper lip (if needed, Kylie I mean you)
Brazilian wax ✓
You're encouraged to stay single in case your football player wants to date you.
We need to be hot, available and desirable.
“What the fuck? Is she serious?”
Abi nods.
I look at the checked marks on Abi’s list.
“Did she make you get a Brazilian wax?”
She blushes again: fuck, she looks all kinds of adorable when she blushes.
And the knowledge of that Brazilian wax not only makes me hard but also gives me an idea.
I lo
ok at my brothers and then at the girl who’s become my obsession since I first laid eyes on her.
“So, I know that you and Chaz have been spending some quality time together, right?”
She stares at me without saying anything, waiting for my next move.
“And Chaz’s task was to get you confident with kissing. Chaz, how did our pretty girl do?”
9.
Feel It
Abi
REECE JUST CALLED ME pretty.
Since yesterday, something in the way he treats me has changed ... again.
He’s always scary intense but he reminds me of the way he was that first day, at the party.
He’s got that warm light in his gaze again and the tone of his voice isn't as cutting as it was before.
And talking of warm gazes, Chaz's eyes look like warm honey when he looks at me and nods.
“She's good. When it comes to kissing, I’ve nothing left to teach her. But I hope to keep kissing her a lot.”
He winks at me.
Seriously Chaz has something that makes me feel weak at the knees: the way he looks at me, his husky, smooth voice.
Reece nods with a small smile etched on his face and turns to Pryce.
“What do you say, Pryce? Do you wanna be the judge of Abi’s progress with kissing?”
Pryce is sitting on the couch next to the one Reece and I are occupying and he extends one hand, inviting.
“Come here, Abi ...”
I stand up, keeping my eyes on his silver ones: I was hoping that today I’d kiss at least one of them.
Since that first kiss with Reece, the guys have stoked a fire I didn't know was in me.
Of course when I was at boarding school, I used to dream about kissing a hot guy.
Or even better, more than one.
Especially since among the romance novels that the other girls snuck in, I found one that made me really curious.
The protagonist is a girl from California, Clary.
She falls in love with more than one guy at summer camp and they all wanna date her too.
She didn't have to choose.
Beverly Hills Prep Academy The Complete Boxset : A Light Bully Romance Page 40