We all stared at him. This was about the last thing we’d ever suspected when he’d come sauntering over. Ever since he’d first announced he was running for captain, he’d been deadset on beating Jelena. Even this morning he’d been aggressively asserting his dominance.
‘You mean you want me to join the dark side?’ Jelena said, looking disgusted at the idea.
I didn’t blame her. Working with the person who’d publicly humiliated her would seem like she was admitting defeat.
‘I’m offering you the opportunity to be co-captain of Jefferson. I understand if you’re suspicious of that, because I’d be the same if you suggested it to me, but I can assure you this isn’t an underhanded attempt to beat you. To prove it, I’m willing to draw up a legally witnessed document with Mr Quinten to certify that our platforms will be equally implemented. That way you’ll know that I’m not going to do the wrong thing by you.’
‘Right, because prior circumstances would never lead me to suspect that.’
Jelena was far from convinced, as were Cass and Sara, judging by their expressions.
‘Look, I know I was a jerk to you. And to Aurora.’ Alex turned to me. ‘If you want to know the truth, my parents announced they were divorcing the very same week all of that stuff went down. If I’m honest with myself, I was a pretty foul person because of it.’
Jelena, Cass, Sara and I all looked at each other. It was hard to know how to react — in terms of both the apology and the information about his parents.
Jelena remained silent although Alex was waiting for her answer. Even as her best friend, I couldn’t read her take on the situation from her expression.
‘All personal stuff aside, you and I are very similar,’ Alex said. ‘We both want to be leaders. And we both represent a type of leadership that’s often distrusted by the political gatekeepers because it challenges the accepted norms. Basically, we’re the Napoleons of the world. You know this already, Jelena — that’s why, before all that stuff happened, we got on remarkably well. And I’m sure you wouldn’t mind an extra hour’s sleep a day to boot.’
Jelena’s poker face remained. ‘I need time to think about this.’
‘You’ll need to think quickly,’ Alex said. ‘The election date’s twelve days away. We need to use all that time to build support for us as a couple.’ He turned and walked away.
‘Jelena, no, you can’t!’ Sara cried as soon as he was out of earshot. ‘A couple? Ugghh.’ She made a noise at the back of her throat. ‘If he behaved without honour when you guys were dating, he’s hardly going to be trustworthy once you’re both voted in.’
‘That thing about his parents was major though,’ Cass said, quick as always to forgive those suffering misfortune. ‘I mean, he’s far from the sensitive type, but maybe the way he acted was exaggerated by stress and unhappiness.’
‘Plenty of other people’s parents separate and they don’t do what he did to Jelena. I’m sorry, it’s no excuse.’ Sara’s tone was absolute.
I didn’t know what to think. I’d been a wreck when my mum had left, and what had I done? Immediately pushed Hayden away. I’d been pretty cruel, and it had taken me a long time to see that. Maybe it was hypocritical for me to cast Alex as a total villain. Then again, he’d devastated my best friend. He’d pursued her publicly, then dumped her for me as soon as he heard about my (short-lived) modelling contract. And then he’d lied about us both, and the majority of our classmates had believed him. Why should we give him another chance to do something equally bad down the line? I’d been suspicious of Alex ever since he’d started at Jefferson — it had always seemed to me that prestige and power trumped any other values in his eyes.
‘This isn’t a debate about the motivations behind his past behaviour,’ I said. ‘That’s done and dusted. This is about the next year and a half and whether it’s a good idea to have Alex by your side, Jelena. I don’t think you should be so quick to assume that you can’t win this thing on your own. So you and Alex currently have equal votes — that could change in the next twelve days. Maybe you just need to propose some more practical ideas, and make the school board realise that you have a sensible and grounded approach instead of being all about glamour.’
‘I need to think about this,’ Jelena said again. She pulled her sneakers out of her bag and hurriedly put them on. ‘I’m going to the gym.’
The only time Jelena ever used her family’s membership at the health club was when she had major things to ponder, which she did on a cross-trainer.
‘We should talk about this further!’ Cass called after her.
‘Can’t! Too confused!’ Jelena shouted back, before breaking into a sprint.
‘She can’t agree to a co-captaincy with him,’ Sara said.
‘She won’t,’ I assured her. ‘Jelena will see it as conceding defeat. She’ll want to win or lose on her own terms. You wait — she’ll march up to Alex tomorrow and tell him so.’
The next morning at recess, Cassie, Lindsay, Sara and I sat waiting in one of the library booths. Jelena had texted us to meet her there.
‘She obviously wants to reassure us that she’s continuing to campaign alone,’ I told the girls, who all seemed edgy. ‘I’m betting she’ll have dreamt up some kick-butt ideas to put into practice over the next eleven days.’
‘She’d better.’ Sara was biting her nails.
‘I can’t believe I missed hearing Alex apologise,’ Lindsay said. ‘That’s got to be a first.’
She went quiet as Jelena swept into the room. She was smiling. I knew it! She’d obviously reworked her campaign approach and felt confident of its success.
‘I know you won’t be happy about this,’ she said as she sat down, ‘but I’ve decided to run alongside Alex. I wanted to let you all know before Mr Quinten makes the official announcement in twenty minutes.’
‘WHAT?!’ It was a unanimous cry.
Ms Carraway, the librarian, looked over at us, frowning.
‘Jelena!!!!!’ Sara’s voice was a drawn-out moan. ‘Nooooo!’
‘Why?’ I asked. ‘You have a strong platform, the Find a Prince/Princess Program™ is going great guns, and I’m sure we could have added a few appeasing options for the school council.’
‘You can still go back and tell Mr Quinten you made a mistake,’ Cass said.
Lindsay nodded her agreement.
‘Heck, I’ll run down and tell him you made a mistake,’ Sara said, looking ready to bolt. ‘Because that’s what it is — one very, very ugly, soon to get uglier, mistake.’
‘Jelena, you know we all pledged to help you,’ I said. ‘That offer’s still there. You don’t need to do this.’
‘I do.’ Jelena’s face was determined. ‘Being school captain has been my goal ever since I set foot in Jefferson High and I’m not risking a loss. The next year and a half is my time to establish my leadership credentials. From that point on, I’ll be able to claim “I headed up a high school” in prospective university applications and job interviews. That’s priceless. So I’m not spending my senior year watching Julie Rivers take the opportunity that should have been mine. Yes, I know there’s a slim chance I might win alone, but that isn’t enough for me. If I go with Alex, I’m guaranteed to win.’
‘But it’s Alex!’ Sara tried to keep her voice down despite her unhappiness. ‘You must feel on a gut level that teaming up with him is wrong?’
‘This isn’t about emotions,’ Jelena replied. ‘Yes, I spent half of last night convinced I couldn’t spend the next year and a half sharing the decision-making plus the glory with him, but you know what? Sometimes great challenges are demanded of true leaders. You know, Sun Tzu, who wrote The Art of War, was almost deadset against alliances? He believed they weakened a kingdom’s rule and made it vulnerable to false friends. Except in one circumstance: when an alliance furthered the opportunities of both parties and increased their overall position. He suggested that a leader should use an alliance like a man crossing a river uses stepping ston
es — as a way to move towards your absolute goal, but never relying on one ally as an absolute foothold. This situation with Alex enables my next move — it’s really only a minute part of my overall grand plan.’
‘Okay, that’s the logic behind it, I get it,’ I said. Jelena had obviously given this a lot of thought. ‘But a year and a half might not feel like a short amount of time if you guys are constantly at loggerheads. You get infuriated by his attitude now, so how is it going to be any different when you’re trapped in a stalemate over something during a school-council meeting?’
‘Jelena, it’s Alex!’ Sara wailed again. ‘This is a travesty. A misogynist is going to be leading this school!’
‘Co-leading,’ Jelena said firmly. ‘I’m strong enough to hold my own against him. Plus, we’ve got a contract. Alex and I just pledged to carry out both our platforms equally and had it witnessed by Mr Quinten.’
‘What did Mr Quinten say?’ I asked.
‘He was surprised when I proposed it, but by the end he’d embraced the idea. He likes the idea of a boy–girl team as opposed to a single candidate. He thinks we might be more effective as a duo.’
‘No, no, no,’ Sara muttered under her breath.
Cassie and Lindsay looked depressed. My stomach was in knots. I knew there was no hope of talking her round now.
‘So our Find a Prince/Princess Program™ falls under Alex’s control?’ I asked.
I couldn’t think of anything worse after his public dumping on it. The idea of having to report to a non-believer made my spirits sink further.
‘No, don’t worry, that part of the campaign’s my jurisdiction.’ Jelena got out her notebook. ‘Alex has assured me that he considers it a key part of the female vote, so he’s happy just to show his support and leave you, me and Lindsay to manage it. Here’s a copy of the contract so you feel reassured. You’ll notice we’re combining the sports elements into one — the gym memberships will become a regular thing, while the extreme trips will be a once a semester. One Hour Later is a key factor and will need both of us focusing on it, and we’ll also work together to introduce some council-pleasing policies.’
‘You can be practical all you want, but this is a disaster waiting to happen,’ Sara said, looking absolutely miserable.
Jelena shook her head. ‘Ye of little faith. I’d better head back to the office — Mr Quinten wants Alex and me to explain our decision after he’s officially announced it.’
After she left, we all let out a collective sigh.
‘I guess we’ve got no choice but to believe her when she says she can handle it,’ I said. ‘She’s tough by nature, and I’m sure that tenacity will see her through all of this. Still, I don’t envy her the senior year ahead. Alex is going to present a whole heap of challenges for her in the next eighteen months or so.’
CHAPTER 27
Hayden had bought us tickets for an action thriller on Friday night. I was so engrossed in both it and not spilling my popcorn in a metre-wide radius like I usually did that I was shocked to see I had three missed calls on my phone when the credits rolled onto the screen. I’d put it on silent, but normally I’d have felt it vibrating in my handbag on the seat next to me.
I looked at the caller ID as Hayden and I filed out of the theatre. ‘Uh-oh, it’s Jeffrey. I hope nothing’s gone wrong on his date.’
‘How could it?’ Hayden said. ‘You were over at his place prepping him for two hours on Wednesday night, plus didn’t he text you to say that she was on her way earlier? She obviously didn’t cancel on him.’
‘I wasn’t worried about her not showing up, just the date being short-lived.’
‘They’re at a fantastic restaurant, which I’m sure she’s impressed by. And from what I know of Piper, she appreciates a guy’s humour. It’s entirely probable that Jeffrey’s calling from the bathroom to ask you if he should try and kiss her at the end of the date.’
‘I hope so.’ I hit the reply button. ‘But I want to make sure.’
I could tell by Jeffrey’s hello when he answered the phone that everything wasn’t okay.
‘Aurora, it’s happened again. They all think I’m obsessed with hooking up or something. Can you come over?’
When Hayden and I reached Jeffrey’s house, he opened the door, looking serious. It was odd to see him without his normally cheeky smile.
‘I hope you don’t mind Hayden being here,’ I said. ‘We were at the cinema so we’ve come straight from there.’
‘Can you be understanding of a brother’s suffering?’ Jeffrey asked Hayden as he ushered us through to his lounge room.
‘Hayden’s the sensitive type,’ I assured Jeffrey, shooting a glance at Hayden as he tried not to smile at Jeffrey’s melodramatic tone. ‘So tell us, what happened during the dinner?’
‘It’s what happened after dinner that made things go kaput.’ Jeffrey collapsed onto a couch. ‘I never get anywhere with chicks!’
‘Jeffrey, if you got knocked back for a goodnight kiss, believe me, it happens all the time,’ Hayden said, sitting down on the couch opposite him. ‘As Aurora can tell you, girls are kinda picky with kisses.’
‘Definitely.’ I sat down next to Hayden, feeling more reassured. The situation was definitely recoverable if the majority of the evening had gone well. ‘These things take time. Boys see kissing as a bit of fun whereas girls see it as proof of a connection. Give it another couple of dates and she’ll come round to getting close.’
‘The only part of her that wanted to get close to me was the palm of her hand.’ Jeffrey lifted his own hand to his cheek and winced. It was then I noticed that the right side of his face was redder than the left.
‘She slapped you?’ Hayden and I said in unison.
‘I did everything you said, Aurora! I pulled her chair out, I let her do the talking, I paid for the meal. I was killing it! She totally cracked up when I made a chicken out of my napkin. Then after we left the restaurant I asked if she wanted to come back to my place so I could show her some of the comedy DVDs I’d been telling her about. And she said yes! To top that off, Mum and Dad are away. Home alooone! So we get home, we watch a DVD for about half an hour, she’s curled up on the couch next to me and I feel like a king instead of a joker.’
‘And then?’ I asked. It was kind of painful listening to Jeffrey’s excitement, knowing that he was literally about to get a slap in the face.
‘Then she gets off the couch and asks where the bathroom is. I pointed her down the hall and while she was in there I had a revelation. Like, this girl is totally bangin’ — she’s funny, she’s hot, she’s actually on my couch. Now’s the moment to do the bowerbird.’
‘The what?’ Hayden looked confused.
Jeffrey shook his head. ‘Oh man. How did you ever land a woman? You know, putting yourself out there for the ladies? Showing them your best courting action?’
‘We watched a doco on animal courtship, focusing on the efforts made by the male,’ I explained to Hayden.
‘So I thought, what’s the human equivalent of the bowerbird’s nest? And then it hit me — I wanted to provide comfort and romance at the same time, so why not the hot tub?’
I was starting to get a bad feeling about this. ‘You have a hot tub?’
‘Like, the best,’ Jeffrey said. ‘In our backyard. It’s a beast. Completely decked out with jets, even ones for your wrists and ankles. Piper told me at dinner that she was all achy from basketball practice, so while she was in the bathroom I raced to grab some of my mum’s tea lights. There was a bunch of red roses on the kitchen sill that my dad had given Mum on Monday, so I pulled the petals off and scattered them round the tub. I just managed to finish and get back inside before I heard the bathroom tap go on. In the two seconds I had left, I loaded the CD player with some choice music. I’d been thinking Beyoncé, but there was already a CD of Mum’s in there called Mood Music so I thought perfect, right?’
I inwardly groaned. Hayden shot me a look. He knew as well as I did t
hat Jeffrey had set himself up for disaster.
‘Piper came out of the bathroom while I was trying to catch my breath. No wonder all those animal dudes end up dead, Aurora — romance is exhausting.’ Jeffrey flopped back on the couch again. ‘Anyways, she gave me a funny look ’cause I was breathing hard and asked what was up. I was kinda worried about leaving the tea lights unsupervised near the wooden tub, so I put my hands over her eyes and told her I had a surprise. When I led her outside and took my hands away, she was like blown away.’
‘It was pretty romantic, in its way,’ Hayden conceded.
‘Um, what could be more romantic?’ Jeffrey threw his hands in the air, looking bewildered. ‘She was all smiley for a moment and said she couldn’t believe I’d done all of this for her.’
That meant ‘successful gesture’ in girl language. What had gone wrong from there?
‘I just said I felt a connection — you know how girls like that word.’ Jeffrey gave Hayden a knowing look. ‘Then I hit the hot tub lights, which are all different flashing strobes. It kinda makes it look like the grotto in the Playboy Mansion, if I do say so myself. I said I wanted to get in the tub with her — I don’t know what was wrong with that, but she suddenly looked scared and said she didn’t have a suit. So I told her not to worry, she didn’t need one. I’d just turn down the lights so I wouldn’t be able to tell she was naked.’
‘Jeffrey!’ I was horrified. ‘You told her she should get naked?’
I could see Hayden’s shoulders shaking as he struggled not to laugh. This wasn’t funny!
‘Well, she didn’t have a suit!’ Jeffrey protested. ‘You know me, I do nudie runs all the time. It’s just the human body. Plus, I wanted her to be able to get into the water. The jets are freaking amazing. So I hit the play button on the CD player remote, hoping some music would relax her, only …’
‘What?’ I’d lost all hope now. We might as well hear the catastrophic ending.
‘… it was that song with the line “let’s get it on”,’ Jeffrey finished, looking nervously at me. ‘I didn’t know that song was on there, I swear!’
How to Convince a Boy to Kiss You Page 34