Split

by Alicia Rades

  “Have you ever seen Beauty and the Beast?” he asked.

  “You mean besides the Disney version?” I shook my head.

  “I think you’ll really like it.”

  People shuffled in from all corners of the arts center, and the vast room buzzed in conversation. I didn’t hear my phone vibrate in my purse, but I felt it against the side of my leg.

  “Oh, sorry.” I bent to retrieve it. “I should probably turn my phone off, huh?”

  Logan released my grip, and I checked my screen to find another text from Aaron.

  Up to anything fun?

  I quickly typed a reply.

  Sorry. Busy.

  I turned the phone to silent and slid it back into my purse. “Sorry about that.”

  “Don’t worry.” Logan draped his arm around me then and pulled me close. My pulse quickened, but in a good way that made me want to melt into him.

  The lights dimmed, and the hall fell silent.

  ***

  “That was a lot better than I expected,” I told Logan on the ride home. By now, the sprinkling had stopped, but raindrops had accumulated on the car windows.

  “Musicals are fun, aren’t they?”

  “It actually looked kind of fun to be up there singing,” I admitted, not that I’d ever actually want to do that. I was content with creating the art rather than being it.

  “See?” Logan flashed a glance at me before looking back to the road. “It’ll be fun to be in choir. You’ll like the music.”

  We listened to the radio the rest of the way home. Logan reached to the controls to turn the music down once he pulled into my driveway. A soft glow filled the car from the front patio light my parents had left on for me.

  “It was really fun,” I told him, fixing my gaze on his bright blue eyes. “We should do that more often.”

  His arm came around to rest on the back of my seat. “I’m sure we will.”

  The air sizzled with electricity between us. My face grew hot while my breaths became shallow. I should lean in. We both want this. Neither of us moved for a long time. We simply stared at each other, gauging one another’s emotions.

  I want this. He wants this. Just do it, Maddie.

  I didn’t.

  Just do it. You have nothing to lose.

  My gaze traveled down to his lips. Do it already, Logan. Kiss me, you fool!

  He slowly leaned in, and I caught my breath a split second before his lips brushed against mine. The whole world stopped in that instant, like this moment was all that existed. And then the moment was over. The hammering of my heart brought me back to reality and reminded me that time was still moving forward.

  Logan only pulled away an inch or two.

  “Can you do that again?” I whispered. I closed my eyes as his lips touched mine again, and this time, I could feel time moving forward, like this moment would be over far too quickly. My heartbeat pounded throughout my whole body with such force that I wouldn’t be surprised if Logan could hear it.

  And then he pulled away again. Just like that, it was over.

  I tucked a strand of dark hair behind my ear. “I, uh, should probably get inside. My parents are probably wondering what’s taking me so long.”

  He glanced toward the house. “Yeah. I’ll see you Monday at school.”

  “I can’t wait.” I waved to him as he pulled out of the driveway, and my heart sank at his retreat. I longed to spend just another minute or two with him.

  “How’d your date go?” my mom asked from the couch once I entered the house.

  “It was great,” I told my parents vaguely before racing upstairs and falling down onto my bed with the biggest smile on my face. I replayed the kiss over and over again in my mind, burning it in my memory as I fell asleep that night.

  CHAPTER 6

  AARON

  Aaron invited me out to lunch on Wednesday.

  “Where do you want to eat?” he asked when he picked me up.

  I knew Jordan would be back from his vacation by now, so I wouldn’t be surprised if I ran into him and Logan at our usual café. I didn’t think Logan would appreciate seeing Aaron and me together, so I decided to save him the heartache. “Can we try somewhere new? There’s that new pizza place on Main Street I haven’t tried yet.”

  “Really? You haven’t been there?” Aaron glanced at me. “It’s great. You have to try the Hawaiian pizza.”

  I let out a laugh.

  “What?” he asked innocently.

  I quieted. “Oh, you weren’t joking. I don’t like pineapple on my pizza. I’ll stick with pepperoni.”

  “Oh, come on,” he encouraged.

  A long silence settled over the car while I thought about it. I couldn’t resist his smile, so I decided on a compromise. “We’ll order half and half, and I’ll try a piece.”

  His grin grew wider. “Has anyone told you you’re amazing?”

  I pressed my lips together to keep from splitting my face open with my smile. “You’ve mentioned it once or twice.”

  We arrived shortly and found our way to a booth in the back. Since we already knew what we wanted, it didn’t take long to order. I sipped on my water and gazed across the table at Aaron, who was looking down at the napkin he was folding. The rest of the pizzeria seemed to fade away. I could sit here all day just staring at him and never get bored.

  “Here,” he said, pushing the napkin my way.

  I finally tore my eyes from his face and noticed his creation for the first time. He’d folded his napkin into a paper crane.

  “Wow. That’s amazing. The best I can do is one of those fortune teller things.”

  “The crane is the only thing I ever learned,” he laughed.

  The rest of our wait consisted of me trying to follow his instructions to make a crane napkin, but by the time our pizza arrived, I still didn’t understand what I was doing.

  “Forget it.” I tossed my napkin aside with a laugh. “Ask me to draw, and I can do that. Ask me to fold paper, and I’m useless.”

  He grabbed a slice of pepperoni pizza, and I took my bite of his Hawaiian half. Surprisingly, it wasn’t that bad.

  “See what I told you?” he asked between bites.

  I nodded but didn’t say anything because my mouth was full. I slowed when I grabbed a slice of pepperoni.

  “Excited for school to start next week?” I asked to keep him talking. I loved listening to the sound of his voice.

  Aaron swallowed a bite of Hawaiian pizza. “I’m excited for our first game. You’ll come, right?”

  “Of course. I wouldn’t miss it.” I bit into my pizza again.

  I hadn’t attended many football games in the past, but I remembered watching Aaron play tag football in his backyard as a kid during his family’s summer barbeques. Of course, my family was always invited on account of our parents being close. The barbeques stopped once our siblings started college and everyone got busy. But I imagined watching a football game would be a lot like that. The times I’d been to school football games, I spent the night eating concession stand food and chatting with my friends. This year, I actually had someone to watch on the field.

  Aaron and I talked about sports, art, and school until we were stuffed.

  After we finished, he checked his phone for the time. “I still have a little over an hour until football practice.”

  I didn’t want to leave him yet. “Have anything in mind?”

  He pressed his lips together. When his eyes met mine, my heart flipped in my chest. “Actually, I do.”

  He dropped his tip on the table, and we both stood. He was nice enough to pay the bill even though I insisted we split it. We exited the pizzeria hand-in-hand.

  “Where are we going?” I asked as I opened the passenger-side door on his car.

  Aaron slid into the driver’s seat. “To the mall.”

  I was excited when they decided to build a mall in our town a couple of summers ago, but it ended up being really small and only had a tiny food cou
rt and a couple of clothing stores. It wasn’t anything exciting, and if you wanted to do any real shopping, you had to head out of town.

  “I don’t have much money,” I admitted.

  “Don’t worry about it.” He smirked as he drove along the street.

  I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. I didn’t need him buying me anything. He’d just paid for my lunch, and it wasn’t fair to ask him for more than that.

  Aaron grabbed my hand again once we reached the mall and exited the car. He quickened his pace.

  “Where are we going?” I looked up at him, but his expression gave nothing away.

  “Just come on. It’ll be fun.”

  “What? What will?” I was still interrogating him as we hurried through the halls of the mall. When he slowed, I finally looked up.

  “Come on.” He gently pushed me forward. “Get in.”

  I climbed into the photo booth without question, and he squeezed in beside me. His leg pressed against mine, making me go hot at his touch.

  Aaron closed the curtains around us and fed a few dollars into the machine. “Smile.”

  I did. We started with a smiling pose and finished off with three silly ones. By the time we exited the booth, I was laughing hysterically. I think people were beginning to stare at us.

  “What kind of pose was that last one?” I teased between giggles.

  “What do you mean? I was being a tiger … or something.” He pulled our pictures from the printer and handed me one.

  I inspected the last photo. His nose was crinkled up, and his exposed teeth gave the impression that he was growling. It was actually kind of sexy. I tucked the picture in my purse, never wanting to let it go.

  “Come on.” Aaron grabbed my hand again, dragging me behind him.

  “Where are we going now?” The smile never left my face.

  “I have another idea.” He subtly raised his eyebrows like he had a secret.

  We rounded a corner to a dead end, and Aaron pulled me up to a platform in the middle of the hall that had four kiddie rides on it. They were the kind you slip a quarter into and they start swaying and playing music.

  I stopped in my tracks. “You’re not serious. No.”

  “Come on, Maddie.” He pushed at me. When I didn’t budge, he hopped onto the back of a spaceship, gesturing for me to sit in the driver’s seat.

  I rolled my eyes, reluctantly giving in. If he was willing to do it, then I supposed I had to try as well. I barely fit and had to curl my knees to my chest, but I managed to squeeze myself into the ride.

  “Ready?”

  Before I could respond, the ride started. I glanced back at him sitting on the surface behind me. “You’re going to get in trouble.” I pointed over to a sign that said children must stay inside the ride at all times.

  Aaron scanned the hall, which was mostly empty except for a woman pushing a stroller into one of the nearby shops. The people milling the main hall appeared focused on their destination and didn’t seem to notice us.

  “Who’s going to care? Relax, Maddie.”

  His arm stretched out in front of me, and before I knew it, he snapped a couple of selfies while I threw my head back in laughter. I couldn’t stop when I was around him.

  My heart nearly broke when he dropped me off at home afterward so he could go to football practice. We stood on my front steps, and I wrapped my arms around him, resting my head on his chest. I could feel his hot breath on the top of my head.

  “I don’t want you to leave,” I whispered. “I want to spend more time with you.”

  He hugged me back. “I know. I want to spend more time with you, too. You don’t want to come watch me practice, do you?”

  I didn’t answer while I contemplated the idea. It would be nice to be around him more, but it’s not like I’d actually be with him while he was practicing. Then again, it’d be a lot like attending his games, and I’d rather do that than hang out at home without him. Will Mom and Dad let me go?

  “Hey.” Aaron pulled away from me like he just had a great idea. “I just thought of something. Why don’t you join cheerleading?”

  I drew away another few inches to look him in the eyes. “Cheerleading? Aaron, I’m not—”

  “Yeah,” he interrupted like it was the best idea ever. “Then you could watch me every game. I could drive you to and from practice.”

  I liked the idea of being near him, but I wasn’t cheerleading material. “Aaron, I’m not a cheerleader. I don’t do cartwheels and back handsprings and stuff like that. Besides, didn’t they already start practicing?”

  “Yeah, but Dani told us last week that they were looking for more girls. We’re talking sideline cheerleading, Maddie. You don’t need to know how to do a back handspring.”

  I let the idea sink in. Our school wasn’t big enough for a competitive cheer squad, so most people avoided the sport because it wasn’t “cool” enough for them. Other girls joined cross country, swimming, or volleyball, or there were people like me who never cared to join a sport at all.

  “I don’t know, Aaron,” I told him, but I had to admit, the idea intrigued me.

  “Just check out their practice,” he pleaded. “It’s not as tough as you probably think it is. Sure, they do pyramids and cartwheels, but not all the girls do flips and stuff. They said they needed some more people for their stunts. I think you’d like it.”

  If it meant spending more time with him, I probably would enjoy it. I shrugged. “I guess I could give it a shot.”

  “Awesome. Do you want to change? I can give Dani a call and see if it’s okay if you join practice.”

  “Okay.” I rushed upstairs and quickly changed into my royal blue Soffe shorts and a white t-shirt, our school colors. I brushed my hair into a ponytail and laced my shoes. My hands shook the whole time. Was I actually excited about the idea of being a cheerleader?

  No, I told myself. I was just happy to have more time with Aaron.

  “Good news,” Aaron smiled when I made it back downstairs. “Dani says they’d love to see what you can do. Practice starts soon, so we better get going.”

  I texted my mom in the car, telling her where I was going. She told me to have fun and cheer really loud. I wasn’t sure if she was making fun of me or actually encouraging me. She was probably happy I was trying some extracurricular. I supposed it was time to try something besides art while I had plenty of opportunities at my fingertips. But cheerleading? I wondered. Then I quickly reminded myself that if this worked out, it meant I’d have more time with Aaron. And that made the nerves seem worth it.

  I stepped out of Aaron’s car nervously when we made it to the football field. The warm air and shining sun were pleasant on my exposed skin. I glanced toward Aaron. “Are you sure they want me to join? I missed tryouts.”

  “Maddie, there weren’t enough girls at tryouts to have tryouts.”

  I squinted across the vast clearing at the girls stretching in a grassy area outside the boundaries of the field. “You’re sure?”

  “Do you want me to go with you?” His voice was soft and reassuring.

  I knew he had to go change for his practice, but I nodded anyway.

  He shook his head at me but couldn’t hide his amused smile. “Dani,” Aaron called as soon as we were close enough.

  Dani hopped up from the ground where she was stretching. Her brown ponytail swished from side to side as she raced up to us. “Maddie.” She had sweet eyes and a friendly smile. I knew her from several classes we’d had together, but I hadn’t talked to her much. “You’re a lifesaver!”

  I didn’t know what to say or do, so I simply let Dani drag me away. I waved back at Aaron as he retreated to attend his own practice.

  “Coach,” Dani called to a woman who looked to be about forty.

  I’d never met their coach before. She had a short brown pixie cut with blond highlights, and her smile stretched across her entire face.

  “This is Maddie,” Dani introduced. “She’s interested in j
oining the team.”

  “Hi, Maddie,” she greeted. “I’m Nikki. You can call me Nikki or Coach, whichever you prefer.”

  All I could do was give her a friendly smile.

  Coach pressed her lips together. “Hmm … Let me think about how I want to do this. We need the extra girls, but I can’t guarantee you a spot on the team until we know what you can do.”

  Dani cut in. “Last week you had me teach Rachel some cheers while everyone else practiced.”

  Coach thought about it for a few seconds longer. “I know. I just don’t want to take more time out of practice than we need to.”

  Dani shrugged. “I know all the cheers anyway.”

  “I wanted to work on some stunts today, too,” Coach said. “Okay, here’s what we’ll do. We’ll all warm up together, and then you can teach Maddie some cheers while we go through the school song. When we take our break, I’ll see what Maddie can do, and if she’s okay to join the team, she can stay and watch us work on stunts. Sorry, Maddie, but I’ll need you to sign a waiver and some medical forms before you can join everyone for stunts.”

  I didn’t say a thing the whole time.

  “Sounds good,” Dani agreed. “Come on, Maddie.” She led me to an open spot on the grass to stretch. “Don’t worry about making the team. We needed another person for one of the stunts anyway. Just keep your arms straight, yell loud, and clap on the beat. Coach will love you.”

  “Thanks,” I told Dani, but it came out more like a whisper.

  I still wasn’t sure about this whole cheerleading thing, and Dani almost seemed too bubbly and nice for her own good. Was she being nice because she actually thought I’d fit in here, or was it because I was dating Aaron? That had to put me a notch higher on the “cool” scale, right? Or maybe Dani was just naturally kind. Considering the cheerleaders at our school didn’t fit the stereotypical “mean girl” formula, it was probably because she was just that nice.