Competing With the Star (Star #2)

by Krysten Lindsay Hager

  “Honestly, Hadley. She and I weren’t right for each other. You and I have so much more in common than she and I ever did,” he said, and I smiled, feeling more relaxed. Then he added, “And you and I have been able to talk to each other from the first day we met. She and I hardly ever talked.”

  Fabulous. Now I could wonder what they did instead. Ugh! Stop talking, Nick. Just tell me I’m the only one and that she was exaggerating and then let’s forget she exists.

  “I’m way more comfortable around you too.”

  I wanted to ask, “Like how a worn out pair of yoga pants are after being in the dryer too many times, or are you saying we’re soulmates and will never be apart?”

  Instead I said, “That’s cool.”

  “I better get you home or your grandma will hunt me down. Is it weird I’m more scared of her than your dad?” he asked.

  I just smiled as my mind was racing too much to give him feedback.

  “But just in case I don’t get the chance later,” he said, and then leaned forward and kissed me. He pulled back and looked into my eyes. “I know a lot of girls would be weirded out about going to a date at a nursing home, but that was seriously the best date I’ve ever been on.”

  “Yeah, it was.”

  “Well, it’s tied for second anyway.”

  “What?”

  He smiled. “Our first date on the pier was pretty great as well,” he said. “I don’t want to take anything away from that.”

  I shook my head and then kissed him. We were comfortable together and that was an amazing thing to have.

  Chapter Eight

  The next day, Simone called me and asked how my date went.

  “It was great. I got to meet his grandpa and we watched the movie together—”

  “Wait, that was part of the date? I thought you just went for a visit,” she said.

  “His grandpa is important to him and I was glad he wanted to include me.”

  “Okay, well, then what did you do?”

  I said we went out to eat and then sat in his car by the lake and talked.

  “And then what?”

  “Nothing. We just talked.”

  “You sat in his car talking?” she asked.

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Sheesh, I didn’t think he was that boring.”

  “He’s not. I like hanging out with him and he said he feels comfortable around me.”

  “Uh-oh.”

  My stomach dropped. “What?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Simone! What?”

  “Well, it’s just been my experience that it isn’t always the best thing when a guy feels too comfortable around a girl—especially not this early in the relationship,” she said.

  “What? Why?”

  “Well, usually guys like the whole butterflies in the stomach thing—the excitement. You know, the nerves and the fireworks.”

  “I felt fireworks the first time he kissed me.”

  “Well, you did, but did he?”

  I had to admit I had no idea. I assumed he must have because he liked me, but was I the safe, comfortable girlfriend, while Reagan was the sexy, exciting one? Did he need somebody boring and laid back after being with someone as high maintenance as her?

  “You don’t think he likes me?” I asked, feeling panicked.

  “Oh, I’m sure he does. I just don’t know if it’s the super passionate kind of like, you know? But it’s not so much about him. I mean, don’t you want a guy who you are so consumed with that you can’t think about anyone else and you feel those butterflies when you see him? Like your heart goes on a roller coaster every time he texts you?”

  I swallowed hard. That was how I felt about my crush, Jack Brogger. Seeing a new video from Jack and seeing him in person gave me those overwhelming feelings. But with Nick…well, when I was with him I felt like there was no place else in the world I’d rather be. I didn’t even notice anyone around me. I felt a kind of calm—a peacefulness like this was where I was meant to be.

  “Yeah, but Nick makes me feel good about myself and safe. What’s wrong with that?” I asked.

  “Nothing, if you want to see what marriage will be like when you’re sixty-five, but you’re almost sixteen and this is your chance to have a heart-stopping romance. Not some old people hand holding crap.”

  “But what if I like that?”

  “Well, you should know that’s not what he had with Reagan. They were always all over each other,” she said.

  I was starting to feel sick and all I could come back with was, “But he said they fought a lot.”

  “Yeah, they’d go from fighting to kissing and making up. It was a very passionate relationship.”

  I felt like I had swallowed a brick. “Great, fabulous image to have in my mind.”

  “I just want you to know in case Nick is…”

  “What?”

  “Well, I know he likes you and I even told you he’s more relaxed and comfortable around you than he ever was with Morgan and Reagan. He was always a little shy and awkward around them. To be honest, I always thought of him as being too young for me, you know? Connor and Lucas were always so much more mature and, I dunno, masculine compared to him.”

  So she was never into Nick. That was a relief at least.

  “I just don’t want you to get hurt if he gets bored.”

  “But, Simone, you don’t know what we’re like when we’re together. He can be himself with me and he can share things with me he can’t talk about with anyone else.”

  “Yeah, but, honey, do you hear yourself? Talking, being himself? Is he looking for a girlfriend or a buddy?”

  “I think you’re wrong. Maybe we don’t have what he had with Reagan, but what we have is sweet and special.”

  “But other than that little thing with Will, you haven’t had a boyfriend before, right?” she asked.

  “Well, no. Not technically.”

  “So you have nothing to base it on,” she said.

  I bit my lip. “Guess not.”

  “I didn’t mean to upset you with any of this. I was just trying to be a good friend because I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

  “Thanks,” I said. Her words sounded thoughtful, but they didn’t make me feel good. I had been so happy, but now she had put all this weird doubt in my mind. We got off the phone and I felt like I needed to have a heart-to-heart over all of this with someone, but who? Charlotte was my best friend, but I knew she wouldn’t understand what I was feeling. And I didn’t feel like I could confide in Asia because she was best friends with Simone—I didn’t want to put her in a weird position by sharing everything that Simone had said or how she made me feel. But who else could I talk to? I decided the only person was Lexi, so I texted her and poured out my feelings about what Reagan had said at the pizza place and what Simone had just told me.

  A half hour later she texted back.

  Lexi: Is Nick the guy with sandy blond hair on your social media page?

  Me: Yeah, that’s him

  Lexi: He’s hot. Good 4 u, girlie.

  I waited and she didn’t type anything else, so I sent her another message asking if she had any advice.

  Lexi: Yeah, keep the other girls away. LOL

  How helpful. Who was I supposed to turn to when I was feeling insecure about one girl and wondering about Nick’s real feelings? Plus, I was also unsure of Simone’s motives in telling me all that stuff. She said she was just being a good friend, but why did I feel so uneasy about it? As much as I felt like I was getting closer to Asia, I could never confide those feelings to her. But who else would understand? Who else had been in my shoes, wondering if someone was still into her boyfriend even though they acted like they weren’t, and was used to dealing with frenemies and crap? Then it hit me—Pilar. But she and I weren’t exactly friends. Sure, she confided in me about her family stuff at the nursing home, but that was probably because she didn’t have anyone else to talk to about it. Morgan would probably roll her eyes an
d say, “Depressing much?” if she brought any of that up. Plus, Pilar was friends with Reagan and Simone anyway. So that left me with no one. It was weird, I used to have one super close best friend and that was it, and now I had a group of friends and had never felt more alone.

  Chapter Nine

  The next day, I was heading to school when I saw Nick walking into the building with Connor and Simone. The three of them were laughing and Simone punched him in the arm—like you would an older brother. My shoulders relaxed. She wasn’t into him, she still liked Connor. After all, she was all about the guys who made your heart beat and butterflies invade your stomach, so she’d never be into the nice guy type like Nick.

  “Hey, what’s up?” Pilar asked, coming up beside me.

  “Oh, hey. Not much.”

  “So I didn’t mean to dump all that stuff on you the other day. I don’t know what that was about, but can we keep it just between us?”

  I nodded. “Of course.”

  She stared at me like she wasn’t sure whether or not to believe me. “’Kay. Cool.”

  “Are you going to that thing on Friday?” I asked.

  “You mean the fair that Lucas asked me to go to months ago and then bailed on me for that slut, Reagan? That event?”

  I stared at her in shock.

  “Sorry. If you could keep all that to yourself, that’d be cool. I just…I dunno. Never mind,” she said, shaking her head. Her straight black ponytail swayed.

  “I didn’t know that happened, but you have a right to be upset.”

  “But I can’t be upset with Reagan. Not the way Morgan kisses her butt. Anyway, never mind. I gotta get to class. See ya,” she said.

  At lunch, I asked Charlotte how long Pilar and Morgan had been friends.

  “Since fourth grade. Why?” she asked.

  “Just wondering.”

  “I saw Pilar talking to you this morning,” Charlotte said. “I didn’t know you guys were even friends. I mean, you hang with her group, but honestly, I can’t recall you two ever talking that much before.”

  Um, try not talking ever. I didn’t want to betray Pilar’s confidence, so I shrugged and said we had talked a bit. It was true after all.

  ***

  On Friday, everyone was talking about the fair and who was going with who. Since Lucas, Connor, and Nick all drove, they were going to be our rides. Unfortunately, that meant Nick and I weren’t going alone. I had asked Charlotte to come, but she felt weird about being a third wheel, so she said she’d go with her friend Deidre and meet us there. Instead, Morgan and Pilar were coming with us. I wanted to ask why they didn’t go with one of the other groups, but didn’t want to explain why.

  When Nick picked me up, Pilar was in the front seat and Morgan in the back. I walked up to the car and Pilar got out and went into the back.

  “Why’d you move, loser?” Morgan asked. I froze, thinking she was talking to me.

  “I’m not going to sit next to her boyfriend while she sits in the back,” Pilar said.

  “Whatever,” Morgan said.

  Nick parked over by the beach and Simone, Asia, and Connor were waiting for us by the ticket booth for the fair.

  “We’re going to do the Ferris wheel,” Simone said. “I hate heights, but Connor promised to protect me.”

  She looked up at him with her round blue eyes. It struck me as strange that she would gush about him protecting her when she told me she thought it was kind of lame I liked feeling safe around Nick. Was that was her way of flirting? Seemed odd she had done a one eighty on the safety issue.

  “Connor, what about me?” Morgan said, pouting. “You promised me we’d do the Ferris wheel.”

  Simone’s smile stayed on her face, but her eyes changed. She looked like someone had knocked her down.

  “There’s enough of me to go around,” Connor said, laughing and putting his arm around both of the girls.

  I saw Pilar and Asia roll their eyes at each other.

  Just then I saw Charlotte wave me over. She had a bunch of tickets in her hands from playing games.

  “Hey, we’re trying to save up to win a stuffed animal,” she said.

  “I have my eye on a baby seal,” Deidre said.

  “And I want a white tiger,” Char said, pointing to the booth behind her.

  It was a basketball game. I was as unathletic as can be, but I did have excellent aim. My dad always said it was from all the basketball I watched. I wasn’t coordinated enough to play very well, but I could hit a free throw any day of the week.

  “This looks like my kind of game,” Nick said. “Want to play?”

  “Boring,” Morgan said. “We’re gonna go do rides. Enjoy the kiddie games.”

  Simone giggled. “There’s a little fishing pole game in a baby pool too, if you get bored.”

  “Haha, have fun,” Nick said.

  I went first, but it took me a while to get warmed up. I was nervous shooting in front of Nick and I missed my first two attempts. I got the next two balls through the hoop and got four tickets.

  “Okay, my turn,” he said. He made all four baskets and the guy working the booth said he could have a unicorn, a bear, or try to make four more baskets for a better prize.

  “Anything you want?” Nick asked me, nodding at the shelf with the bigger stuffed animals.

  “Is that a red panda?” I asked. The worker held him up for me to see.

  “Oh, look at that little face,” I said. “He’s so sweet and cute.”

  “Really? The red panda over the white tiger?” Simone said, coming up behind me.

  “Yeah, I love him. He’s my spirit animal.”

  “Okay, one red panda coming up,” Nick said.

  He made all four baskets and the guy handed him the stuffed animal.

  “I believe this is your spirit animal,” Nick said, smiling at me.

  I hugged the toy. “Cutest thing ever.”

  “It bodes well for me that you didn’t want the tiger. That was another four baskets,” he said, laughing.

  Simone asked Connor if he wanted to play, but he said games were lame and went to get cotton candy for the girls, who were now all crowded around us.

  “Char, do you want me to get you some more tickets toward your tiger?” Nick asked.

  “Nah, I want to win it myself. Thanks though.”

  “Are there any rides you like?” Nick asked me.

  “I’m kind of a scaredy-cat about anything with heights and speed,” I said.

  “I’m into speed, but not anything that spins too much.”

  “I can do spin-y, it’s the rest I don’t care for,” I said.

  Reagan smirked. “I guess you guys aren’t ride compatible, huh? One likes fast, one likes slow.”

  Nick turned to me. “How about the merry-go-round? Everyone likes that, right?”

  I agreed and we all headed over. We were about to go through the gate when Morgan handed her purse off to Pilar.

  “Will you hold my bag while I ride?” she asked her.

  Reagan passed off her purse as well and soon the rest of the group was through the gate while Pilar stood there like a coat rack. She snapped her gum and looked annoyed, but then I saw Lucas wink at her. She just stared back at him.

  I got on a horse that was between Asia and Nick. He looked over and smiled at me. It felt like the perfect moment until Simone turned around on her horse and said, “Hey, Hadley, look into the future,” and nodded at an old couple sitting on one of the merry-go-round benches.

  Nick glanced at me, confused. “What is she talking about?”

  “Nothing. We were just talking about older married people one day. That’s all.”

  “Oh. Well, they look like they’re having fun,” he said.

  Simone shot me a knowing look and turned back around.

  “What’s with her?” Nick asked, leaning over to me.

  I shrugged.

  “Are you having fun? You got kind of quiet all of a sudden. Everything okay?” He reached ou
t and touched my hand.

  The music started and we started to move.

  “Yeah, I’m having a good time.”

  “You sure?” he asked.

  I was with the perfect guy—someone sweet and thoughtful who cared if I was having fun. How could I not have a good time? But I just kept wondering if Simone was right and I was just his safe option until he got bored with me and wanted one of those girls who made your heart pound just by walking by.

  “Yeah, and I love the red panda. It’s the cutest thing ever,” I said.

  “Nah, not as cute as you,” he said, winking.

  My face got warm. How could Simone not see how amazing our relationship was? He was perfect. But I guess I might be bored too if I was used to Hollywood parties and celebrity guys. That’s probably all that was—she was putting herself in my shoes and thinking how boring we were as a couple compared to what she was used to.

  Chapter Ten

  The merry-go-round ride ended and Charlotte told Nick she needed him to help her win her stuffed animal.

  “I hate to ask for help, but I have to be realistic,” she said. “It’s never gonna happen if I don’t call in a ringer.”

  He laughed. “Do you mind if I go help her?” he asked me.

  “Have fun,” I said.

  The rest of the group had gone over to a fun house. Asia asked me to join them, but I figured I was way too claustrophobic for something like that. Pilar said she wasn’t into it either so we sat on a bench and waited.

  “I am so over Lucas’ crap,” she said, fixing her dark hair.