Good Luck Charm

by Kellie McAllen

“It just takes practice. I could help you, if you’d like. Want to come over after school and shoot some hoops with me?” I say with confidence.

  “Definitely! And afterwards, maybe we could go out, or something, get to know each other a little better.” She winks at me and tosses her hair.

  In my head, talking to Mallory is easy. Now I just need to be brave enough to actually open my mouth and say something to her.

  I head to 4th period with my head up and a smile on my face. I can do this! I know exactly what to say to her.

  When I pass the men’s room, I suddenly worry if I have burrito sauce on my face or anything, so I turn around and duck inside. I check myself out in the mirror and don’t see any obvious defects. My face is clean, my hair looks okay. I’m not super muscular, but I’m not scrawny. I showered this morning and put on clean clothes. I’m not the best dresser — I’m just wearing jeans and a Pacers tee shirt, but I don’t think I look bad or anything. This is how most guys dress, right? Some of the preppy guys go for button-up shirts. Maybe Mallory prefers that? But if she’s into basketball, she ought to appreciate the Pacers shirt.

  I’m not a girl, so there’s not much else I can do in the bathroom to improve my appearance. I decide I look decent enough and head out.

  I’m almost late to class, and there’s no empty seat by Mallory, so I end up sitting farther back than I want, but she can still see me when she turns to talk to Kyra. I realize I probably have burrito breath, so I dig in my bag for my gum.

  Should I offer it to Mallory again? But there are several people between us; would I have to offer it to all of them, too? I’m not sure what the rule is on sharing gum. How big of a radius should you include? If I want to include Mallory, I’d be offering gum to half the classroom, and that would be kind of awkward.

  I decide to shove the gum in my mouth without letting anyone else see me. If I get a minute alone with Mallory maybe I’ll offer her some then.

  Since I got to class at the last minute, I didn’t have a chance to talk to Mallory before class started, but I’m too worked up to wait, so as soon as the teacher starts handing out some worksheets, I take the opportunity.

  “Hey Mallory,” I say when she turns around to pass the stack of papers, “I saw your game last Friday. You played really great.” I grin, stoked that I managed to remember the script I’d worked out and eager to hear her respond the way I imagined it.

  Instead, she barely glances at me and says a careless “thanks” before turning back around. Okay, that didn’t go exactly as planned, but no problem, I just have to be flexible, roll with the punches. When Mallory turns around again with the next stack of papers, I take the opportunity.

  “I play basketball, too, on the guys team.” Duh! I cringe.

  “That’s nice.” Mallory tosses her long, blonde hair and gives a brief smile then looks at Kyra who glances at me and snickers.

  “Were you at the game?” I ask to her back, desperate to get her to respond the way I imagined it.

  She turns around and looks at me like she can’t understand why I’m talking to her. “I’m not really into basketball.”

  “Then why do you play?” I blurt out. I can’t help myself. I’ve already told you I suck at talking to people.

  She doesn’t get the chance to answer because the teacher starts talking then, but I’m pretty sure I see her roll her eyes when she turns back around. I spend the rest of the hour rehashing the conversation in my mind, imagining a dozen different ways it could’ve gone, all of them better than how it actually went.

  When class lets out, I think about approaching Mallory and asking her my last question again, but she and Kyra blow past me before I even work up the guts to open my mouth.

  I work out my frustrations on the court after school, running and dribbling and shooting like the ball is my enemy, but if it is, then it’s winning. Anger does not improve my basketball game.

  “Murphy, what’s your problem? You trying to put that ball through the hoop or just piss it off?” Coach Johnson yells at me. He’s got dribbles of red burrito sauce on his faded polo shirt and around his mouth.

  “Sorry, Coach. I’ll try to do better.”

  “He’s just mad cuz he got stonewalled by a girl today.” Jake chuckles, elbowing Austin, and I wince. I knew they were in my class, but I didn’t realize they’d witnessed my pathetic attempts to talk to Mallory.

  “Well, if you’re as bad with girls as you are with that ball today, it’s no wonder. Now, get your head in the game!” Coach says.

  I force myself to calm down and play normally for the rest of practice, and I do a little better. Afterwards, I head to the locker room and jump in one of the showers.

  Voices echo off the concrete walls, and I overhear Jake talking to Austin. “Hey, wanna go get some food, bro? I’m in the mood for pizza.”

  “Well, I was gonna go out with Mia tonight, but maybe you could come with us.”

  “And be the third wheel while you and your girlfriend suck face all evening? No thank you. I’ll just find some other girlfriendless loser to hang out with, like…”

  Someone shuts a locker, and the metal twang rings out, muffling Jake’s voice. For a second, I think he might say my name. I’ve talked to Jake a couple times, and he was pretty friendly to me, even though he’s one of the most popular guys in the school. I could definitely use a friend with that kind of social standing.

  “…I heard you and Macy are off again.” Of course. Why would he want to hang out with me when Dylan is available?

  “We were, yesterday.” I can hear the grin in Dylan’s voice. “But today we’re on again. Sorry, bro.”

  “Hey, I’ve got an idea, Jake,” Austin says. “Mia’s hanging out with her friend Kerri right now. Why don’t I see if she wants to come along?”

  “Kerri. That’s the redhead, right? She’s not bad. Does she like PDA as much as Mia?”

  I just about throw open the shower curtain and stomp over there, but I stop myself at the last minute. Not bad? Kerri is beautiful, and fun, and she deserves a helluva lot more than some tag-along hook up.

  Austin laughs, and I want to punch him, too. “I don’t know, but she’s cool. I think you’d like her.”

  “Sure, why not. I’ve never been with a redhead before. Do you think the curtains match the drapes?”

  Okay, now I really want to go out there and punch that jackass. I thought Jake was a nice guy, but I guess not. I hope Kerri is smart enough to see what a jerk he is.

  “Is that a condition of the date? You want me to ask Mia?” Austin chuckles.

  I think about hanging out with Kerri last night and how nice it was just to have somebody to talk to. I was an idiot and said the wrong thing a couple times and almost made her cry, but she didn’t seem to hold it against me. In fact, she wants me to hang out with her even more, to be her good luck charm, or whatever.

  Maybe I should say yes, just so I can be friends with her and maybe save her from people like Jake who only want to take advantage of her. I’ve just about made up my mind to call her when I head Austin’s voice again.

  “Kerri’s in, Jake. You ready?”

  Chapter Nine

  Kerri

  I’ve got just the thing to cheer you up, Ker.” Mia looks up from her phone and gives me a suspicious grin.

  At least it looks suspicious from this angle. My head is hanging upside down off the side of the bed, and Mia is tossing Lucky Charms into my open maw.

  “You caught a leprechaun for me?”

  “Nope, even better. I got you a date.”

  “What?” I jerk upright, and my head spins a bit from the blood rush.

  “Austin wants to go out for pizza. He’s bringing Jake, and he wants me to bring you.” Her grin has morphed into a big smile.

  “Jake Matthews? That Jake?” Jake is probably the most popular guys’ name at our school. There’s probably a dozen of them, or more, but only one of them is close friends with Austin.

  Mia nods and wi
ggles her eyebrows.

  Jake Matthews is cute, and funny, and great at basketball, and I didn’t think he knew I existed, but I guess being friends with his best friend’s girlfriend puts me in his circle. Going out on a double date with him sounds amazing, but guilt smacks me in the face as soon as I start to say yes.

  “But what about my dad? I was going to go see him after you left.”

  “You’ve been there every night, Ker, and your brothers are there. Come on, you need to have some fun. It’ll get you out of this funk. Whaddaya say?” She puts on a pouty face, and the next thing I know I’m nodding.

  “Great! They’ll be here in 15 minutes, so fix your hair and put some better clothes on, girl.”

  I raise my eyebrows at her. “Since when are you the fashion police?”

  Usually it’s me trying to get Mia to try a little harder, but I have to admit my efforts have been pretty lackluster the last week or so. I’ve just had bigger things to worry about than my appearance.

  I jump up and look in the mirror, cringing at the sight of the frizzy rat’s nest on my head. Getting caught in the rain this morning was not a good thing for my hair. I change my clothes then spritz my hair down with some conditioning spray and try to scrunch the curls back into shape. I put some makeup on, playing up my eyes since I think they’re my best feature. When I’m done, I still feel like I’m nowhere near pretty enough to be going out with Jake Matthews.

  Being comfortable around guys is no problem for me — I’ve got three brothers, after all, but being girly and pretty enough to attract one? That I’m not so good at. Suddenly I wonder who’s idea this was. Is this just a pity date that Mia arranged?

  “Come on, they’re here.” Mia pushes me out the door before I have a chance to question her.

  Austin’s Jeep pulls up to the curb, and Jake jumps out of the passenger seat so Mia can sit next to Austin.

  “Hey, Kerri, right? I’m Jake.” He opens the back door, and I nod and duck inside. Why am I suddenly tongue-tied? I’ve never had a problem talking to guys before. Is it just because he’s so popular? Austin is too, though, and I can talk to him. Maybe because he’s safe since I know he belongs to Mia.

  But Jake is here for me, even though we’ve never really spoken to each other before, and suddenly I feel under pressure to impress him.

  Jake looks freshly showered with his dark brown hair still damp and his skin warm and pink. He smells like Irish Spring, which is good but weird. It’s what my dad buys, so he and my brothers all smell like that. The scent is familiar and comforting, but not exactly a turn-on. Jake’s jeans and henley are simple, but they look great on him.

  “We were thinking about Moretti’s Pizza. How does that sound?” He shifts in the seat so he can look at me.

  “Sure, yeah. Sounds good.” I actually don’t like their pizza very much, but I don’t want to be difficult. Mia knows this, though, so she bails me out.

  “Can we go to Romano’s instead? I love their garlic bread.”

  Nobody has any complaints about that, so Austin heads to the little pizzeria around the block. There’s not really enough time for Jake and I to have a conversation, but that’s okay because I have no idea what to say to him.

  Romano’s looks like a dump from the outside with grayed wooden siding, faded, green shutters, and a yellowed sign that’s probably been there since the 50’s. You can hardly read the name anymore, so I don’t think they’re attracting very many new customers, but my family has been coming here as long as I can remember, probably even longer.

  “Nice place. I take it it’s a lot nicer on the inside.” Jake cringes and hops out of the Jeep.

  I wince and follow him. “Not exactly. But their food is amazing.”

  The bell on the door jangles as we walk in to the tiny dining room, and everyone turns to look at who’s coming in. I wave at Marge, the 50-something waitress with big hair wearing a black tee shirt and a matching apron over tight jeans who’s waited on us for years. She lights up at the sight of me, and her eyes get big when she notices the hunky guys behind me.

  “Hey Kerri, Mia. Table for four tonight?” She sashays over to us, her wide hips swaying between the tables, and grabs some menus.

  “Hey Marge, yeah, this is Mia’s boyfriend, Austin, and his friend Jake.” I wave a hand in their direction. “Guys, this is Marge.”

  Jake gives me a weird look but says hello to Marge then follows her over to a dark booth in the corner set under a window with red and white checkered curtains. Mia slides in first and Austin sits next to her, so I follow suit on the other side.

  I’m shoulder to shoulder with Jake, pinned against the wood-paneled wall, and suddenly I feel so nervous I don’t think I can even eat. I twirl my ring around and around my finger, trying to calm myself.

  “What kind of pizza do you guys want?” Austin asks, flipping through the sticky, plastic menu.

  “Sausage and pepperoni,” Jake and I both say, and I smile at him.

  “I want garlic bread, too.” Mia points at the menu and looks at Austin. “But will you still kiss me if I eat it?”

  “You know I’d kiss you even if you ate anchovies.” Austin smiles and leans over to tease Mia’s lips. PDA is Austin’s favorite pastime.

  They kiss for a good ten seconds, and I sit still and silent, scared to look anywhere, scared to even think. I wonder what Jake is doing, but I don’t even want to move my eyes towards him.

  Thankfully, Marge comes back before Mia and Austin get carried away. The tension breaks, and we order our pizza. When she leaves, I don’t know what to say, but Austin jumps in and starts the conversation.

  “Hey Jake, did you know Kerri’s a great basketball player? She moves like a snake on the court, and her free throw record is off the chain.”

  Jake raises an eyebrow at me. “Oh yeah? How long have you been playing?”

  I shrug and poke at the ice in my glass with my straw. “Forever, I guess. I’ve been playing with my brothers as long as I can remember.”

  “Who are your brothers? Anybody I’d know?”

  We talk about our families for a bit, and that’s easier to talk about than myself, but I still feel nervous and awkward like he’s analyzing me, trying to decide if I’m worth pursuing or not. It doesn’t help that I don’t feel like I’m being myself at all. It’s not that I don’t think he’d like the real me, although maybe he wouldn’t because the real me is hyper, and a little goofy, and kind of pushy — not exactly the most desirable attributes, I just can’t seem to find her at the moment. It’s like the real Kerri is locked up somewhere, and a polite, well-behaved, but kind of boring version of me has taken over my body.

  Is this how everyone feels when they’re on a first date? Sure, Jake is cute and popular and a great catch, but I never even thought about going out with him before, so it’s not like I’m obsessed with him or anything. If this doesn’t work out, it’s no big deal. So why do I feel so awkward around him?

  Jake doesn’t seem to have any problems being himself, though. He laughs and jokes a lot, telling us stories about some of the crazy pranks he’s pulled, and he’s constantly smiling, which makes me want to smile back, but then I worry that I’m smiling too much and I look like a weirdo. At least my bad luck hasn’t reared it’s ugly head. Of course, that thought is like an alarm clock going off, waking up the beast who’s angry he’s missed out on some prime opportunities to make my life miserable.

  Marge brings us the garlic bread, and it smells amazing, so I grab a piece and take a giant bite. It burns my tongue, and my first instinct is to yelp and spit it out or chew with my mouth open to cool it off, but I don’t want to look stupid, so instead I just let the flaming cheese melt the skin off my tongue and swallow it down. My eyes are watering, and my cheeks feel hot, but I resist the urge to fan myself. I take a couple sips of soda, which stings my burnt mouth, and try to act like nothing’s the matter.

  “I’m surprised you girls wanted garlic bread. All the girls I know act like carbs
are from the devil,” Jake says, laughing, but now I suddenly feel self-conscious.

  I’m not fat, more muscular than anything, but I’m not super skinny like some of the more popular girls that he hangs out with, and I eat whatever I want, not just rabbit food. I usually eat two slices of pizza, but maybe I should only eat one tonight?

  I let the bread cool down before I finish it, and it’s a lot better when it’s not searing my skin off. Although, now I think my taste buds are permanently damaged. When I’m done, I really want more, but I don’t want to look like a pig. Everyone else has only had one piece, and there’s only two pieces left.

  Mia takes one of them, which doesn’t surprise me because she loves Romano’s garlic bread almost as much as she loves Austin, and I stare at the last buttery, fragrant piece in indecision. Just as I’m about to reach for it, Austin’s hand sneaks out and grabs it. “I guess I’ll eat this if nobody else is going to.”

  I pout a little, but console myself with the fact that Marge is heading our way with the pizza.

  As soon as she sets it down, Jake serves me one tiny slice even though he gives himself three, great big pieces. Does he think I’m fat and I shouldn’t eat very much?

  “Is that enough?”

  I want to say no, but find myself nodding.

  But this piece is so little, and staring at the leftover garlic bread only made me hungrier. Mia takes one large piece, and Austin takes the last three, so I guess this is all I’m having.

  I take a tiny bite this time in case it too is the temperature of flowing lava, but it’s not as hot, and it’s the best thing ever. God, I love their pizza. The crumbled Italian sausage is perfectly spiced, the pepperoni is thick and meaty with just the right amount of bite, and the cheese is gooey and melty. I want to mow it down, but I force myself to take small bites and chew slowly, trying to make it last longer.

  “This place is sketchy, but they have really good pizza. Good choice, Mia.” Jake smiles at her, and I frown. Romano’s is my joint! But Mia’s the best kind of friend, so she’s got my back.