by A. R. Perry
I grab her shoulder and give it a shake. Lightning shoots through my stomach, but I clenched my teeth and smile. I need to get a grip. How pathetic can I get? She’s using me to get to my friend and here I am thinking about how I’d miss her if this ended so soon.
“Go talk to him.”
Her gaze follows to where I’m pointing. A few feet away, Nash is talking with two guys from the team. When her wide eyes focus on me, I can’t help but smile. She’s adorable when flustered.
“He’s busy.”
“Trust me. He’d enjoy talking to you a hell of a lot more than Dinkle.” She doesn’t look convinced, so I grab her elbow and lead her across the field, letting go before anyone sees. “No one wants to hear about your eightieth trip to Disneyland this year, Dinkle.” I bump him with my shoulder and grin. “Everyone know Piper?”
She wiggles her delicate fingers at the group, but judging from her tense posture, she’s about to bolt.
“It’s her first time. So try not to scare her off.” I’m going for lighthearted, but I can sense the tension in the air. Piper is nervous. Several of the guys are undressing her with their eyes. And I’m ready to throw her over my shoulder and get her out of here before we’ve tainted her sweet and innocent side.
Nash slowly drags his gaze up her body before smiling. My hands clench into fists and I have to fight the overwhelming urge to punch him in the face. As if sensing my building rage, he turns to me and winks before walking away.
Piper tracks his movements until he’s out of earshot. “That went well,” she mumbles so only I can hear. “This was a terrible idea. I should go.” She thumbs over her shoulder where a bored-looking Blythe is leaning against a tree. “She’s only going to humor me for like five more minutes.”
Handing over her almost full cup she takes a step backward. “Thanks for whatever that was. My life is now complete knowing what crappy beer tastes like.”
I take the cup with a grin, hating that she’s leaving and hating that I want her to stay. She’s here for Nash, and I have no business noticing the way her eyes sparkle when she smiles. Or how when the wind blows I catch a hint of the fruity scent she wears that is mouthwatering and sweet at the same time.
Ugh. I sound like a pathetic doof even in my head.
“I guess if you’re chickening out, I can’t stop you.”
“Let’s go!” Blythe yells from her place next to the tree.
Piper shakes her head, backing up. “Told you.” Her gaze flicks to where Nash is laughing with a group of cheerleaders before focusing on me again. “Thanks for trying. But this clearly isn’t working.”
From where I’m standing I still catch the distinct flash of disappointment in her eyes and it makes me want to do anything to see her smile. “Oh, you’re not getting out of this that easy. You’re sitting with us at lunch Monday.”
“Yeah. No way,” she laughs, turning. “Have fun tonight, Dragon Slayer.”
I shake my head, laughing as I watch her saunter away, mesmerized by the slight sway in her hips. She’s so different from Cristy. Had something not gone her way, there would have been a huge scene. Here Piper is walking away with a smile on her face, even though the guy of her dreams didn’t say a single word to her.
“Come to the paintball game tomorrow afternoon,” I blurt out.
Piper stops and turns, her eyebrows high. “I don’t think so.”
I spread my arms out wide, not caring that we have an audience. “What do you have to lose?”
She cocks her hip to the side, crossing her arms over her chest. “An eye?”
“Come.” Why am I pushing so hard? Maybe a sick, self-punishing part of me wants to spend more time with her. Or maybe I want her all geared up to see if she’d look just as adorable as she does right now.
“I’ll think about it.”
“I’ll text you the address.”
She waves over her shoulder as she meets up with Blythe. Together they walk away, and I stand by myself like a creep watching her the whole time, not caring that someone could catch me in the act and report back to Cristy.
For the first time in a while, I don’t care.
Cristy doesn’t seem to mind flaunting her new hookups wherever she goes. I’m not looking to dive back into dating anytime soon, so maybe this thing with Piper is what I need. No way I can get hurt when I know there’s no chance.
That’s all I have to keep telling myself.
Last night was awkward.
Every single time I was on the verge of telling Carter the truth, I chickened out. Part of the reason was that we were never alone. Blurting out the actual plan will be embarrassing enough. Announcing it to most of the popular crowd? No thanks.
Now because of my overwhelming cowardliness, I’m not only roped into a shopping trip with Blythe because she says I need to up my game, but Carter also expects me to meet him at some paintball field later this afternoon.
Most of the night was spent researching how to play. As far as I can tell, it’s mostly avoiding being shot with paint pellets that will for sure leave bruises.
“Earth to Piper.” Blythe snaps her fingers in front of my face before taking a drink of her iced coffee. “You spaced out there for a second.”
I blink, clearing my head. “Sorry. Just thinking about paintball later this afternoon. Should be so fun.”
Blythe grins, dragging her fingers across a fuzzy green sweater. “It was nice of him to invite you.”
I catch one glimpse of her taunting smile and roll my eyes. “He’s under the impression he’s helping me win over Nash.”
“Uh-huh.” She chews on the straw and moves on to the next rack of clothes.
I trail her deeper into the store, trying to ignore the sting in my nose from the overwhelming perfume scent. “Seriously. He’s all business all the time.”
“He was two seconds away from ripping his best friend’s arms off when he checked you out.”
I choke on a laugh, drawing the eyes of a few other shoppers. “Are you high on perfume? Carter is being a nice guy because I tricked him into helping. That’s it.”
“If you say so,” she sings as she snags a pair of neon pink pants off the rack and walks toward the changing room.
I follow her, leaning against the wall when she slips into a stall. She’s out of her mind. No way in this universe or any alternate one would Carter be interested in me. For crying out loud, he’s dated one of the most gorgeous girls not only at our school, but our state. She’s been competing in beauty pageants since she was in diapers and, according to her social media posts, racked up an impressive number of wins.
Okay, yes. There might have been a detour when researching paintball where I spent some time stalking Cristy’s various social media accounts. The girl doesn’t believe in privacy at all or clothes because there are quite a few pictures of her in the tiniest bathing suits known to man.
Including a photo of her and Carter at the beach a few months ago. That image is about the time I stopped torturing myself. Not that it matters because I’m not going for Nash or Carter—no matter what harebrained idea Blythe has. But it’s proof that if I were going for one of them, I would lose to the likes of Cristy every single time.
Yet another reason I should call this off.
I pull my phone out of my purse and hold it in a tight fist. What I should do is text Carter and tell him I’m not coming to paintball. Why physically and metaphorically hurt myself for no reason? I open our texts and grin when I reread his last message.
Carter: Meet me @ 5 sharp. And don’t try to chicken out. I kno where u live.
I slide the quartz pendant my mom got me up and down its silver chain as I continue to stare at his words. Never in a million years would I admit it out loud because Blythe would have a field day, but hanging out with Carter again has been fun. He’s sweet and kind and okay, gorgeous. Who knew a gangly preteen could grow up into such a heartthrob?
“You should stick out this plan. You have fun with Cart
er, right?” Blythe calls from inside the dressing room. “All I ask is don’t drag me to another party. Brain cells died just being around those people.”
“Well, that’s rude.”
“Or is it the truth?” She steps out into the narrow hallway and turns to the side to look in the mirror. “Jordan Davis was there. ‘Nuff said.”
Forgetting about my phone for a second, I cock my head and stare at her. Two can play at this game. She wants to have some grand inquisition, well now it’s her turn. “What’s up with you two?”
Her eyes widen for a second before she clears her throat and flattens down the front of her tattered band shirt. “What do you mean?”
“I mean you couldn’t stop glaring at him like you were wishing he’d be sucked into a black hole. How do you even know each other?”
“He’s in one of my classes.”
“And?” She’s fidgeting now and seems to be evading this conversation.
“And what?”
“What’s your deal with him?”
“Are these pants too pink? I mean, they’re pink, obviously. But are they burn-your-retina pink?”
“You’re avoiding the question.”
“So are you.” She meets my gaze in the mirror. “I’ve seen your eyes light up when Carter looks your way in the halls. You can’t tell me it’s only because he’s helping you with this grand popularity plan. You like him.”
My mouth drops open. Do I like him? I mean, he’s super sweet, and I find him attractive. But this is Carter. He considers me like a little sister. The only reason he agreed with this plan is because he’s a good guy and he’s trying to help.
Besides, all I wanted was a taste of their world. No way I’d survive more than a week in it.
I tug at the hem of my tank. “I don’t like Carter. Not that way. And even if I did—”
“Oh, how cute,” a voice calls from behind me. I whirl around, almost dropping my phone when I see Cristy standing at the entrance of the hall, glaring at me. “Do you actually think you would ever have a chance with Carter Jackson?”
I suck in a sharp breath. Just how much of the conversation did she overhear?
This is bad. If she overheard the plan, it will be all over the school by tomorrow morning. Forget popularity. I’ll be the biggest pariah Center High has ever seen. I’m sure Cristy could twist this into some creative narrative where I’m a monster.
“Let me give you some advice.” She walks toward me, her sky-high heels clicking on the tile to the beat of my pounding heart. “Guys like Carter would never date girls like you. They may occasionally slum it for a night, but they always come back to, well…” She motions to herself with a catty smirk.
“Back off, Cristy.” Blythe comes to rest at my side, glaring harder than she does when Jordan is in eyesight.
Cristy’s lips curls as she takes in my best friend. “Nice pants. The ‘80s called and they want their clothes back.”
“Your coven called. They’re looking for you,” Blythe retorts.
In the face of danger I’ve gone mute. Confrontation has never been my strong suit. Thank goodness for Blythe, otherwise I’d be running out of the store with my tail between my legs.
Cristy growls, stepping into our personal space. “I’m going to warn you once. Back off. Carter is mine. He’ll always be mine, even when I have him benched. So you might as well take whatever crazy idea you have about you two running off into the sunset and throw it out the window.”
So she didn’t hear the first part of our conversation. She thinks I’m going after him for real. I can’t decide if that’s better or worse.
“Aww. Is someone worried about a little competition?” Blythe asks.
At this point, I’m pretty sure I could disappear and they would still go back and forth not missing a beat. I haven’t uttered a single word since Cristy showed up, and yet, she still looks like she wants to rip out my throat with her teeth.
“Adorable.” Cristy flicks her silky blond hair over her shoulder. “There is no competition between us. We’re not even on the same playing field. It’d do you good to remember that.”
I slide my tongue over my top teeth, trying to rehydrate my dried-out mouth. “Cristy we’re not…I mean…nothing.”
Blythe links her arm through mine. “You don’t owe any explanation. Carter is a big boy. He can date whoever he wants. And clearly, he got tired of dating a raging witch.”
Cristy bares her teeth. “I broke up with him.”
“Whatever you have to say to make yourself feel better. Let me guess, he didn’t fight you on it? And he seems happy to be rid of dead weight.”
“Listen you little—”
“Cristy! Mom’s waiting. Let’s go.”
A younger carbon copy of Cristy pokes her head around the corner, eyeing the scene with tension. With a humming exhale, Cristy steps back and runs a manicured hand down the side of her head.
“This isn’t over. Stay away from Carter.”
Whipping her sleek golden hair into my face, she turns and stomps off. When she rounds the corner and is no longer in sight, Blythe bursts out laughing.
“For a sec I thought she was gonna rip my face off.”
I let out a shaky breath. “Did you have to rile her up?”
Blythe shrugs. “Of course. It’s too easy, plus it’s fun to watch the vein in her forehead pop.”
I rest against the cool wall, cradling my lower back with clasped hands. “There’s no way in hell I’m going through with this plan now. I don’t need Cristy all over me for the next year.”
“Welcome to being popular.” Blythe stretches her arms out wide. “Catfights and queen bees go hand in hand. She’s threatened, so she’s trying to pee all over Carter or whatever.”
I laugh, as the last bit of adrenaline leaves my limbs. I’ve never been that close to a fight before. It was terrifying. “You have the animal kingdom and girl world confused.”
“You haven’t watched enough Animal Planet. They’re pretty much the same thing. Now.” She claps her hands together, an evil grin taking over her face. “What can you buy that will have Carter drooling? Bonus points if he shoots himself in the foot when we roll up.”
“We?”
“Uh. Yeah. I’m all in now. I’ll be at your side for every party if it means knocking Cristy down a peg.”
I tap my head against the wall. “It’s time to call the plan off, Dr. Evil. World domination just isn’t in the cards for us.”
“First Center High, then the world. You gotta take it one step at a time.” She stands in front of me and grabs my shoulders. “Now repeat after me. I won’t let the likes of Blondie McBigBoobs scare me off ‘cause I’m a bad bitch.”
This is what happens when Claire isn’t around to balance out our group. Power has gone to Blythe’s head, and now there’s no stopping her.
“I’m not saying that.”
“Fine. But at least admit getting under Cristy’s skin was a little fun.”
I twist my mouth to the side, fighting a smile. It’s terrible, but watching her go all crazy-eyed was entertaining. But encouraging Blythe is a terrible idea.
“Are you buying those pants or not? I’m starving and we have a paintball game to get to.”
She slaps her hands together. “Oh, please say this means you’re not giving up.”
I really should, but… “Fine. I won‘t give up. But if I go missing, check her basement first.”
“Deal.” She slings an arm over my shoulder. “Now, I saw a distressed T-shirt up front that will have Carter seeing you in a new light.”
I let her lead me to the front of the store, but with each step doubt and fear creeps in. This will not well.
“What’s Cristy doing here?” Jordan asks, slipping on a numbered jersey.
“No clue.” I lean forward, stretching out my hamstrings the same way I do before a game. “All afternoon she’s been blowing up my phone, but I deleted everything without looking.” Out of the corner of my ey
e, I can see Cristy stretched out next to two of her friends on one of the gear tables, legs on full display thanks to the microscopic skirt she’s sporting.
“Doesn’t take a genius to figure out she wants you back,” Nash says, filling up his hopper. “The scent of desperation is wafting all the way over here.
I nod in agreement as I check the time. Again. Piper is late and Cristy has set up shop at the table closest to the door. Piper will have to walk right by her. Forget desperation. I smell trouble.
“Got a hot date or something?” Jordan asks, bumping into my shoulder with his, making me almost drop my phone.
“As long as it’s not with Cristy,” Nash says as he secures a pod pack around his waist.
I’m about to respond when a flash of red catches my attention. Piper grins the second we lock eyes, but it falters when Cristy sits up straight and they glare at each other.
“Catfight’s a-brewin’,” Jordan says with a grin.
I’m sure he would love nothing more than to watch these two girls go at it.
Blythe whispers something and Piper nods, taking another step forward. Cristy’s eyes narrow, and she moves to jump off the table. I move faster, meeting Piper next to the door before Cristy.
“You’re late.” I sling an arm over her shoulders and shoot Cristy a warning look. She bristles, crossing her arms and stomping a foot before brushing past us on the way out. Seconds later her two minions follow, keeping their gazes on the ground.
“Twice in one day,” Blythe mumbles.
I tip my chin so my mouth is closer to her ear. “What’s twice in one day?”
Her sharp elbow digs into Blythe’s side, making her friend laugh. “Nothing. So this is a paintball field?”
I grin, leading her over to where the guys are waiting. Subtlety might not be a strong suit, but Piper is the queen of subject changes. “This is a paintball field. Speedball, to be exact.”
“Fun,” Blythe says, dropping back. “I’ll be over here napping or whatever.”
“Aww. Too scared to play with the boys?” Jordan taunts. He’s sporting an enormous smile, but just like at the party, tension radiates off him.