by Judy Corry
I sighed when my phone vibrated with her text.
Lexi: You sure you don't mind sitting with the band nerds instead of your cool friends?
Well, since one of my cool friends was hoping to be my girlfriend, I really didn't feel like sitting by her tonight. Plus, I was pretty sure Easton had plans to sit with Mercedes since things were going well for them after their first date.
Me: I'd rather sit by you. And we can try to make your secret crush jealous while I'm there.
Lexi: My secret crush?
Me: Isn't Harrison in the pep-band too?
Had she seriously forgotten about him already? Hadn't she just been trying to snag a date with him on Friday? Not that much could have changed since then. It was only, like, five days ago.
Lexi: yeah, you can sit by me if you promise not to embarrass me too much.
I laughed. That was going to be hard. So I sent her the most honest reply that I could.
Me: I'll try my best.
9
Lexi
The prospect of tonight's game was stressing me out. Not only would I be sitting by Harrison all night, on the bleachers, possibly just inches away from him, but Noah was going to be there too...pretending to be my boyfriend and probably laughing at how anxious I was around both guys.
By the time six o'clock rolled around, I’d already tried on three different pairs of shoes—since shoes were my only chance at looking cute tonight. That band polo really needed to be burned. My dad had thought he was being economical by buying me a size bigger during my freshman year, hoping I'd grow into it as I went through high school. But in the past year and a half, I had yet to grow even a centimeter. I wasn’t going to reach the average height like my sister did. Instead, I was most likely going to stay five-foot-two forever.
Easton dropped me off at school thirty minutes early so I could grab my trumpet from the band room and have time to get my stand and music all set up before the game started.
"Don't make it too easy on Mercedes," I gave Easton some advice before he drove off to pick her up for the game. "According to Noah, people want what they can't have. So make sure you don't seem too eager to pick her up."
He shook his head. "That's, like, the worst dating advice I've ever heard."
"I'm just saying it since it seemed to work for Noah." He had all kinds of girls after him. And it had certainly been true in my case. I’d always wanted the guys I couldn't have. Harrison had a girlfriend. And Noah, well...that was just not ever going to happen. Not for real, anyway.
I stopped by the girls’ restroom on my way to the band room, just to make sure the snow hadn't totally flattened my hair—not because I cared what Noah thought of it. I just wanted to look good for myself.
Everything checked out, so I grabbed my trumpet from the instrument storage room and then made my way down to the gym.
The JV game was just finishing up as I got my stuff all set up for the varsity game. I decided to sit on the end of the trumpet section, since Noah would be sitting by me. I still couldn't believe that he was choosing to sit with the pep band tonight. He must really be committed to this fake boyfriend/girlfriend thing. And I had no idea why. Most guys would love to date one of the cheerleaders. And sure, Raven wasn't exactly the nicest to me, but she definitely had all the qualities most guys looked for in a girl. She was the kind that guys would call "hot," while I was what they'd call "quirky."
Harrison joined me in the trumpet section a couple of minutes later, his trumpet case in his hand, his shirt messily tucked only halfway into his jeans. It was kind of adorable how disheveled he looked sometimes, like he was always in a hurry and getting dressed as he stepped out the door. It made me miss his hair. It was too short to look messy anymore.
"Do you mind if I share your stand?" he asked, standing at the end of the row.
I caught a whiff of his cologne. He may look messy, but he smelled amazing. I cleared my throat.
"Yeah," I said. "But could you sit on the other side? Noah wants to sit up here tonight, so I’m trying to sit on the end."
"Oh, okay." He seemed a little surprised that Noah would be joining us. Did he somehow know that this whole thing was fake? He probably did. I had never come out right and told Harrison that I liked him, but I was sure it was obvious to anyone who had watched me very closely. Things had been a little awkward this morning during band, after my horrifying display the day before. But he hadn't brought it up again, so I was at least thankful for that.
Harrison shuffled around me before squeezing into the spot to my right. It was a tight fit, since Chrissa was on the other side, but I could handle bumping knees with him and not going into cardiac arrest, right?
The game started, and I was just beginning to wonder if Noah had changed his mind when I saw him standing near the back entrance wearing his blue-and-white letterman jacket. He seemed to be studying the pep band, so I waved. A moment later our eyes caught, and he smiled and waved back. My pulse throbbed when he started walking toward me, passing the cheerleaders on the floor and only giving Raven a nod before stepping onto the bleachers and climbing up to sit by me.
"Sorry I'm late." He scooted next to me and shrugged out of his jacket, his cheeks rosy from the cold outside.
"I was beginning to wonder if you'd decided not to grace me with your presence after all," I said.
He rubbed his hands together to warm them. "Yeah, sorry. The line at Subway took forever."
"Do you ever eat at home?" I asked. Seriously, it seemed like he was always eating all the food out of my family's fridge, or I was finding take-out wrappers stashed in the backseat of his car whenever he gave me and Easton a ride home from school. Maybe his mom just didn't cook?
But his face became guarded, and it made me wonder if there was another reason for why he wasn't eating his meals at home.
"I was busy." He shrugged, like there was nothing wrong. "I just grabbed something on my way here, so I wouldn't be too late." He eyed Harrison on the other side of me, and then put his arm around my shoulders, squeezing me against his side. "Plus, I wanted to spend as much time as I could with you."
He winked, but as much as he was trying to make it seem like nothing was wrong, his smile didn't reach his eyes.
He barely spent any time at home from what I could tell. During football season I'd run down to the girls’ locker room before a game and had overheard him say something to Ashlyn about someone not pressing charges and that he could move in with his dad if he wanted. I hadn't been able to hear any more, since Luke Davenport had angrily stomped up the stairs past me, forcing me to relinquish my hiding place before it became obvious that I was eavesdropping.
I hadn't been able to keep that snippet of conversation out of my head and had watched Noah for the next few weeks. But things seemed to be okay, aside from him being moody. And he never said anything to Easton about moving in with his dad.
But was everything okay? And who was not pressing charges against whom?
Was Noah in trouble?
The Drum Major stood on the floor when the other team called a time-out. She counted four beats, and I put my trumpet to my mouth to play the notes on the sheet music before me. By the time we were finished playing Hawaii Five-O, I was out of breath.
When I sat back down, Noah was looking at his phone.
He groaned. "It's supposed to get below zero tonight." He handed me his phone. The weather app showed that it was twenty degrees right now, but it would get down to negative two tonight.
"Is that the coldest it's been so far this year?" I handed his phone back, and my skin tingled and burned where our fingers touched in the exchange. I quickly put my hand in my lap, hoping he didn't notice my reaction to him.
"Yeah, I think so. It makes me cold just thinking about it."
"Thank goodness for insulation and heaters." I shrugged. Sure, it was cold during winter in New York, but as long as I didn't have to spend too much time outside, it wasn't that bad.
"And don't forget t
hat warm, cozy bed," he said. I would have normally expected him to say it with some sort of innuendo attached, since he couldn't seem to turn off the teasing when he was around me. But instead, there was a darker tone in his voice, and I couldn't figure out why. Was his bed not warm and cozy?
What else could it be?
He sighed, and before I could ask him about why the cold bothered him so much, he pointed to my trumpet in my lap. "How do you play so many notes with just three buttons?"
I shrugged. "There are only three valves, but you can play them in multiple combinations."
I showed him the different finger combinations that I used when playing a scale. "And then you also tighten and loosen your lips to control the pitch of the music as well."
"Interesting." He took the instrument into his hands, running his fingers over the brass curves. Then he played with the valves, as if trying to discover all the different combinations he could. "You must have to do a lot of the tightening and loosening of your lips to play all the notes I just heard."
"You can try it if you want," I offered when he continued to play with my trumpet.
"Show me what I'm supposed to do with my lips first."
I took my mouthpiece out of the trumpet, not wanting to make too much noise when I wasn't supposed to be playing a song.
I held the mouthpiece up. "To make the lower tones, your lips have to be looser." I showed him and blew into the mouthpiece. "And with the higher notes, you tighten them up really tight."
As I demonstrated, I suddenly became self-conscious at the thought of him watching my mouth.
He seemed to realize what I was thinking because he gave me a half-smile. "I guess it's a good thing you're really talented with your lips then." He winked, and I felt myself blush.
And of course, he noticed my blushing. To make it worse, he said, "I'll let you show me just how good you are later. Maybe we can heat things up in my car without even turning the heater on."
If it was possible to burst into flames at that moment, I would have.
I looked around to see if anyone was listening to our conversation. Of course, the saxophones in the row ahead were eyeing us and whispering to each other. I glanced at Harrison and noticed him staring ahead intently, his jaw flexing. Did he not like that Noah was talking about kissing me? Was this plan of ours actually working?
I leaned closer to Noah. "People are going to start thinking all we do together is make-out.” And if they thought that, they'd probably keep on thinking the stupid rumors I'd started were true, too.
He just grinned that wicked grin of his. "I'm okay with that. I mean, if the rumors are already there, why shouldn't we just make-out all the time?" He winked.
Ok, where was the fire extinguisher? My face was on fire.
Noah touched my forehead, his hand cool against my burning skin. "Are you feeling well, babe? You're looking overheated."
My skin sparked even more to life at his unexpected touch, and my mind couldn't get over the fact that Noah Taylor had just called me babe! But since I couldn't have him noticing my involuntary reaction to him, I removed his palm not so gently from my forehead. "Y-you know I'm healthy as a horse."
He grinned again. "Good, I would hate to get sick after tonight." He peeked at Harrison then whispered next to my ear. "Don't look now, but I'm pretty sure Harrison wants to punch me in the face."
"And that's a good thing?" I whispered back.
Noah shrugged. "He's definitely noticing you and feeling some strong emotions, so I'd say it's good."
I wanted to turn around to see for my own eyes what he was talking about, but that would only make it obvious that we were up to something. So I looked into Noah's dark brown eyes instead and spoke in as calm a voice as I could. "I'll text Easton to tell him not to worry about giving me a ride home tonight."
"You ready to go?" Noah asked when the game ended. Ridgewater High won, 45-40.
After his initial over-the-top flirting, Noah had actually kept things in check the rest of the time. The only other time I blushed again was when he noticed Raven glaring at us from her spot with the cheerleaders on the floor and Noah decided to lean in real close and whisper nonsense in my ear just to make her jealous.
And it was totally working because she seemed to be having a really hard time looking upbeat during her cheer routine.
But as for Harrison, aside from that one moment where his jaw had been tense, he didn't seem bothered much at all. Which had me thinking that his flexed jaw had nothing to do with Noah talking about kissing me. It would seem that Noah's theory about guys wanting what they can't have was totally untrue, just like Easton had said. Because instead of paying attention to us, Harrison spent most of the rest of the game either texting his girlfriend or doing his homework.
I had planned to do my homework during the game like I usually did but found myself getting caught up talking to Noah instead. He was super distracting when he wanted to be.
But the game was over, so now he could take me home and I could stay up late doing my homework, since we were most definitely not going to be making out like he wanted everyone around us to believe.
"I just have to put my trumpet and stand away, and then we can go." I grabbed the case from where I'd stashed it behind me and opened the latches.
Noah gripped the stand in his hand. "I can put this away for you."
"Really?" I asked, not expecting his help. Even when I shared a stand with someone, I was usually the one always putting it away.
He shrugged like it was no big deal. "What kind of a boyfriend would I be if I didn't offer?"
I watched him as he followed the other band kids to the storage area by the stairs. On his way back, Raven stopped him.
I tried to push away the jealousy bubbling inside when she leaned in, closer than a regular friend would, and said something into his ear.
I shouldn't be jealous. Noah wasn't my real boyfriend.
"What's going on with that?" Harrison startled me out of my envious stupor, gesturing to Noah and Raven with his hand.
I sighed and started latching my trumpet case. "They're friends. She's probably talking to him about a class or something."
Harrison raised an eyebrow like he didn't believe me. "Friends don't usually stand that close unless they want the friendship to change."
"What are you trying to say?" I asked, not liking what he was hinting at. "Are you trying to say that Noah is cheating on me?"
That would just be my luck, though: Noah pretending to date me only to actually be dating someone behind my back. Was that what this was? Was he just trying to create a new thrill for himself? Like the ultimate dating behind someone's back, without it technically being wrong?
Harrison dropped his books into his backpack. "No, I'm not saying that about Noah. I'm just saying you better watch out for that Raven girl. She doesn't seem to be the kind to care if her target is already spoken for."
My shoulders slumped as I watched them interact. He didn't seem to dislike the way she was coming onto him at all. Could he actually have been trying to use this fake relationship in a different way than he'd told me? Was he the one who was really playing hard to get so he could make Raven want him even more? Was that his real agenda?
I really hope not.
Not that I should care. We had our arrangement after all.
But I kind of cared anyway. Which was really, really stupid.
I clenched my hands into fists at my sides and was considering telling Noah to take Raven home instead of me, when he finally finished his conversation and joined my side again. The rest of the band kids had already cleared out, so we were the only ones left on the bleachers. Everybody else was talking on the floor below.
"What did Raven want?" I asked, hating how jealous-sounding my question came out.
Noah grabbed his letterman jacket from behind his seat. "She invited me to grab hot chocolate with some of our friends."
"So are you going with her?"
He frowned hi
s bottom lip as he pushed his arms into his jacket. "No. I told her you and I already have plans."
He did?
Why did he? Was that to play hard to get a little more, or did he really not want to hang out with her?
Ugh, I hated that I was doubting his real intentions in this fake relationship of ours. I wasn't supposed to care about his intentions.
I pulled my coat on. "You don't have to take me home if you'd rather hang out with them. I'll just catch a ride with Easton."
"I think Easton and Mercedes were going with them."
I bit my lip, trying to figure something else out. "I guess I can walk home."
"Don't be crazy, Lexi. I'm going to take you home, just like we planned."
"But if you wanted to hang out with Raven, I totally get it. I know you're still friends even if you say you don't want to date her."
That made me sound like a totally non-jealous fake girlfriend, right?
"Did you want to get hot chocolate with them?"
"What? No." I shook my head. "I have tons of homework tonight."
"Okay, then let me take you home." He lifted my trumpet cased, like he was going to carry it out for me.
How was it possible that he didn't want to hang out with the gorgeous Raven Rodgers tonight? Every other guy I knew would jump at the chance. Did they have some sort of history I didn't know about?
When I didn't follow him, he put his hand behind my back and led me down the stairs with him. "I'm not interested in Raven. You already know that." He spoke in a lowered voice so the people below us wouldn't hear.
I lowered my voice, too. "It just doesn't make sense. Most guys at our school would drop everything if they had Raven looking and talking to them like that."
"Well, that's good for them."
My eyebrows squished together. "So why don't you want a real relationship? Don't get me wrong, I'm thankful that you're helping me save face and all, but most guys would call you crazy for doing it when you could date someone like Raven."
He narrowed his eyes at me. "Do you really think I'm the kind of guy to just drop my girlfriend because a cheerleader is after me?"