Aaron surveys the rest of the group, and when I glance Chase’s way, his eyes are fixed on Aaron’s as he shakes his head. Aaron shrugs and picks Jackson. Hallie looks confused. Chase is the best player out here and she clearly doesn’t understand why Aaron didn’t pick him, but she has to go for a girl and selects Brittany before Aaron looks at me and I tell him to get Tia.
Hallie looks at the group in front of her, at Chase and then over at me, before going for Dylan Thomas, a junior who is pretty good. Aaron still doesn’t pick Chase, and it becomes clear that Chase has no intention of playing on our team. Hallie picks him, and it must be the first time he’s ever been picked anywhere close to last.
“Where are the bibs?” Brittany asks, looking around. They’ve disappeared, and with all of us wearing the same Grove Valley High Soccer shirts, it’s not going to be easy to figure out who is on each team. “How are we going to know which team we’re on?”
“Skin vs shirts?” Brendon says, his eyes lighting up.
I roll my eyes and look away. There’s not a chance in hell I’m taking my shirt off.
Hallie snorts and says, “No way.”
My foot starts tapping on the ground. We’re wasting too much time. Practice time is precious and all we’ve done so far is work on fitness, not actually played.
“I’m down,” Maria says, eyeing Brendon with interest. A couple of other girls murmur their agreement. My jaw falls open. “What?” she asks me. “We’re all wearing sports bras underneath, right? We show more at the beach and it’s roasting today. I can work on my tan.”
I glance around, looking for the bag that holds the jerseys. “I’ll go back to the gym and find the bibs.”
It’s like Chase can read my mind. “But we’ve already wasted so much time, Chapman.” He smirks in my direction. “Don’t want to waste any more, do we?”
I sigh in defeat. No one else is complaining so I’m not exactly going to win this argument, and I guess Maria’s right—we do show more at the beach. “Fine.”
“I nominate your team,” he tells me, eyes lit up mischievously in a challenge.
My eyes widen and I instantly start shaking my head, but my teammates are already stripping, Aaron throwing his shirt in my direction. I narrow my eyes in Chase’s direction, glance around, and realize I’m now the one holding up the team. I bite my lip, contemplating what my options are, and then with a deep breath, I pull my shirt over my head and throw it on the pile by my feet. “Let’s play,” I say, not breaking eye contact with Chase.
His eyes drop to my stomach and I force myself not to feel self-conscious. People wear less than this to work out in all the time. It’s not an issue; my stomach is flat and my sports bra is a simple, plain black one—I don’t look any different than anyone else. He grins as his eyes return to mine. “Game on.”
The game is actually more intense and challenging than I thought it would be, and a lot more fun too. The boys aren’t ball hogs and are happy to pass to us, and I manage to feint left to Brendon and actually go right, swerving around another defender before slotting the ball past their keeper. It gives me a huge rush to know I can prove myself in front of the boys—the players who get all the attention and fans at this school. Aaron high-fives me, and when Tia manages to intercept the ball from Dylan then pass it upfield to me and I manage to get another one, I’m positively floating, much to Hallie’s disgust.
Maria passes to me again and suddenly Chase is in my face, digging his leg into my standing foot, trying to get the ball. I manage to roll my foot over the ball and turn in the opposite direction but he’s right behind me, crowding me, his chest against my back as he tries to force me to a make a mistake so I give the ball away. I look up and manage to get it across to Jackson, who misses his attempt at a goal.
I glance over at Chase, who is still next to me. “You’re a striker, not a defender. Get back to your end.”
He grins and shakes his head. “You’re all mine today.”
I roll my eyes and get back into position, hoping to get the ball. Hallie manages to score a goal for their team, heading the ball into the net from a corner pass, and then Tia slips when going in for a tackle, allowing Chase to even the score.
It’s non-stop action and I have to admit, I haven’t been pushed like this in a long time. Wherever I turn, Chase is there hunting me down, crowding me, pushing me, an ever-present figure beside me, and despite the fact that on more than one occasion he manages to steal the ball from me, I find that I don’t mind. He’s not treating me any differently than he would anyone from his own team, and it forces me to be at the top of my game. It’s only when the ball is nowhere near us and he reaches out his hand to swipe it across the front of my stomach, wrapping his hand around my waist and pulling me closer to him, that I turn to him with raised eyebrows. He rests his hand on my hip like this is an everyday occurrence, his eyes flashing flirtatiously.
“You remember this is non-contact right?”
He just grins back. “Can’t help it, Chapman. The odor coming off you and the sweat dripping down your body is too much for me.”
I bite back a laugh. He’s funny; I never knew he was funny.
He leans in closer just as a loud whistle rips out from the sidelines. Sophie is there grinning like an idiot while various cheerleaders, jocks, and an assortment of other kids stand around with her. We’ve never had this many people watch us practice before.
I turn back to Chase, who has his signature smirk plastered on his face. He leans in close to my ear, so close my heartbeat picks up speed. “I’m just sticking to our arrangement, Chapman.”
My eyes find his and I know if I lean in even an inch, he’ll kiss me—it’s written all over his face. He knows this will get back to Abigail and cement our status as a couple. I’m tempted—so, so tempted—but then I see the ball out of the corner of my eye. Before Chase has a chance to blink I’ve spun away from him, accepted a pass from Jackson, skipped past another one of their teammates, and kicked the ball into the bottom left corner of the goal.
I turn at the cheers, accepting congratulatory high fives from my team, and I find Chase still in the exact same spot, shaking his head while his teammates bitch at him for not stopping me. I wave at him, grinning wide as he starts laughing. My smile doesn’t budge.
By the time we finish, we’re all totally beat and have played way longer than our practice would usually go for, but it’s the good sort of ache I feel in my body. It tells me I’ve been working my ass off and gave the game my all. Plus, we won, and that always helps.
The crowd gathered has grown even more. The rest of the players who disappeared with Coach Simpson have returned and when the whistle finally sounds for the game to be over, I can’t hide my relief. I don’t know if we could have kept the lead with the level of intensity Hallie and Chase were starting to show. Tia runs over and high-fives me, and I can’t help my triumphant smile as Chase heads past me to the water station. We trudge off the field together, the boys splitting off to their locker rooms and us heading to ours. Sophie runs and catches up with me, falling into step at my side.
“That looked fun,” she tells me.
I grin. It was. It really, really was.
“And I don’t think you have to worry that no one will believe you and Chase are dating.”
I screw my face up in confusion.
She smirks back at me. “I mean, we all just saw your foreplay.”
She bursts out laughing at the look on my face and dodges out of the way before I can stick my leg out and trip her.
“YOU LOOK LIKE UTTER CRAP today.”
I look up and find Abigail leaning against the locker beside me.
“Hi, Abigail,” I say with a sigh. It’s not as though I haven’t been expecting this. Abigail is hardly known for her restraint, and she sees Chase as hers. I knew I was going to have to face her sooner or later now that we’ve gone public; I was just kinda hoping I wouldn’t be on my own when it happened.
“Seriousl
y,” she continues, not acknowledging my greeting, “I’d be ashamed to leave my house looking like you do.”
I close my locker and turn to face her. I look the same as I do any other day. Yes, my hair could probably do with a wash, but my face is clear, my clothes are clean, and I look like every other student who walks these halls.
“Look, Abigail, I’m sorry you’re still into Chase and he’s dating me.” It feels weird to outright lie about our relationship to the person who is clearly so affected by it. “But you don’t need to talk to me like that.”
“You’re lucky I’m talking to you at all. You’re a nobody.”
“Why do you hate me so much?” I genuinely don’t get it. Until recently, our paths have never crossed, but I’ve always known she dislikes me, ever since we were freshmen.
“He’ll get bored,” she states with absolute certainty, completely ignoring my question. “There’s no way he’d pick a loser who’s spent years pining after her loser friend—much to my amusement, by the way—over me.”
This makes me stop in my tracks. Abigail knows I have feelings for Jessie? I suspected it before, but now she’s actually confirmed it. If she knows, everyone knows. We’re not the type of people to hit her radar unless something is totally obvious.
She sees the panic on my face and grins in delight. “Why don’t you do us both a favor and stop hitting way out of your league? Leave my boyfriend alone.”
“Pretty sure that’s an early sign of madness, calling someone your boyfriend who clearly isn’t.” I can’t help feeling relieved at the sound of Brendon’s voice. Aaron is beside him, glaring daggers at Abigail.
She startles at their presence but manages to maintain her composure. “What do you guys want?”
Brendon shrugs as Aaron steps closer, partially blocking Abigail’s view of me. I almost smile when I realize he’s trying to defend me from her—almost. I feel way too uncomfortable to actually be smiling right now.
“Just making sure you’re playing nice, Abbie,” Aaron tells her.
She glares at him and flicks her hair over her shoulder, glancing away like she’s completely bored. “Just making sure Livy knows what the deal is. I wouldn’t want her to be too upset when he comes crawling back.” Her eyes find mine. “He always comes crawling back.”
Aaron gives a big, exaggerated yawn. “She’s meeting his grandma.”
Abigail pales—actually, visibly pales. Chase just said it in passing yesterday, asked if I wanted to stop by his gran’s retirement home with him. It’s nearly two hours away, but he said he tries to go once a month and wouldn’t mind the company. The way he said it with a smile on his face made me think they’re close, way closer than he is to his parents, and the look on Abigail’s face right now confirms it.
“Say, did you ever meet Grandma Mitchell?” Brendon asks.
Something passes between the three of them—Abigail and Chase’s closest friends—and I know without her even answering that she hasn’t, not even when they were together and in a good place. Abigail pushes up off the lockers and walks away without another word.
The end of the school day can’t come quick enough. Jessie spent the whole lunch period talking about Courtney and what he should buy her for her birthday. Then he told me he couldn’t come to my house to study as planned, and it took everything I had not to scream in frustration. I might be in love with the guy, but he is seriously capable of driving me crazy.
I jog down the steps and start heading to my car but stop in my tracks when I see Chase and Abigail standing over by hers. They’re having what looks to be a heated conversation—so intense that I feel guilty even watching them. He has his arms crossed, and she’s listening intently to whatever he’s saying before she throws her hands up in irritation and starts shouting about something. I glance around uncomfortably, and from the looks of the students around me, I’m not the only one who’s noticing this altercation.
Suddenly Abigail looks up and spots me. A sneer crosses her face and she says something to Chase. He turns my way too and sees me before turning back to Abigail. She says something else, her eyes flicking to me, and I’d bet money on it being something about me. I can tell by the way her lips curl in disgust and her nose crinkles in distaste. They get into it for another couple of minutes before she throws her hands up and rounds her car—a sleek black sporty model—jumps in the driver’s seat, and reverses out of her spot before peeling out of the parking lot.
Chase turns to me, and I can see he’s pissed; it’s written all over his face. He makes his way over to where I’m standing and offers me a small smile, but I can tell his mind is still on whatever just passed between him and Abigail.
“Everything okay?” I ask cautiously, though I’m not sure I really want to hear the answer.
“Brendon told me what Abigail said to you earlier.”
“Yeah, she really doesn’t like me.”
He shakes his head in irritation. “She’ll get over it.”
I shrug. “Well, I don’t think it’s just this. She’s never liked me, she’s just gotten more vocal about it since we started pretending to date.”
He looks surprised. “I didn’t think you two knew each other.”
“We don’t really. I’ve just seen her around, but she started bitching at me way back when we were freshmen.”
His jaw clenches.
I shrug. “Chase, it’s fine. Some people just don’t get along, I guess.”
“She never used to be like this. When I first met her, she wasn’t like this.”
I shrug. “She likes you a lot, Chase.”
He looks off into the distance, his mind elsewhere. “I know she doesn’t show it, Liv, but she is a good person. She has to deal with a lot of crap at home and that affects her more than she’d like to admit but underneath it all, she’s just a sweet girl who doesn’t know how to deal with her own insecurities.”
He’s probably right. No one can behave like she does unless they are deeply unhappy.
“I’m going to talk to her again, okay? She won’t say anything else to you.”
“You care about her, don’t you?” I ask. I don’t know how I haven’t picked up on that before. He never bitches about her, doesn’t snap at her, just quietly tries to talk her down when she’s going off.
He shrugs, looking a little embarrassed. “I’ve known her a long time.”
I cock my head to the side. He knows her a lot better than I do, and if someone as great as Chase spent so many years with her, there must be something good about her. She just manages to keep it really well hidden. “Maybe you could give it another shot with her? Clearly her feelings are still there, and you obviously care about her.”
A look of disbelief—and maybe anger—flashes across his face, but he quickly masks it. “We’re done,” he says with complete certainty. “But I will speak to her. You don’t need to deal with her shit.”
“Whatever,” I tell him. I can’t imagine it will make much difference. “I have to go. Soph wants me to help her with something.”
“Okay.” He hesitates. “See you later? We could watch movies at my house?”
I nod. Why not? Jessie canceled on me, so I might as well hang out with Chase.
THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS with Chase fly by, and it honestly feels like I’ve gained a new friend. I find myself enjoying hanging out with him. He’s as easygoing and relaxed as he’s always appeared around school, and Sophie was right—it’s easy to see why he’s so popular.
He’s kind too. He’s always been kind to me, seemingly knowing when I’m nervous about something and making me laugh to cover up my anxiety and never calling me on it. I see it with others too, with the freshmen soccer players who idolize him and who are rendered speechless when he offers to train with them. When some girl is raising money for a cancer charity and is asking for donations for a sponsored swim, and he pulls out $100 and hands it over without a word and makes all his friends sponsor her too. When a hall monitor has to hand him a mes
sage when we’re in between classes and she splutters and gets tripped up because she’s so nervous about approaching him, he flirts with her and makes her feel special. I see it most of all when I visit his grandma with him. You can instantly see the love between them. She teases him and jokes with him, and he hangs off her every word. She’s just as great as I expected and it was nice to see another side of Chase. In fact, the more time I spend with him, the more I realize there’s way more to him than I ever expected.
We fall into an easy routine, walking together in between classes, hanging out after school at Ferguson’s, and just lounging around on the school benches after class. I even let him drive me to school when my car needs to go into the shop, and when I stop to think about it, I’m actually amazed at how easily I’ve adapted to having him in my life. It usually takes me a long time to get to know someone and to trust them, but it just feels different with Chase. It’s easy—so, so easy. He’s my friend. Yes, he’ll say the odd flirty comment to me—which never fails to make me blush—but he never pushes me to do anything I don’t want to, and since I jumped out of my skin in the hallway one day when he tried to hold my hand, he’s cut out anything physical. It helps that Sophie and Aaron are with us a lot too. It definitely made it easier for me to start out, made me more comfortable, and by the end of our first few weeks as a “couple”, I stop caring if they’re there or not.
Jessie is another issue. We still eat lunch together every day, but we haven’t really had a conversation in weeks. Every time I try to catch him, he just looks at me like I’m inconveniencing him, and whatever man crush he had on Chase is long gone. If Chase comes anywhere near me when Jessie is around, he can’t wipe the look of irritation off his face. I had hoped my relationship with Chase would make a difference in our friendship and might actually open up some sort of conversation about our own relationship, but it hasn’t. It hasn’t because Courtney is a constant at his side. She’s even started eating lunch with us every day, and if I even so much glance at Jessie, she jumps in before I’m able to say anything.
The Stand-In Boyfriend Page 11