Chapter 13: The Best Football Player: Shane

Grayson didn't talk to me all day, not that I expected him to. I totally blew off his kiss on Saturday. But I didn’t expect him to be angry at me for two days. Especially when we have to have our food prepared by tomorrow, which means we have to cook today. I ignored my Spanish teacher and continued to think about several things, one of them being how I’m going to get Grayson back. I know, I know, I seem like the devil for plotting when the guy is angry at me but don’t I have a right to be angry at him? I’m labeled as the girl who’s obsessed with Grayson Carter now. It’s not a good image.

“Ms. Peters, are you paying attention?” Ms. Estevez piped, earning my attention. I’d gotten used to her thick Spanish accent.

"No, she's thinking about Grayson," someone in the back of the class snorted.

I nodded my head, making eye contact with Kyle only to see him snickering at me. “Yes, Ms. Estevez.”

She gave me a pointed look before proceeding to teach, only to be interrupted by the piercing bell. I quickly shuffled out of the classroom, thankful to be in the crowded hallways. It was better than being confined in a classroom, especially Spanish 3. “Audrey!”

I turned to see Lola rushing towards me, elbowing people out of her way. Once she reached me, she grinned. “Did you come up with an idea yet?”

I shook my head and she groaned. “My suggestion is still up for grabs.”

I rolled my eyes at her and shook my head. She thinks I should hide in Grayson’s locker and shoot him with a nerf gun…or a real gun, either works. How do I even know if he goes to his locker? For all I know, I could be stuck in there for 5 years! How would we get into the locker anyway? Suddenly, I had an idea. I turned to look at Lola who was grinning. “I have an idea!”

“What? What is it?” she asked me and I shook my head, quickly motioning her to the lunch room. I couldn’t help but smirk.

Once we reached the lunch room, I decided that I wasn’t going to eat. Today, we were invited to sit with the football players. Lola and Sandra quickly took a seat while I politely declined, catching a glimpse of Grayson who stabbed his burger, causing the bread to fly across the table.

I guess I’ll have to wait to discuss my plan with the girls. As of right now, I guess I’ll just wander the halls and wait until the bell rings.

~~~

“Did you guys happen to hear where Grayson was going during last period?” I asked my two friends curiously.

Sandra nodded. “He has to finish a project for AP US Gov. and Politics so he’s going to go to the library.”

I nodded my head, pursing my lips. Will the teacher allow me to leave class early? I waved at my friends as I entered the classroom. I waited fifteen minutes before I asked if I can leave early. The teacher quickly dismissed my question, snapping at me. He said that we have too much work to do and I was insane if I thought he’d allow me to leave class ten minutes early. I bit my tongue and nodded, holding back a sarcastic reply.

I waited another ten minutes before letting my hand shoot into the air for the second time this period. “What, Ms. Peters?”

“May I please go to the bathroom?” I requested as I pretended to fidget in my seat. He nodded and told me to be quick. I grabbed the pass and sighed as I galloped down the hallway.

The library was quiet and only a few kids were here. I entered the silent area and was quickly bombarded by the perky librarian. “Please sign in.”

“That won’t be necessary; I’ll only be a minute,” I informed her.

She furrowed her eyebrows. “You still need to sign in.”

I shifted feet as I nervously glanced around, catching Grayson’s gaze as he quirked an eyebrow. “Listen, Mr. Edgewood told me to be quick and to get a book and go, I’m already running a bit late so can I please just check out a book?”

“How about I get you a bit more time from Mr. Edgewood?” she asked, picking up the phone.

I quickly began to stammer and shake my hands, the pass flailing around. “No, no, no, that won’t be necessary. They’re taking a test and I don’t think Mr. Edgewood would be very happy!”

She slowly put the phone down. “Then why did he let you out of class?”

I bit my lip. “Uhm, because I finished my test early and I had nothing to do!” I explained.

She nodded. “Be quick or else I’ll call Mr. Edgewood.”

I gave a quick nod and speed walked to where Grayson was sitting with a blank look on his face. “Hey, we need to talk.”

“If it’s about Saturday, I can explain,” he told me and I shook my head, my cheeks blazing quickly.

“Our Home Ec project is due tomorrow,” I told him and he shrugged.

“So?” he asked.

I clenched my teeth. “We need to cook the food.”

His glare didn’t dim. “Hey, I paid for all of it- the least you can do is cook it,” he snapped and I gave him a flat look.

“Did you forget that I can’t cook?” I barked before quieting down. “Besides, we have to work and there is no way we can finish in the matter of three hours.”

He glared down at his work. “Call in sick to work.”

“We can’t both call in sick to work,” I told him and he sighed.

“I guess we can ask her if we can have the day off. Besides, we’re only supposed to be organizing books for an hour,” he muttered and I sighed.

“I hope so,” I stood up and wiped off my pants, which were covered in eraser shavings thanks to Grayson. “Come over my house by 2:30 PM, no excuses.”

I began walking away only to hear him scoff under his breath. “You missed some eraser shavings.”

I blushed and wiped the back of my pants before rushing out of the library, avoiding the nosy librarian.

~~~

I quickly rushed to my house, picking up my phone and calling the library. “Hello?”

I fiddled with my hands. “Ms. Janie, I don’t think that Grayson and I can make it to work today.”

“Why not?” Ms. Janie asked curiously.

“We have a project due tomorrow,” I told her and she was silent.

“Why can’t you guys work on it here? It is a library, honey,” Ms. Janie reminded me.

I pursed my lips. “It involves cooking so I don’t think we can do that.”

Ms. Janie sighed. “Fine, but I expect you guys to make up for it!” she laughed before hanging up.

‘We’re in the clear about work,' I sent to Grayson. He didn’t bother to reply and I didn’t bother to care.

Okay so maybe I did.

Just a little bit.

~~~

I was in the living room when my mother told me that she was getting ready to leave. I grabbed some of her bags and helped her bring them to the door. She told me how she had this case between the Bensons. If you were wondering, my mother is a divorce lawyer. And she also happens to have green thumbs, which is why she carpools to work with Emily, who was currently waiting outside in her van. Grayson was getting out of the front seat and walking towards the house. I glanced at my phone. 2:27. Right on time. He's lazy; he hitched a ride with his mother when he barely lives five houses away.

I noticed that Grayson changed and I did the same thing, only I was wearing sweatpants and a plain t-shirt and he was wearing jeans and a black long sleeved t-shirt, but the sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. I heard incessant barking and I sighed. Tobias was racing towards the door and I quickly yanked Grayson inside and slammed the door, cutting off Tobias’s swift exit. Meadow meowed as if mocking him.

“This is Tobias?” he asked as he stared at my small dog. I nodded. “As in the dog you chose in 8th grade?”

I nodded, surprised that he remembered. “He’s so…small,” he nudged Tobias, who was lying down on his side, panting heavily from his short sprint, with his foot. “And he’s fat.”

I gave him a flat look. “How’s Finster?”

His eyes widened slightly. “He’s good…he actually got bigger, unlike someone.”

I pointed to my dog. “I fed him, as you can see, he just didn’t do his job and grow!”

I thought I saw the corners of Grayson’s mouth quirk up slightly before he coughed. “We should get started.”

“Let’s make the lasagna first,” I told him, shoving him a list of ingredients. He stared it and followed my lead by rummaging through the cabinets in search of anything on the list. Although, I’d gotten most of it- he got a view of the cabinets so hopefully, by the time we make the brownies, he can be a bit more helpful

“Here, you do this,” I told him as I pointed to the first step. He had to make some of the main ingredients. He gave me a flat look.

“Of course you tell me to do the difficult thing,” he muttered under his breath. I raised both of my hands.

“I can’t cook!” I replied and he just glared at the list of things he had to cook over the stove. I preheated the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Half of the ingredients that he was working with were major items and I’ll admit that if he messes this part up- we’re going to have terrible lasagna.

I brought out the large pot and filled it with water. I dropped a bit of salt into the pot and waited for it to boil. When it did, I placed the lasagna noodles into the pot. While I waited for them to cook, I watched Grayson silently as he prepared the ingredients.

“If you’re going to watch me, you might as well help,” he muttered and I felt my face warm up again. I awkwardly walked over to him and he motioned towards the seasonings, which were a few feet away from him and across the kitchen island. I wondered why he spaced it out like that. Was he avoiding me? It made sense, he didn’t want me to sit next to him at lunch and he didn’t talk to me since Saturday night.

If he was really that embarrassed about his slip up on Saturday then I don’t know what to do about it. I can’t say anything reassuring because it’ll come out as cocky. For all I know, he could be upset about Finster being sick yet I’m sitting here assuming that the fact that I rejected his kiss upset him.

I couldn’t help but think about what it’d be like if I didn’t reject his kiss and we did end up kissing? Would it be the same and he’d be avoiding me? Or would it be calmer and less…tense? I couldn’t help but glance up at him every so often. It was obvious that he was avoiding my gaze. I finished measuring the seasonings and placed the chopping board, with the seasonings in small cups on it, over to him. He didn’t even acknowledge my action and just continued to mix in the various cans of tomato. I sighed and walked over to the lasagna noodles, which were finished. I quickly lifted the pot and poured it into a drainer and watched as the steam spread around the room, disappearing once the cold water was turned on. 

While the pasta drained, I grabbed a mixing bowl and mixed the ricotta cheese, the egg, the remaining parsley, and a half teaspoon of salt. I mixed it and put it aside.

He looked at me and took the bowl from me, grabbing the drained and finished lasagna noodles and placed them in front of him. He grabbed the pan we set out and began setting up the lasagna. I watched as he did it, humming quietly to himself. A guy who can cook, that’s hot. I rolled my eyes at my thoughts and began gathering the materials for the brownies while he finished off the lasagna.

I read the instructions and began doing as told. The instructions called for a preheated oven, but luckily it was the same temperature as the lasagna so I didn't have to change anything. I reached for the two 8 inch pans and began greasing them. I realized that Grayson finished with the lasagna and put it into the oven before looking at the list, not even bothering to glance at me. I clenched my teeth and continued to grease the pans.

He was currently melting a half cup of butter while I opened the sack of flour. I realized he was muttering something under his breath and I sighed. “What?”

He didn’t even bother to glance at me so I repeated myself a bit louder. I knew that he heard me; we were about three feet away from each other in a completely silent house! I lifted my hand out of the sack of flour and slammed it down on the table, causing a puff of white smoke to settle overhead and land on Grayson’s agitated face. His long eyelashes were covered in dots of white, along with his hair. It was like a scene in a movie. My jaw dropped slightly and the corner of my lips perked up slightly; I attempted to stop the smile that spread, but I failed.

I couldn’t help but laugh. A slight chuckle turned into a side splitting laughing fit. I couldn’t see Grayson but I knew that he was angry due to the silence. I tried to open my eyes but my laughing wouldn’t allow me to. My face was scrunched up in pure amusement as I held my stomach. When I finally stopped laughing, I stole a glance to see Grayson fuming, his fists clenched. My chuckles slowly faded as I stared at him.

Instead of punching me, he unveiled handfuls of flour that he tossed at me, causing me to squeal when the puff took up my vision. I closed my eyes tightly, allowing the white flour to land on me. I peeked one eye open when I heard a familiar sound, Grayson was laughing at me. I looked down at myself and I realized why. Not only was my face covered in flour, but my whole entire outfit was, too. Along with the kitchen floors…now that’s something they don’t display in movies.

I narrowed my eyes at him but continued to flour the pans, glancing at him occasionally as he continued to make the brownies. I decided to make the frosting. I followed the directions and mixed everything. Halfway through creating the frosting, I noticed Grayson fidgeting with his phone. Music blasted throughout the house and I turned to look at him but he didn’t bother to glance back at me. I groaned inwardly, so we’re back to square one.

~~~

Once everything was in the oven, I sat down at a stool on the island and sighed loudly. That was a lot more work than I had planned. The music was still playing and I saw Grayson dancing around as he leaned over to get the lasagna from the stove. I placed my head back down until I heard him close the oven. I looked up and groaned again before slamming my finger down on the pause button of his music.

“Are you avoiding me or something?” I snapped. There was no reply. I narrowed my eyes at Grayson’s back. “Grayson?”

I glared at him, standing up and walking over towards him. I stood beside him, watching as he stared at the stove top in front of him, refusing to meet my gaze. “Grayson,” I continued repeating his name until I saw his fists clench around the stove’s handle. I hoped that he wouldn’t hit me.

“Grayson, Grayson, Grayson, Grayson, Grayson, Grayson,” I continued to speak, tilting my head sideways as I sat on the counter, swinging my feet.

“What?” he hissed finally. I counted how many times I said his name, too- 93. It was a record and somehow, his name didn’t even sound like a word anymore.

“Are you mad at me?” I asked him. He didn’t reply and as I went to open my mouth, his hand clasped over my lips, quieting me immediately.

My mouth warmed along with my face as he stood off to my side. He looked irritated as turned his gaze to me. The flour that was in his long eyelashes was gone now, but it remained in his hair. “Are you mad at me?” It came muffled from beneath his hand but I’m guessing he got the point.

He dropped his hand and shook his head. “No.”

“Then why are you acting so hostile? Well, at least more hostile than usual,” I asked as I stared at him, still shocked at the fact that he willingly touched my face.

He let out a breath before running his hand through his hair, causing flour flakes to fall to the already messy floor. “I’m just tired; I haven’t been getting enough sleep.”

He’s such a terrible liar, I wonder if he knows that. Well, if he doesn’t- I’m going to tell him right now. “You’re a terrible liar.”

He groaned and looked at me for the first time since we started cooking, well aside from when his hand was over my mouth but I think that was from the fear of me licking his hand. “I’m not lying.”

“Whatever you say…liar,” I told him as I swung my legs childishly. I saw him clench his teeth and I pursed my lips. “Well, whatever I did- I’m sorry.”

I don’t know why I'm apologizing. I guess I just don’t like people being angry at me. “How are you sorry if you don’t know why you’re supposed to be sorry?”

I shrugged. “I’m guessing it has something to do with me, you are refusing to look at me. And don’t think I missed your little stab fest at the lunch table earlier,” I reminded him.

He stared at the ground before looking up at me with a small smile on his lips. “You saw that?”

I nodded. “Yeah, if you wouldn’t have done that, I would’ve sat with you guys just to annoy you but I was worried that the burger would morph into my head and I’d have plastic fork stabs all over my face.”

He let out a small laugh and I felt a bubble of relief pop in my heart, causing little relief bubbles to flutter around. At least he wasn’t searing with anger anymore. “I wouldn’t stab you with a plastic fork…it’d be a metal knife.”

I glared at him but couldn’t help the smile that found its way onto my face. “You’re so scary, Betty Crocker.”

He narrowed his eyes at me. “At least I can cook.”

“I can cook!” I snapped and he gave me a flat look. “Okay, maybe I’m not a chef but I’d be able to support myself.”

He snorted. “Yeah, because anyone can live off of macaroni and cheese and sandwiches.”

I glared at him. “And cereal, oatmeal, and ramen noodles,” I replied, crossing my arms.

He feigned a surprised look. “Really? That wasn’t on your list!”

I reached out and punched his shoulder. “Watch your mouth, Carter.”

“That was such an original nickname,” he snorted sarcastically. “And that hit really killed me; I think I need to visit the hospital.”

I rolled my eyes at him before giving him a curious look. “Why were you angry at me?”

He shrugged. “It was a stupid reason, really.”

“Then tell me,” I urged. I was curious as to what it was. A smirk formed on his lips.

“You really want to know, don’t you?” I pursed my lips before nodding. “Then I won’t tell you.” I glared at him as he winked at me. The jerk is back, how great.

~~~

By the time the food was finished, Grayson and I already discussed that we were going to place it in my fridge. He’d walk over here in the morning and we’d pack it into my car and drive to and from school together. It seems like a good plan. I looked at Grayson as I grabbed the brownies and I was pretty sure a line of drool was pouring out of my mouth.

“Let’s cut them now," I told him, checking to see if they were cool. He narrowed his eyes at me.

“Why?” he questioned curiously.

I gave him a sheepish smile as I batted my eyelashes. “I was thinking that if we have more than 32 brownies, we can split the leftovers.”

He stared at me for a second before averting his gaze. He grabbed the second tray of brownies and we began cutting them as evenly as we could. I quickly counted the brownies and realized that my pan had eighteen in all. I began easing them out of the pan and onto a plate, where I’d plastic wrap each individual one. Just in case I dropped them, they’d be safe. It’d also be easier to hand them out.

I patiently waited for Grayson, the perfectionist (and ballerina), to finish cutting his brownies. Once he finished, he smiled in satisfaction and began counting them. I was counting from beside him and realized that he also had eighteen brownies. Altogether, that was 36 and we only needed 32. I grinned as I watched him take his out of the pan and put them onto the plate. “Let’s eat them now!”

I grabbed his hand as he went to reach for them. “No, not yet; help me wrap them in plastic wrap.”

“Individually?” he whined and I nodded. “That’ll take forever!”

“Not if you quit whining and get to work,” I barked at him as I began wrapping up the brownies. I placed them on a separate plate.

Once we finished, we stared at the four brownies that sat on the plate between us. We're sitting side by side. “Let’s play some celebratory music.”

“For a day’s worth of hard work,” I replied and he snorted.

“I did everything,” he responded with extra sass, earning a glare from me. Deciding that it wasn't enough because he was still grinning, I punched his shoulder and he rolled his eyes but played a song on his phone.

I slowly ate my brownie but watched as he devoured his. I chewed slowly as I held both of my brownies in my hands, fearing that he’d take them if I left them on the plate. He glared at me as he pouted and watched me finish my brownies. I had one last bite left and he quickly ripped it out of my hand and shoved it into his mouth. I frowned at him, shocked. “I bit that!”

He shrugged. “When something tastes this amazing, I’d eat it if it were on the floor for longer than five seconds.”

I wrinkled my nose and watched as he chewed the last of my brownie. I sighed as I stood up, glancing at the clock. It was just reaching 8 o’clock. “Time to clean up.”

He laughed. “I don’t think so.”

I frowned. “What? You can’t leave me with this mess.”

He winked at me. “I think I will, darling. Have fun cleaning it up!”

~~~

The next morning I woke up excited, showering and putting on my uniform. I even went as far as to wear my hair down and straightened, hoping it wouldn’t frizz. After Grayson left last night, I plotted my plan further and it was all figured out. All I have to do is ask Carson or Kyle if Grayson goes to his locker during the day.

“Why are you so happy?” my mother asked me once she entered the kitchen. She saw me sitting in a chair, a smile on my face. I placed a spoonful of cereal into my mouth.

“I’m going to get back at Grayson for his stupid prank,” I grinned. She shook her head.

“Don’t be immature,” she chided. A moment later, she was seated beside me with a mischievous grin on her face. “What are you planning to do?”

I grinned. “You’ll hear about it, don’t worry.”

About ten minutes later, someone knocked on the door. I hummed the Threes Company theme song as I watched my mother get up. My mother rushed to open the door while I grabbed the lasagna out of the fridge and the brownies out of the microwave. It didn’t matter if brownies were room temperature when you ate them but we definitely needed to skip lunch to heat up the lasagna.

Grayson bounded into the kitchen and smiled at me. Without saying anything, he grabbed the large pan of lasagna and exited the house, leaving me to balance two trays of brownies. I slowly walked towards the door, ready to leave the house when Grayson approached me and grabbed one of the trays, leaving me with only one. I sighed in relief. The last thing I needed was to get in trouble for not being prepared. After placing the food into the large crate in the backseat that prevented the food from sliding, I ran inside one last time to get the drinks and utensils. I walked outside with the soda and juice bottles, plates, plastic cups, forks, and spoons.

I got into the car and Grayson slid into the passenger seat. My mother waved at us from the house and I waved back. She had this stupid grin on her face and I turned to see Grayson smirking in amusement. I hope he isn’t assuming anything, especially that I like him because I don’t. 

~~~

“You’re going to do what?” Carson hissed at me and I quickly punched his gut, causing him to keel over.

“You’re being loud. I said I was going to do it so I am. Now tell me, does he go to his locker?” I snapped and Carson gave me a nervous look.

"You could be a successful drug lord, you've got the ruthless violence down already," he groaned. Noticing my glare, he stood up straighter, his hand still on his stomach. “Do you remember that I’m his best friend?” 

I glared at him. “Do you remember what he did to me? He embarrassed me in front of everyone! I've been finding notes in my locker from all of these different people! People laugh at me in class and in the hallways! I can't go to the bathroom without people snickering at me!"

"At least you got to kiss him," he shrugged. "But you're his wife, so you should be able to kiss him whenever you like. I bet you like that idea, huh?"

"Carson!" I exclaimed, gaining his attention once again. "Focus!"

“He doesn’t go to his locker in the afternoon. But I can tell him to put his stuff in his locker, okay? He’ll be there right after lunch tomorrow. Now go before he starts to get suspicious. He’s already looking over here.”

“Get his locker combination,” I demanded and Carson sent me a scared nod. I gave him an innocent smile.

I nodded and scuttled away in the direction where Grayson was waiting for me. We had to go heat the pasta in the Home Ec room where our food was already waiting for us. “What took you so long?”

“Oh, I was talking to Carson,” I waved off, trying to dismiss the topic.

He nodded. “About what?”

I shrugged. “Nothing of importance.”

“About what?” He repeated and I smirked, tilting my head to the side.

“You really want to know, don’t you?” I questioned. He just stared at me. “Well, too bad.”

When we reached the Home Ec room, the teachers were just leaving. “We’re going to run to McDonalds down the street, we should be back in no time.”

We nodded and placed the pasta into the oven. It was silent and I decided to speak up. “So how’s Shane?”

Grayson’s head turned quickly and he looked at me, slightly unsure of what I said. “What?”

“I said, how’s Shane?” I repeated, holding back a smirk.

He quickly turned back, shrugging. “I don’t know and I don’t care.”

I frowned. “But I thought he was your friend.”

“He is," Grayson replied.

I frowned deeper. “You’re getting hostile again.”

“Shane is my friend,” he snapped and I smirked.

“Are you jealous that I’m going to steal all of your friends?” I asked as I leaned against the table. He narrowed his eyes at me, fixing his uniform shirt collar.

“No, you already stole Carson and Kyle,” he muttered under his breath.

I gasped. “I did not!”

“Oh em gee, Grayson, can we go to the library with you to see Audrey? Why would you leave her sleeping on the couch in the dark like that? What if she died?” he mocked.

“One, I hope they realize that the library is a public place and two, the last one was just common courtesy,” I reminded him and he narrowed his eyes at me. “Besides, I can’t help it if I’m cooler than you.”

He snorted. “I’m the coolest of the cool.”

I nodded. “Are you now?” I asked and he nodded.

He gave me a curious look. “Now that we’re talking about cool, what did you tell Carson?”

I furrowed my eyebrows. “What are you talking about? That has nothing to do with cool, at all.”

He shrugged. “Answer my question.”

“I’ll answer it if you tell me why you were angry at me,” I bargained and he scoffed.

“No way," he snorted and I shrugged.

“It was worth a shot,” I muttered. The door flew open and a boy I recognized from this class, who happened to be working with Carson, walked in. He walked towards an empty stove and opened the door to it, reaching his hand into it and yanking out the familiar mechanical baby. I didn't miss the bags under his eyes and his slouch.

He walked past us without acknowledging us. I raised and dropped my eyebrows before sitting back, patiently waiting for the lasagna to be done. I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket and I quickly took it out of my pocket. ‘Why can’t you slide the note through the holes in the door?’

I furrowed my eyebrows. I didn’t think of that. ‘Okay.’ I replied, giggling when he replied with, ‘Ciao.’

“What’s so funny?” Grayson asked curiously. I locked my phone and went to put it away but he reached for it.

“It’s nothing, Gracie!” I snapped as I tightened my grip on it. “You’re going to break it!” I grunted as I went to yank my phone away but it slipped out of my fingers. He looked at the screen and scoffed.

“Brendon Urie? Really?” he asked as he looked at the screen. The background was a picture of a shirtless Brendon Urie.

“Yes, he’s amazing; now give it back," I snapped as I reached for my phone again but he wasn’t going to give it back to me.

“Nah-uh-uh, tell me what you talked to Carson about,” he informed me, raising the phone above my head.

I glared at him. “It wasn’t about you so don’t worry.” I lied.

He shrugged. “I don’t care whether or not it was about me.”

I clenched my teeth and crossed my arms. “I asked when you guys practice.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

I bit my lip. “Because I wanted to see Shane play.”

He furrowed his eyebrows and handed me back my phone. I smirked in satisfaction as I placed it back into my pocket, allowing the silence to take over the room.

~~~

When the class started filling up, Grayson and I patiently waited, prepared to cut and hand out the lasagna. I was sitting in the chair in the front of the classroom and Grayson was casually leaning beside me. The teachers gave us permission to hand out the drinks and food; Carson was grinning when I placed his plate on the table in front of him. I forced a grin. “Remember what I said, don’t act suspicious.”

He nodded as he picked up a fork and quickly stabbed it into the lasagna. Once the class was fed, we decided to get plates of lasagna, too. After all, we did skip lunch. Going to the only empty table, we both sat down with a cup of soda each and a plate. We ate in silence until Ms. Cora decided to speak up.

“That was amazing, when we’re all finished- Grayson and Audrey will pass out their brownies,” Ms. Cora announced, wiping her mouth with the napkin.

Grayson held up his fist and I bumped mine with his, grinning widely. We waited while they scarfed down the rest of their food. While they did that, Grayson and I each grabbed a plate of individually wrapped brownies and placed them in front of each person.

Each person said ‘thank you’ and some even complimented me on the lasagna. If Grayson heard, he’d glare at me while I just winked in response. I reached Carson and he slowly shook his head. “You player.”

"That's Shane's line," I smirked. He rolled his eyes and I shook my head, giving him and his partner a brownie. The kid sent me a sad, sleep deprived look and I returned it with a pitiful smile. Grayson and I went back to our seats and watched as they ate the brownies. He turned to me, sighing loudly. “We should have saved ours for today.”

I shrugged. “I regret nothing.”

“Definitely an A plus meal, compliments to the chefs,” Ms. Cora complimented when she sat down. Mr. Hugh nodded in agreement. I turned to look at Grayson who was smiling.

“More like compliments to me," he muttered and I punched his arm. Hitting him never gets old.

~~~

“I have football practice today,” Grayson informed me. I raised both of my eyebrows.

“You didn’t think that’d be useful information earlier?” I asked and he shrugged. “You think I’m going to drive you home? Because I’m not.”

“I can’t get a ride from anybody else,” he exclaimed as I began walking away.

“Not my problem,” I chimed, earning a groan from him. He reached out and grabbed my arm. I quickly yanked it away, uncomfortable with the newfound warmth that spread up my arm. “None of your football buddies can give you a ride home?”

He shook his head. “Most of them can’t because they’re busy, they don’t live near me, or they’re staying for a double practice for either baseball or soccer. Besides, it’s only until 4.”

“So I have to stay here for an hour and forty-five minutes?” I slowly asked.

He grinned widely. “So you’re going to stay?”

“Why are you getting all excited? I’m not going to that football field,” I replied.

“What? You have to!” he told me as he frowned.

I shrugged. “I don’t have to do anything.”

“Where are you going to go then?” he challenged. “To go anywhere else in the building, you have to sign up for it. You can’t just show up.”

I frowned. “I guess I’ll go out to the field. I guess I can see the greatest football player play.”

Grayson grinned and slung his arm over my shoulders. “Thank you. You know, I think that’s the first compliment you’ve ever given me.”

I wrinkled my nose as I turned to look at him. “I was talking about Shane.”

He quickly retracted his arm and pushed me. It wasn’t a hard shove but it was enough to send my feet sprawling out from under me. I fell onto the floor, my bottom meeting the hard linoleum. I turned to scream at Grayson but he was already racing down the hallway. I stood up, taking my bag with me. I’m lucky that he already put the pans and plates in my car or else I’d be seated in glass shards and food crumbs.

I stormed towards the direction of the exit, where the football field was. When I exited, I noted the sudden temperature change. I walked towards the entrance but the coach quickly cut me off. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m here because Grayson needs a ride home after practice,” I sighed, putting my arms around myself.

“Carter!” Grayson turned guiltily once he saw me. He ran over towards us, taking a step away from me. “Is she your ride home?”

I held back from gaping at the coach. Was he serious? Did he not believe me? Grayson nodded. “Yeah.”

The coach allowed me to enter the field and I walked behind the protective gate, into the bleachers. I noticed Carson and Shane entering the field, talking excitedly. “Carson! Shane!”

The two turned towards the bleachers, furrowing their eyes as they searched for me. They began approaching the bleachers and smiled at me. “What are you doing here?”

I sighed. “Well, I’m Grayson’s ride home,” I replied to Shane.

He nodded. “Aren’t you cold?”

I nodded. “Extremely.”

Surprisingly, he shed his jacket and motioned for me to go to the opening in the gate. He handed me the jacket and I furrowed my eyebrows. “Aren’t you going to need this?”

“Do football players need jackets?” he asked me and I laughed, shaking my head. “Well, I’m going to go change. It is quite cold out here.”

I nodded and thanked him, returning to a smirking Carson. He narrowed his eyes at me. “I don’t know what you’re doing and I’m not quite sure if I want to know.”

He slowly backed away as I zipped up Shane’s jacket with an innocent look on my face. I sat down and sighed in content. It wasn’t as cold anymore, all thanks to Shane.

~~~

The practice was boring and I couldn’t help but laugh every time Grayson missed a catch or threw badly, which wasn’t often. But when it did happen, I would laugh loudly and he’d glare at me. That's what he gets for making me stay. Once, he even threw the football at the gate (deja-vu) and the coach told him to sit out but on the bench on the opposite side of the field, away from me. 

When I was forced to drive him back to his house, he grumbled under his breath before noticing something. He stopped walking to my car and looked at me. “Whose jacket is that?” he questioned curiously. I looked down to the oversized sweater I was wearing.

“Shane’s,” I turned to see him approaching us with a smirk on his face. Grayson was staring at the ground and I held up a finger towards him. “Wait here.”

“I don’t really have a choice, do I?” he replied with an irritated tone to his voice. I scowled at him before walking towards Shane, taking the jacket off of my body. He took it in his hands and raised both of his eyebrows at me.

“You’re really giving him a ride home?” he asked as he glanced behind my shoulder. Grayson was leaning on my car.

“I have no choice,” I shrugged. “Anyway, thank you for letting me use your jacket.”

“Was it to make Grayson jealous?” he asked me and I blinked a few times, leaning in slightly. “Don’t act all innocent, I know.”

“Know what?” I questioned, an eyebrow raised.

“About you and Grayson,” he smirked, placing his hands on his hips.

My eyes widened slightly. “What? What about me and Grayson?”

He reached out and tapped my nose with his finger. “You know.”

With that, he walked away and I stood there confused before turning and walking back to my car. What was he talking about?