Authors: Adrienne Torrisi
Sid
laughs. "Stop it. You are so bad!"
It
makes it even worse that Todd and RTS are walking onto the field holding hands at this very moment. I guess rehearsals are over. Now Gretch
and
RTS are right in our line of sight. RTS is sort of pretty, I guess, in an overbearing obnoxious kind of way. She has mousy brown hair and light brown eyes – they are almost the exact same color as her hair. She’s also really petite so she always goes the highest when they toss the girls up and she is always the top of the pyramid. Watching them practice their basket tosses and pyramids is perfect inspiration for my dislike.
"Do you think Todd really likes her?" I
find myself hoping maybe Sid has more insider scoop.
"I'm not sure
. He's so hard to read. I know they’re good friends and have been spending more time together with the whole Sour Lollipops thing."
"She just doesn't seem like his type. You know
, the whole superficial cheerleader thing. I mean, from what I've seen, she seems to always push herself on him." I’m kind of getting carried away and I hope the fact that I care more than I’m letting on isn’t super obvious.
Sid
makes a sound like she is seriously considering it. She is so caught up in her own bliss, I think she is oblivious to my infatuation with her brother and how he feels about RTS. "Yeah, she's never really been nice...”
We both look over at RTS and
Gretch; they are giggling and pointing in the direction of the football players across the field. RTS waves to Todd and he smiles and waves back. It’s like a dagger through my heart.
"She seems happy
," Sid says.
"Yeah, who wouldn't be?" I
don’t realize what I’ve said until I look over and see Sid's questioning glare. "Um, I just mean, Todd is such a good guy." I try to cover my mega slip, though I’m not sure that it’s worked.
Just then
, the football players take a water break and they all come running up to the sidelines where the water bottles are lined up by the fence right next to the cheerleaders. I'm not sure which one the guys are more excited to see. They are all really sweaty and Ryan's hair looks like he just got out of the shower. He comes up to Gretchen, grabs her hand and kisses the back of her neck from behind while Todd comes up to RTS, but thankfully, he is a lot less public with his affection. Brian is surrounded by at least four different cheerleaders, so I guess the rumors haven’t damaged his social status. Basically the girls are all grateful Brian and Blythe haven’t become an official couple.
As we
sit there watching the water break drama, Shane comes up the bleachers toward us. "Shane!" we both shout together.
"How was rehearsal?" I
ask, Shane knows what I really want to know, though.
"Good." From behind Sid
, he mouths, "I'll tell you later.”
"Who are we watching today?" Shane
questions, half joking.
I smile at him as if to say
,
you’re a jerk
. "Well, Sid came for Simon and his big trombone." Shane starts laughing.
"Very funny
, you two. Jealously will get you nowhere." Sid tries to hold back her laugh; she still knows a good joke when she hears one.
"Look who's joining the party
," Shane says, gesturing over toward the field where Blythe is walking up to the fence.
"This just got a whole lot better." Sid
sits up a little straighter.
Brian
goes over to the fence to talk to her, which makes me instantly wish we were close enough to hear what they’re saying. Guess we'll just have to go with body language, and from reading theirs, it looks like there is some definite tension.
"So glad I made it over here in time to see this!" Shane
says. “Or you two would be lost.” Shane is right, he's always the one to play translator because he's a pretty good lip reader. "Okay, I think Blythe just said she’s sorry for all the crazy rumors today. Oh, it looks like she's asking if they can talk after practice." Brian grabs her hand.
"Guess that's a yes
," Sid interjects.
Then Brian
leans over the fence and whispers something in her ear.
"Brian is going in for the big move to make his fan club jealous." Shane
gestures toward the group of cheerleaders Brian had just been talking to who all share the same scowl on their faces.
"Hey
, guys, check out Gretchen," I say, noticing she looks like she is about to attack Blythe. "She really doesn't try to hide her true feelings."
"Wow
, if looks could kill," Shane agrees.
Brian
lingers a little longer than he needs to by Blythe’s ear, and it looks like it is all for show.
Let's give them all something to talk about
Brian says; we don’t need a lip reader for that one.
Blythe
climbs up on the fence and kisses him; not just a quick I'll-see-you-later kiss, but a full on kiss that says he is mine to whoever is watching.
"Well
, no explanation is needed for that one," Shane says ending his play-by-play.
I wonder what she is doing
. I really like Blythe, but I don't like people playing my brother and his friends against each other. I look over at Ryan who is still holding hands with Gretchen, but he is definitely interested in what is happening over at the fence with Blythe and Brian. Who wouldn’t be when she just made it clear at The Quad that she isn’t really interested in Brian and she was pushing herself on Ryan. Is she trying to make Ryan jealous? That's really the only logical explanation after over-hearing their last conversation and I’m sure Ryan is thinking the same thing.
"Where do you think they'll have their talk? I would
love to hear what they say," I ask Shane and Sid.
"Looks like someone else is interested
, too," Shane says, referring to Gretchen. I look over and realize pretty much everyone is staring. Guess Shane is right, we aren't the only ones.
A loud whistle cut
s through the air and Coach yells at Brian. "Johnson, get your head back in the game. That's ten laps for everyone. Let's go. Start running, NOW!" The entire team starts shouting at Brian and moaning to their coach as they all go into slow jog mode to start their first lap around the field. Todd playfully pushes Brian’s head down as he passes them to start his laps.
"Guess that backfired
," I say, kind of happy to see their conversation interrupted. Blythe is making enemies all over the place. She seems to really love causing problems and I’m not sure how I feel about that. I also have to come to terms with the fact that we aren’t going to get to hear Blythe and Brian's conversation and I know exactly how I feel about that, I hate it!
Watching Todd during the rest of practice definitely
helps brighten my mood, though. He really looks amazing in his jersey, pads and tight football pants. His hair falls perfectly whether he is kicking, running or just standing there, smiling his flawlessly crooked smile. Something about the perspiration makes his blue eyes glisten even more. Poor Sid, she must hate that Todd has the most beautiful blue eyes and she has brown. Well, I'm right there with her in the brown eyes department, but at least Ryan has brown, too. That makes it a little easier to swallow since he has everything else.
The one thing I notice at practice
—other than Todd—is Brian and Ryan seem a little off. They are usually so in sync, but they both seem like they are distracted, almost angry. They always fight, but usually when they play all is forgotten as soon as they hit the field. I guess I've watched them play together for so long that I notice right away when something is off, but no one else seems to notice.
That night after practice
, Brian calls and asks Ryan if he can come over. Things just got a whole lot brighter with that news because maybe I will get to hear Brian's side of the Blythe, Brian conversation after all. One thing Ryan doesn’t know is that I can hear pretty much everything he says in his room thanks to the placement of the air vent. Although, I've also made a mental note that Ryan can probably hear me, too.
When Brian
gets to the house, he helps himself to a drink from the fridge and then talks about school and the big game with my parents for a bit. Brian is the best schmoozer when it comes to my parents; they love him. Our parents have been great friends for years. They spent pretty much every weekend together at sports events when Ryan was younger. So, it’s more like Brian is family and not a guest at this point. After he finishes talking with them, they both head up to Ryan's room. This is completely normal so my parents are oblivious that anything is wrong, but I know better. I saw them at practice today.
"I'm
gonna go do my homework in my room." I’ve waited a few minutes to follow them so it’s not completely obvious and I know this is an excuse my parents can’t possibly argue with. On my way upstairs, I can barely contain my excitement to hear what Brian has to say, when my phone buzzes with a text from Shane.
Can u talk?
Not now will text u later
I really
want to hear if Shane has any new information on the Todd, RTS situation, but now is not the time. I don’t want to miss anything. I make it to my room and close the door because:
1.)
I've learned the acoustics in Ryan's room work better with my door closed.
2.)
Just in case they come out of Ryan’s room I don’t want to seem too obvious.
L
uckily the vent is right above my bed, so I simply lie on my bed and wait. They are talking low, but I can pretty much make out everything and from the sounds of it I haven’t missed much of their conversation, thankfully.
"We were off in practice today
," Brian says. The game is always the most important thing to him. He has a few scouts already interested and some colleges are coming to the district championship game to see him play in person.
"I know. Today was a rough day." Ryan
has just as much riding on this game. A lot of schools are approaching him, too, and some are even approaching them both as a package deal.
"Blythe is cool and all
, but let's not let her blow this for us," Brian says.
"It's not her. It's a combination of everything
; the rumors, Gretchen, the big game… everything," Ryan responds.
"Come on
, you’re unshakable, what’s going on?" Brian questions.
"Do you like Blythe?" Ryan
shoots back at Brian, not really answering his question. He isn’t beating around the bush.
"I don't know. She's interesting. Different
than the rest of the girls here."
"That's what I thought
," Ryan sounds disappointed. "Well, just know there is nothing between us. She's cool, but I'm with Gretchen."
"Who kissed who at Olives?" Brian
asks.
There
is silence. Did he say something and I can’t hear it? I stand up on my bed to get closer to the vent.
"I need to know who started it
," Brian says after a long pause. Okay, at least I know Ryan just isn't responding. "It was her, wasn't it?" Brian is getting angrier as he pieces together that Ryan's silence is as good as a yes.
"There is nothing between us
," Ryan repeats.
"I knew it, she kissed you and you pushed her away." I
don’t even need the vent to hear that one because Brian is shouting now.
"Keep your voice down
," Ryan urges; he doesn’t want to alert my parents there could be a potential problem upstairs. "It’s true. She kissed me at Olives; we were talking and it came out of nowhere. It was a mistake and she knows that," Ryan says, trying to justify.
"Did she say anything else?" Brian
questions, interested.
There
is silence and then Ryan finally answers, "No. Did you talk to her? What did she say to you?"
"Same. She said it was a mistake. She wants me to
give her another chance to prove it was a mistake." Bam. There it is, Ryan knows it and so do I because I overheard their conversation today. Blythe is lying to someone, but who? My guess is Brian, since Ryan made it clear he isn’t interested. "I don't know. I mean, I like making out with her." I can hear the shrug in Brian’s voice.
"She is a good kisser
," Ryan says, laughing. "What? Too soon?"
"Not funny
," Brian says, still sounding serious.
"Wow
, you like her, don't you?" Ryan asks in all seriousness.
"I think I do. I like that she's a challenge." What's with these boys
; they can never seem to give you a straight answer. "But either way, let's not let this get in the way of the big game next week."
"I can't believe the season is almost over
," Ryan says.
"And then we're seniors
, baby!" Brian shouts. "Alright, I better get home. We're good?"