“She isn’t going to be home,” I tell her. “She’s spending the weekend up north with my dad for some charity event.”
She peers up at me, suspicion twisting her mouth into the cutest pout. “Did you plan this?”
“If by ‘plan this’ you mean did I reach out totheHome Box Office to play your favorite movie on the one weekend my mom isn’t home, then yes. How did you guess?”
“Isthatwhat HBO stands for?” She giggles, leaning into me so my nose nuzzles against the soft skin of her neck. It’s just us two out here since the usual group we spend our lunch with opted for the more crowded area of the courtyard, so I’m taking advantage of the moment. I’m touching her more, kissing her more, teasing her more.
“You know, when I kiss you right here…” I pause, kissing her right below the ear, trailing down her pulse point. “I can feel your heartbeat get faster and faster.”
She shivers. “Yeah?”
“Mh-hmm.” I kiss her again, her chin ducking low, making this moment more intimate even as we sit out in the open. “And you get all smiley and dopey eyed.”
She shoves at my stomach. “I do not!”
I pull her closer to me. “You do,” I argue, tightening my hold on her. “You want to know what makes you squeal and get all jumpy?”
“What?”
I press my lips into her neck, puffing my cheeks and blowing a loud raspberry into her skin. It rattles so loudly it causes a few heads to turn in our direction. And sure enough, Teeny squeals. It’s a delighted sound, something that echoes around us while the laughter dances in her eyes. She muffles it with a hand clamped over her mouth, and she smacks my arm.
“You are so embarrassing.” Her face is a shade of red so deep, I feel like it’ll stay like that for the rest of our lunch period.
She reaches for a Cheeto from the small bag sitting on the table and chucks it at me, just as I feel a low thump hit the back of my head. I turn to see Josh taking the seat across from me and Teeny. “I was just in Coach’s office. He wants you to start the next game.”
“Seriously?” I feel Teeny squeeze my hand, though she’s created some distance between us now that we have an audience.
He nods enthusiastically. “Yeah, he was going over the roster for the next game and asked me what I thought. Told him it would be a good idea.”
He bumps my fist, and I tamper down the excitement, feeling a little shy from the attention, but Teeny doesn’t let that slide. She pulls me closer, kissing me on the cheek before whispering, “Congrats, Hayes.”
I offer a shy laugh, unsure if it’s from her praise or if it’s because her brother’s sitting across from us getting a front-row seat. “Thank you.”
Her warm breath skirts over the shell of my ear. A soft giggle follows, and she says, “I think we need to celebrate.” Her voice is low enough that only I can hear, but I still feel vividly aware of Josh’s presence near us. “Maybe some Coke floats after school?”
“Do you even have to ask?”
She pulls away and wipes at my face, removing the traces of lip gloss on my cheek at the same time Josh’s face twists into a repulsed grimace.
“Okay, you guys don’t need to be doing that shit in front of me.” He grabs a handful of Cheetos and tosses it at us, nearly emptying what’s left in the bag.
“Josh, I was eating those,” Teeny protests.
He ignores her, resting his forearms on the table and leaning forward like he’s about to tell us a secret. “So, we’re planning this little party on Saturday,” he says, his voice a little low.
“Who’s ‘we?’”
“Me and a few other guys on the team,” he tells me. “But we’re having some trouble finding a place.”
“So, you guys are planning a party with no place to have it,” Teeny says, her words dripping with skepticism.
“Yes,” he answers with a peevish snap to his voice. He then turns to me. “You think we could…use your place? Since your mom is going out of town?”
Teeny looks at me, and I now have two sets of eyes boring into me. Teeny’s look disappointed and gutted while Josh’s look hopeful. “Uh, I guess.”
“But what about movie night?” Teeny asks, dispirited.
“Oh, come on, Teeny! You guys can do that stuff another day.”
