AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Who’s what?” I asked.
“Does this mean something to you, Hadley?” Mrs Grady asked.
“Oh, it means nothing to me. But, it meanseverythingto Piper.”
“Excuse me?” Mrs Grady looked at me and I blinked.
“I have no idea what she’s talking about,” I assured her.
Hadley gave me that look that told me I was being the adorable idiot again.
“Piper, come over here please,” Mrs Grady sighed.
“I’m fine just–”
“Now, please, Piper.”
I got up from my desk and the crowd of students parted and let me through. But, my brain totally refused to register what it was seeing. Hadley grinned at me like it was the best joke – or win or something – ever. I looked back out the window and swatted her elbow away from my ribs.
Roman was standing on the oval in the tray of his ute, holding up an old boom box. And, it was blaring Fall Out Boy’s ‘Honarable Mention’.
Hadley’s elbow found my ribs again.
“Told you John was waiting.”
“Holy shit,” I breathed, my heart thudding painfully.
“Piper,” Mrs Grady chastised.
“You have to go out there,” Hadley said.
I shook my head. “No. I can’t!”
“You have to!” Rachel hissed.
“That’s not how it went in the movie!” I hissed back the only thing my frazzled brain could think of.
“It’s how it should have gone,” Mrs Grady muttered quietly.
We all turned to look at her in surprise. And she gave us a very innocent look while she busily tried to pretend she’d said nothing.
“I have a test to finish,” I said, walking back to my desk.
“Piper Barlow, you go out there and let him romance you!” Hadley ordered.
I looked around the room. Some students – mostly girls – were nodding enthusiastically. Some were looking confused by the whole thing. And, some were just looking pleased the test had been interrupted. Mrs Grady looked like she was entirely into the whole thing but the pesky ‘being a teacher and having to be responsible’ thing was putting a serious cramp on her style.
“I have a test to finish, and so do the rest of you,” I said sullenly, my heart beating quickly.Why now? Did he change his mind? How do I feel about this?
Hadley got fired up and pointed out the window. “There is a man out there begging to be your John Cusack! A beautiful man, Piper. A man whogetsyou. You need to go to him!”
I looked around the room, feeling now was not the time to remind her he wasn’t technically a man. “He can wait…”
“Yes. Piper’s right…” Mrs Grady said slowly and completely unconvincingly.
“We have waited weeks for Roman Lombardi to pull his finger out of his f–” Hadley stopped, looked at Mrs Grady guiltily, and kept going, “freaking arse. And, there he is! You go out there now and you end the movie right, God damn it! Or, I am never watching one of your precious John’s movies again!”
I blinked at her. I was resolved not to. It wasn’t going to work out. There were a hundred and one things that were standing in our way. Too much had happened. I’d moved on. But, my feet were already carrying me out the door.
