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“I’ll make sure it’s a good one if you show.”
His words settled oddly in my mind. Maybe it was the way he said it, with his usual half-smirk and light eyes. Instead, it was genuine.
“You’ll have passed your math exam by then,” I told him. “All this tutoring nonsense will be behind you.”
After next week, after next Thursday, there wouldn’t be a reason to meet after school anymore, wouldn’t be a reason to see him anymore. There’d be no more lessons in love, no more talking about equations, no more worrying about anyone finding out. In all honesty, after Thursday, my life wouldn’t be as complicated. I should be looking forward to it.
Then why did the thought deflate my good mood?
Connor had been shifting on his feet, like he was debating stepping closer. “You know, we could—”
“Babe!” the voice was a sudden shout, causing Connor to turn around and me to stiffen. Jade rounded the corner where the field lockers were, with three football players behind her. I didn’t recognize any of them. “There you are.”
Connor took a large step back from me, but even he had to realize there was no playing it off. “Hey.”
Unlike her co-captain, Jade’s makeup hadn’t smudged at all through the night—either that, or she’d touched it up. Her pawprints were intact and her eyeshadow glittered both blue and gold. Even from here, it flashed like a disco ball. “Oh, wow, did you get lost on your way to the library?”
I inwardly sighed. “The library closes at eight.”
Two of the three football players kept walking, tossing a “see you in a bit, Bray” before heading toward the parking lot. The only three that remained were Connor, Jade, and the one other football player. After a moment of staring, I recognized him as the guy from the Wallflower last week, when Alex ditched me to sit with them.
Speaking of, was Alex reading his tuba a bedtime story before tucking it in? I glanced off in the direction of the school, squinting, but I couldn’t see anyone coming this way.
Jade wrapped her arm around Connor’s waist and leaned in. “What were you two talking about?”
“She congratulated me on the game,” Connor replied, voice as stiff as his spine, and he edged away from his girlfriend. “We should get going. I need to shower before we head to Ashton’s.”
“I’m surprised you’re here,” Jade said as if Connor hadn’t spoken, raising an eyebrow. “Have you been to any football games, like, ever?”
I made a soft noise under my breath, trying to appear unaffected even though my blood burned hot. “I’m touched that you noticed.”
“Jeez, sorry,” Alex gasped as he practically slammed into my side, catching at my arm to steady himself. “Mrs. Peters asked me…to help her put away…the music stands.” Each phrase was punctuated with a wheezing inhale as his chest heaved. “Took forever. But I’m here.”
Alex seemed to notice the Top Tier members surrounding us for the first time, because his body locked up with surprise. He went from nearly hyperventilating from running all the way here to not even breathing. “H-Hey.”
“Hey, Alex.” Jade’s voice was significantly lighter when she spoke to him, as if she was speaking to a child. “I was saying how surprised I was to see Maisie here tonight.”
“Oh, I know.” Alex picked up my hand and gave it a hard squeeze. His eyes were bright, the way they got whenever he got the attention of someone popular. “I finally got her to say yes. Bribed her, really, with a date night.”
Connor watched Alex quietly—really, he surveyed the whole scene quietly. He straightened his duffle bag strap, shifting on his feet like he was moments from walking away. The mask was in place with an effortless sort of ease, and I had no idea what kind of emotion lingered underneath.
Jade gestured at my school spirit apparel. “You probably would’ve preferred to stay at home with your math book, huh?”
“We do have a wedding to plan, after all,” I deadpanned.
She blinked once and then laughed—like,reallylaughed. As if what I’d said had been the funniest thing in the world. Alex joined in, obviously only laughing because Jade was. She placed her hand on Connor’s chest, leaning in as close as she could. “Did you hear that? Because she was voted Most Likely To: Marry A Math Book.”
For the first time since the interruption, Connor’s attention slid to me. Even though we’d spent nearly every weekday together for the past two weeks, it felt like we were launched back to square one in our tutoring relationship. Like he was back to the Connor Bray I couldn’t stand. For having been to his grandmother’s house and learning about his home life—and divulging a secret of my own—it almost felt as if we were strangers.
The hardness in his expression, the flatness, belied no connection at all. “Yeah, I heard.” He gave Alex one of those chin-nods. “Have a good date night.”
I curled my fingers into fists, waiting for him to look over once more, but he didn’t.
Jade huffed a little at Connor’s abrupt departure, but it did the trick—she began following him, the other football player behind her on her heels. She didn’t even have time for a proper comeback, hustling to catch up with her boyfriend.
I stared at the back of his shirt, at the stiffness in his shoulders, until the shadows grew too thick. The only way to describe Alex when they walked away wasbedazzled, the one-minute-long conversation more than enough to make his night. It took him a moment to turn to me, giving my hand another squeeze. “You ready to go to the movies?”
As I stared up at the pure, blank innocence on his face, I fought to recapture the happiness of earlier. Where I was standing next to Ava, Rachel, and Lacey in the crowd, when Connor’s fleeting look of surprise and amusement made me chuckle. Now I had a bad taste in my mouth.
