Winning the Game

It was Friday before Riley let me go back to school. I quickly chucked on a pair of gray skinny jeans and my red hoodie, stuffing my feet into a pair of flat boots. Packing my bag hastily, I shoved any books I could find into it, then scooped up my keys and stealthily slipped out the front door before he woke up and changed his mind. Being couped up in the house for three days had me going stir crazy. Especially when I had two well meaning but overbearing people fussing over me like I was on my deathbed rather than just recovering from a few bruises. I had been up and panning to go to school on Thursday morning only to discover my truck keys were missing. Brother dearest had hidden them from me, somehow one step ahead. My guess was Mel had tipped him off. She’d been in and out of our place all week, with her and Riley taking shifts to watch me. I had pointed out that Dr. Greenburg said I’d only needed to be watched for the first twelve to twenty four hours, but it seemed to fall on deaf ears. While Riley still had meetings to attend and a business to run, Mel had shifted all of her priority work from her work office to our own home office.
I was given one small taste of freedom around midday on Tuesday. Riley had gotten caught up in one of his meetings, meaning Mel had to take me along for her appointment with Headmaster Hagan. Of course my brother had tried desperately to get out of it, wanting to tag along in the hopes of running into Aidan. Smart man that he was, he’d given up - albeit reluctantly - after I’d told him that attacking a student on school grounds would only result in him spending the foreseeable future in jail. Best to let Mel handle this one, I’d said. Not that I thought she’d do much better. Both of them were out for blood, and I found myself praying that Aidan had already been suspended, not for his own safety, but to ensure my new protection detail didn’t do anything stupid.
Despite the amount of pain I was still in - they always say the day after you‘re injured is the worst, and boy they weren’t kidding - it was the best experience at school I’d ever had.
Headmaster Hagan’s first mistake was being twenty five minutes late to the meeting. If there was one thing Mel couldn’t stand, it was tardiness. He came into the office at twenty five past twelve, collected a few notes from the large closed in booth we called The Office, then turned around and spotted us, a frown on his face as if he didn’t quite know why we were there. A tall man at about six four, he towered over both me and Mel as he ushered us into his office. He wore a gray tweed suit and a red tie, his white shirt giving his pale skin an unhealthy look. I was surprised when I realised I’d never actually seen the man up close before. Yes, I’d glimpsed him a few times at our occasional school assemblies but that was about the extent of my relationship with him. Thank God, as well. His face was set into a permanent frown. When he did crack a smile at Mel, it was forced, and only seemed to make his frown lines more prominent. With deep set brown eyes and an otherwise flat face, it wasn’t a pretty sight. I caught the glint of a gold wedding band on his left hand and immediately felt sorry for his wife. He didn’t look like a pleasant man to live with. His gruff voice only served to reinforce my earlier observation, his thick brown moustache quivering as he introduced himself to Mel.
We settled into the two seats in front of his large mahogany desk. Apart from his laptop, papers littered the surface, including what looked like a pile of student files. He swept them briskly to one side, ignoring the ones that fell to the floor, and sat in his high back leather chair listening as Mel explained briefly why we were there.
When she was done, he promptly made mistake number two, which was revealing the fact that he’d gone ahead and suspended both of the “delinquents” responsible for yesterdays fight. Mel’s nostrils had flared and a spark of anger had taken up residence in her eyes at Tyson being referred to as a delinquent. But he didn’t stop there. His third mistake had been informing Mel that I was lucky I wasn’t also facing disciplinary action for provoking the fight. Apparently someone had told him the fight was over me, and that I’d egged it on. Of course I had opened my mouth to refute such a preposterous accusation, but was far too slow. Mel let out a bark of sarcastic laughter, then penned the headmaster with an unfathomable glare.
“Lets just clarify a few things shall we?” she said, tugging at her fitted leather jacket irritably. Without waiting for a reply, she continued. “First of all, I do not like being made to wait. If you’re going to agree to a meeting, then the least you can do is show up to the agreed upon time. I understand you have a school to run, but you’re not the only person that has things he needs to do.”
Annoyance crossed Headmaster Hagan’s face, and a slight flush began crawling up his neck. His thick brown moustache quivered slightly as if his mouth were twitching with the effort of keeping silent.
“Secondly,” Mel continued. “You might want to get your facts right before you begin throwing out punishments. Noah did not provoke anyone into a fight, nor egg it on once it started. She was merely the victim of a psychotic moron, one you call a student here at Clearview High. He attacked her unawares, repeatedly throwing her up against a parked car and punching her.”
Headmaster Hagan’s silvery eyes almost bugged out of his head. Obviously he hadn’t been informed that I’d been directly involved. Though how he missed the big white square bandage covering my chin and my splotchy nose was beyond me. He leaned forward in surprise, entwining his long fingers together in front of him. “I beg your pardon?” he sputtered. “I was not told anything like this. I was under the impression that Miss Duke had the two young men vying for her attention and that things got out of hand due to her playing one off against the other.”
I raised my eyebrows. Tyson vying for my attention? Yeah right, when pigs flew. And playing one of them off against the other? I had to resist the urge to snort at that. If I had to choose between the two, I definitely knew who I’d be throwing myself at. There’d be no games played at all.
“And why would you expect to be informed?” Mel asked scathingly. “Far be it for a student to actually tell their school principal the truth about these situations.”
“Well then, I must apologise for -”
“I’m not finished yet, Mr Hagan. You can apologise when I’m done. That way I won’t have to listen to you repeat yourself many times over.”
Again that angry flush crept back into his pale skin, spreading to his cheeks. The man was not used to being treated as anything less than a superior. I bet it took an enormous amount of will power for him to simply nod for her to continue. And what a stiff nod it was. Mel smiled, but it had a dangerous edge to it. The smile of a woman who knew she was going to get her way.
“I also don’t appreciate you calling the young man who came to Noah’s rescue a delinquent. Just because he got involved in the fight doesn’t automatically make him so. Tyson was simply stopping that little s**t -” I gaped at her language. Saying ‘psychotic moron’ was one thing. But the S word in front of the headmaster? “- from beating Noah anymore than he already had done. So for you to go and suspend him when his only crime was standing up for someone who was considerably weaker than their opponent, is unacceptable,” she finished.
Mr. Hagan straightened in his chair, puffing out his chest slightly, reminding me of a rooster who’s feathers had been ruffled. “Now see here, Ms. Brown. I will not apologise for my decision to suspend Mr. Masters. He was out of line, just as Mr. Stone was. Nor will I retract the suspension just because you feel it was unacceptable. I make and enforce the rules around here, not you. I will not give a student special privileges simply because you have strong opinions about the subject.”
Mel opened her mouth to speak, but Mr. Hagan but her off, giving her a patronising stare. My eyes widened and I tried to shift lower in my chair. He’d just made his biggest mistake yet.
“I don’t expect someone who has little knowledge of the way things are run around here to understand my decisions. But, they are final.” His gaze landed on me for the first time. “Miss Duke, I encourage you to steer clear of trouble like this in the future. Hopefully when next we meet, it will be under more positive circumstances.”
I raised an eyebrow. Was he actually still of the opinion that I’d somehow been the cause of this incident? It certainly sounded like it.
Again, before I could respond, Mel let out a harsh laugh, her beautiful features contorted into anger. “How unfortunate that we are not seeing eye to eye, Mr. Hagan. It seems you are forcing me to take further measures. Tell me, what would parents think of your ‘final decisions’?” Headmaster Hagan’s face became a mask of confusion. So did mine. What was she getting at? “I’m pretty sure the majority of parents - especially those of the female students - would be appalled at Tyson’s suspension. After all, I’m sure it’s a comfort to parents that there are still some fine young men out there willing to stand up and protect their little girls from brutes who have decided it is okay for boys to hit girls.”
“Ms. Brown, are you implying that -”
“I’m not implying anything,” she said curtly, her expression suddenly blank. Unreadable. “I’m telling you outright. If you don’t rectify this, I will be following it up myself. And once parents are aware of your unfair treatment, I won’t stop there. I‘ll also go to the local media. I can see the headlines now, Mr. Hagan. ‘Principal Punishes Act of Heroism’, ‘Principal Sends Out Wrong Message to Do-gooders’. Think of the negative attention it’ll draw to Clearview High School.”
My mouth dropped open in shock. Yikes, she was really going for the kill. Mr. Hagan seemed to agree, twiddling his thumbs nervously on his desk, a fine sweat breaking out over his pale forehead.
“That’s blackmail, Ms. Brown,” he said, his voice wavering as his uncertainty grew.
“No. It’s me ensuring that your pride doesn’t get in the way of you making things right. I’ve come across many a proud man in my line of work, and sometimes I find that the stubborn ones need a certain amount of incentive to sway them towards the right path. Consider this incentive.”
Her stare was penetrating, unyielding. They stared at each other for a long time. I shifted slightly in my seat, ignoring the stab of pain in my back as I did so. The atmosphere had dropped several notches on the peaceful scale and I wasn’t sure I wanted to witness what came next. Of course it didn’t help that me and awkward silences were a disaster waiting to happen. If nobody broke the loaded silence soon, I’d be in serious danger of blurting out something stupid.
Mr. Hagan was the first to respond, as was Mel‘s intention. “Alright, Ms. Brown,” he said on a sigh.
“Alright what?” Mel asked.
“I will see to it that Mr. Masters suspension is lifted and that he returns to school tomorrow. I will also make sure it is removed from his permanent record.”
Mel smiled in response, but I noticed it didn’t reach her eyes. They still held a hint of steel, suggesting that Mr. Hagan would never be in her good books.
“Good. Now you can apologise for everything you’ve done to inconvenience both Noah and myself.” She held a hand up where he sought to interrupt. “And I also expect you to apologise to Mr. Masters for wrongfully suspending him.”
“Now you go too far,” he sputtered indignantly. “I will do no such thing!”
Mel clucked her tongue, shaking her head slowly. “Again, you let your pride take a front seat, Mr. Hagan. Tyson has done no wrong, and is therefore entitled to an apology from the man who made a mistake. Do what you will, but just remember what I am prepared to do to have this situation resolved the right way. And I will be having a chat with Tyson after he returns to school.”
With that she stood, hooking her hand under my left arm to help me to my feet. I winced at the twinges of pain it caused, gritting my teeth together. Headmaster Hagan stood also, muttering insincere apologies to us both.
“Enjoy the rest of your day, Mr. Hagan,” Mel said airily like she hadn’t just threatened the man, and ushered me out of his office.

I smiled now as I remembered the look of pure loathing on his face, and swung my truck into the school parking lot. It would probably be wise for me to steer clear of the headmaster until I graduated. I drove to the back and parked in my usual spot, under a big oak tree that had been planted near the edge of the lot. Glancing out my window I cursed. I’d managed to park smack bang in the middle of two spaces. Oh, to hell with it. If I reversed and tried again I’d only make it worse. It was a big mystery as to why I just couldn’t get the hang of parking. When I’d been learning how to drive before getting my licence, Riley had yelled himself hoarse on several occasions, trying to explain the finer details. Even breaking it down to a simple “Turn now” or “Break” hadn’t helped in any way. I’d still managed to scrape the entire side of his SUV and snap one of the side mirrors off in my many failed attempts. Not to mention the damage I’d done to several other cars trying to park beside them. Definitely makes you thankful for insurance. In the end he’d given up, hoping that somehow I’d pick it up over time. Fast forward a year or so down the track and here I was, sitting in the middle of two spaces. Not even Mel or Courtney had been able to improve my parking skills. I was truly a lost cause. I sighed, opening my door and carefully sliding from the cab. My shoulder was still giving me a bit of trouble - I couldn’t yet extend my arm over my head, and if I twisted certain ways I ended up with sharp pains stabbing at my shoulder. Other than that, I was in good shape. My nose had cleared up, back to it’s normal colour, and the nasty cut on my chin had scabbed over nicely. This I was most happy about as it meant I wouldn’t be drawing unnecessary attention to myself by walking around with a white square bandage stuck to the bottom of my face. I reached back into the truck and pulled my bag out after me, slamming the door and heading for the main entrance. Halfway there I noticed two things. People were staring at me. Not in the way people sometimes do when they pass you by. I’m talking full on, stop-dead-in-their-tracks-and-gawk staring. And they were talking. Pointing none too discreetly before muttering something to the person beside them. I frowned. Surely my little fight hadn’t garnered me that much notoriety. People busted out into fist fights all the time at Clearview High. It was just another rite of passage. Granted, one I never thought I’d be a part of, but a common enough occurrence all the same. So it was definitely worrisome that I was being thrust into the spotlight over it.
I ducked my head, pulling my hood up, and made a beeline for the front steps. To my relief, Courtney and Ashleigh were sitting on the top step. This was Courtney’s first day back as well. Her mother had been reluctant to let her out of the house - she still had a serious case of the sniffles and a rattling cough, but at least the colour in her face and her cheeriness had returned one hundred percent. She had on a white cable knit sweater, the sleeves threatening to swallow her hands, and a pair of non descript dark blue jeans. I smiled, wondering if her mother had influenced her choice of outfit. After all, my best friend lived for colour, the brighter the better. Beside her, Ashleigh was decked out in a three quarter sleeve forest green dress, the skirt coming to an end at her knees. Underneath she was wearing a pair of black tights and on her feet a pair of dark brown high heeled boots. Both girls stood as I reached them, Courtney drawing me into a bone crushing hug, resulting in a grunt of pain escaping my lips.
“Oops,” she said, pulling back. “I forget that you’re still broken.” I cracked a wide grin. The dying frog was gone, my best friend had her voice back.
“I’m not broken,” I said, tugging my hood tighter around my face as I noticed more people staring. “I’m just fragile.”
“Well, whatever you are, I’m glad you’re back,” Ash said, taking my bag from me to sling it over her shoulder. I caught someone else pointing at me and narrowed my eyes.
“What’s wrong?” Courts asked, looking in the direction I was.
“People are staring at me,” I said, nodding at a group of three junior girls casting not-so-secretive glances my way before whispering excitedly. “And they’re talking.”
“Of course they are,” Ash exclaimed, linking her arm through mine. “You’re a legend!” She linked her free arm through one of Courtney’s and began towing us through the main doors.
I arched an eyebrow. “Legend? So getting ones a*s kicked makes them a legend now?”
She gave me an amused smile. “No, not for getting your a*s kicked. You’re a legend for getting a reaction out of Tyson.”
I frowned. She’d lost me completely. I failed to grasp how Tyson was somehow responsible for my new found notoriety. Seeing my confusion, she tsked, shaking her head at me. “You have no idea how many girls are fixated on that sexy boy, do you?”
I snorted, and pressed myself closer to her as a group of freshman boys ran past me down the hall. “Ah, that would be a negative.”
She levelled me with a mock look of disbelief. “You really need to pay more attention. Anyway, as I was saying, he’s uber-popular with the ladies, and being the cool, indifferent guy that he is, some girls decided it would be interesting to see who could set him off first. Either by making him laugh - hell, I think a full blown smile would have resulted in immediate first place - or by making him angry. Basically anything other than his normal blank expression. It‘s become quite a competitive game, much to Tyson‘s disgust I imagine.”
I glanced at Courtney who had whipped her phone out and was texting at top speed, obviously not interested in this particular conversation or probably having heard it all once already this morning. I was betting on the latter.
I blew out a frustrated breath. “I still fail to see how this has anything to do with me and my sudden rise in the gossip ranks.”
We stopped by my locker so I could switch out some of my books. I grabbed my English book and shoved it into my bag which Ashleigh was holding open for me.
“Noah,” she said as if she were talking to a particularly slow person. “You did it. You won the game.”
I gave her a blank look. “But I wasn’t even playing the stupid game. And technically it was Aidan that set him off. I just happened to be standing in the way.”
Ash made a noise of exasperation, zipping my bag up and thrusting it at Courtney. My best friend tucked it under her arm, still engrossed in her texting. Three guesses as to who was on the other end of that.
“Like it matters. For all intents and purposes, everyone was playing the game. And don’t hand me that rubbish. Do you really think Tyson would have gone bat s**t crazy if it were any odd girl getting the beat down?”
I nodded. “Of course.”
“Then you’re dumber than I thought,” she said on a sigh, leading us back down the hall towards mine and Courtney’s homeroom. Although the halls weren’t very crowded, I could still sense about a dozen pairs of eyes on the back of my head. I was seriously starting to wonder whether the hoodie was helping my quest for anonymity or hindering it.
“I should probably be taking offense to that,” I said, having lost track of the conversation. “But I can’t remember why.”
Ashleigh groaned, turning to Courtney for help. “She must have hit her head pretty damn hard. She’s not getting it at all.” Courtney cracked up laughing and pocketed her phone, moving around to my other side.
“No, let me break it down for you. Girls have been trying for months to get him to smile, or snarl, or anything that resembles a wisp of an emotion other than annoyance or boredom. None have succeeded. That is until you went and picked a fight with Aidan. Then all of a sudden Tyson, the King of Nonchalance, blew a fuse.”
“I don’t know if you remember,” Ash said cutting in. “But he knocked out two guys and smacked Aidan around pretty darn hard. Unfortunately I missed it, but everyone was gushing about how Tyson looked ready to kill. That he was in such a rage because Aidan hit you.”
Courtney smiled at me. “He has a soft spot for you.”
Again, I snorted, not willing to believe them. Yes, Tyson had stood up for me, but I wasn’t entirely sure it was solely because it was me, or simply because he disliked Aidan and the perfect opportunity to kick his a*s had presented itself. Give our tenuous relationship so far - where Tyson had either ignored me, mocked me, laughed at my misfortunes, and finally blew up at me in the library, the latter was far more probable than the former. But explaining that to these two would be a waste of time. They’d made up their minds and nothing would change them. So instead I just shrugged and led the way to homeroom, doing my best to ignore the pointing and whispering.

After a very awkward homeroom, in which Tyson was noticeably absent - not that I was looking for him or anything - I rushed to English, wanting to grab a seat at the back so people wouldn’t be able to openly stare at me the entire fifty minutes. Given the amount of scuffles there were at a school like ours, you’d think people would be over it by now. But of course, I would be the exception, I thought bitterly. I snagged the desk in the far left hand corner, pulling it sideways so it was jammed up against the beige wall of the classroom. As people entered the room and stared like I was the main attraction at a zoo, I pulled out my notebook and began doodling, trying to ignore the whispering. Just before the late bell rang, Tyson walked in, and despite my best efforts to remain indifferent, my traitorous heart skipped a beat. He looked around and spotted me, but his face remained blank. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. So, we were back to this. The cold shoulder treatment. Not that I expected anything different. One civil moment between the two of us did not a friendship make. He strode down the aisle and, surprisingly, took the desk beside mine. Heads swivelled around instantly, clearly not wanting to miss anything that might happen between the two of us. I almost snapped, wanting to inform them that they were wasting their time, nothing was ever going to happen. Instead, I sunk lower in my seat and snuck a sideways glance at Tyson. He was wearing one of his usual long sleeved tees - which reminded me that I owed him a shirt - and a pair of faded ripped jeans, and was fidgeting with the edges of his notebook, dog-earing the pages. The knuckles on his left hand were still bandaged. As my eyes rose to his face, I noticed he was staring at me intently, the bright blue of his eyes captivating as ever. I raised my eyebrows in question, wondering if he had something to say, but he just continued to stare for a minute, causing my heart rate to rise in response. After what seemed like forever, he averted his gaze and put his head in his arms facing the other way - back to ignoring me. I blew out an unsteady breath and tried to listen to our English teacher and her interpretation of a long dead poets work.

My torturous morning ended with another mind blowing lesson from Mr. Phelps, my economics teacher. Boring as always, he didn’t fail in putting half the class to sleep with his monotone voice. My only comfort was in the fact that he didn’t call on me once during the class. Maybe he’d finally gotten tired of picking on me. When the shrill bell finally rang, I was one of the first to the door. People hadn’t stopped their staring. On the contrary, some of the junior and sophomore girls had even found the courage to come up and speak to me. Most wanted confirmation on the myriad of rumours circulating the school. Was it true that Aidan knocked some of my teeth out? No. Did he really beg Tyson, grovelling on his knees for forgiveness? No, but how I wished he would have. Did Tyson whisk me away after the incident to a remote location so we could ensue a heavy make out session? Only in my dreams - er, I mean No. Definitely not.
Upon exiting the stifling classroom, I found Drew waiting for me, leaning against the opposite wall with his hands in his khaki shorts pockets. His split lip had pretty much healed during my absence, a barely there line the only remaining evidence it had happened at all. I raised my eyebrows, looking up and down the corridor for signs of Courtney. She was nowhere in sight. He smiled when I stopped in front of him, a confused look on my face.
“I had class down the hall last period, so I told Courtney I’d walk you to lunch. She was going to come and get you herself, but given that she’s still coughing like a dying seal, I didn’t think she’d make it.”
I let out a bark of laughter, falling into step beside him as we made our way up the short flight of stairs heading to the cafeteria. “You know, Aidan has been suspended, and we are in the middle of school. I doubt anything could happen to me between economics and the caf.”
He shrugged, taking my bag from me. I had to admit, not having to carry my stuff everywhere was a definite bonus to being injured. “I know that. But your best friend is a little overprotective of you at the moment, and if I don’t deliver you in one piece, she’ll murder me where I stand.”
I snorted thinking of Drew in all his six foot, lean muscled glory being scolded by my petite best friend who was a couple of inches shorter and wearing flats today.
Drew held the cafeteria door open for me, then followed me in and down to the far corner where Ashleigh, Courtney, and Tyson were sitting. Wait, what? I stopped abruptly, and Drew narrowly avoided crashing into me from behind.
“What’s the matter?” he asked, looking around as if something had gone wrong. And in a way, it had. I blinked, wondering if it was an illusion. Nope, he was still there.
“Nothing,” I said, managing to get my legs moving again. “I just didn’t expect Tyson would be joining us, that’s all.”
Drew cocked an amused smile. “Yeah, he’s been sitting with me and Ash all week. Though by the look on his face, I’d say Ash had to drag him here today.”
I sighed as we weaved our way between the tables, getting closer. All three had yet to notice our presence.
“Yeah well, I seem to have that affect on him,” I muttered, put out that I was most likely the reason he suddenly didn’t want to sit with Drew and Ashleigh anymore. Not only had he ignored me all through English, but also all through Calculus, the other morning class we shared together. Though, I suppose I couldn’t blame the guy. After all, I had been nothing but a headache to him ever since he’d met me. He was always having to rescue me one way or another.
“That’s not the only affect you have on him,” Drew said with a knowing smile, but by then we’d arrived at the table and I couldn’t ask what he meant by that. He took the seat beside Courtney, leaving me the one in between Ashleigh and Tyson. I glared at him, knowing he’d done it on purpose. He winked in response.
With no other choice, I took the open seat, surreptitiously dragging the chair closer to Ashleigh as I pulled it out. Once seated, my treacherous heart skipped a beat, always hyperaware of his close proximity, and my nose twitched as his heady scent accosted it, making my mouth water with a hunger that had nothing to do with food. God d****t, I did not need to be having this sort of reaction to him. I refused to let my body and my stupid teenage hormones rule me.
“Noah?”
I snapped out of my thoughts, looking across the table at Courtney.
“I’m sorry, what were you saying?”
She raised her eyebrows, a smile teasing her lips. She knew what had distracted me. Or rather, who.
“I was saying that we should do something for the long weekend coming up.”
I nodded, catching the chicken salad sandwich she tossed me. Letters had been sent out last week, alerting families that there would be two teachers only days coming up. A Monday and a Tuesday about three weeks down the track.
“We could always go out of town. Make it an overnight trip,” Ashleigh said, munching on what looked to be her third cookie. You really had to admire the girl’s insatiable appetite. Or rather her high metabolism that kept her from becoming the size of a house.
“Sounds good to me,” Drew said, his arm slung over the back of Courtney’s chair.
“Your eighteenth birthday is a month away,” I said slowly, looking at Courtney. I had been saving as much of my five thousand dollar a month allowance as I could, trying to build up enough cash so that we could do something wickedly awesome for the big day. Not that she knew this. But Riley had been going through the bank statements and had noticed my backflow of cash, asking if there was a particular reason I was hoarding money. After all, it wasn’t as if I needed to be saving. We did have millions piled up in the bank if there was something I desperately needed or wanted. I had told him I was trying to save for Courtney’s birthday, which had gotten him excited as well. He’d dug into his wallet and handed me one of his credit cards, telling me to knock myself out. Surprised, I had asked what the limit was. When he’d informed that it was a hundred thousand dollars I had almost fallen off my chair at the dining room table. He’d given me a hundred grand to blow on my best friends birthday. I know that in rich people terms, a hundred grand was nothing to get excited over, but me and my brother weren’t like regular millionaires. We didn’t go around spending money willy-nilly. We made sure we spent enough to live in comfort, but never ventured into the realm of extravagance. So for him to hand over that kind of money, it was totally a big deal. He’d laughed at my reaction, justifying my potential expenditure by saying “you only turn eighteen once”. I had refrained from responding and enlightening him that you only turn any age once. After all, I wasn’t going to risk my budget being decreased.
“That’s a week after the long weekend,” I continued, a plan already forming in my mind. “Why don’t we use the long weekend to celebrate early? Instead of an overnight trip we could do a four day trip. Leave Saturday, come back Tuesday.”
Her eyes widened, along with everybody else’s. Well, not Tyson’s. He just sat there, impassive as usual. I noticed a lock of his hair had come loose from his ponytail and my fingers itched to brush it back from his face. Heck, if I was being honest, I was dying to pull the tie out and run my hands through all of that luscious hair. I had no doubt it would run like silk between my fingers. Catching me staring at him, he raised his eyebrows and I snapped my gaze away, mentally slapping myself for thinking such ridiculous thoughts.
Courtney jigged up and down in her seat across from me. “Four days?” she exclaimed. “Really?”
I nodded, smiling at her enthusiasm. “Yep. Anywhere you want to go. Anyone you want to invite. It’s all on me.”
“Oh, the second part’s easy,” she said, looking around at us all. “It’d just be the five of us plus Ashleigh’s boyfriend Quinn.”
I glanced at Ashleigh, who was now unwrapping a blueberry muffin. She ripped the top off and handed it to me. “You have a boyfriend?” I asked, unable to keep the surprise from my voice.
She smiled. “Yep. Only for the past three years.”
I gaped. Three years? And I’d had no idea. “I take it he doesn’t go to our school.”
“He’s twenty,” Ash said, plucking one of the blueberries free of the muffin and nibbling on it. “So no. But a four day trip would be awesome!”
“I’d have to get permission from the ‘rents, but it sounds like a plan to me,” Drew said, his smile so wide it caused little dimples to appear either side of his face. “I do have one question, however.” He glanced at me, face turning serious. “Where are you getting the money to foot the bill, Miss ATM?”
I shrugged, ignoring the slight twinge in my shoulder, going for nonchalance. “I’ve been saving for this all year. And a family member recently gave me a sum of money to do with what I want. So don’t worry, I’m not getting it from anywhere illegal,” I teased, hoping he bought it. Hoping they all bought it. Because Courtney was the only person who knew I was loaded. And as much as I liked Drew and Ashleigh, I didn’t feel the need to tell them just exactly where my money was coming from and how much of it there was.
“My parents will be cool with it,” Ash said. Then she looked over at Courtney. “Not to be the buzz kill Courts, but I can’t see your mother saying yes.”
Oops. I looked at Courtney too, who’s smile had faltered. The chances of Marie Keller letting her youngest child run off on a four day trip with members of the opposite sex and no parental supervision were slim to none. Make that none to none.
“Don’t worry,” Courtney said, a determined glint in her eyes. “I’ll sweet talk her into it. There is no way we are not going. So are you all in?”
I nodded, and both Drew and Ashley made sounds of agreement. We all looked at Tyson, who had been silent during the entire conversation.
“And where’s your ecstatic yes, Mr. Masters?” Courtney asked him.
He sighed wearily, playing with his ever present pack of smokes. “As much as I’d love to be a part of your little trip, I won’t be able to make it,” he said, tone flat. “Just because we have two days off school doesn’t mean I get time off work. I have to work Saturday, Monday and Tuesday. So count me out.”
“Can’t you just change your schedule?” Ashleigh asked, biting into an apple.
Tyson shook his head.
“Take the days off then,” she persisted. Again, a shake of the head.
“Well, that sucks,” Drew said.
Tyson shrugged, pocketing his smokes and gathering his tray. “That it does. But I’m sure you’ll all have fun regardless. Anyway, I have to go and pick up something from my Calculus class. I’ll see you guys later.” With that he stood and walked away.
Courtney sighed, a sound of dejection. “I was really hoping it’d be the six of us,” she said.
I shrugged, once again ignoring the slight twinge in my shoulder. “If you’re worried about me being a fifth wheel then don’t be. I know how to have fun solo.” And would probably have more fun that way than if I was stuck with Tyson. I had no doubt he’d feel the same way.
“It’s not about you being the fifth wheel or not,” she said, swiping a tissue under her blocked nose. “I really wanted him to come. He’s a cool guy once you get to know him.”
Oh, yeah, so cool, he threw off icy sparks when it came to me, I thought sarcastically. I looked at Courtney’s crestfallen face and sighed. I couldn’t believe I was actually contemplating what I was about to do. The lengths I’d go to to make my best friend happy. I almost groaned in misery.
“I’ll ask him again, see if he can’t move something around or take some time off,” I said, already regretting it, and hoping he said no again. “No promises though,” I added hastily when I saw her smile bloom.
We spent the rest of lunch coming up with possible destinations, though I was only half paying attention, trying to figure out when I’d have the chance to talk to Tyson again.

As fate would have it, the opportunity presented itself that afternoon. We had World History last period - Aidan’s absence was a definite improvement. When the final bell rang, freeing us from another long day, people sprang out of their chairs and hustled out the door, clearly eager to start the weekend as quickly as possible. Even Miss Clarke packed up her briefcase and hurried on out. I guess teachers longed for the weekend just as much as us kids. I, however, was content to take my time. The longer I lingered, the less people there would be to gawk at me. To my astonishment, Tyson also just sat there, not making any attempt to pack up and leave. Instead, he leaned back in his seat and stretched lazily. Not up to testing how far I could stand the awkward silence I knew would come next, I turned in my chair so I was facing him and cleared my throat. It was beginning to become a nervous habit of mine.
“I never did thank you, did I?” I asked, proud that despite the furious beating of my heart and the accompanied flapping of butterflies in my stomach, my voice remained steady. Points to me.
He looked sideways at me, a smirk on his face. “Nope.”
I sighed heavily, the words threatening to catch on my tongue. “Well, thank you,” I said slowly, purposefully, making sure he heard it the first time. For I had no desire to stroke his ego further by repeating myself. “For saving me from Aidan.”
He cracked one of his half smiles at me. “Ouch. I bet that hurt.”
“More than you’ll ever know,” I muttered, hating that he was enjoying this.
“Tell me something, did it hurt more than calling me Mr. Yummy?” he asked, obviously holding back laughter.
“Hey!” I sputtered indignantly, my cheeks beginning to burn. “Mel called you Mr. Yummy, not me.”
“Oh but you must have said it first in private for her to repeat it to my face like that,” he mused. I gave him a scathing look. He was enjoying himself way too much.
“Yes, well, what I say privately is none of your business,” I said, yanking my bag from between my feet up onto the table. I unzipped it in jerky movements, fumbling more than once.
He pulled his own bag into view, stuffing his notebook into it.
“I suppose we should probably make another time to meet up for the case study,” he said, startling me with his change in topic.
I narrowed my eyes at him, immediately suspicious. “That depends. Are you going to bite my head off again?”
He stared at me, his face unreadable. “Can’t make any promises.”
I huffed in annoyance, ignoring the flutter in my heart when he licked his lips. Needless to say my eyes tracked the movement avidly, no matter how hard I tried to make them look elsewhere.
“I don’t know why you have to be so difficult,” I finally said. “It’s just a stupid assignment. Anyone would think you have something to hide.”
Something flickered in his eyes, surprise maybe, but was gone before I could be sure.
“Funny,” he said, his gaze boring into mine. “I would say the same thing about you.”
My eyes widened slightly at his words. He was spot on. I was hiding plenty, but the million dollar question was, how had he guessed as such? Was it even a guess, or did he know it for a fact?
“I’m not the one who’s aggressively avoiding all of the required questions,” I retorted.
“No,” he agreed. “You’re just passively avoiding them. Don’t think I haven’t noticed your subtle attempts at changing the subject.”
“Whatever,” I grumbled, again not being able to come up with a worthy comeback while in his presence. No doubt I’d think of the perfect line hours from now when it was no longer relevant.
He sighed, scrubbing a hand down his face irritably. “Fine. How about we start here at school next Monday and next Wednesday. I can do a half hour both days before I have to leave for work.”
He looked at my dissatisfied expression and shrugged. “It’s better than nothing.”
That it was. And I was definitely intrigued by his suddenly accommodating attitude. I nodded in agreement, then stuffed my own notebook into my bag, zipping it up.
We stood at the same time, and Tyson immediately headed for the door.
“Hey!” I called after him, suddenly remembering my promise to Courtney. He whirled around, hand on the doorhandle, his eyebrow raised in question.
“I know you said you can’t make the trip, but I was wondering if you’d reconsider.”
His lips quirked, amusement glittering in his eyes. “Enjoy my company that much, do you?”
I made a strangled noise in the back of my throat. He was so full of himself. I ignored the tiny, tiny part of my mind that screamed yes in answer to his question. Because that was the insane part of me that got no say at all.
“I’m asking for Courtney. She wants you to come, and I want her to have a great birthday. If that means enduring your presence for four days straight, then that’s what I’ll do.” Despite my curt words, I couldn’t entirely stop the smile from leaking onto my face.
He caught the movement and snorted.
“Look, I’m not expecting you to work miracles here,” I said, shifting my weight form one leg to the other. “But at least try before saying no. Ask your boss to switch something around. If he can’t, then just take the days off and I’ll pay you the three days wages that you’ll miss.”
His eyebrows shot up to somewhere near his hairline. Disbelief was etched into his face. “You’re going to pay me for three days work if I come on your little trip?” he asked dubiously.
I nodded. “If that’s what it takes.”
“And where are you getting all this money to fund said little trip?”
I sighed. “I told you -”
“I know what you told me,” he said, pulling a pack of smokes out of his pocket and pulling one free. “I’m just not buying it.”
I huffed in aggravation, clenching my hands into fists. Of course he wasn’t buying it. The guy was too astute for his own good. And mine. “I don’t care if you buy it or not. I just care if you can make it or not.”
He narrowed his eyes at me. “Why is it so important to you that I tag along?”
“It’s not. I personally don’t care either way.” Liar, my mind screamed. I ignored it. “But I have a best friend who wants the six of us to celebrate her birthday together. I promised her I’d talk to you, ask again. So please, if it’s at all possible, could you move some stuff around and come with us.”
He stared at me for a long moment, indecision flaring in his eyes. I fidgeted with the zip on my bag, impatient to hear his answer. Though I felt I already knew what it would be. It’s not like he owed me anything. Quite the opposite in fact.
At long last he blew out a breath. “Alright,” he said, shocking me beyond belief. I had been certain he’d blow me off. “I’ll see what I can do.”
“Okay,” I said, wanting to leave before he could change his mind. I walked to the door that he’d pushed open and shuffled past him, careful not to brush up against him. I was halfway down the hall when he called after me.
“But Noah,” he said, his voice drifting over to me clearly. I turned around, half afraid he’d changed it already. “I don’t want your money.”
Then he turned on his heel, heading in the opposite direction toward the library. I shivered. The way he said that made me think he wanted something else. I stood there thinking hard, then shook the feeling off. What was I, insane? He could hardly stand being in the same room as me, so I doubt he’d want anything from me. I shrugged mentally, whipping out my cell phone. Now that I’d accomplished my little mission, I needed to deliver the news to Courtney.