“I want you to date me.”
Chapter Six
NOAH
“Y-you what?!” Jessy screeches, pulling her hand out of mine. Her mouth hangs open in surprise, her eyes turning round.
That went over well.
I rub at the back of my neck and shift my weight from one leg to the other, suddenly feeling uncomfortable under the weight of those big brown eyes.
I didn’t expect her to jump into my arms while singing my praises, but I most definitely didn’t expect complete shock either. Hell, I don’t know what exactly I expected.
“That didn’t come out as planned.”
“No shit!” She crosses her arms over her chest defensively. “Because for a moment there I thought I heard you say you wanted to date me.”
“I did,” I say, then quickly correct myself. “I do.”
“Are you insane?” Jessy shakes her head. Today her hair is loose, those silky, perfectly straightened strands moving from side to side. “No way.”
No way. Just like that, short and to the point.
Her rejection hurts more than it should, but I push it back, and cross the distance between us, putting my hands on her shoulders. “Just listen to me.”
Jessy meets my gaze. Up close like this I can clearly see amber speckles in those deep brown eyes. Her chin tilts up, eyes narrowing in a glare. “If it’s more gibberish about us dating, then I’m out of here.”
“It’s not gibberish.” I take a deep breath to calm myself. Because if she doesn’t stop being annoying and doesn’t let me speak for longer than a few seconds I’m going to strangle her. “Half the school already thinks we’re dating because of that photo.”
“A photo that wouldn’t have been taken if you hadn’t kissed me in the first place!”
“Well, it’s done, and they do. Might as well use it to your advantage.”
“What exactly would be the advantage of dating you?” she challenges.
“Except being in my company?” I joke, but the only thing it earns me is another unamused glare. That’s all Jessy ever does, glare at me. I’ve seen her laugh and smile with Evie, but that has never been directed at me. I wonder what it would be like. Being the one responsible for her happiness. “Well, for starters, nobody would say that you’re still pining after your ex.”
She jolts back like I slapped her. And if my hands weren’t holding her in place, I’m sure she would have bolted right this second just like she did yesterday.
“I’m not pining after anybody,” she grits. Her voice is low and composed, but I can see her fingers clenching into fists by her sides, indicating she’s anything but. “As a matter of fact, I decided to give up on boys completely.”
My eyebrows shoot up. “You’re switching to girls?”
“Ha-ha. Funny. No, you dumbass. I’m giving up on relationships.”
“Even fake ones? Because that’s exactly what this would be. We both know people will start to talk. Hell, most likely they’re already spinning ten different stories as we speak. By saying we’re dating, we control what they’ll say about us.”
“We?” She narrows her eyes at me. Her distrust is not only annoying but also offensive. Then again, it’s not like we know each other all that well. “And what do you get out of this, anyway?”
Oh, I should have known she’d ask that, it was just a matter of time. Jessy is too smart for her own good not to.
“I’m just helping a girl out.” I shrug, playing nonchalant. “Think about it. What do you have to lose?”
“What little is left of my dignity?” She lets the question hang for just a moment before continuing. “Let’s say we do this, then what? How long will this scheme go on for? What happens when we ‘break up’? Because as you say, people will talk, and I’ll once again be the center of attention, left to pick up the pieces.”
Her voice quivers at that last part, if only slightly.
“You can be the one to break up with me. Hell, make it as messy and as public as you want, I don’t care.”
If possible, this only makes her even more suspicious. “Why are you doing this?”
I look away. “I told you, I just wanna help a girl out.”
“Why me?” Her finger slides under my chin, beckoning me to turn around and look at her. Those brown eyes are watchful, as if she’s trying to figure me out, put the pieces in place. The tip of her tongue slides out, swiping over her lower lip. “Does this have anything to do with Evie? ‘Cause I’m her friend? If so, I don’t…”
I stop her before she can finish. “It doesn’t have anything to do with Evie, this is all me, trust me.”
The last thing I need is to think, talk, about Evie. Especially with her best friend.
“I can’t trust you. I don’t even know you.”
“Get to know me.” I wrap my fingers around hers. Her skin feels soft underneath my touch, warm. A zap of… something goes through my arm from the touch. Her eyes seem to grow soft, but it’s gone in a second, exchanged for a skeptical expression as her walls come back in place.
I make sure to school my expression too. “Or don’t. Whatever you want. But think about it. And think fast, because people are already talking. Be my girlfriend from now until homecoming, then we can break it off. It’s just a few weeks, how bad could it be?”
“Noah, I’m so happy to have caught you! I wanted to talk to you about something.” Lisa Gatwitch, the new head cheerleader now that Diamond Morgan has graduated, loops her arm through mine, forcing me to slow my steps to match hers.
Inwardly, I groan. I’m so not in the mood to deal with this now, but it’s not like I can shoo her away like I’d want to.
“What is it, Lisa?” I ask with as much patience as I can muster. “I’m hungry so I want to get to the cafeteria before all the good food is gone.”
Lisa smiles, her perfectly straight white teeth blinding me. “This won’t take long, I promise.”
Yeah, I can already see that.
I should have seen that one coming, but my mind was all over the place. Thinking more about a certain brunette than what was happening around me.
“So, what’s up?” I ask, trying to move this conversation along as fast as possible.
Her smile widens, if that’s even possible, and is she batting her eyelashes or did something fall into her eyes? I’m not sure, but her lashes are fluttering extra hard, so it could be either one of those.
“The first football game is next week and I was thinking…”
I tune her out. As the head cheerleader, she, along with her coach, is in charge of organizing dance routines and whatnot. Sometimes they like to include the team as well, usually for big games like the first game of the season, the homecoming game, and such. They always make a point to reach out to me. I learned early on to just nod and agree with whatever they say because that’s the way the coach would want it. I, for my part, don’t care one bit what kind of routine the girls will do. I’m there to play the game, not mess around.