How To Be Straight

∂on'т gινє α ∂αмn

CHAPTER 26

[ Calvin ]

"People are looking at us," I noted as I slowly let go of Derek's hand. We were both in line for the ticket booth for the soccer game and I realized Mike was right when he said soccer was a big deal at our school. I didn't really get involved with school events and I wouldn't have gone to this game if it wasn't for Derek, but I was really starting to regret my decision. All eyes were on us like we were the most fascinating thing in the entire world.

As the line moved up, Derek pulled out his wallet and retrieved a ten dollar bill. "Yeah," he agreed, "that's kinda what people do when they have eyes."

"No, I mean, they're looking at us." I turned my head to the right to see a group of boys staring directly at me, their eyes narrowed as they talked amongst themselves. "I don't like this," I said, which was mostly the truth. I hated being the center of attention, especially when I had spent the majority of my life in the shadows.

Derek didn't seem to mind any of it. He just continued to move with the line, whistling an unknown tune, until we were both at the ticket booth. "Two," he instructed when he handed the cashier his money. The cashier happened to be a girl in my Psychology class and even she gave us a strange look when she handed Derek the tickets.

Again, Derek paid it no mind and breezed past the entrance to the football field which, for tonight, served as a soccer field. I kept a reasonable distance between us, not because I was ashamed of us or anything, but I didn't like people looking at us like they had nothing better to do.

Derek stopped in his long strides and glanced over to the concession stand. "You want something to eat?" He asked as he fished out his wallet again.

I scoffed with disbelief. "Derek, I can pay for my own food."

He lifted his eyes from his wallet to look at me, confused. "But I'm supposed to pay."

"Why are you supposed to pay?"

"Because I'm the man in this relationship," he answered promptly.

If people weren't watching our every move, I probably would have punched him. "What? So what am I? The girl?"

He thought it over for a moment and when he finally responded, a smirk was on his face. "Well, yeah. You cry all the time like girls do." I sent him a glare, which made him immediately take back his words. "Okay, okay, sorry. Look, I may not be able to afford a fancy dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, but I can sure as hell afford two dollar pizza. Let me pay."

I scanned my surroundings, taking in the way people watched us with genuine curiosity. It was growing to be quite annoying, actually. The soccer game was going to start any minute now, but it seemed as though they cared more about us than the game.

Bringing my fingers to my face to pinch the bridge of my nose in frustration, I let out a reluctant sigh. "Okay, fine." Desperately wanting to get this over with, I kicked up my feet and headed straight for the concession stand with Derek slowly trailing behind.

As soon as it was our turn to place our order, Derek took the lead by stepping in front of me and greeting the fellow student on the other side of the counter with a smile. Just as he handed her his cash, he asked for four pepperoni pizzas and two cokes. I tapped my foot impatiently and folded my arms against my chest, shrinking into myself even more.

Apparently, trying to make myself invisible didn't work because two sophomore boys walked up to us in line. They gave me a dirty look, but it quickly morphed into that of amusement when their attention landed on Derek. The boy with surfer hair was the first one to speak, "I see you're playing for the other team now, Derek. You used to be my fucking role model. What happened? You got tired of licking pussy?"