once upon a football

Chapter 6

Instead of going straight to lunch, I put my math stuff back in my locker. A few seconds later, the bell rang, and I headed to PE.

"Hey, lunch was so boring without you. What did you do in the library?" Sammie asked, shooting me with questions as we changed into our PE shirts and shorts.

"Well, I studied for math . . . with Matt Garner," I said slowly, hoping Sammie wouldn't start screaming her head off. She did exactly what I thought.

"OMG! The Matt Garner? The fourth hottest boy in East Way High???" she exclaimed, and I cupped my hand on her mouth.

"Sammie, do you have to make a big deal about it? Yes, that Matt Garner," I sighed.

"How was it? Did you exchange numbers? Did sparks fly? Give me details, Katie!"

"It was fine, we didn't exchange numbers, and I'm not sure if sparks did fly. But he really is a creep."

"How is Matt a creep?" Sammie asked, looking at me with confused eyes. We were running one lap around the track, and I was trying hard not to lose my breath. She clearly wouldn't let go of this topic.

"He kept touching my arm under the table. It was just creepy," I huffed.

"Ooh . . . that sounds interesting. Are you gonna study together again?"

"Probably not," and then I left it at that. She never mentioned it again the whole PE.

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Matt's POV

I can't believe what I did. I touched her arm, for heaven's sake! I'm never like this. Why did I ruin a future I might've had with Katie?

Right now I'm in art class, and I plan to apologize to her after school. If only she'll talk to me. When Katie had left the library, she barely looked back at me. It was super embarrassing.

"Wow, Matt, that's impressive. Who is that?" Brandi Weser asked.

"Wha-what?" I asked, looking into her blue eyes. Ugh. I was daydreaming again. Brandi pointed at the drawing in front of me. I looked down to see what she meant. Oh. Right. I had drawn Katie, of course.

"It's, umm, Katie Marlon," I whispered. Brandi looked at me like I was a stalker, and then she walked away. Wow. My life is horrible.

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Katie's POV

PE finished in a flash, and so did Social Studies. It was nearing the end of the day, and the football in my backpack was really starting to tick me off. I was so mad, I almost threw it out the window in Social Studies. But I didn't. That wouldn't have been the right thing to do. Then the period ended, and I was one of the first people to leave the room.

"Hey, where are you going? You promised me you would drive me home today," Sammie pouted, shoving textbooks in her locker.

"Um, look, I have to give the football back, okay? Just take the bus, or something," I said, swinging my bag over my shoulder. I waved goodbye, and she looked down, shaking her head. I know she hates the bus, but what other option did she have?

Here goes nothing, I thought, walking out the school doors and out into the bright sun. I shielded my eyes from the blinding rays and looked around till I saw the football field, with the whole team practicing. Then I headed to the bleachers, football in hand.