Crash Course

Chapter 16

The next few days flew by. I was still anxious, there was something I couldn't shake, but I kept my head down like mom requested. Aimee and I still continued our spy work. Mom may have been concerned but Aimee and I knew we could do it. "Ethan wants to take me on a date." Aimee said as we sat together in the journalism room during free period. Nate wasn't listening to us, he was engrossed in editing next week's edition.

"Perfect." I said, looking up from my book. "When?"

"Tonight, after the game."

"Even better! Come to the drive-in! Luke and I will be there so you'll definitely be safe." Aimee nodded thoughtfully, texting Ethan back.

"Sounds like a plan." I returned to my reading.

"You both are coming tomorrow, right?" Nate asked, taking a break from his computer screen.

"Planning on it, yes." Aimee replied.

"Annabeth!" James and Camden stood in the doorway, staring at Aimee. She looked up, eyebrow raised.

"Yes?" They pushed past each other to get inside the room.

"After the game tonight, a bunch of us are going to the drive in. They are screening Halloween." James said.

"I wanted to see if you wanted to go with me?" Camden cut him off. I raised both my eyebrows as James shoved Camden away.

"What the fuck?" I whispered to myself.

"It was my idea!" James whined. Aimee stared at them both.

"Uh, thank you for the offer, but I already have plans." She said. Nate and I made eye contact, both bewildered by the sight in front of us.

"Maybe another time?" Camden asked. Aimee smiled.

"Yeah, maybe another time." She stood, grabbing her books and exiting smoothly. James and Camden almost went for each other's throats.

"Ehm!" I cleared my throat, catching their attention as if I had just entered the room. "What just happened?" The two boys just growled, before storming out in the direction of Aimee. "Uh, the Aimee effect." I muttered.

"Huh? Who's Aimee?" Nate asked, catching my slip up.

"I said Anna." I lied quickly. "The Anna effect, boys love her." Nate nodded slowly, not buying it. Fuck, that was a mistake. "For tomorrow, should we all just meet at the school?" I asked, trying to smoothly change the subject.

"Yeah, that works! We probably only need to take two cars up there." Nate said.

"Okay cool, well I'm going to go get ready for the pep rally. Will you be at the drive-in tonight?" From my time in Dayton I was learning that on game days, nothing mattered but the game: hence why we were having a half day to tailgate and hold a pep rally. I was also learning that small town life limited the number of things available on the weekends, so everyone was probably doing the same thing.

"I think so, I might bring Max." Nate said, his eyes shimmering.

"Yes! I want to meet him." I replied, collecting my belongings and heading to the door. "I'll see you later Nate!" As I headed down the hallway I collided with someone's shoulder. "Hey!" I snapped, looking up.

"Ah, back to our old routines?" Liam asked. My breath caught, I hadn't seen him since that night at my house, but standing right next to him, was Ethan.

"Watch out Arabella. Don't want to run into someone unfriendly." Ethan said with a smirk. Liam shoved his shoulder into him.

"You guys are pals now?" I asked, looking between them.

"We have something in common." Ethan responded. I raised my eyebrow, waiting for an explanation. "We've both been burned by you." I groaned and looked at Liam.

"Have you met him?" I asked. Liam faked confusion. "Matt. Have you met Matt?" Liam shook his head no.

"And I have no interest to. Ethan and I are just friends, no shady motives here." I glared at Ethan, he always had shady motives. "Have fun at the rally." Liam said, beginning to walk away.

"You're not going?" I asked, slightly upset. Why? I needed to forget about him.

"Nah, got better things to do." Ethan said, flashing me a pack of cigarettes.

"Classy." I replied. Ethan shrugged and Liam looked down at the floor, obviously my opinion still meant something to him. "Have fun with your lung cancer." I started to walk down the hall.

"Better death than a cop shoot out!" Ethan called to me. I ignored him. I made my way to the locker rooms, slightly shaken. As I slipped into the yellow uniform a wave of relaxation overcame me. At least I had a distraction for the next few hours. Misty helped secure my bow to my ponytail.

"You're gunna kill it tonight!" She said, kissing my cheek and standing back to proudly assess her handiwork. Marissa called to her, and just as quickly as she had arrived she was gone. I went and sat next to Gemma, who was rapidly texting on her phone. She dropped it in her lap when I plopped next to her.

"Drew?" I asked. She blushed. "You should come with us to Nate's cabin tomorrow. Andrew is coming."

"I'll think about it!" She said. "How are you and Luke?"

"Really good. Like really, really good." I said with a smile. "I'm kinda obsessed with him."

"Is it official yet?"

"No, we have our first real date tonight. I think we'll clear the air."

"At the drive-in?" Gem asked. I nodded. "Cute."

"Alright ladies!" Misty called us to attention. "First pep rally of the season. This is going to be a tough game for the boys, but we'll easily outshine Manmonth's cheerleaders!" My blood went cold. I turned to Gemma.

"I didn't think we were playing Manmonth this season?" I whispered. Gem shook her head.

"We don't usually play them until regionals. There was an additional game added this season. Weren't you listening to Misty earlier this week?"

"Apparently not." I thought I was going to throw up.

"A! You okay?" Misty asked, all the girls turned to face me. "I know this is your home team, but don't worry, it's all in competitive spirit!" I smiled and nodded, quickly grabbing my phone and texting Aimee.

Don't be at the game tonight, it's against Manmonth.

I tossed my phone back in my bag and followed the girls, who were heading out to the field. The field was set up with a stage in the center, the lacrosse boys lined the back of it, standing stoic like soldiers. I made eye contact with Drew. "Did you know?" I mouthed. Drew nodded. I was enraged, how could he not tell me? How could he not be terrified? Luke's eyes met mine and he tried to mask his confusion at Andrew and I's interaction. I smiled and blew him a kiss, pretending nothing was wrong, and perched myself in front of the stage with the rest of the cheer team. Students slowly filtered in to the stands, decked out in yellow and blue. I spotted Aimee from a mile away. She was next to Nate, obviously arguing across him to Kristy. I rolled my eyes. Next to the bleachers stood Ethan and Liam. There was no denying how attractive they made smoking look. They leaned up against the metal with nonchalant attitudes, not caring if they get caught. Hm, I thought they weren't coming. Everything was making me nervous. Principal Shetland climbed the stage, accompanied by Coach Klein and Mr. Redding. Cheering ensued.

"Dragons! Today is an import day in lacrosse history." Shetland started. "We haven't played Manmouth outside of regionals in over twenty years." The crowd quieted. "Coach Klein has prepared the most qualified, dedicated team." I looked over my shoulder to watch the speech, and made eye contact with Mr. Redding, his eyes never left me. I stared back at him with unwavering commitment. His strange smirk appeared again, as he nodded to acknowledge me. "Let the rally begin!" Shetland ended her speech, and I tore my eyes away from Redding to jump up with the squad and begin cheering.