Are you mine?

Chapter 38

Friday, the day of the big game has finally come, Northside Vipers versus Westpoint Jaguars. I've barely seen Noah all week since he's been so focused on training and preparing for tonight, but I don't mind. I know he's probably really stressed out and I don't want to be in his way, I'll be there to show him my support tonight anyway.

Taking advantage of the spare time I had, I spent my week learning as much as I could about football. Watching games with my dad, having him explain the plays and the scoring system, and even consulting with 'football for dummies' videos on the internet, as embarrassing as that is to admit. I'm no expert, by all accounts, but I think I've got the jist of it. I just wish I had paid more attention during last year's super bowl.

After shoving my books in my locker, being done with classes for today, I take my keys out of my backpack and twirl them between my fingers as I make my way down the hallway, towards the parking lot.

"Hey princess," Mason appears next to me, draping an arm over my shoulders casually, as if this was a habit of ours.

"What do you want, Mason?" I shrug his arm off.

"Oof, someone's feisty today." He remarks, shaking his hand like he would if he'd just burnt it. "I just wanted to know if you're coming to the game tonight."

"Well, my boyfriend is the star player, so I wouldn't miss it for the world," I say sweetly, purposely trying to push his buttons.

"Oh, your boyfriend." he scoffs condescendingly as he walks alongside me.

"Yeah. My boyfriend." I repeat sternly, trying to get it through his head. "Why that tone?"

"Come on, Maddie," he says tilting his head, "We both know he's not the one you want."

"Oh, do we now?" I ask sarcastically.

"You can keep pretending you don't want me, I don't mind." He says cockily, "I'm very patient, but this train only stops at each station once." he warns.

I laugh "Really? Because this is like the fourth time the train has gone through my station, and I don't remember ever buying a ticket to get on it."

"Oh, you don't need a ticket, princess." he says standing in front of me and invading my personal space "If you wanted to get on it you should've just said so."

"You're disgusting," I snarl, pushing past him.

"Anyway, I guess I'll see you tonight then. I can't wait to hear you screaming my name from the stands," he leans in closer to say the next part in my ear, "Though I can imagine there's a few more fun ways I could make that happen."

"That's it. I'm done." I grab him by the wrist, "Come on, get in there," I say, pulling him into a storage closet and closing the door behind us.

"What, right here? Damn, okay. I didn't know you were freaky like that Maddie." he says and I shove him back against the wall.

"What the fuck is your problem?" I ask, furious.

"Geez, I was kidding." he says, trying to shake it off.

"I don't care. I've had it with your bullshit!" I say in frustration, and he just stares back at me without saying a word. "Is this some kind of game to you? Part of your sick obsession with one-upping Noah? Mason, I gave you a thousand chances, pined after you for years and you didn't give a shit about it. So why are you doing this to me now?"

He sighs, running a hand through his hair, "Because I'm an idiot."

"That, I could've told you myself. It still doesn't answer my question."

"I'm trying, okay?" he rubs his face in exasperation. "Look I know I fucked up, but the truth is I know you're an amazing girl. I've always known. And to be honest, I didn't think there was a chance of losing you to another guy. I wasn't ready for that, but I also wasn't ready for a relationship."

I stare at him in confusion with my arms crossed "Clearly, you still aren't. And that's fine, it's too late now anyway. You did fuck up, many times, and I'm sorry, but you don't get to whine about it now. Not when I'm finally happy for once. You need to back off before any of this gets back to Noah, okay?"

"Or what?" he scoffs.

"Don't." I warn, "Just don't. Let it go, Mason. Because this clearly isn't about me. You didn't want me then and you don't want me now. So stop all this before someone gets hurt."

With that, I storm out of the closet and slam the door behind me. Thankfully, Mason is smart enough not to come after me.

***

The night air is cold and crisp as I approach the bleachers, the voices of the people in the crowd getting louder and louder with each step I take. I get to the field looking for Noah, but none of our school's players seem to be out of the locker rooms yet. Spotting the cheer squad doing their pre-routine stretches, I head towards them to wish Sydney good luck.

"Hey babes," she says with a smile when she sees me. She looks beautiful with her uniform neatly ironed, her hair slicked back into a tight ponytail, and her long lashes coated in mascara "You excited?" she asks as she tightens the bow sitting on her head.

"Nervous, actually," I say, burying my hands deep into my pockets.

"Don't worry, Noah's got this. He's a great player and you know he's not one to crack under pressure." she assures me.

"He thrives off it," I laugh, "It's just, those dudes look pretty intimidating," I say staring at Northside High's players on the other side of the field, and Syd turns to face in their direction.

"Hate to break it to you sweetheart, but so does your boyfriend. I mean, I wouldn't want to be on who has to tackle Noah. I bet you'd love to though." she bites her lip and wiggles her eyebrows, teasing me as I shove her shoulder back and she laughs.

"Just relax," Syd says, "It's not you who's going to be out there playing, so even if you wanted to, you'll have no influence on the outcome of the game. You being a ball of nerves isn't going to change anything, or help anyone. So just put on a happy and enthusiastic face that says 'you have nothing to worry about babe you're the best QB in the world' for your boyfriend who's coming over here right now. Hey Noah!" she rushes her words out quickly and her pitch goes up as she greets the boy behind me. I put on my biggest smile before turning around to face him.

As I turn, I have to direct my gaze up to meet Noah's eyes. He stands in front of me, fully geared up, his burgundy jersey sporting a white number five in the front and on both his shoulders, overtop his pads. He looks both scary and good enough to eat at the same time.

"Hey," he says with the sweetest smile on his face as he wraps his arms around my waist and lifts me off the ground in a tight embrace. I smile widely and he kisses me before putting me back down. "You're early," he points out.

"It's your big game, I didn't want to miss a second of it." I say, unnecessarily smoothing down his jersey.

"Well, you're in for a show, we're going to crush those guys." he says confidently.

"You're not even a bit nervous?" I ask.

"Not at all," he replies "I'm in my element here." he says, looking out into the field, but I get the sense that he's trying to convince himself more than me.

"Okay, good! Great. Awesome." I nod and clasp my shaky hands together.

"Hey," he says, grabbing them and pressing his lips to my knuckles "Everything will be fine, I promise. I've got this." he assures as he looks into my eyes, "Now take this," he says, placing a jersey identical to the one that he's wearing in my hands "Put it on, and go stand over there to cheer for your boyfriend." he smiles.

I slip his jersey on and give him a little twirl, showing off my 'supportive girlfriend' look. "Beautiful," he smiles.

I return his smile and place my hands on either side of his face, bringing his lips down to meet mine for a deep kiss. "Good luck!" I say, letting go of him.

"Don't need it!" he replies, his back already turned to me as he runs to the field.

I just hope he's right.