[Excerpt] No More Maybes (a No More Maybes novel)

Four

Friday came and I wasn't sure exactly what this after school stuff with Cole was going to be. We'd gone back to just smiling oddly when we saw each other and not really speaking.

"Right, I've gotta go find Ben," I said, checking the time on my phone as we stood in the courtyard.

"We'll see you about six, yeah?" Rachel confirmed.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll be there about six. Ben and I have some things to do, so if I'm a bit late, don't stress."

"What's more important than seeing us?" Cassidy chastised me, only partially joking.

"Just stuff." I smiled.

"Jaime will be pleased to see you."

I looked around at Declan and Mike. "You boys are coming, too?"

They both gave me a smile and nodded.

"Right, okay then. Well, I shall see you all there, apparently," I said, trying not to look freaked out. Maybe it was becoming some kind of group date?

God, I hoped not.

I looked around at them all. Everyone was smiling, so I had no choice but to smile as well. Maybe I'd just text them later and say I got sick or something?

"See you then."

"Hannibal!" Cole called from the building and smiling got a hell of a lot easier.

"What does he want?" Jaime asked from behind me, an arm going around my shoulder. I hadn't even realised he was there.

I sighed. "Sometimes we walk over to get our brothers and talk English assignments." I am also apparently ridiculously attracted to him and going to hang out with him, even though the sensible parts of my brain scream at me to run the other way, I did not say.

Beat gave me a look that told me she thought there was more to it, but I shot her a return look that told her to shut her mouth, and she smiled.

"Fair enough," Cassidy replied. "Right, well off you go then. We'll see you in a few hours."

I nodded, slipping out of Jaime's grasp and hurried off to meet Cole. He gave the others an arrogant smirk over my shoulder, and then nodded to me. We walked through the building, heading across the sports fields to the back path. He didn't say anything until we found Ben and Matt waiting for us outside the Middle School buildings, passing a soccer ball between them.

"Where did you guys get that?" Cole asked.

"Ben borrowed it from Missus Chamberlin," Matt answered, smiling. "He offered to help me with my passing."

"Well, Ben better take it back to Missus Chamberlin so we can head home," I said with a pointed smile at my little brother.

Ben nodded, jogging inside with the ball to give it back to the Sports teacher. He was back in moments and the two younger boys led us in the direction of home, in a way that seemed to be becoming a habit.

"So, your friends didn't seem pleased to let you go," Cole said as he scuffed a shoe along the footpath.

I looked up, hoping it wasn't going to rain before we got home, and still not sure what we were going to be doing for hanging out after we dropped Ben and Matt home.

"No, but they're like that. They think they're entitled to my Friday afternoons."

"Even Jaime?"

I looked at him. What does he think of Jaime? "I don't know." I shrugged. "Wouldn't matter to me what he thinks he's entitled to."

"Then, the two of you aren't dating?" he asked with a smirk.