The Elijah Walker Fanclub

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen

I chewed on my lower lip, looking into my lunchbox at my untouched sandwich. Now that I had thought about it some more, I didn't think I could do it. Sitting on a council with Elijah, talking with him about important school stuff. It was a lot.

I turned my gaze to the pool from our seats high up on the bleachers. The swim team were doing laps and though I'd seen Elijah in all his swimsuit glory climbing into the pool, I'd completely lost track of where he was now. They did this weird thing when they were warming up where they switched their lanes and moved erratically around the pool. By this point, he could have been any of the bobbing heads.

I wasn't the only one who wasn't clearly trying to identify Elijah's head among the many. The bleachers were crowded with girls from pretty much every year in our school. Of course, some of them might have been there for the other boys on the team. From the hungry looks I'd seen when Elijah was on the edge of the pool, it was pretty clear who they were here to cheer for.

"Earth to Mae," said Rosa beside me.

"Can the real Mae please stand up," said Cody a little louder, leaning into my ear.

I grinned and turned my attention back to them. "Sorry, I'm listening," I said, twirling a piece of my hair around my finger.

Cody tapped a finger on my nose. "Lies. What was I saying?"

"Erm..."

"Uh huh," he said, his lips curling at one side. "That's what I thought."

I shuffled in my seat guiltily. "Sorry, say it again. I promise I'll pay attention this time."

Rosa rolled her eyes. "To be fair I was verging on falling asleep, it wasn't that interesting anyway. He was just talking about clothes shopping."

Cody shoved her playfully in the shoulder. "Hey! I'll have you know my search for the perfect outfit for the Winter Formal is story of torment and young dreams being slashed by the rules of societal norms."

That got my interest. I cocked my head to the side. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that I wanted to wear a fabulous skirt with my tuxedo but the Headmaster's new rules regarding school uniforms stretch to what we wear to school events too."

I frowned. "But that's not fair, the events are for students, they have nothing to do with representing the school. Even if it did, I doubt you wearing a skirt would have anything but a positive effect on people's opinion of the school."

Rosa shook her head. "Our Head is way too stuffy to be that forward thinking."

"Don't you think we should fight it?" I asked, looking between them. "I think Cody should wear a dress if he wants to wear a dress."

"It's not a dress," Cody remarked, his brow arching. "It's a skirt. I like to mix and match and my tux would look sweet with a flowy train."

"Ok a skirt," I said, throwing my head back and letting the sun warm my face. After the downpour we'd had the other day, the weather had been pretty nice. At least nice enough to sit outside for lunch and enjoy the view.

"And how exactly would we fight for Cody to wear his flowy train," asked Rosa dubiously. "Take out the Headmaster?"

"Like, for drinks?" asked Cody, giving her a funny look.

It was Rosa's turn to shove him playfully. "No, I meant tackle him into the pool or something."

I reached into my bag and felt around for the folded flyer I'd shoved in there earlier. "We could join the student council?" I suggested, unfolding the flyer and showing it to them. "They get involved in fighting the school's rules, don't they?"

Rosa squinted at the flyer. "I don't know, isn't it more that they raise student concerns. We can raise our concerns without joining the student council."

"Wouldn't it be better to do it from the inside though," I said, pushing my angle harder. "You know like a covert operation."

"Isn't Elijah the council president?" said Cody, eyeing me suspiciously. "You know, putting aside my plans for the Winter Formal, joining the council would be a fabulous way of getting closer to Elijah."

Funny, that's exactly what I'd been thinking. It'd be easier if my friends were there with me though. It would definitely help to have a genuine cause to be working for to give me something to focus on too. When I talk to Elijah my words just kind of jumble. I had no idea how I'd managed to string so many sentences together when I'd spoken to him last, and mostly they made me sound a bit crazy. It would be almost impossible for me to hold a serious conversation with him as I was at the moment.

"You should total sign up and fight the power," said Rosa, throwing up a peace sign. "I however, am not keen to join up with that group of busy bodies. I really don't want to sit in a room with people I don't like, discussing school politics. It's not my thing."

It wasn't my thing either, but Elijah was part of it, so it made sense for me to try. "What about you Cody?" I asked, my eyes pleading with him. "Don't you want to try and change the dress code rules?"

Cody swiped the flyer from my hand and brought it closer to his face to read. When he finally passed it back to me, his expression said everything I needed to know. "Sorry baby girl, but the council meets on Mondays and school play rehearsals are that day."

"I didn't know you joined the play," said Rosa accusingly. "Since when?"

"Since I signed up for auditions this morning," he said, shrugging. "I haven't got a role yet, but I'd be shocked if I don't get the lead. I was made to play Romeo."

"That's funny, I'd have thought you'd have been a better Juliet," said Rosa with a smirk.

Cody flipped his ponytail to the side. "It's true, I have a feminine sparkle about me. But Romeo has the better lines."

I planted my head in my hands and sighed. Guess I was on my own then.

The coach blew a whistle and the swim team immediately withdrew from the water, their bodies glistening in the sunlight. A couple of the boys were jostling each other back and forth, then one was surreptitiously pushed back into the pool again. The splash from his fall spattered out from the pool by several feet and the team erupted into roars of laughter. Elijah threw his head back when he laughed along with them, his smile reaching right up to his eyes in a way that took my breath away.

My mind went entirely blank for a moment before quickly recovering and reminding myself that he was worth it. Even if I was going to have to face him alone. Even if I sounded stupid when I talked to him. Or if I tripped at his feet. Elijah Walker was like a high school dream and was worth me looking a little silly. Heck, it was better than being the scorned ex-girlfriend I'd take looking silly over that any day.

**Authors Note**

Oh no! Who wants to enter the fray alone?! I'm a little worried for Mae, especially considering how she's been with Elijah so far. What do you think?