Wrong Quarterback | ✓

26 | deep waters

His brows knit deeper together before slowly smoothing out, his eyes finding hers as he realizes what she's doing. Cracking a smile, a silent chortle escapes him and her lips slip into a mirroring smile – only widening as he tugs at her hand to twirl her around to him.

He lets his arm fall to her waist to hold her close as their breaths melt together in the misty warmth in the inches of space between them. Her eyes flickers to his as she cups his cheek, running her thumb over the skin coated in water and his hold tightens as he loops his arm around her to ease her closer.

She holds her free palm out towards the sky, feeling the rain prickle it. "Quite great, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is."

Her breath hitches as his thumb brushes over her lip, her gaze falling to it as he lets it follow the curve of her mouth – a shaky exhale escaping her at the deliberately slow movement. Flickering her eyes back to his she can't help the twitch of her lips as she notices the faint smirk sprawled over his features.

"God you're such an–" She cuts herself off as his finger hooks beneath her chin, his lips pressing a kiss to her jaw. Sprawling her fingers through his drenched curls her body curves into his as he lifts her lips to his in a kiss.

♡♡♡

Avery picks at her salad, glancing up at her friends where they're all sat at a table in the courtyard connected to their school's cafeteria. Nic swats Callie's hand away from his plate and she swats it back before grabbing a fry off of it. Luke and Lea are barely eating as they're busy tackling a mock math quiz. And Avery, well Avery's picking at her sad excuse of a salad.

In theory, telling her friends about Ethan seems a pretty simple task to do. In reality, not so much.

She has a pretty good idea of where to start, which is why she has plans with Luke this afternoon. They're supposed to hang out under the false pretense that she's finally given in to his pleads to help him analyze a book she's pretty certain he hasn't even read for class.

She is going to help him. As well as feed him pizza while she somehow tells him about Ethan, preferably in a different way than she told her mother. Blurting out the words 'I have a boyfriend. Ethan is my boyfriend,' may not be the best way to reveal her relationship to her best friend. Efficient yes. Smart? Probably not.

It doesn't help that her boyfriend is the supposed enemy of her best friend. Though, there's not much speaking for the fact that they actually are enemies. It's just one more thing rooted in their town's decades long tradition of rivalry. She has more faith in Luke than to believe he'll completely abandon her over something so trivial but she can't deny she's worried it will change things between them.

She needs to get his reaction out of the way. If she knows where she has Luke, Nic and Lea will be easier. At least that's what she's hoping for.

She's telling Luke today. She's been putting it off for days now. It's time.

Even her mother thinks it's time. Just yesterday night Sarah had, not so tactfully, let Avery know how in her opinion sneaking around is no way to go about having a relationship. A few weeks ago Avery probably would've disagreed but she knows her mom is right and while her worries haven't completely dispersed, she knows the time's come to do something about it.

            There's still something scary to the thought of showing their relationship to the world. There's still a warning lingering in the back of her mind, speaking of the risk of letting people close enough. Oo the risk of having someone attempt to tear them apart. But those worries are emptier now. They don't affect her as much.