Faking It

Chapter 48: The Look On Your Face

Completely against my will—and as if I hadn't just sprinted for 90 minutes of intense cardio—my heart took off at a gallop. I tried desperately to rein it in, mortified that it had only taken a few words to get me right back to hoping again. But all that he'd said was that he wanted to apologize, nothing more. He was still with Madeleine, and I really didn't want to be so pathetic that I melted into a puddle because my fake ex had said something nice.

Theo glanced at something over my shoulder and released his end of the sweatband. "This is your moment, though." His eyes found mine again, with that happy, relaxed crinkle from Thanksgiving, and I couldn't have looked away if I'd wanted to. "So come find me after."

I opened my mouth to tell him to just spit out what else he had to say. But I didn't get a chance to before I staggered, knocked off balance by Audra, who'd leaped onto my back.

"Oy, it's time for pictures!" she shouted, and Theo was already backing away, hands buried in his pockets. Audra slid off and yanked me after her, towards where Coach Patel was instructing all of us to gather at the net.

Plagued by curiosity and terrible, beautiful hope, my heart thundered in my ears as the school photographer lined us all up for the championship photo. I tried to shake it off, scolding myself for being ridiculous. While Coach Patel handed out our medals, I managed to calm myself enough to take it and echo Audra and Deanna's victory whoop.

"Well done, Ellie." Coach Patel looped mine around my neck with the tight smile she only ever used when she was really, really happy.

The photographer called out directions, and we all shuffled and arranged ourselves accordingly. When we were asked to smile, Audra clamped an arm around my shoulders, her medal between her teeth. Alongside a number of other spectators, Gyeong-Ja snapped a photo on her phone, hopping with excitement.

"All right, let's get one last one with those sweatbands and a cheer," the photographer said. We all pulled our hot pink prizes on, giggling, and my team's screams of victory drowned out the Harcourt bus as it grumbled out of the parking lot.

"Selfie time," Audra said, hauling me towards Gyeong-Ja, who was ready with her selfie-stick. We snapped a few, and then JJ jumped in behind us. Audra cuffed him and ordered him away, only for Deanna and her boyfriend to jump in and photobomb us in his place.

As the sun sank and the wind picked up, the crowd on the field dispersed. After a few more selfies, I followed the rest of the team back towards the bench.

Behind it, Theo sat on the empty bleachers, elbows on his knees. The way his smile grew at my approach only worsened the pounding in my chest. It was more than a little mortifying that I was feeling almost as nervous to talk to him as I'd been when I'd walked up to the penalty spot. With a shiver, I pulled on my sweatshirt and changed out of my cleats.

"Shall we leave you to it?" Gyeong-Ja asked archly, eyeing Theo.

"Or should we tell him to bugger off?" Audra said, as she packed away her gloves and kneepads.

"It's fine." I took a deep breath and stood. Hefting my sports bag over my shoulder, I did everything I could to look nonchalant and hide the fact that my ears were ringing with the racket my heart was making in my chest.

I tried to think of something witty and fantastic to say as I climbed the bleachers to where Theo sat. But my brain seemed to have stopped working, so I settled on plunking down beside him instead.

He looked sidelong at me, studying me with a smile, then leaned over to bump me with his shoulder. "Look at us. Varsity champions."

Even though I relished that tiny bit of contact, I wasn't about to pretend everything was back to the way it used to be between us.