|WATTYS 2021 Shortlisted| ❝Teach me.❞ ❝Teach you what?❞ ❝Teach me how to be a bad boy.❞
Elias Rodriguez has a crush on a certain cheerleader (since forever), but she has a thing for bad boys, not chemistry nerds. Lucky for him, the cheerleader's bes...
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Chapter thirteen | Face planting
I gave the boys in the locker room a look, scanning the familiar faces. Their curious eyes averted away from me, making me roll mine.
If you want to gawk, then do it openly. My mind supplied with a snicker.
I pulled my shirt over my head, letting my body out on display. I was sure some other guys in the room laughed at my lack of muscles, making my ears turn red. Huffing under my breath, I sent silent curses their way.
With quick movements, I pulled my workout shirt over my head, hiding away from prying eyes.
Just as I got up from the bench after tying my laces, I felt someone crash on my side.
I looked up to meet Jacob's mocking gaze. Waiting for my glare, he shrugged in response and gave me a smirk.
"Try not to face plant on the tracks, Rodriguez. We don't want our tracks to get dirty with some squashed insects," he called over his shoulder, making laughter echo throughout the locker room.
My jaw ticked at his words as the mocking laughter depreciated my confidence. I was having second thoughts about trying out for athletics now.
With a hard glare, I pointed my eyes at the surrounding people. Some had the courtesy to stop laughing, but some just laughed louder.
"Assholes," I mumbled under my breath, inaudible to their eavesdropping ears.
I felt a hand on my shoulder, making me turn around. Connor gave me a tight smile and then turned to glare at others.
"Mind your own business!" he hissed.
Somehow in his presence, I felt at ease. I gave him a grateful smile, making him reciprocate my gesture.
"Ignore them," Connor advised.
I gave a nod at his words and focused my mind on the task in front of me.
Connor moved away from me as we stepped out on the grounds. "Best of luck, Eli," he called out over his shoulder, joining his team on the soccer ground.
"Luck," I muttered under my breath. "I will definitely need it."
My eyes searched for Aaron, trying to locate him across the ground.
I turned around when I heard someone call out my name. A smile slipped onto my face as I located Cynthia, and Andrea waving the pom-poms for me.
"You can do it, Eli!" Cynthia shouted from across the field. Andrea smiled brighter.
"You got this!" Andrea screamed.
I couldn't help let my eyes stray towards Cynthia. The smile and excitement on her face seemed so genuine that I couldn't keep my eyes away from her.
