This has been the weirdest week of my life.
Let me catch you up:
My weekend consisted of hockey tryouts, house work, and driving Malachi around for new school clothes. Dad gave him $250 to go anywhere he wanted. We went to Thrift World and Jitterbug. Thrift world is pretty basic but Jitterbug is the cutest little thrift shop.
Monday was such a fucking Monday. Our first official hockey practice. First quiz in physics. I barely passed.
Tuesday was NOT special.
Wednesday was the best day this week. All my classes were normal except for SP. Scarlett said my hair looked nice. It was in the most atrocious french braid you will ever see. My hair was sweaty and my curls were framing my face because of how hot it was. But she complimented me.
And that was amazing because we hadn't talked in person at all this week until that moment.
But yesterday, she wasn't even at school.
But today is the day.
Home game against River's City.
And I'm gonna be there.
Next to Scarlett.
"What's got your panties in a twist?" Kitty sat next to me in the library. She's probably open right now. I am skipping Coach's class because I have a headache. Definitely not because I want to crawl into a hole and die. "You've been acting weird all week."
My own teammate has noticed. Who else can see the state of panic I am in?
I took my airpod out and looked at her, being polite and wanting to engage in a conversation, "Just home stuff." True. My father is making it a nightmare at my house right now. I just feel too bad to leave Melly there alone.
"I get it if you don't want to talk." She nodded and pulled out an SAT study book out of her backpack. She's a Junior and has to take the SATs in October.
"Just..." I looked around the packed library, "Not here."
Gossip in this school spreads faster than a wild fire. It spreads even faster when you're popular.
And I know enough people. Enough people know me.
It would be the end of my social life.
That's rule number one of a small town high school: Never say something you don't want everyone else to know.
"Coach is gonna work everyone harder this year." I didn't look at her as I copied the notes that Mobius sent me from today's presentation in the class that I am not in.
She snorted, "Can't imagine why. It's not like we won state or anything last year." Katherine Holiday is filled with sarcasm.
I shook my head, "Last three years, Katherine." I smiled and looked at her, "And I've been the captain for two."
"Oh go you." She elbowed me playfully then set her pencil down, "You're actually okay?'
I nodded and looked back at my own work, "Just really tired, Kitty. That's all." I scanned my brain to find something not related to hockey, "How is Theo?"
Her boyfriend in New York. Theo used to live here but moved right at the end of last year.
Props to them for making long distance work.
"He's such a baby." She slumped in her seat, "He's all mad because I can't come to the play he's in next weekend. But how can he be that upset when he literally didn't ask me to prom last year. Like, it was the prom!" She sat up straighter, "Sorry. He's fine. We're fine."
I held back my laughter, containing it into a small smirk, "Sounds like you guys are fine."
She glared at me, "How's your boyfriend?" She sat up straighter, "Sorry. You don't have one."
"Okay Miss Middle School Insults." I shook my head and looked at my phone to check the time. "Two minutes until the bell."
She sighed, "I hate school."
"Junior year is the worst." I pat her back and picked up my backpack, "See you at the game?"
She nodded, "Full white out."
"Full white out." I nodded and rushed to the library doors.
You can't leave them until the bell. Once you're in, you stay in. That's literally the rule for our school.
The bell sounded and I quickly walked from the library (the North side of the school) to the weight room (the south side and down the stairs).
"There you are!" Mobius walked next to me once I got to the science hallway, "How's your head?" He put the back of his hand on my forehead.
I smacked it away, "Keep doing shit like that and people will think we're dating."
He elbowed me as we made it to the hallway with the locker room, "I don't like you like that."
I rolled my eyes and strolled into the girl's locker room, feeling pretty good.
"Headache or heartache?" Syd looked up at me from the small bench next to our lockers, her gym clothes already on, "I think it's the second one."
"You can't be mad at me for skipping a class." I stepped closer to her.
She glared at me, a smirk playing on her lips, "You skipped without me."
I shoved her shoulder, "Shut up."
We talked while I changed and finally went into the weight room.
Everyone always does the same thing here. We each have our little groups that we work out with everyday.
But today was different.
Today, Scarlett was sitting on the bench Sydney and I always use.
She stood up once she saw us walk in.
"I think I forgot my water bottle." Sydney turned and went right back into the locker room, leaving me alone.
Why am I so nervous?
I'm not.
I'm Natalie Wilson.
I am hot.
I am smart.
I am funny.
I am not ner-
"I need you to be at the game tonight. As in, I will do anything for you to come to the game tonight. As in, I really really wanna sit next to you. As in, please come?"
Scarlett Santoro, standing in front of me, begging to come.
Ew! Get your mind out of the gutter.
"I will be there. My dad's out of town so he can't even say no this time." Shit Malachi is back. Maybe he'll want to go.
"Bring your brother too. I bet he doesn't want to be left alone or something."
It's like she can read my mind.
"How did you know he's back?" I raised my eyebrows.
She rolled her eyes as if that was a dumb question, "You guys look, like, super alike." She put her hand on my bicep and squeezed gently, "Please say you'll come tonight?"
I would love to come with you tonight.
"I'll be there." My heart thumped out of my chest, "It's supposed to be cold tonight." I didn't take my eyes off her.
She looked up at me and smiled, "Good thing I still have your hoodie."
Sydney appeared behind us.
And Scarlett dropped her hand, "I'll see you there then."
I couldn't fight the smile anymore, "You will."
As soon as she walked away, Sydney stood in front of me, "That was so flirty."
"That wasn't flirty." I ignored where she was standing and put 25 pounds on each side of the bar for her, deciding today was her day to add some weight.
"Then what was it?" She crossed her arms over her chest.
I looked back at her, "That was a friend asking another friend if she's going to the game tonight."
She scoffed, "Right."
________
"I'm always missing everything." Yoda hugged himself tighter as the cold chill hit us. Minnesota is cold now. It's always kinda cold. Or it has a breeze.
I ignored them, hoping Sydney would finally stop talking about it.
It's not even a big deal.
Scarlett wants to sit with me on the bleachers.
She told Tyler, in third period, that his shirt was hot if he left the first button undone, Ricky in Gov, that his new haircut made him more attractive, and William in SP, his muscles were getting bigger.
"Oh good thing I still have your hoodie, Natalie. Take me right here." Sydney fluttered her eyelashes at Yoda and they both burst out laughing.
The announcer saved my life, "Warriors now up 24 points, with Mobius Tucker scoring another touchdown!"
I jumped up with the rest of the student section and cheered, proud to be wearing number 87.
As a friend.
Mobius knows that.
We all sat back down as the cheering died down, watching the Phoenix's try to get past the defense.
They failed, fumbled the ball, and it became a turnover.
Walter Green, number 33, was running with the ball towards the end zone. His white jersey not dirty yet, him being a sophomore playing on varsity. A kid in a black uniform, twice his size was right on his tail. Then-
Boom!
Green was on the ground, holding his arm. The Phoenix kid standing over him.
The crowd all "Oooed" at the same time, then instantly got quiet.
We all clapped when the Phoenix kid helped him up and patted him on the back.
That could have gone better. They could have gotten in a fight right there on the field for that nasty tackle.
Yoda stood up, "I'm going to get a hotdog."
I stood up with him, "Me too."
Sydney followed us, "I am not sitting here alone."
We waited in the short line and got three hotdogs for $1. Then we went right back up to our seats.
I basically shoved the whole thing in my mouth. I was so hungry. I wasn't hungry at lunch time so the last thing I ate was breakfast. A banana.
"Is there anything on my face?" I turned to Yoda and Sydney.
Sydney wiped away the sauce on the side of my mouth and wiped in on the blanket we were sitting on, "Not anymore."
"Thanks." I pulled out my phone and texted Malachi asking how he was. He said no to my invitation to go to the game and decided to go to Garrett's house instead.
I don't blame him. It's freezing tonight.
And he hasn't seen his friends in a while.
"Can I sit?" That amazing, angelic voice came from my right. The side I specifically saved a seat on.
"Of course."
She's wearing my hoodie.
Warriors Girls Hockey on the front in big white letters. 3 time winning champion right under in red.
My number, 13, was on the back. Right under my last name.
Scarlett Santoro. Wearing my hoodie. With my number and last name on the back.
All because the weather decided to get a little cold.
"Some game." She was sitting close enough for our legs to brush together.
Yoda and Sydney were staring at me, waiting for a reaction. Any reaction.
I won't give it to them.
"Yeah, I'm glad Walter is okay." I was looking at her side profile. Because it's normal to look at someone when you talk.
Maybe it's not normal to want to lean over and kiss their cheek though.
She looked at me, immediately making eye contact, "You know him?"
"No. Melly does."
Her eyebrows furrowed together.
"Oh! Yeah, Malachi's nickname. He thought of it in, like," I looked at Sydney, "4th grade."
She nodded.
Scarlett nodded and looked at Sydney, "And you have a little brother too, right?"
She nodded again, "Yeah, Tucker. He and Melly are pretty close."
"That's so cute that your siblings are friends too."
"You have a sister?" I looked at Scarlett. Obviously, I already know the answer. Everyone knows the Santoro sisters. And their asshole brother, Chip.
She nodded, "Angelica." She looked away from me, her cheeks pink from the cold.
"How old is she again?"
She looked back at me, "13. She's in 8th grade this year."
"Maybe the boys would like her." I shrugged as if the idea of my family meeting hers doesn't give me butterflies in my stomach.
"I think they would."
I nodded, not sure what else to say.
"Are you going to the party after this?" Scarlett somehow seemed to scoot closer to me, "I don't think it will be all that fun."
She's not going, why should I?
"I don't think I am." I fake yawned, quickly turning into a real one, "I need a good sleep."
She smiled, "Sleep sounds nice right now. We've been cheering for, like, ever."
They haven't gone to halftime yet. They just took a break because the tiny uniforms were too cold.
She shivered and rubbed her exposed legs.
Let me strip my sweats off and give them to you so you can be warm, Scarlett.
"Cold?"
She smiled, "No. Really hot actually, that's why I'm shivering."
I rolled my eyes then stared at her legs.
"Here." I took off the jacket around the jersey I was wearing and put it on her legs.
I have a long sleeved, black shirt under this, so I'm just fine.
"Thank you." She leaned into me more, her left side causing my body heat to rise by every passing second.
But then the whistles blew, and Scarlett stood up quickly, putting the jacket and hoodie in my hands, "Halftime performance." She pointed to me, "Do not leave before we talk." Then she pointed to the hockey hoodie, "I want that back after the game."
I just nodded my head and watched her walk away and down the stairs.
"What the fuck just happened?" Yoda was staring at me. So was Sydney. I'm surprised their mouths hadn't dropped off their faces, the way their jaws were hung open.
"Your jaws are gonna get stuck like that." I turned away from them and watched the cheerleaders prepare to go into the field and give an oh-so-excellent performance including, flips, tricks, and tucks.
"No you guys were so flirting." Sydney pushed my shoulder and giggled, "Hardcore."
"Yeah by talking about Walter Green and how cold she was."
Yoda groaned loudly, "Shut up!" He looked at me, "I want that after the game." His voice was high-pitched and sounded nothing like Scarlett's amazing voice.
"That doesn't even sound like-"
The cheering of the crowd cut off my voice and I turned to face the cheerleaders, watching a certain blonde.
Her hair was in a ponytail that swayed side to side as she ran on the field, waving at the crowd.
A song I've never heard before started and sure enough, Scarlett was in the air, spinning and flipping and tucking.
"Whoo!" I cheered and clapped like the rest of the crowd, rising to my feet.
They finished and my eyes were stuck on her, her eyes finding mine as she ran up to the track.
She flashed a quick smile and turned to her group, shouting cheers and executing them flawlessly.
All hail football. Without it, we'd have no logical reason to watch a bunch of high school girls jump around in grass in tiny costumes that show off their asses.
Then I saw Mobius. Running right over to us.
The crowd was watching the same as me.
He ran up to me.
And I realized everyone could see that I was wearing his away jersey.
"Natalie." He leaned in close and whispered in my ear, "My mom is sick and I have to get home right after the game if I don't leave early." He pulled away, "Can you catch a ride with someone else?"
"Of course." I nodded and patted his shoulders, "I hope she feels better."
He smiled at me and lifted his helmet to put it on, "Thank you."
"Barf." Sydney smiled at me, "Now half of WestHampton thinks you and Mr beautiful linebacker are dating."
"I doubt that's what a 10 second encounter told them." I continued watching the cheerleaders do their thing.
"If only you weren't wearing his number." Yoda yawned and smiled at me, "Booyah."
________
"Good game Mo!" I took off the jersey and handed it to him, not afraid to wear my compression shirt. It shows off my amazing body. No shame in my game.
"Thanks for watching!" He dapped us all up and waved, "See you Monday!"
"Bye!" I waved and turned back to the sea of people. Trying to wait inside the stadium for Scarlett will be completely impossible.
Sydney grabbed Michael and I's arms, pulling us into the parking lot next to her car.
I stood there with them for 10 minutes with the two jackets in my hand.
Scarlett took 12 to finally come out, a pair of sweatpants replacing her tight skirt, "Sorry! Our coach made us listen to her preach for 10 minutes." She took the hoodie as if I was really just holding it for her, pulling it over her head, "How bad was the performance?" She looked between my friends and I.
"Oh I thought it was outstanding." Yoda nodded, hard.
Sydney did the same thing, "I liked the part where you did that flip in the air."
Scarlett smiled, "I was supposed to do a double but..."
"Scar!" A brunette cheerleader I recognized as Myra Rodriguez came over to us, "You sure you don't want to come with us to this party?"
She shook her head, "I can't but maybe next week." As soon as Myra walked away, she turned back to me, "Can I give you a ride home?"
I looked at Sydney who nodded yes about a million times, "She would love that. I would also love that because my curfew is in 11 minutes." She kissed my cheek and gently pushed me off her car, "Bye love you!"
"Okay then." I nodded and walked with Scarlett back over to her white jeep.
This time, the doors and roof were on her car. Last time I rode with her, I looked like I walked through a tornado.
We made it out of the parking lot before either of us said anything.
"Do you have to be home tonight?" She glanced at me quickly.
My dad is out of town on some secret business adventure. "I suppose not."
"Do you want to come over to my house?"
What?
An idiot would say no.
An idiot would say yes too.
"Why?" Nope, that's what an idiot would say.
She shrugged, "All of my friends decided a party would be more fun than a quiet night in, so now it's boring."
"I'll come over."
She smiled without looking at me, "Good." She looked at me once we reached the stop sign, "I have a dog named Ruby who will definitely jump on you when you walk in. And a cat named Sully who lives in my room. So I'll give you something not bright to sleep in."
Her house. Her dog and cat. Her room. Sleep in.
Sleep with her?
In the bed?
"Okay."
We pulled up to a gate with a road so long, I figured it led to a private neighborhood.
But no, we pulled up the biggest house in WestHampton.
Golden-white exterior. Perfectly trimmed bushes. A large "S" mowed into the grass.
Scarlett pulled into the far right door of the 6 car garage. "My room is messy so ignore it when you walk in."
"My room's messy too. I'm just too busy to clean it." I followed her across the driveway and into the large house. And right as she said, a large dalmatian made her way over to me. I leaned down and pet her, "Hi Ruby."
"Scarlett? Is that you?" A woman's voice came from the other room.
"Yeah mom!"
A short, blonde woman walked into the foyer, where Scarlett and I had taken off our shoes. "Oh! I wasn't expecting company!"
"This is Natalie. She's a friend from school."
Friend echoed through my mind.
"Well nice to meet you." The short woman reached out her hand, "I'm Mrs. Santoro."
"Nice to meet you ma'am." I smiled at her and gently shook her hand.
She pulled back, "Would you girls like any dinner?"
Scarlett looked at me and I shook my head, "We're okay." She kissed her mom's cheek and grabbed my hand, leading me to the stairs, "Goodnight!"
"Goodnight!"
She didn't let go until we were in her bedroom with the door closed.
Her bedroom... was not messy. And it was huge.
A small, fluffy black cat rubbed his body on my leg.
"That's Sully." She took the hoodie off and put it on the back of her desk chair.
"He is the cutest ever."
She smiled and walked into her closet (what I assume was her closet) "I'm gonna change!" She called out, "What do you want to wear?"
"Anything is fine." I sat on her couch. Yes, her couch. In her room.
I took a look around.
King sized bed at least. Taking up a tiny portion of her room, sitting right under a beautiful window, overlooking what I think is her backyard. Two doors. Both closed. One is the closet. The other is the bathroom? Furry white rug, large white mirror, white desk and chair, white couch.
Every detail in here is white.
We could not be more different.
She walked out with a tiny pair of shorts and a very skimpy top on. A t-shirt and pants in her right hand.
"You can change in the bathroom." She pointed to the door behind her, "I think there might be extra toothbrushes in the second drawer."
"Thanks." I practically ran into the bathroom, forcing myself not to eye her up.
Does she know?
Or is this a normal thing for her?
Does she always invite people that she's known less than a week to her house while wearing their hoodie?
When I finally came back into her room, she was sprawled out in her bed, eyes focused on the TV in front of her.
When she finally noticed me, she smiled and sat up, "Hey so Yoda told me your favorite show is Grey's Anatomy and even though I've seen it about a billion times, I thought it would fun if we watched it together."
I was shocked. Starstruck. In awe.
Snap out of it.
"That sounds great." I sat in the bed next to her, far enough away so we weren't touching.
She got under the blanket with me and clapped her hands twice.
The lights turned off.
Then I had a funny thought.
That I can not say out loud.
"So I did the math, and if we want to finish this show, we'll have to do this a lot." She said it so nonchalantly. But there's something behind it. Something I haven't seen before.
She asked Sydney to give her my phone number, she asked Yoda about my favorite show. She asked me to come to the game with her twice. She's driven me home.
Certainly she doesn't...
"Yeah but it'll have to be at my house too." I leaned back in the bed next to her, pretending my heart wasn't beating out of my chest, "Might get sick of your modern museum bedroom."
She hit me with the back of her hand, "My room is beautiful." She let her hand linger before pulling it into her lap with the other, "I bet yours is filled with posters and plants and red lights and, like, a dream catcher or something."
I looked at her, "Spot on."
She raised her eyebrows, "That checks out."