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I sat down with a defeated grumble, a smile on my face nonetheless. Who would have guessed that Matthew happened to be an amazing bowler? I knew I certainly hadn’t. To be honest I’d been looking forward to seeing him squirm. “You know,” I couldn’t help but scold, “what you’re doing is called hustling.”
“How was I supposed to know you can’t bowl?” he shot back with a teasing smirk lips.
All I could think was how it was nothing like Kale’s. There was no devilish sparkle in his eye – that’s what it was. Focusing in on Matthew I tried to shake the thought from my mind. I had no idea why on earth I was comparing the two. “Whatever,” I lamely brushed off his comment, getting to my feet.
Even as I picked up my ball, inserting my fingers into the holes as I strode towards the lane, I was mentally kicking myself. Getting a gutterball sure didn’t help. Behind me he laughed, finding my losing streak hilarious. So far it was 2-0. I had a feeling by the time we were done that’d be 5-0. My mistake for buying us five games right off the bat. But who could have blamed me for my assumption?
“You’re doing it wrong,” Matthew sounded thoroughly amused as he teased me.
I shot him a look over my shoulder, blonde hair falling into my eyes along the way. “The commentary isn’t helping,” I huffed, blowing the hair from my line of sight. Turning back to the ball return machine I waited, trying to ignore the feel of satisfaction jerk-wad was emitting from behind me.
The moment the blue orb showed itself I hastily picked it up, taking my place at the end of the lane once more. Focusing on the target – that’d be the pins – I gave it another go. “Maybe you should play with a handicap?” Matthew suggested, seconds before three of the pins tumbled to the ground.
Shooting him an irritated look I started back in his direction before finally giving in to the smile that fought its way to my lips. “Do you always have to be such a little bully?” I smarted back. Flicking him in the forehead, and earning a glare in return, I plopped back down into my seat beside him.
“I’m not a bully,” he scoffed, “you’re just not used to losing.”
“You have me. I didn’t know you knew how to bowl,” I admitted with a laugh, shrugging my shoulders. He had me there. It was in my nature to be competitive, which was why I didn’t want to get involved with the girls at school.
Matthew looked upset, his brow wrinkling and eyes going puppy dog mode. He doesn’t even realize how cute he is, I tried not to smirk already knowing his complaint. “Do I look like I’d be bad at bowling or something?”
“Kale can’t bowl so I figured you couldn’t either.”
“You two went bowling?”
I laughed at how incredulous he sounded. “No, and I figured out why he was so insistent on refusing; he can’t bowl.”
He stared at me for a moment before shaking his head. “I don’t get why you dated him,” Matthew scoffed, “he’s such an asshole.”
“Only when he’s mad,” I found myself defending Kale on instinct. I would have taken it back then but it was true, and for some reason I couldn’t stop myself. “He has serious anger issues and is the most spiteful person I’ve ever met,” a little smile crept onto my lips, “but Kale has a good side too.”
“Sure he does,” he laughed as he got to his feet.
I refrained from saying any more. Matthew wasn’t exactly the person to talk to about this sort of thing. Not only that but I didn’t want to defend Kale. It would be so much easier if only I could hate him. As much as he’d hurt me and as dysfunctional as we were together; I still loved him. I simply didn’t want to be with him again.
After finishing up his nearly perfect game with a turkey, Matthew was back at my side and sinking into his seat. Instead of the smirk I’d expected to find he just stared at me with a piercing expression. “Is it true,” it looked like he was trying to solve a puzzle as he asked, “that your parents are getting married?”
“Uh,” I mumbled, caught off guard for a second, “yeah it is.”
“He always made it sound like they were just screwing.”
“They were already engaged when I moved in,” I grimaced.
Matthew’s gaze broke mine, flickering over my shoulder to the loud group of people entering the bowling alley. It only took a second before his attention was returned to me, eyes searching my face this time around. “Wait, so you knew he was going to be-“
“-my stepbrother?” I finished for him, groaning as I covered my eyes. That was a little detail I’d spent a good part of the year dancing around. Something about it just felt so incredibly wrong, and yet; it was the truth. “Our parents postponed the wedding so we could be together.”
“Everything always has to be crazy around here,” Matthew grumbled. Oddly enough he looked amused as he leaned back in the seat and looked over to me with a sparkle in his eyes. “You still have no idea what you moved into,” his smirk caught me by surprise.
The little twerp was making fun of me somehow. I just knew it. So I reached out and ruffled his hair and smiled at the fact he glared, but didn’t make any move to stop me. “I’ve been thinking about what you said,” I decided to change the subject, “about meeting your friends.”
Matthew’s cocky gaze remained, but the eagerness behind it peeked through as he leaned closer to me. “Yeah?”
“I’m going to pass on your offer.”
I’d barely gotten the words out when he opened his mouth to but in. “Why?” he demanded to know.
“I didn’t become friends with your brother so he’d shield me from school drama-“
“No; it was because of Kale,” Matthew haughtily corrected me. The pointed look he threw my way as he relaxed back in his seat made me want to shrink away.
It wasn’t that I didn’t like Jakeson; I did. But his brother was right; if it hadn’t been for Kale I never would have been his friend. There was no way that he could have known my original reasons for dating Jakeson, a fact I reminded myself as I tried to muster up a reply. “Yeah, well,” I mumbled out an excuse, “it just kinda happened.”
“Like dating my brother just kinda happened?”
“Hey-“
“Or holding Skylar’s hand just-“
“I get it,” I silenced Matthew with a glare, flicking him on the forehead to shut him up. As usual he grimaced, swatting away my hand halfheartedly. “I’m socially challenged, all right? When it comes to this whole highscool game . . .” I sighed, “I just want to be left out.”
“Because you were homeschooled?”
“What?”
Matthew took in my bewildered look for a second before laughing. “Was it supposed to be a secret?” he teased, the humor lost on me.
“I wasn’t-“
“You’re in advanced classes,” his expression changed; as though presenting me with evidence, “you’re no good at making friends, you don’t understand rivals or gossip-“
My hand clamped over his mouth and it stopped him instantly. The weird burning in my cheeks was out of embarrassment, yet I had a feeling the blush was the only thing that had stopped Matthew from avoiding my hand. Seeing me riled up was enough. He knew when to call it quits. Usually. “I just admitted I’m socially challenged,” I huffed, pulling my hand away, “you don’t need to rub it in.”
Matthew smirked, his lips lifting at the edges as his eyes sparkled almost daringly. I knew that look. “I could-“
“Where did you hear I was homeschooled?” I interrupted whatever it was he’d been about to say. That grumpy little frown was adorable, and I had the urge to pinch his cheeks. Despite the fact I knew he could be a little devil he was undeniably cute. He was what I imagined a younger version of Jakeson might be like, though they’d both probably kill me for thinking it.
As if reading my mind an irritated look came to his face and he crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m not allowed to know?” he seemed to accuse me with those blue eyes of his.
“More like it’s not true,” I corrected him, giving him a funny look. Why did he look like he thought I was lying?
“I thought I recognized that voice,” the interruption made my blood run cold, and the sugary sweet tone had me frozen like a deer caught in the headlights. Matthew had turned his scrutinizing gaze to the newcomer. “It’s Rein, right?”
I tried to fight it, but my eyes found his, hands balling at my sides on instinct. To think that he could have possibly forgotten my name was beyond insulting. I wish I could forget. But I couldn’t and now I was forcing myself to look at him without letting any of the emotions I was experiencing show. “Miles,” I forced his name out through dry lips. Just saying it made me want to throw up.
“What luck I’d run into you here,” Miles met my gaze straight on. He wore this lazy smile that ate away at my insides. I wanted to punch that face of his . . . and punch it and punch it and punch it. But even as he said, “I knew I’d see you again,” all I could do was sit there.
What use would it do? The last time I fought him I lost. I found myself at a loss on what to say. Anger at him, at myself and this situation fumed inside of me. There were so many things I wanted to say and somehow I couldn’t conjure a single one of them up. It was as though I’d been turned to stone.
“Hey,” I almost jumped at Matthew’s voice, “loser gets first roll, remember?”
My eyes turned to him, glad and terrified all at once. He doesn’t know, I realized as I nodded. “Yeah,” I muttered, getting to my feet and hurrying to the ball return. Unballing my fists, I flexed my fingers before easing them into the holes. Maybe if I take my time he’ll leave. I couldn’t get the nerve up to look back to see if he had yet. I still didn’t know why the hell he’d approached me in the first place.
Is he playing with me? Anger seared as I approached the lane. I couldn’t seem to control it as I threw the ball towards the pins without a care whether it actually made contact. Standing there and watching it zoom down the track I spaced out. Down went a few pins, but I wasn’t really paying attention. What would Maruesa want me to do? Miles’ face popped into my mind and once my hands balled into fists.
He wouldn’t hit a girl, my eyes flickered over to the group a few lanes down, not with these people here. For a moment I considered turning around and pummeling him. There was nothing he could do if I did, so why did I feel so scared? I recoiled at the feel of a hand on my shoulder and before I knew what I was doing my fist had already made impact.
Matthew stumbled back a step and I did the same as a bowling ball landed on my foot. Time froze for a second as Matthew touched his split lip and stared at me in surprise. The sound of crashing pins pulled me back to earth and I looked to the empty lane before the feeling of being watched finally set in. Everyone was staring. “I’m sorry,” I spluttered suddenly feeling like an idiot. Without a look to anyone I got out of there as fast as I could without breaking into a run.
I burst out the doors and into the parking lot before coming to a halt. Running away wouldn’t achieve anything, I knew that, but I couldn’t force myself to turn around. Not even when the doors opened behind me. “You okay?” Matthew asked, in a much calmer tone than I deserved.
“No,” I admitted, “can we go home?”
“Sure,” he seemed happy enough to comply, and I couldn’t help but turn to look at him. “So who is he?”
“Someone I never want to see again.”
“And want to punch,” he stated rather than asked. Just as I was about to apologized he laughed, licking the blood off his lip. “I can put two and two together,” Matthew smirked at my taken aback expression.
“Sorry about that,” I cracked a little smile, trying to relax myself. There was no way I could explain it to Matthew. I never wanted to have to think about it again.
He looked at me a minute before holding out his hand. “Wait in the car,” he instructed as I accepted the keys, “and give me your shoes.”
There was no need to tell me twice, and I quickly took off the bowling shoes and made my way to his car. Even with all of the anger I had twisting inside he’d somehow managed to subdue it. Did I still feel like breaking faces? Yes. But at least I knew it would pass. Sitting safely in his car with the music turned on I could feel myself unwinding. The feeling of helplessness lingered but there was nothing I could do about that. I couldn’t face Miles again.
Soon enough Matthew was sliding into the driver’s seat, handing over my shoes as he did so. I hurriedly slipped them on, wincing as I realized the pain in my foot for the first time. Though he watched me from the corner of his eye; Matthew said nothing. He just drove, revving his engine as we pulled out onto the streets.
I wanted to apologize for hitting him earlier, and for my bizarre behavior in general, but that would mean touching on a subject I desperately didn’t want to. Nothing happened. My mind seemed to repeat this as I stared out the window at the unfamiliar town. Matthew flipped on the radio as we broke off onto a county road and cruised alongside the setting sun.
The view distracted me completely. Staring out my window I took in the hues of red and orange the clouds had taken on, making the sky look almost on fire. I jumped as the glass before me started to zoom downwards, fresh warm air whipping my hair around and swirling around my face. I knew I hadn’t done it and looked to Matthew to find him already watching me.
“What?” I asked, noticing the question he looked like he was holding in. The second I did I wished I hadn’t.
“You really weren’t homeschooled?”
It wasn’t had been what I was expecting, and boy was I grateful for it. “I went to a small school on the base. Each grade only had a few handful of students, so I never had to deal with this kind of stuff before,” I explained. “Who told you that?”
“Kale said something along those lines.”
“Kale?” I voiced my confusion. “When did he say that?”
“I don’t know, some time after you moved here?” Matthew shrugged nonchalantly.
I stared at him with a sour gaze. “So he was gossiping about me?”
“No,” he scoffed like what I said was crazy. “You were the new girl,” Matthew explained at my skeptical look, “so of course they were going to talk about you. Since you lived with Kale he had some answers.”
“They?” my face fell. Just great. Kale’s been spreading lies since I first got here.
“My brother and them,” he answered, “I just happened to be around.”
“I can’t believe you guys gossiped about me," I grumbled.
“It’s not gossiping,” Matthew scoffed once more.
I looked to him, giving him a skeptical look. “How is it not?”
“Guy’s don’t gossip.”
He met my stare with a flat one, blue eyes not so much as blinking. I gave in, so he would look at the road for christ's sake, and tried to tame my flying hair a bit. “What do you call that then?”
‘Talking.”
“And if girls were doing that?”
“Then it’s gossiping,” Matthew replied like it was just a fact of life.
I stared at him for a second before realizing he was serious. Jeeze! People really had some weird ways of thinking. “Okay, so what’s it called if it’s a mix of both genders?” I couldn’t help but challenge him.
He flashed me a smirk that rivaled even Kale’s. “Then it’s an orgy.”