Molly spoke so loud that my grandma looked at us with her eyebrows raised. We now had her full attention.
"I don't know." I left out the part about what I saw at school. "I just saw him when I got the funnel cakes. He walked in with Parker."
"Are you talking about the boy that the Dixon boy hangs around?" Gigi asked as she leaned down from behind me, obviously snooping.
The halftime whistle blew, indicating that the second quarter was over. People began to shuffle around us as the marching band made their way onto the field. It got a whole lot louder around us.
"Yeah," Savannah answered my grandma. "Rae saw him and Rhett when she got the food."
Now we got my mom's attention.
"Rhett Dixon is here?" My mom butted in, clearly shocked.
"That's strange. The last time I saw..." Gigi whispered to herself.
I looked over at Savannah and Molly who were looking around and gossiping like there was something to be scared about; maybe there was. Truthfully, a lot of people don't know a lot about the Dixons, so everything we hear could be made up. That thought doesn't make them any less scary though. The unknown is what makes us fearful. Maybe that's why I'm so paranoid. I really don't know the guy.
While my friends are off in their own world, I turn to my mom and Gigi. "Why do you think they are here? Isn't that weird?"
My grandma had a strange look on her face and was staring off towards the food stands before she looked down at me. "It is weird," she simply answered and continued to stare off into the distance.
My mom replied, "Yes, it is. Stay away from them, Rae. There could be many reasons why they are here, and most likely none of them are good."
"Yes, ma'am." I sighed from not getting an answer.
Unfortunately, I've always been a curious soul, which tends to get me in trouble. I wished I didn't see Parker suspiciously hand something to Rhett, especially because of the rumors about him and his dad being in the drug business. Now I wanted to know if they were true. It's one thing to hear about it, but seeing something like that got me curious about them, and now the thought of all of it has my head spinning.
I carefully scanned the area for the boys the entire halftime show. I didn't even notice the looks Blake and her friend Shelby were giving me anymore. Molly kept pointing it out, but I was too focused on the direction of the entrance to care.
Despite my effort of looking, I didn't see them. Another whistle blew, and the players made their way back onto the field. I thought that maybe directing my attention to Wesley would get my mind off of my curiosity, but there was no such luck. For the rest of the game, I absentmindedly bounced my attention back and forth between Wesley and the walkway to the left of me. Savannah and Molly tried to start some small talk, but I answered with short responses.
I felt my grandma's tense hands on my shoulders, squeezing a little bit tighter after a few seconds. I looked back to the field and realized that Sawyer had the ball again and was running towards the end zone. I glanced back to see my mom standing while holding a sign for my brother. She was anxiously bobbing up and down.
"Run, Sawyer!" My mom yelled.
Sawyer spun around a player that got too close to him and continued to run until he made it to the field goal, where he threw the ball down. Everyone was now screaming as "All I Do Is Win" by DJ Khaled played on the loud speaker. The Darling Wolves were jumping around and hugging each other from their victory. I didn't even realize I was standing and clapping with everyone else until I felt Gigi grab my shoulder.
Savannah, Molly, and my mom were walking down the bleachers getting ready to meet with my brother. I followed them towards the entrance. My heart began to race as I thought of who was over here during the game. My eyes scanned the area, but they weren't here.
Maybe it was my imagination...
We waited in the parking lot like we usually do after a game. Sawyer has to meet with his coach and team first in the locker room before we head over to Sugar's to celebrate. My mom and Gigi went home as they always do. All the teens in town usually go to the diner to celebrate while everyone else turns in. Lucky for us, the diner closes at one in the morning.
After about ten minutes, the football players emerge from the locker room area.
Molly bit her lip while searching for something. Both Savannah and I knew what that something was—Austin. I nudged Molly in the arm, and she stared at me with confusion.
"What?"
"Why don't you go see if Austin wants to go with you to Sugar's?" I suggested.
"That is such a great idea!" Savannah agreed.
"Oh, no. No. No. That is not a great idea. I am not gonna to ask him. He probably doesn't even know who I am. It would be embarrassing."
"Molly," Savannah and I scolded.
"I'm sorry, but it's not happening," she crossed her arms.
I gave Savannah a devilish grin that Molly doesn't see because she is so focused on the guys walking towards us.
"Fine." I leave Molly and Savannah and walk towards my brother.
"Oh, my. Rae! What are you doing?!" I hear Molly yell while Savannah giggled.
"Good job with the winning touchdown," I congratulated my brother as I got closer to him.
"Thanks, Rae." He gave me a cocky grin and combed some of his hair back with his hand.
As I approach Sawyer, I whispered to him so no one can hear, "Hey, do you think you can invite Austin to walk with us to Sugar's? Molly is too chicken to ask him herself."
Sawyer shook his head. "Man, girls are so strange. I'll ask him, but you owe me for this."
"Thanks," I said, cheekily, and gave him a side hug. "Ew!"
"What?" His forehead scrunched up.
"You smell!" I laughed and pinched the bridge of my nose. "Hopefully you weren't trying to impress anyone tonight."
"Aw, really, little sister? I smell? Come here." Sawyer began to reach for me, but I stepped out of the way. When I moved, he got closer.
"Ew, stop it! You're so gross!" I shrieked.
Sawyer responded with a wicked grin and ran at me, causing me to run away towards my friends with fear. When I got back to them, I looked back to see Sawyer doubling over in laughter.
And he wonders why I mess with him.
"What did you do, Rae?" Molly's eyes narrowed into slits.
"Nothing," I replied with a smug smile. "Sawyer is coming right now so we can go."
"I don't believe you. You better not have said something," Molly stated in a threatening tone, making me snigger. "I'm serious!"
Suddenly, a guy's voice sounded behind Molly, and she whipped around to see who it was. "What are we serious about?" Austin said with a bright smile as he stood next to my brother and Wesley.
Molly suddenly was pale, and her mouth was agape. She truly didn't know that Austin was going to go with us. His presence had her visibly flustered, which was funny because Molly is usually the one that is so put together. After a few seconds of Molly just staring at Austin, I decided to put her out of her misery.
"Molly was just telling us about how hungry she is." I glanced over at my brother, who was trying not to laugh at Molly's reaction.
"Oh, well perfect because we all are heading to Sugar's." Austin flashed Molly another charming smile.
Austin is a lot like Wesley. He has blonde hair and blue eyes, but his is cut short. He's one of the popular jocks at our school, along with Wesley and my brother. Unlike all of us, Austin isn't from Darling. He moved here from Savannah when he was a sophomore. Besides being new, his good looks and football talent caught everyone's attention, especially Molly's. She's always been fascinated with the idea of getting out of this town, and because Austin isn't from here, she is drawn to him.
"Yeah, we can all grab a burger and a milkshake," Wesley chimed in.
Hearing his smooth voice instantly made me blush, so I turned my head slightly so my blonde hair concealed it. I don't think I can control myself around Wesley. If I'm not careful, everyone will learn my secret tonight.