Page 39 of Quarterback Crush
I glared at her, signaling that she should step away from my car. I wrenched the door open and revved my engine, screeching out of the parking lot.
My blood was boiling, anger rising, totally furious—but at who? Savannah...or myself? Savannah had spoken a truth I couldn’t deny—yeah, I’d used Maya. In the heat of the moment, an impulsive decision, I’d put Maya on the spot, practically pleading that she fake date me.
And she had...but why?
Had she felt threatened, manipulated, bullied?
My heart beat roared in my ears as I hated that I might have pressured her into fake dating me. And added to that, my actions hadn’t fooled anyone, least of all Savannah. And the nerve of her thinking I wanted us to get back together.
This was all a shambles, messier than I had ever intended. I needed to sort this out. I’d taken it too far. I didn’t want Maya to be a joke, or even a talking point and Savannah was turning her into one. And it was obvious Sammy disapproved. I had to apologize to Maya...and admit that my feelings were no longer fake.
And there was no time like the present.
I’d drive straight there now, open up and tell her how I really felt.
Chapter 15
MAYA
By the fifth day, the swelling had subsided and a nice shade of purple surrounded my ankle. I’d ditched my crutches at school because they were such a nuisance, and with a pep rally everyday in preparation for the final, I was holding people up in the hallways. I’d learned on the first day back that kids did not like to be stuck behind someone limping along on crutches.
I was excused from Tuesday’s cheer practice because I had a physical therapy appointment, getting some exercises for recovery. It was all basic stuff of foot rotations and stretches for range of motion and flexibility. But on Wednesday, I was back, keen to join the squad. I knew my participation could only be a sideline role, but at least I could carry my pom poms and hold the banner and shout out the cheers.
Savannah was all business, thriving in her captaincy role. Twice she asked me to move, saying I was blocking her way and then she called me over.
“It might be better if you help with the banners. You’re kind of just a nuisance here,” she said, sounding sweet but her face was sour. “Miss Collins and the art club are doing them now. She’d be grateful for more hands.”
“Oh,” I muttered, unable to hide my disappointment of not being with the team.
“And if you’re thinking of waiting around for Oliver after training, don’t bother. He’s coming to my mom’s restaurant,”she said with a smug and supercilious smile. “And hey, wasn’t it nice that dating you got his grades up.”
“What?” My ears pricked at her totally absurd statement.
“You know your Mom gave him an A in his last assignment? I mean Ollie never gets an A in English.” Her breathy laugh was edged with malice. “That can’t be a coincidence, can it?”
I was literally dumbstruck, Savannah’s allegation too insane for a response. I hobbled my way up to the art room where Miss Collins and a couple of students were painting the posters, and I went through the motions of slapping paint on paper, but completely caught up in my own head, reeling over the claim that Oliver had used me for his grades. Could that be possible? Was the fake dating only a ploy to cover the real reason? And was he really meeting Savannah tonight—because he certainlyhadn’tmade plans with me, or even messaged me.
When Miss Collins called it a day, I texted Mom that I’d meet her at the car. My phone pinged with messages in the Cheer Chat, Savannah posting photos of a pyramid—Emily, Rose and Anna holding up Kelsie. Yes, it sent a stab to my confused heart, knowing it should have been me and that I was going to miss the biggest game of the year. More photos came through of the training session, and then there was one of Savannah and Oliver, more pointedly, Oliver with his arm around Savannah in front of the goal post.
The caption read:A winning team! #Olivannah
If it was bad enough that Kelsie was replacing me as flyer, seeing Savannah and Oliver together made my heart plummet. Was everything she said true?
I knew this week was going to be a busy one for him—there were interviews with radio stations, podcasts and local newspapers—so I’d had low expectations that we’d get together, but I at least thought he’d talk to me today. Seems not.
“All good?” Mom asked brightly, flinging her satchel into the back of the car.
“I helped with painting the banner today,” I mumbled.
“Oh, I’m glad you weren’t on your feet,” she said. “How is the ankle?”
“It’s fine,” I said, sucking in a tight breath.
“You okay?” She looked over in concern.
I nodded, but my head was spinning. The whole fake dating scenario—the best two weeks of my life—was about to come to a crashing end. My phone pinged again—another photo, this time Savannah had her hand touching Oliver’s face, or more precisely, his lips. The caption read:Nothing fake about this!My blood froze in a heart-stopping moment. Obviously, our fake dating hadn’t fooled Savannah.
“Argggh,” I groaned, closing the app.
