Page 4 of Quarterback Crush
“Yeah, c’mon Ollie. I was just playing around, you know, distracting him.” She danced her eyebrows up and down. “Hey, it worked, huh. We got the win, didn’t we?”
I stared out the window, refusing to look at her. We didn’t win because Savannah gave Monty her number, we won because I threw the perfect spiral to our wide receiver who scored a touchdown. You know, sometimes in the past, I hadn’t minded when Savannah got attention from other guys in rival teams. I’d always been proud that she was my girl, proud to have her on my arm, to be seen kissing her.
Almost like she was a prized possession.
And maybe that’s all we were to each other.
And yeah, that was a shocking revelation. Homecoming King and Queen, a show couple, nothing but a high school cliché.
I rested my head against the window, nursing my bruised ribs and looking out at the passing highway that would take us back to Snow Ridge.
“Ollie?” Savannah’s voice reverberated around me, but I could only hear Ben Monty’s taunt in my head. It might have been a bit of fun for Savannah but I hadn’t found it funny in the slightest.
I quickly closed my eyes, pretending to be asleep, dreading the amount of energy that a breakup would bring. There would be fights and arguments and texts in the middle of the night, inevitably followed by apologies and regrets before culminating in a sweet reconciliation.
But there wouldn’t be one this time.
I jerked up, ignoring the ache in my ribs. Savannah was taking selfies on her phone. She smiled and tilted the phone to include me. I didn’t bother to smile. But I wouldn’t do it here and cause commotion. I’d wait till we were home, when I dropped her back to her house.
For the rest of the ride, my stomach knotted. It would’ve been easier to snap and call it quits right now, but I was already in trouble with Coach and couldn’t risk more controversy.
I was actually walking on thin ice as it was. I was struggling in a couple of my classes and if my grades dropped, I’d be dropped. And Connor Richmond, QB2, was no doubt waiting in the wings ready to pounce on the opportunity to start.
“Smile, Ollie!” Savannah commanded, but all I did was move out of frame and rest back against the window. Unperturbed, Savannah kept taking photos of herself, her face contorting in various poses. Another hour or so and I’d be done.
No more drama, no more turmoil, no more girlfriend.
Chapter 3
MAYA
The rumors were rife on Monday morning and by lunch break it seemed official—#Olivannah was no more. Savannah and Oliver had broken up again.
Where once this news would’ve filled my heart with supreme joy, on the contrary, I had no feelings. I was blank, emotionless, becauseOliver Blackwell did not even know my name.Years of wistful yearning and unrequited love pulverised in an instant when he called me Mia. He may well have stomped on my heart and let it bleed dry, such was my disappointment.
Yes, if I hadn’t been on the cheer team for two years or he hadn’t been my neighbor for twelve years, I might have forgiven the slip up. But the reality was that I was an unmemorable blip on Oliver Blackwell’s radar and it was time for me to come to my senses and enter the real world. So if Simon or Tarik ever gave me a second chance, I wouldn’t be so stupid and decline a date. I’d accept and enjoy myself and overlook Simon’s corduroy jacket that he wore every single day of the week and Tarik’s mullet hairstyle with the short bangs because it just proved that I was petty and shallow. Simon was one of the smartest kids in algebra and Tarik was an amazing guitar player and they were probably cool guys if I took the time to know them.
Oliver was nowhere to be seen in the cafeteria, but Savannah was hosting a small army of followers, looking forlorn and heartbroken.
My best friend, Sammy was unimpressed and rolled her eyes. “It’s probably just to gain more likes. You watch, by tomorrow hashtag Olivannah will be back on again.”
“Did you see anything at the game?” Paige leaned over the table in a hush. “Apparently Oliver nearly punched the rival quarterback.”
I started to shake my head, but Evie jumped in. “No, he didn’t, and it was the wide receiver. Toby heard that Savannah was flirting with one of the Lions players and Oliver lost his cool over it. But there were no fist fights.”
I devoured this information. Evie’s brother Toby was a senior like Oliver, so likely knew all the inside gossip. Of course, this was not the version the cheer squad had been told. We supported each other like sisters, and in our eyes Savannah could do no wrong. We’d been led to believe that Oliver had dumped Savannah completely out of the blue, but now it seemed she definitely did not deserve Oliver. She was insane to be flirting with other boys and not be devoted to Oliver. I know I would have given my undying...
I stopped myself, remembering that Oliver Blackwell didn’t evenknow my name.He had no idea who I was. I could not and should not offer him my undying loyalty. I was about as memorable as a book with no plot.
I smiled at Simon as I passed by him in algebra but he didn’t even glance up when I purposely knocked his desk. And I sought eye contact with Tarik in English class but he was engrossed in conversation with Brenna. It was like a cruel kind of payback for turning down the boys in the first place, like the universe was telling me I’d missed the romance boat.
With no cheer squad practice after school, I moped at my locker, hopeful someone might want to go to the cafe. Otherwise I’d have to hang around in the school library and wait for Mom. With Mom being Head of English, she had a departmentmeeting which meant at least an hour to kill. Sammy, Evie, Paige and Rose all had rides or plans, so I had no choice but to study in the library. At least I could get my homework done.
The library was busier than usual, probably due to the rain. To get a table to myself, I was forced to sit back in the reference section amidst the non-fiction books. I opened up my laptop, tucking my phone deep into my backpack. I didn’t want to get distracted by the #Olivannah drama.
I proceeded to work on my homework and was making good progress when I was alerted to a buzz of voices coming closer. Annoyed at losing my solitude, I pulled out my phone to see if Mom had messaged me; she hadn’t. Dropping my backpack down on the floor, the empty chair next to me was suddenly occupied by a tall figure rushing in.
“Hey.”
