Page 75 of The Rebel
I learned there is nothing that makes you even redder than someone pointing out how red you are. “Gah, go away, Aaron.” I swatted him like a fly, trying to get the attention off of me. “Haven’t you got to get to...?”
“Has Jade got a crush on you?” Kelsey asked.
“Or do you have one on Jade?” Jazmyn crooned.
“Don’t be crazy!” I acted all uppity, carrying on down the hallway. The girls caught me up and draped their arms around me, saying I had a whole lot of explaining to do at lunch time.
The buzz of the art exhibition was now secondary to the girls wanting to know if there was something between Jade and me. Kelsey bombarded my phone with winky and kissy emojis. But before going to meet them in the cafeteria for lunch, I ducked outside to find a private spot. If I called Mom now, it would be early evening in Germany and Paris would have finished his first round match. After failing to qualify in last week’s tournament, it had been a relief to learn he’d gotten into the main draw this week, and I was dying to hear the result.
“I was just about to send you a message,” Mom said as I huddled in the pergola, sheltering from the light drizzle of rain. “He won in three sets. It was a nail-biter last set, went all the way to a tie-breaker.”
“Whew,” I breathed, “I’m so happy for him. He must’ve dug deep.”
“He sure did,” Mom said, “We’re so proud of him. He played a magnificent tie-breaker. He hit a stunning down the line backhand to get a mini break, and from then he kept his cool. So, so proud.” Mom’s voice pitched, like she was struggling to contain her emotions. “It really was an amazing performance.”
“I wished I’d been there,” I said, and my heart clenched because it was true. It was probably the longest time I’d gone in my whole life of not watching Paris played tennis.
“He served an ace on match point. Right down the center line.”
“Awesome,” I said. It didn’t seem the right time to mention my work had been accepted into the art exhibition—I didn’t want to rain on Paris’s parade. It was his moment and Mom didn’t really care about art anyway. Grand Slam titles weren’t given out for art. “Uh, who’s his next opponent?”
“A boy from France,” Mom said and she provided me with all of Hugo’s recent stats, confident that Paris could beat him. “Now, I haven’t heard from Dani for a few days. Is everything okay there?”
“Yes, it’s fine,” I said. “Did you know that Mr. Sinclair’s parents visited?”
“Alex’s parents?” Mom gasped. “Was everything all right?”
“Yep. They’ve reunited. Jade got them back talking.” Saying his name strangely filled me with a burst of pride.
“That’s wonderful news,” Mom gushed. “Oh I’ll have to call Dani when I get a moment. So, you’re all getting along? You’re good with Jade and Oliver?”
“Yep.” I paused, wondering what Mom would say if I told her about Jade and me. A part of me wanted to share with her about my first kiss, but she’d probably think it was silly and couldn’t care less. Or get angry. “Mom, I gotta get to lunch.”
“Okay. But you haven’t really told me what’s been happening. How’s Gabby? And Volley? Do we need more cat food? You’re keeping out of trouble, I hope?” Mom resorted back to her stern and bossy self. “No more detentions?”
“No, of course not. Yeah, I think the cat food is okay for now.”
“I...miss...you...baby, I...love...you,” she said jerkily, like she was about to break down into convulsive sobs.
Stunned and shaken by the sudden melodramatic display of emotion, I said a quick, “See ya, bye,” and hung up. I pocketed my phone, my head spinning.
Mom never got sentimental, unless it was one of Paris’s victories. But crazier than that, now my chin was quivering. I mean, I missed Paris—a little—but Mom and Dad? With the way they’d left me behind, I’d been determined not to miss them even a bit. But it had been three weeks, which was the longest we’d ever been apart.
“Hey.” Jade’s gentle voice blinked me back to the present. “You okay?”
“Sure,” I said, forcing a wide smile onto my face. “What are you doing here?”
“What are you doing here?” he parroted back.
“I just called Mom. Paris won his match in a third set tiebreaker.”
“Hey, that’s awesome,” Jade said, slipping an arm around my shoulder. “So, why are you crying?” He cupped my face, his thumb swiping at a tear, his eyes kind and tender.
Up till then, I hadn’t realized Iwascrying. I tried to laugh, but it came out as a sniff and a feeble, “I don’t know.”
“Heyyyyy.” Jade pulled me into his chest, his fingers gently feathering my hair. I loved it, a shiver sweeping up my spine. I rested my cheek against his blazer. “Tell me,” he drawled, “Va-len-see-uh?”
“I don’t know, Mom just said she missed me,” I said, pressing against his shoulder
