The Avery Shaw Experiment - By Kelly Oram Page 0,14

drumming my fingers on the lunch table like a crack addict suffering withdrawals as I watched the door for Avery. We’d never spoken at school before. We didn’t have any classes together, and we were in way different social circles, so I hardly ever even saw her, but I knew we had the same lunch. I also knew that she sat with my brother everyday. Except now that he and his new leash holder were public with their relationship, I didn’t know what that meant for Avery.

I was scared for her, which was kind of a new feeling for me because I never really pay that much attention to anyone. Aves was just so destroyed after New Year’s Eve that I couldn’t help myself. I was either stepping up as the role of overprotective big brother, or I’d developed an impossible crush and was pissed off that someone dared hurt my woman. I had no idea which it was.

Turns out I was every bit as tangled up in our warped relationship as Avery and Aiden. Thanks a lot, moms. Prenatal yoga classes should be illegal.

“No!”

My worst fear was about to happen. Avery had just been dragged into the cafeteria by some fellow nerd girl. Aves was whiter than a sheet and shaking her head in protest, but her friend had a grim look of determination on her face and was dragging Avery toward their lunch table.

I was glad to see that at least one person from Aiden and Avery’s little nerd herd had taken her side, but one girl wasn’t going to be enough. Aiden’s new girlfriend was a real piece of work. She’d come over to the house the day before and steamrolled her way to a place the family. She was loud, outspoken, and determined. She knew what she wanted and she meant business.

Unfortunately, what Mindy Perez wanted most was Avery out of Aiden’s life completely. I’d overheard her telling him that keeping up a friendship with Aves was totally inappropriate. He’d tried to tell her that he didn’t want to stop being friends with Avery, but the conversation still ended with him promising he’d “do something about it.”

“No, no, no, no, no!”

There were only two open seats at Avery’s table and one was right next to Aiden. This was not going to be pretty.

“Yo Grayson! What’s up with you, man?”

“Yeah, Gray, baby, what’s wrong?”

“She’ll eat her alive,” I muttered, and then, suddenly, I was on my feet, ignoring my friends and crossing over into the unpopular side of the cafeteria.

I got there just in time to watch Avery’s friend plunk her down in her usual seat at Aiden’s side, then take the seat next to her and say to the whole table, “Hey guys! How was everyone’s break? I got the new Celestron SkyProdigy 70 for Christmas! I’m going to have a stargazing party this weekend. You’re all invited.” She leaned around Avery to glare at Aiden. “Except for you.”

I had to give the girl props for that one, even though I had no clue what a Celestron SkyProdigy 70 was.

A few people gave nervous replies, but then Mindy cleared her throat. It was the tiniest little sound, and yet it silenced the entire table. Aiden’s shoulders hunched in response to it.

“Hey, um, Aves?” Aiden asked.

Mindy elbowed him, and he corrected his use of our nickname for Avery.

“I mean Avery? Um, do you think you could . . . um . . . I mean, would you mind—ow, ow, ow, ow!”

I’d grabbed his ear and yanked him back hard. “You utter one more word of that sentence, little brother, and I will kick your ass into next Tuesday.”

I had everyone’s attention, and I don’t just mean the dorks at Avery’s table.

I don’t know that I’d ever sounded more menacing, but I don’t think I’d ever been more out of my mind with rage either. The little pissant was about to ask Avery to leave her own lunch table and not sit by him anymore in front of all of her friends.

Aiden wisely hadn’t said another word, and all his friends were staring up at me completely terrified, except for Mindy. She just sort of blinked at me in disbelief. I’m pretty sure she’d assumed my family all loved her simply because she’d expected it of us.

“Aves, get up.”

“Huh?”

I had to work to control the anger in my voice. “Get up,” I repeated. “You are not sitting here anymore.”

Avery shook herself out of a daze and then scrambled