of tossing it into the trash bin. It’s the least glamorous part of this job, and Spencer knows it.
“Time’s ticking, Brook,” he jests, shifting his eyes to the couple who are now fast approaching us. “Lots at stake here, especially your reputation. Unless it’s all just been a bunch of crap and you’re not as brilliant as we’ve all been led to believe.”
“Fine.” I thrust out my hand and he shakes it with a grin. “You’ve got yourself a deal.”
I turn from him, smiling at the couple, then mutter under my breath, “Hope you like scraping gum because you’re going to be spending the next month doing just that.”
“We’ll see.” He beams as he faces the couple, my heart pounding in my chest. Spencer could be right. It doesn’t matter that his guess is a movie that’s been out for a while. It’s still in theaters for a reason. “Good evening. How can I help you?”
My body tightens as I witness the exchange. Time seems to stand still as the couple looks at the board containing the showtimes, the man resting his hand on his chin and tapping his forefinger on his bottom lip, deep in thought.
“Two tickets…”
I say a little prayer when I see the man’s eyes zero in on Pearl Harbor.
“To…”
Then he shifts his gaze to Shrek. I know for certain they have no intention of seeing that. This is a college-aged couple here to probably make out away from the overbearing eyes of their parents.
“America’s Sweethearts.”
I breathe a huge sigh of relief, grinning. I wait until the couple leaves with the tickets Spencer begrudgingly handed over, then I break out into a dance, taunting him.
“That’s right! Who’s the winner now?” I keep dancing, laughing, oblivious to everything else. It doesn’t matter. The theater’s pretty dead tonight. Monday’s aren’t exactly a popular night to go to the movies. “You went up against the dragon and got burned!” I reach for the feather duster by the cash registers and hand it to him, although he’ll need a lot more cleaning supplies for the task ahead. It’s simply a token gesture. “I think Shrek just let out. Better get going, Spence!”
“Yeah, yeah,” he grumbles as he snatches the feather duster from me, trudging away and toward the theaters.
I’m so lost in my celebratory gloating, I don’t even notice when someone approaches the ticket counter until I hear a loud throat clearing. I whirl around, my breath escaping when I see Drew standing there. But that’s not what causes a snake to slither up and squeeze my heart. It’s the fact he’s here with another girl. And not just any girl. Mindy Jacobson. Popular. Beautiful. Head cheerleader. Homecoming queen. It makes sense. Drew was Homecoming king.
“Hey,” he says, his voice soft. It’s the first thing he’s said to me since the day he had me pinned beneath him. I wonder how many times he’s had Mindy Jacobson pinned beneath him since then.
“Hi.” I swallow hard, my face flushing. I do my best to pretend the thought of him here with another girl doesn’t hit me square in the gut. I wonder if I’ll always feel this pull to him that he doesn’t even know exists.
“How are you?”
“Fine.” I don’t bother to ask him how he’s doing. The silent treatment I’ve received the past few weeks is all the answer I need to know exactly how he feels. He probably just saw me as another notch in his belt, like my dad warned me about.
I hear the things the boys at school say behind my back, especially now that I have a pair of boobs and hips that they, and I quote, “would love to get a hold of and go to town on.” After the episode with Damian, I honestly thought Drew cared. He doesn’t. He just wanted to have bragging rights himself.
“How can I help you this evening?” I plaster on the fake smile I use with complete strangers, which is precisely what Drew feels like to me…a stranger.
As I await his response, I hold my breath, saying a silent prayer like I did with Spencer. This time, it’s not because cleaning a dirty theater is at stake. It’s because I hate the thought of Drew coming here with a girl for the same reason every other teenage boy does. Certain movies are more advantageous to that kind of thing than others.
“Two tickets to Original Sin,” he says.
I do my best to not react, not let him see how disappointed