Never Have You Ever (The Love Game #1)- Elizabeth Hayley Page 0,19

few pages done.

Who the hell wanted to read ten pages from every student in class, anyway? Teachers were just as crazy as I remembered them being in high school.

I was pecking at the keys, my head bouncing back and forth from the page to the keyboard, when someone took a seat beside me.

“You look like my grandmother trying to learn to text.”

I recognized the voice but didn’t look over, afraid of losing my place. I did smile, though. When I finished typing the sentence I was on, I settled back against the chair and brought a hand to the back of my neck to massage it a little.

“I’ve never been compared to somebody’s grandmother before.”

“Glad I could be the one to take your grandmother virginity,” Sophia said.

“That sounds… Don’t ever say that, okay?”

She laughed. “Seriously though, why are you typing like that?”

“Because I suck at typing. It was an elective in high school, but I never thought I’d use it, so I took things like transportation technology and art and stuff like that. Add it to the list of poor choices I’ve made in my life.”

Sophia laughed again, scooted closer, and leaned down to look at my notebook. “Who wrote this?”

Strange question. “Me.”

“Do you speak whatever language this is in, because I’m pretty sure it’d be easier to decipher cave drawings than read your handwriting.”

“I’m starting to think the same thing. I’ve been at this for hours, and I’ve barely made a dent in it.”

She was still looking at the paper, bringing her face closer to the page and then away again like she was trying to focus a camera lens so the image wasn’t blurry.

“I don’t think I’ve ever known anyone who’s handwritten a paper before they typed it.”

I knew she was teasing me, but the truth was, I wasn’t the typical student in more ways than one, and I seemed to be constantly reminded of it. The only thing I could do was keep plugging away however I knew how and hope for the best.

“Scooch over,” she said, patting my arm as she studied the notebook and screen.

“What? Why?”

“Because watching you try to type might be more painful for me than it is for you.”

I shifted over into the next seat. “I highly doubt that.”

“Does this say ‘blood’?” She pointed to a word that even took me longer than it should have to decipher.

“‘Greed.’ I think.”

“You think?”

“It’s a business paper. Greed definitely makes more sense than blood.”

She finished out the sentence and then handed me the notebook. “I’ll type this for you, but you’re going to have to dictate it for me if you want me to finish it before the semester’s over.”

My eyes had to have shown my relief. “Seriously? That’d be awesome! This would’ve taken me all night. You’re the best!”

Without giving it a second thought, I reached over and wrapped Sophia up in a huge hug. Then, when I evidently didn’t think that was enough, I kissed her on the cheek.

“Aww, that’s sweet,” I heard someone say from behind us.

I turned to see Emma walking toward us with Gina and a girl I didn’t recognize. Her large front teeth were gleaming with a smile so wide, she reminded me of a beaver who’d just eaten a bag of shrooms.

“You guys are so cute,” Emma said. “My brother would never kiss me in public.”

“Well, I wish mine wouldn’t either,” Sophia said through gritted teeth.

“Ignore her. She likes to pretend she’s not related to me,” I explained. I wasn’t sure why I liked getting under her skin so much, but there was a certain thrill to it.

She rolled her eyes and sighed, probably knowing I’d just continue if she responded.

The other three girls laughed.

“Sorry, I’m Sophia’s brother,” I said to the new girl. “Brody,” I added almost as an afterthought. It still felt strange to say the name aloud or respond to it, and I figured no amount of practice would change that.

“Macy.” She extended her hand to me with a smile as she shifted her books from one arm to the other. “Sophia didn’t tell me she had a brother.”

This seemed to be a common theme.

“Are you older or younger?” she asked.

“Older. I’m a senior,” I said proudly.

“A second-year senior,” Sophia said.

Macy didn’t even seem to realize Sophia had spoken. Her brown eyes were still on me, and I’d noticed her hand was still in mine.

“Why didn’t you tell me you had such a cute big brother?” Macy asked, but she hadn’t bothered to divert her