mean out of sheer self-preservation. This is precisely why I don’t do relationships. I do flirting and hookups. Feelings, well, they fucking feel.
“What, did you change your mind and suddenly decide that nine-eighty bare-minimum wasn’t good enough?” Her nose wrinkles after her insult, but I think I get where it’s coming from. She just hit me with a major share, and now I’m bailing. Better to lash out. Her and I aren’t so different.
“Something like that,” I say, holding up my lunch trash as a wave good-bye.
Abby’s face shifts slightly, her wrinkled mouth and dimmed eyes morphing from the snarky expression that accompanies her tease to the look of a girl who just lost her brand new balloon to the sky.
“That hoodie”—I walk backward, pointing toward her chest—“looks good on you.” I leave things there with a tight-lipped smile and a nod—a truce of sorts, not that Abby even knew we were in a battle. Hell, we weren’t. I’m the only one in a conflict, and it’s with my own damn self.
I manage to turn my back to her and toss my trash out without pausing to get one more jab in to fully take things back to our version of normal. For now, I’d like to leave things nice. I wasn’t counting on her wanting to leave things that way, too.
“I’ll be sure to cheer for you, even if I’m wearing Hayden’s number,” she shouts.
I spin on my heel and give her a thumbs up, but keep moving away from her because if I turn around, I’ll keep trying to win her over. And she’s not mine to be won.
6
Abby
I haven’t been to a basketball game since freshman year. Football is easier for me to follow. I guess it’s easier to go along with the crowd at those games, too. Our basketball team has always been better than our football team, and it’s packed inside. I wasn’t about to cram in here alone, and June had to work, so I dragged Naomi and Lola with me. I talked Lola into coming because I knew Cannon would be here, and now that I’m not trying to get with him, she is. Good luck! That boy is like a miserable, grumpy ice sculpture focused on only one thing—getting drafted by a major league team right out of high school.
Lola peels away from Naomi and me the minute Cannon walks in with his cousin Zack, and she manages to get him to laugh at something she says when they sit down a few rows away from us. I must admit I’m a little dumbstruck—I didn’t make him laugh once in all of the beer-keg party meetups we had. And I’m fucking funny, dammit!
“He’s mesmerized by her tits,” Naomi says in a hushed voice at my side. I laugh softly and tap her leg with the back of my palm. She’s only trying to make me feel better about not being able to get Cannon to drop his scowl despite weeks of effort.
“Lola’s charming. Give her credit,” I say.
Naomi wobbles her head but gives in with a sing-songy “Oh-kay.”
“But yes, her tits are mesmerizing,” I add, both to give props to what nature gave that girl and to let Naomi off the hook after calling her out for shaming our friend.
“Sigh, she does have great tits,” Naomi adds in a hum. We both rest our chins on our fists, elbows propped on our knees while we stare at Lola’s bright red sweater with envy. After a few seconds, we give in and laugh.
“You have nothing to be envious of in that department,” Naomi says, elbowing the side of my boob. I wince because fucking ow!
“Thanks,” I say, adjusting my bra under this giant sweatshirt I’m still swimming in. The plus of wearing Hayden’s hoodie is that it’s long enough to cover my ass, which means leggings are a go. I can almost endure the carnage drawing on my chest for this level of comfort, plus my fuzzy boots look super cute. My arms are still carrying folds of material, though, and with the heat on in the gym, I’m starting to get kinda hot.
“There’s your boy!” Naomi teases, leaning into my side as our team comes rushing onto the floor. They jog two laps around the perimeter of the gym, and Hayden looks up and winks at me as he passes the second time. I hold up my hand and scrunch out a wave with the few fingers I manage to get loose