“Oh, okay.” My head is spinning as she talks about plans for getting me up to speed on the routines before the upcoming pep rally and football game. None of which I want anything to do with. “I’m not cheering this year.”
From her stunned expression, you’d think I just slapped her. “Why not?”
“Because I don’t want to.”
“Yeah. So, leave my new friend alone, Brooke,” Micah instructs Brooke, and his playfulness throws me so much I just dumbly stare at him.
“Are you on something?” I ask, still inspecting him.
“Not yet,” he jokes.
“We’re not friends. Maybe you missed that during our last conversation.”
“Last conversation?” he appears baffled before his playful grin returns. “Ah. That explains a lot.”
“Care to fill me in?” Because I’m still confused as fuck.
Brooke glances between us until he mumbles, “Luca.” Then motions behind me. “Speak of the devil.”
When I look over my shoulder, I’m met with familiar harsh eyes locked with mine. And he’s walking in our direction. Once he’s next to Micah, I finally say what’s on my mind as I eye the evil of the duo. “Ugh, there’s two of you.”
“Bro, what did you do now?” Micah laughs. He’s absolutely the nice twin. But I’m not interested in being around either of them.
Luca remains in the stare down with me. “Nothing yet.”
He wins. Because I break away. “Well, as enlightening as this has been, I have to go.” Anywhere but here. Because the one thing I realized is annoyance is the only thing I’ve felt other than numb. And I don’t like that it’s from the moron next door and now my new classmate. And there’s two of him. It’s unsettling even if one version is presenting himself as a good guy.
As I make my way down the corridor, Brooke falls in step beside me. “Just ignore Luca. He’s been extra moody lately. But I really want you on the squad. Just come to practice this afternoon and go from there.”
I will follow the first part of that and ignore Luca, but I still have no desire to join in on any extracurriculars. “I can’t.”
“Well, if you change your mind, we meet right after school.” Her excitement picks up a little as she asks, “What’s your first class?”
“Government.”
“Me too!”
She may be full of enthusiasm, but mine diminishes when we step into the classroom and a few seconds later Luca enters.
“Great,” I mumble as Brooke spots the source of my frustration.
“Yeah. The school is smaller than you’d think, so you’ll probably end up with him in a few of your periods. But I’m surprised you can tell it’s him. We’ve all been together since grade school and people still have trouble telling them apart. I second-guess myself for a few seconds every time… and I know one a little too personally.”
The comment rubs me the wrong way and I think it shows on my face as she holds a hand up. “Micah, not Luca. That one is all yours. Trust me.”
Yeah. No. “Trust me. I don’t want him.”
Brooke pauses for a second before she asks, “How do you even know Luca?”
“Unfortunately, he’s my neighbor.”
“Seriously?” She stares towards the front of the classroom. “That is unfortunate.”
Tell me about it. I only thought having him in my backyard was annoying. Now he’s even closer, lurking a few desks over. And every time I look his way, I’m met with the same steely expression. You’d think I was the one who invaded his space. But he has it ass backwards.
11
LUCA
