“Heard that you’re tutoring our boy,” Blaise says to me, his sights set on the cheerleaders that are finishing up their routine.
I scoot even closer to Knox. This time Knox wraps his arm around me and looks over at Blaise. I don’t think anything about it. I just want as much distance between me and Blaise as possible.
“Hey, man. I’m Knox.”
Blaise does a chin lift, but otherwise ignores him. I can hear Will and Luke talking about some girl they tag-teamed last weekend at a party. They’re loud enough that everyone around us can hear them too.
The new, more self-assured me decides to say something, because if I have to listen to Larry and Curly all night talking about all the chicks they’ve banged, I’m going to hurl.
“Hey, do you guys mind keeping your personal shit to yourselves? There are kids here,” I tell them, jerking my head to the family beside us.
Will cracks a smile, but Blaise answers, “No problem. They’ll behave. Wouldn’t want word getting back to Austin that we pissed off his tutor.” Blaise looks at where Knox’s arm is around me and smirks. “Thought you were JD’s girl.”
These guys are such pricks. I’m getting to know Austin a little better, seeing the kinder side of him, and I have no clue how he puts up with these three. They make my skin crawl.
“I am JD’s girl.” I shift on the bleacher so that I’m facing Knox, hoping it’s a clear sign to Blaise that our conversation is over.
“What were we talking about?” I ask Knox.
“Do you want to move to another seat?”
“Nope. Just ignore them. I am. I can’t remember if I said yes or not about the races.”
“You said yes.”
Knox has a motorbike that was given to him by Fallon’s friend, Ryder. Ryder used to race at the Fields when he went to Fallen Brook High. Knox spends a lot of time at Ryder’s dad’s garage and works there part-time in the afternoons after school. During breakfast in the mornings, Knox and I have been talking about going out for a ride together on our bikes soon.
“I said Ishouldbe able to,” I reply. “Mind if I bring a friend with me?”
“That depends. Girl or boy?”
“Girl. Her name is Renee. And it shouldn’t make a difference if my friend is male or female.”
The roar of the stadium becomes too loud for us to continue talking. The Fallen Brook High football team is announced first and runs out on the field before going to the sidelines. Our section boos them, then erupts when the Highland Raiders are announced. Every team member is introduced by name along with their position, and when the announcer says JD’s name, I stand up, cupping my hands around my mouth, and yell as loud as I can.
JD looks up in the bleachers, scanning the faces, trying to find me. Dustin and Prescott tap him on the shoulder and point up at me. JD makes a heart with his hands and holds it up high for me to see. A broad smile creases my face and I return the hand signal back to him. I take my seat when the players go in for a team huddle.
“You must have some grade-A pussy to get JD to settle down,” Blaise says near my ear, and I jerk back, knocking into Knox.
“What do you mean?” I say when Knox says, “Hey, watch your fucking mouth, asshole.”
Will decides to jump into the conversation. “What he means is that JD doesn’t do girlfriends. So what makes you so special, other than the obvious?” he insinuates.
Knox stands up, not caring that he might be making a scene. “I think you guys need to find somewhere else to sit.”
“Nah, we’re good here with Rory. Why don’t you take off? We can keep her company.”
I scoff at his suggestion. “That’s a big hell no.”
A shrill whistle penetrates the crowd’s cheers. All five of us look down to see Austin scowling up at where we’re sitting. He makes some kind of hand gesture at Blaise.
“Looks like you get your wish, Southside,” Blaise snarks, pulling Luke up and shoving him down the aisle along with Will. They disappear into the throng of people.
“Are those guys always like that?”
“Pretty much,” I reply.
I motion for Knox to sit back down, and I look out on the field in time to see JD give Austin a shove. Before a fight can ensue, their coach pulls the two of them apart. The first kick-off happens minutes later and there are no more distractions other than those of the game being played under the Friday night lights.
