“And I love you.” I pull back, looking her over. She looks better. Her face is still a little red, but I’m proud of her. She hasn’t shed any tears over this. “Are you ready to go, class?”
“Yes, I’d say let’s skip calculus, but I don’t want to get behind. I don’t enjoy doing it as it is.”
“I’m still not sure what you have against math?” I ask, unlocking Mrs. Bouchard’s door and opening it for her.
“Nothing, I’m good at math. I understand its importance, I just don’t like it. It’s boring.”
“I’m here if you ever need a study, buddy.” I smile, taking her hand. I glance at her shirt, and my heart swells with pride. Hannah Clark is my girlfriend.
“Yes, then I definitely need help with calculus. You better become my private tutor for the rest of the year,” Hannah says.
“Now that’s what I’m talking about.” I squeeze her hand. “I love that you’re wearing that shirt. I feel like it’s us finally shouting to the world that we’re boyfriend and girlfriend.”
“I may never take this shirt off.” Hannah jokes.
I lean down. “Would you let me take it off you?”
37. Miss Hannah
I’m exhausted by the end of school. I have about forty-five minutes before I leave for the dance studio, so I head to the gym to cheer until it’s time to leave. If I go home, Beth will know something’s wrong. If she doesn’t already. I’m not ready to face her or my dad yet.
The cheerleaders surround Leah and Aubrey as they tell everyone how Jack and Cameron asked them to homecoming. When Bailey Eccles sees me, she squeals, and everyone turns to stare at me.
“Hey, everyone,” I try to smile.
“What happened to you and Ford at lunch?” Aubrey asks.
Leah slaps Aubrey’s arm. “Remember what I said?” Leah hisses, her eyes getting wide.
“Oh! That’s what I wasn’t supposed to ask about.” Aubrey covers a hand over her mouth.
I laugh it off. “Don’t worry about it. I loved the way they asked us. It was just a little overwhelming. Ford took me somewhere a little quieter where we could talk.”
“You must be so excited that the most popular guy in school asked you to homecoming.” Bailey squeals.Again.
“I am. It’s going to be fun,” I say, still smiling. I’m so excited that I get to go to a school dance with Ford. I remember how jealous I was last year that Bree was going with Ford. And I didn’t even have the feelings for him I do now. Well, not all of them, anyhow. I pull my t-shirt from Ford off, put it in my backpack, and get ready to cheer.
“Hey,” Leah says, bouncing up to me. “Sorry about Aubrey.”
“It’s okay. I just had a hard time with everyone staring. How they asked us was fun and took some courage on their part. I loved it.”
“Jack told me it was all Ford’s idea.”
“Really? I didn’t know that. I knew he wanted something public. He got asked to the dance over the weekend. He wanted girls to know he’d asked someone, so he didn’t get any more.” Plus, he wants everyone to know that I’m his girlfriend, and he’s taken and likes it. But I don’t say that to Leah.
Her eyes get wide. “Really? Was it Chanel?”
I shake my head with a laugh. “No, but I have a feeling she was planning on it. At least until she saw the website pictures.” My smile disappears, and I blow out a frustrated breath.
“You know about those? I asked Jack about it, and he told me you didn’t know because you weren’t looking at the website.”
My eyes sting. I will not cry over this. I’ve made it all day without shedding any tears. I’m not going to start now. I sit down on the bleachers, and Leah sits next to me. “I’m not, and I didn’t look at the website, but someone told me about the pictures.”
“I know this doesn’t help, but you can’t see anything in the pictures.”
“Thanks for saying that.” I want someone to confide in about me and Ford, someone my age who’s experienced some of the same things I have. I scoot closer to Leah. “Have you?” I whisper.
She bites her lips and gives me a little nod. For some reason, this makes me feel better. “Do you think we could get together and talk?”
