THEA
“These are great seats!” Stephanie enthused.
Thea laughed. Her best friend could get excited about anything. Truth be told, it was one of the things she loved best about her.
“I still can’t believe you wanted to come to a basketball game,” Thea said.
“Why not? What’s wrong with a basketball game?”
“Nothing’s wrong with it. But you don’t like basketball.”
“What makes you think I don’t like basketball?” Stephanie asked.
“Do you even know the positions?”
“Well, no,” Stephanie admitted. “But I don’t need to know the positions. I’m not here to watch the game.”
“What are you here for, then?”
“Guys,” Stephanie said. “Everyone knows the basketball team has the cutest guys.”
“Steph, you have a boyfriend!”
“So what? Looking’s free. Besides, you haven’t got a boyfriend.”
“Yeah, and I’m not going to find one sitting in the stands at a ball game,” Thea said. “Besides, I’ve told you, I’m not looking for a boyfriend. It’s senior year. I don’t want to start dating someone new right before I leave for college. That would be crazy.”
Stephanie rolled her eyes. “You never want to relax and have fun,” she complained. “Senior year is a great time to start dating someone, because you know things won’t get too serious. You’ll be able to leave in a few months and start over. You could just have a fling.”
“Who do you think I’m going to have a fling with?”
“Anyone!” She pointed to the center. “What about him?”
“Kyle Beauregard?”
“He’s cute, don’t you think?”
“I don’t know.” She had honestly never given a passing thought to Kyle Beauregard, or to any other basketball player. They existed in a different social sphere. Thea had never longed to be the kind of girl who was lusted after by boys, or the kind of girl who was invited to high school parties. Her studious, reliable life made her happy. She didn’t understand Stephanie’s desire to build an association with the basketball team.
A cheer went up as Rob Honeycutt, the power forward, sank a deep three-point shot. Thea clapped along absently.
“Jillian’s having a post-game party, you know,” Stephanie said.
“Jillian Bishop? How do you even know that?” Thea asked. Jillian was a member of the cheerleading squad, and Thea wasn’t sure the two of them had even spoken to one another. If anyone had ever run in different circles, it was Thea Cortez and Jillian Bishop.
“I overheard her telling some people outside the gym when I was buying popcorn from the booster moms.”
“Did she invite you?”
“No, of course she didn’t.”
“So what makes you think we can just show up?”
“They’re not going to throw us out,” Stephanie said. “They probably won’t even notice we’re there. It’s not going to be a big deal. Parties like that are so full of people that no one notices who’s there and who isn’t. No one is going to be checking for invitations. Even if Jillian sees us, she’ll just figure someone else invited us along. It won’t be a big deal.”
“Still, I was going to study tonight,” Thea said. “I wasn’t even planning on coming to this game. We’ve got the chem test tomorrow.”
“Oh, don’t ask me to believe you’re not ready for chem,” Stephanie complained. “You get A’s on every lab!”