I give a non-committal shrug as Brylee does the same. Brooke agrees, but the longing look she sends towards Maxen tells me that she’s really not keen on the idea. Majority wins though, and unfortunately for Brooke, that means we’re heading outside.
The girls and I walk out into the fresh air and take a seat in the grass overlooking the football field. A few of the guys are playing around, kicking the ball though I have absolutely no interest in watching, so I lay back in the grass and soak up the sun.
Brooke launches into her recap of what’s been happening with Maxen over the past few days and I do my best to zone out. I’m all for her finding something special with the guy if that’s what’s actually happening, but right now, all it’s doing is making me think about what’s not happening with Puck.
Damn it. I feel like I can’t even talk about it. Tora has so much going on with Nate and her nanna, Brooke is crazy fawning over Maxen, and well Brylee she’s so chill about it that if I even bring it up, she gives me the ‘haven’t you fucked him yet? What are you waiting for?’ speech, and as much as I love her support on the topic, it makes me feel like there’s something wrong with me and leaves me wondering why he hasn’t made a move?
Toward the end of lunch, Josh comes striding over with Elle, both insistent to start something with Tora after things got a little shady for her at the pool party. She shut Josh down in a big way and I’m pretty sure Tora threw her drink all over Elle as well and seeing the sickly-sweet smile on Elle’s face right now, it’s clear that they have some sort of twisted plan of revenge.
The four of us stand up and face them head-on. They have to be stupid if they think Tora will be going anywhere with them but it turns out that we don’t need to worry about it as Jesse comes in and steals Tora away before Josh and Elle even get a chance to start thinking about putting their plan into action. Though he did mention something about a secret of Elle’s that he has to use against her if she was to keep fucking with Tora and from the horrified expression on her face, I’d dare say our Tora is safe from their evil clutches. For now, at least.
With Tora being dragged away, Brooke shoots a text through to Maxen, waits about three seconds before getting a reply and races off, probably to meet him in his car or a broom closet to re-enact their sexcapades from the weekend, and in the blink of an eye, it’s just me and Bry.
I watch as Brylee gets to her feet and I gawk at her in disbelief. “Don’t tell me you’re leaving to go screw some guy in a broom closet too?”
“I wish,” she scoffs before letting out a breath. “I need to pee, but you’re welcome to come if it will make you feel better.”
“Why thank you,” I tell her, getting to my feet and looping my arm through hers. “It’s been such a shitty day.”
“Really?” Bry grins. “You didn’t get enough intense stares from Puck during homeroom?”
“No. I missed homeroom.”
“Was Matty taking over the bathroom again?”
I let out a frustrated groan. “Yes! I swear, that little dweeb does this shit on purpose. He knows how much he gets under my skin. It’s as though he waits every morning until he hears my alarm and then scrambles out of his room for the bathroom. He probably thinks he’s a freaking genius.”
Brylee laughs as we walk through the doors of the senior girls’ bathroom. “Ahh, Matty. I love that kid.”
“Good,” I say, stopping at the row of sinks and looking at my reflection in the lipstick stained mirror. “You can have him then.”
“No way in hell,” Brylee says over her shoulder as she walks around to the stalls. “I love him, but there’s no way I could handle that kind of energy every single day.”
I let out a deep sigh. Damn, I was kind of hoping that on some level that might have worked. Don’t get me wrong, I love my little brother with every fiber within me, but he’s an asshole. Always has been and I don’t doubt that he always will be.
I take in my reflection and realize that I look like an absolute mess and get busy fixing up my hair. I pull it out of its elastic and start braiding it. My hair is pretty thick and I inherited my mom’s brunette waves so generally by the end of the day, I have little ringlets falling all over my face.
After quickly braiding my hair, I tie the elastic at the bottom and throw my thick mane back over my shoulder before falling against the wall to wait. There’s nothing worse than going to the bathroom with Brylee. She’s so freaking chatty that she always ends up finding someone in there and having a good conversation while forgetting that the rest of the world is still turning. Usually, I have to walk around to the stalls and find her, but she still has a minute or two before I’ll be forced to go looking.