“I’m with you, bro.” Shane reached out to slap hands with him.
I straightened, my heart in my throat, and backed away from the fountain. Just as I was about to hurry down the hall, Robert called out to me.
“Hey, Tessa,” he said, his voice making goose bumps crawl across my flesh. (Once you’d heard someone talk dirty, even the most innocent remarks felt tainted.)
“Hi,” I replied, forcing a smile.
Robert grinned as Shane ogled me. “Heard about you and Aiden,” he said. “That’s too bad; he’s a real good guy.”
I couldn’t tell if he was being honest or checking to see if he had the go-ahead to ask me out. By the pervy smirk on his lips, I decided it was the latter.
“Thanks. I’ll tell him you said so.”
His smile faltered. “Cool,” he answered, nodding. “Well, see you around.”
My heart was still racing. They’d just been talking about SOS. They knew there was an SOS. And now it was just a matter of time until they found out the Smitten Kittens had started it! My fingers began to tremble, and I started to walk down the hall.
“By the way,” Robert called after me. “The squad sucks now. You were the best one.”
“And the hottest,” Shane added, and they both chuckled.
I swallowed hard and raised my hand in a gesture of acknowledgment, blinking back my tears. SOS was out. Now all of our tails were on the chopping block.
I wasn’t feeling emotionally stable enough to endure Mr. Rothstein’s latest sociology rant—probably a lesson on ethics again or the cruelty of popularity in today’s society. Instead of heading to class, I took out my phone and dialed Aiden’s dorm room.
“Please answer,” I murmured, feeling the flood of tears that was about to break through me.
“Hey, it’s Aiden. I’m not here, so leave a message.”
My heart nearly crumbled. I needed him. Right now. “Aiden, it’s me,” I said into the phone, my voice cracking. “When you get this, can you call me back? It’s an emergency.” He wasn’t answering. Seemed like lately, he was never there when I needed him.
“Hey, Tess.”
I jumped and spun around, clutching my phone like a weapon. “Joel!”
He laughed, holding up his hands as he stepped back. “Um… have you been taking a lot of self-defense classes lately? Because you’re starting to scare me. You’re like Master Tessa with the kung fu phone.”
I smiled, breathing deeply to calm myself down. At least my back spasm had temporarily disappeared. “More grasshopper than master.”
“Naw. You’re a total black belt.” Joel checked his watch and glanced back at me. “You’re late,” he said. “Were you calling for a ride or something?”
I knitted my eyebrows. “Ride? Oh, no. I was desperately trying to get a hold of Aiden.” Suddenly the worry came back over me. SOS. People knew.
“Kira told me you and Aiden broke up,” Joel said.
“Sort of.” I really wished people would stop pointing that out. I mean, did I go around making verbal observations about anyone else’s love life? Or “sort of” love life?
“Sounds complicated,” Joel said, making a face. “And I think complicated”—he leaned toward me—“kinda bites.”
I nodded. “Believe me, it does.”
We both sighed at the same time and looked at each other. “Jinx?” he asked.
“No, I think we have to say the same thing for it to be a jinx. Sighs don’t count—”
“Don’t count—” He broke in to finish my sentence.
We both paused. “Jinx.” We laughed.
“Okay,” he said. “Don’t talk yet. What were you desperately in need of? Now, I’m no Aiden Wilder—mostly because I suck at sports—but maybe I can be of service in another way. I’m a good listener.…”
My smile faded. I needed Aiden. I had major life drama to deal with. First, Principal Pelli’s ultimatum with the squad and then the SOS outing—which would most certainly lead to a Smitten Kittens outing, eventually ending in social upheaval. It was almost too much. I wanted to talk to someone, but I didn’t think Kira’s boyfriend was the obvious choice.
“Sorry, Joel,” I said. “It’s a secret.”
He smiled deviously, and his offset tooth looked extra-adorable under his curved lip. “Secret, huh?” he whispered, leaning closer to me. “You know that only makes me want to know more, right?”
Hm. He had a good point. “It’s not important,” I said, in an attempt to dismiss it. But when he rubbed his palms together excitedly, I knew I’d said too much.
“Okay.” I took his arm to pull him closer. “But you can’t say anything. Not a word.”
“Um…” He looked around the hallway, swinging his head back and forth dramatically. “Cross my heart and hope to die, stick a needle in my eye.” He paused, crinkling his nose. “Not really. Not the needle thing—it sounds much too painful.”
I stared at him for a second, then laughed. Even though Joel and I hadn’t known each other that long, I liked him. He seemed completely trustworthy. And right now, I couldn’t say that about a lot of people.
“So Principal Pelli called me into his office,” I whispered.
“Troublemaker,” Joel teased.
I gave him a mock glare before continuing. “He…” I swallowed hard. “He wants me to take back the captainship of the Smitten Kittens.”
Joel straightened up and ran his hand through his brown hair. “Whoa. That’s bad.”
“I know. Kira would die. I have no idea how to tell—”
“Hey!” Kira called, jogging down the hall, her cheer skirt flopping up as she came to stand next to Joel. She hooked her arm in his. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you,” she said to him, smiling.
“Right. Sorry.” Joel stared at the ground, looking worried. I regretted telling him anything, because it would surely put him in an awkward position. He looked at me. “I was…helping Tessa with something.”
Kira glanced between me and Joel. She furrowed her brow. “With what?”
“K, I need to talk to you,” I said firmly. I didn’t want Joel to be the one to tell her first. Once Kira heard that the principal and coach didn’t believe in her cheerleading ability, her self-esteem would be blown. But I had to say something. Right? I mean, how else would it look if I started coming to all the practices and telling her what to do?