Like he’s seen a ghost, his face pales. “Why is she with that douchebag? She could do ten times better than him.”
I don’t want to get into the middle of this mess, but at the same time, I’m happy to see him pissed off. Maybe this is what he needs to finally speak up and go after Becca. Now that he has competition, there’s a chance he’ll lose her completely. “It’s been a couple weeks. They’re not serious or anything, but they hang out at the football parties and talk at school.”
“Is she screwing him?”
My eyes nearly pop out of my head. “Becca? No way. She stayed with him a couple parties ago after he got too drunk to drive her home, but nothing happened. Even Rhett made sure.”
He stands from the couch, fists opening and closing like he’s on the verge of punching a hole through the wall. “She slept in his bed—with him?”
“For a little, maybe.”
“Jesus Christ.” Yanking his phone from his pocket, he paces back and forth, typing text after text.
There’s no time for me to warn Becca. I already know she’s the one he’s texting. All I can do is drag him to this football game and hope he’s able to work it out with her by the time he goes back to school. “We have to go, Wyatt.”
He stuffs his phone back in his pocket, but not before huffing at the screen. “Right, yeah. Come on, Kinny.”
I try making conversation the entire way to the field, but Wyatt’s distracted. He drives on auto-pilot to the field he’s played on for years. Only this time, he goes back as a starter for the Penn State Nittany Lions.
As soon as we’re through the gates, it’s like an announcement was made that he’s arrived. All eyes are on him, and kids rush to him with questions about football as they ask for autographs. My brother is even more of a big deal in this town than he was a year ago.
He’s polite to each and every kid, even making small talk with a few parents. I couldn’t be more proud of him. “I’ll be in the stands, take your time,” I tell him before walking to find the reserved section I’ll be sitting in.
I’m spreading my blanket over the cold metal bleacher when I hear my best friend before I see her. “Kinsley West, you look amazing!” Becca jogs up the few stairs, hugging me tightly. “Even if you don’t win, I’m so proud of you, but I swear, if Mandi wins, I’ll shove that crown down her throat. I can’t listen to her brag for the rest of the year.”
I laugh, mostly because she’s serious, but I also need to have a little talk with her about my brother. “You’re not mad at me?” I ask cautiously.
“Oh, I’m pissed, but I’m not going to ruin this night for you. I’ll deal with Wyatt if he messages me tonight. I’m sure he’s busy with football.”
“About that,” I start to say, but she stops me.
“No, first you’re telling me about Rhett. Don’t skip any details.”
I decide to talk as fast as I can so I have a chance to tell her about Wyatt before he gets here and surprises her all on his own. “It was actually a little bit of a disaster, Becca. First I get a case of verbal diarrhea and tell Rhett I love him, and then I told Wyatt about Jake.”
“What! Did he say it back?” she asks, curiously, completing ignoring my comment about my brother. “I can’t believe this.”
That makes two of us. “Once I said it, it was perfect—like a movie. He told me he loves me, too, and I really think he meant it. It feels different now. It’s like we’re on a new level or something. I can’t really describe it.”
She’s staring at me, hanging on my every word. Becca’s always been the real romantic out of the two of us. I always thought it would be her falling in love first. But, before I can talk about Wyatt, and inform her he’s here, he climbs up the stairs and stands right next to her. “Hey, Becca.”
She whips around so fast, she almost falls over. “Wyatt? Ohmigod!” Her face lights up like she’s just been reunited with her other half. I’ve never seen her look at Jake that way—not even once.
My brother’s noticeably mad, but he lets her hug him, all while biting his tongue. It’s not going to last long though, I can tell. “Nice jersey,” he says coolly.
She pulls away from him, her smile falling. “I’m glad you’re here,” is all she says. Ignoring the comment entirely
“Are you?”
Becca glances at me, but I pretend to be oblivious. “Of course I am. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen you.”
Wyatt points to Jake’s jersey. “Couldn’t have missed me too much.”
She glances at the number scrawled across her chest. “It’s not what you think, Wyatt.”
He sits down backward on the bleacher in front of us, his head bowed at first. When he raises his eyes, they land directly on Becca’s. “You couldn’t possibly know what I’m thinking. If you did, you wouldn’t be walking around in that thing.” It’s a spiteful response—one I wish he wouldn’t give her, but he can’t help himself.
It only gets worse when the team jogs onto the field for their pregame warm-up with Jake front and center. He watches as Becca returns Jake’s wave, and any control he was holding onto, disappears. “Why are you wasting your time on him?”
She crosses her arms over her chest, protectively, looking down at the ground. “It just happened.”
“Yeah? So, it’s okay if I just happen with some girl in my dorm then?”
Her eyes land on his and her sadness is gone. In its place is jealousy. “How do I know that hasn’t already happened? I mean, look at you. You’ve never had a hard time getting attention from girls.”
He tosses his hands in the air. “You’re right, Becca. I could have any number of girls, no questions asked. Yet somehow the one girl I’ve had my eye on wants nothing to do with me. How do you explain that one?”
“You really want to do this right now? Here in the stadium?”
“That’s just it, Bec. There’s never a right time with you. You’re always pushing me away, and you know what, maybe I should take the hint. Maybe I should give up on you and go have some fun. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”
She turns her head away from him, shaking her head. “That’s not what I want. Jake and I aren’t serious. He’s fun to hang out with, that’s all.”
“Do you know how many fun girls there are, Becca? Does that mean I get to waste time with all of them while I wait for you?”
“No, Wyatt. It doesn’t. But what am I supposed to do? Sit around and miss out on every senior year experience because you’re two hours away and can’t do any of them with me?”
His eyes narrow, like he might finally understand where she’s coming from. Becca being with Jake has absolutely nothing to do with Wyatt—even I know that. But all my brother sees is someone else with his girl. He’s never going to be okay with it which is why this isn’t the best place to be having this conversation. The stands are getting fuller, and they’re only drawing negative attention. As much as I don’t want to get in the middle, I stand up and put an end to it. “Wyatt, we have to go for pictures.”
He pulls his gaze away from Becca, reluctantly standing up to join me. “Come on, I’ll help you down.”
His hand reaches out for mine, but I wait a second, looking between the two of them. I hate seeing them at each other’s throats when all they’d have to do is take a chance. If it doesn’t work out, at least they can say they tried. “You guys need to finish this conversation before Wyatt goes back to school, okay? I don’t want the two people I love the most arguing. You’re both stubborn fools who need to get over yourselves and admit you want to be together.”
“I’ve done that, Kinsley. She doesn’t seem to care,” Wyatt argues.
“Look at her, Wyatt. Take a long, hard look. Becca wouldn’t be on the verge of tears if she didn’t care about you.” He glances in her direction, but she lowers her head, trying her best to avoid making eye contact while she’s hurting. “It’s senior year, and she doesn’t want to spend it missing you. Maybe it’s not the best choice, but it’s one she’s going to have to live with unless she comes to her senses and admits she’s in love with you.”