“Wait.” My hands finally fell away from Avery’s waist. “Owen and Libby are missing?”
I glanced at Avery in shock, but she didn’t seem as surprised. She had an amused gleam in her eyes that told me everything I needed to know. “No way!” I said. “This I have got to see.”
I jumped off my stool and dragged Avery with me, completely forgetting about the pizzas I’d ordered. Hopefully Brandon and Levi could manage all three of them.
“Check the arcade. Libby has a thing for photo booths.”
I stumbled to a stop and blinked down at Avery. “Are you serious?”
Avery laughed and then pointed toward the entrance to the arcade. There was a photo booth there, and it was definitely occupied by someone—or someones—very enthusiastic about getting their picture taken.
“No way,” I said again when Avery and I came to a stop in front of the booth.
The heavy breathing and slurping sounds had to have been somebody else.
“Okay,” Owen said, releasing a low moan that made my mouth fall open in astonishment. “You can tutor me in math. But absolutely no clothes with cats on them when you come over. It’s creepy.”
“Clothes are irrelevant,” Libby rasped. “And unnecessary.”
Just then something hit the curtain, and Owen’s shirt fell to the floor. The kissing sounds increased. When I heard the sound of a belt being undone and another deep groan from Owen, I looked at Avery and said, “Shouldn’t we stop them?”
To my surprise, Avery shrugged. “If anyone can handle Libby, it’s Owen.”
She reached for the strand of pictures that were being spit out of the machine and raised her eyebrows so high that I felt compelled to rescue my best friend. I snatched up the shirt off the floor and then pounded on the side of the booth. “Yo, Owen! Did you want me to go ahead and bowl for you or what?”
I laughed at the panicked string of curses that came from my friend’s mouth.
Libby emerged then, somehow managing to look completely dignified, even as she straightened her shirt and ran her fingers through her messed up hair. She smirked at my shock and plucked the string of pictures from Avery’s hands. “Yummy,” she said, heaving a shudder, and then walked away without another word.
I stared after her until I heard the curtain slide open. Avery had pulled it back. Owen was sitting there flushed red, lips swollen, hair mussed, with an odd look of both awe and horror frozen on his dazed face.
I tossed him his shirt. “You okay there, tiger?”
Owen blinked at the sound of my voice, and after he slipped his shirt back over his head, he looked up at Avery. “There is something seriously wrong with your friend.”
We both laughed as he scrambled to his feet and practically ran away from us.
I tugged Avery to a stop when she started to head back to the group. At her questioning look, I made a suggestive nod toward the now-vacant photo booth.
Avery turned the most adorable shade of red yet. “I really think we need to get back to the group.”
“Fine.” I sighed so dramatically that Avery laughed. “But if I win, then you have to agree to be my girlfriend.”
Avery took my offered hand and gave me a very knowing smile. “And if I win, then I get to be.”
Avery
The science fair was so different this year, and it was all because of the guy standing next to me. Grayson looked amazing all dressed up. Although he agreed to wear some nice slacks and a dress shirt, he simply could not, under any circumstances, be coerced into tucking the shirt into his pants. He also wore his tie so loose around his neck it was practically a necklace. And then there were the sneakers. Of course, being Grayson, the entire outfit made him look like a Hollywood hipster instead of a slacker.
He was actually causing quite a stir among the crowd of science geeks. Many girls had taken much longer than necessary to stop and check out our project. The rumors of the hottie obviously spread as the day went along, because the traffic at our table got heavier and heavier.
It didn’t help that Grayson absolutely loved the attention. He was the star of the 2013 Utah State Science Fair, and he totally knew it. He stood there laughing with strangers and telling stories of our adventures—always making them sound much more dramatic or romantic than they really were. Every time someone would sigh, giggle, or gasp, he would flash me that special dimpled smile and then turn up his charm and win them over even more.
Eventually the judging committee got around to us, and it was time for us to present our project to them. People must have been waiting to hear everything in detail, because a large crowd gathered around us. I’d never seen one project garner quite so much attention before.
I was a nervous wreck, same as I was every year, except worse because of all the extra attention. Luckily, Grayson was there to help me out every time I got choked up from my anxiety. One small squeeze of his hand and my head would clear and I could focus again. I honestly could never have presented such a personal project without him.
Finally, I got to the last stage of grief, and I suddenly had twice the support. I took Aiden’s hand and he grinned at me—a smile every bit as beautiful as his brother’s.
“And to show the success of my project, I have brought the proof of my acceptance,” I said to the judges, pushing Aiden forward. “I’d like you to meet Aiden Kennedy—the boy who shattered my heart, and my very best friend in the whole world. As you can see, by experiencing the seven stages of grief, I have finally accepted what happened between us and have forgiven him completely.”
“Even if I don’t deserve it,” Aiden added, earning a round of chuckles from our audience.
I gave him a hug. He said he was sorry one more time and everyone clapped.
“A very impressive project, Miss Shaw,” one of the judges commented.
I was about to say thank you when Grayson stepped up next to me and said, “Impressive, but still incomplete.”
The judge who’d spoken to me—as well as the rest of the judging panel—was now watching Grayson with a curious expression, waiting for an explanation.
I couldn’t help sending him my own startled look. I didn’t know what he was up to, but I sincerely hoped he had a plan because if not, he might have just ruined our chances at placing in this fair.
Grayson winked at me and then turned his smile on the judges. “It’s true that Avery has proved she’s gone through the seven stages of grief and reached acceptance over what happened. However, if you read her original hypothesis, her intent was not to reach acceptance, but rather to cure her broken heart. Avery has not yet proved that her heart is cured. Would you agree?”
A low murmur swept the crowd, and a few of the judges were now frowning. “What are you doing?” I whispered, starting to panic.
Grayson answered my question louder than necessary. “I’m finishing the experiment, Aves.”
I glanced at the judges, and while I felt only confused, it was clear that they were all intrigued.
“You’re going to prove that my broken heart is cured? Right now?” I asked just to clarify.
“Nope. You are.”
“Me? What? How?”
Grayson didn’t answer me. He turned and addressed the crowd. “Ladies and gentlemen, please, if you will, gather around. I need your help in order to prove Avery’s theory a success.”
The crowd scooted in closer and went silent, holding their breaths in anticipation. I admit I was among those who’d stopped breathing as I waited for Grayson to get to his point.
Finally, he turned to me and said, “You believe your heart is completely cured, right?”
“Yes?” I said slowly.
Grayson’s smile spread wide across his face, but the look of mischief in his eyes frightened me. “Prove it,” he said.
“Prove it?”
“Yeah. Right now.”
“Um . . . ?”