Page 96 of Sporty Girls Don't Fall For Loners

“Dude!” I call as I chase after him. Then I stop and glance around. There are so many people in here and it takes me a second to find him. He’s climbing the stairs toward the back, where there are available seats. Darn it. We should have come here earlier. Those aren’t the best seats.

He slips into a row and waves my M&M’s in the air, a teasing grin on his face. I just stare at him. He’s acting so carefree, like he doesn’t have any hardships. I’m so glad he’s in a better place now and is having fun.

Shaking my head at him, I make my way up the stairs and into the row. “You’re such a bad boy.” I reach for my snack, but he holds it away from me. “I swear if you drop that popcorn…”

He snuggles it to his chest. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep this popcorn safe. Can’t say the same for your poor M&M’s.”

I hold out a different candy bar to him. “Trade? This is much better than M&M’s.”

He taps his chin as he ponders it. “Nope.”

“Dude, I paid for those,” I tease. Of course I’ll let him have them if he wants them. I just like teasing him because I love seeing that smile.

He plops down on the chair, setting the tub of popcorn at his feet. Then he holds the M&M’s bag in the air. “What else will you offer me in exchange for these delicious M&M’s?”

I clasp my hands together. “My eternal gratitude?”

He twists his mouth.

“I’ll be your best friend forever and ever?”

He squints. “You already have best friends and I’d never ask you to replace them.”

I throw my hands up. “Then what do you want?”

He bends close, so close that my breath hitches. “All I want from you,” he whispers, “is—”

“Excuse me,” a voice says from above us. Two guys gesture for us to give them room to slide into the row, where there are empty seats at the other end.

“Sorry,” I say as Kade and I move aside. The guys thank us and scoot down the aside.

I turn back to Kade. He holds the M&M’s out to me. “Here you go. The movie will start soon and you need your snacks.”

I want to ask him what he was going to say. What could he want from me? But from the look on his face, I get the feeling he’d rather drop the subject.

He places the popcorn on his lap, takes a handful, then passes the tub to me. I munch on a few, trying not to overthink what’s happening between us. Two friends can goof around, right? It doesn’t mean anything. Or does it?

He shifts in his seat as the previews begin, pressing his arm on the armrest between our seats and accidentally knocking my arm off. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine.” I hold out the popcorn and he takes another handful.

He stays away from the shared armrest. I do, too.

When the movie starts, I focus on it and not on how close he is, or the fact that I can smell his scent. Even though we’re turned away from each other, it still overwhelms me. It makes me feel warm, protected, and comfortable.

Good thing we chose this movie because there is zero romance in it. It’s basically about a group of people blowing things up and there are many car chases. It’s not my type, but like I said—anything other than romance.

Sometime during a fight scene, I don’t realize my hand is in the popcorn tub until warm fingers touch mine. They pull away like they touched something hot.

I look at Kade and he looks at me. For some weird reason, I can’t get myself to pull my hand out of the tub. He places his hand inside as well, his fingers moving around until they brush against mine. Then he laces his through mine, giving my hand a light squeeze.

When I look at him again, I find his eyes on mine. And even though it’s dark in here, I can see just how intense and full of emotion they are.

There’s a loud crash from the movie and I jump in my seat, removing my hand from the tub.

“Oh my gosh,” I mutter. “That scared me.”

And I’m not the only one. Most of the people in the theater are clutching their chests or laughing awkwardly to their friends.

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