Page 16 of The Quarterback Sneak

Shaking my head, I rest a hand against his shoulder. “Nah, Mike, it’s you I need to speak to, and it’s about Zach.”

“Zach? As in Zach Evans?” Surprise laces his voice, but he watches me closely.

“Yeah, you’re friends, right?” He nods. “Well, I talked to him the other day.”

“You did? What about?”

“He told me about the bet, and I need you to verify it.”

“What bet?”

I slump, studying Mike’s face because he should know what I’m talking about. “The bet between Jamie and some of the football team,” I say, a little less confidently than before.

Mike’s features soften, and his mouth slacks. “Oh. That.” I cross my arms and raise my brows.

“Yeah. That.” My heart beats faster, but I don’t show it.

“Look, I honestly thought it was all a joke, you know, locker room chest-puffing; otherwise, I would have mentioned it to you already.”

“What’s the bet?”

“I thought you said Zach told you?”

“He did, but I want to make sure I’m not being shafted by him too.”

“Nah.” A little grin pulls at the side of his lip. “Zach isn’t like that. He wouldn’t shaft anyone. Especially not for the football team.”

Interesting.

“What’s the bet?” I ask again.

Mike chews his bottom lip and glances over his shoulder, looking for Olivia, I presume. “I’m still not sure it was real, but it was between Jamie, Kyle, and a couple of other guys.” Well, at least I know Zach wasn’t lying. “It was something about you going on a date with one of them. I wasn’t really listening because I knew it was ridiculous.”

“Is that why you didn’t tell me?”

He lifts a shoulder. “I just kind of thought you wouldn’t be naive enough to go for any of those idiots.” He pauses. “But I also didn’t want to upset you after everything else…”

“Where’s Zach?” Standing on my tiptoes, I look around for his blond hair.

Mike cranes his neck, looking through the crowd that I can’t see because of my height. “I’m pretty sure he left after his speech. He hates these things and only came tonight because Coach forced him to.”

The adrenaline running through my body slows, and I take a deep breath. It’s fine. I can talk to him at school or at the game tomorrow. It will give me time to focus my thoughts and next steps.

“Do you want me to give you his number?” he asks.

“No, no. I’m good. Can you tell Olivia I’m heading home, and I’ll talk to her tomorrow?” I walk backward, watching Mike’s sympathetic face. “Oh, and if anyone asks, I don’t know a thing about the bet, okay?” He nods, pursing his lips.

Then I make my way to the parking lot, ready to take on these idiot football players.

Chapter Six

Zach

Pulling out my mouth guard, the blood pumps through my body, exacerbating the thumping in my head from a knock I sustained earlier in the game. As expected, we won, but when I look out into the crowd and only see a bunch of rich pricks, it all feels a little hollow. My parents couldn’t come, and the game was way past Ella’s bedtime, so Tiff had to stay home. Not that I’d want them here among these students, but I just miss the days of playing football for the fun of it with teammates I liked.

I miss North Central High.

The rest of the team rush off the bench, storming the field in celebration as I walk away. No one will miss me in their pile-up, so I pull my helmet off, ready to go home. Coach clocks me, and when I point to the tunnel, indicating that I’m leaving, he nods, mouthing a Thank youfor everything I did tonight.

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