Page 80 of Rewind It Back

The living room is crowded with our friends, a mix of people from her sophomore class and my junior. It makes it easy stealing moments with her while at school because our friend group is big and we’re always together.

Luke comes back holding up a broken lamp. “At least it was from my room,” he says, throwing it in the trash and joining me to watch as Hallie opens all her presents. She gets a bunch of art supplies and some makeup. A few CDs which I know she’s stoked about because they’re becoming increasingly difficult to find.

She’s almost done opening all her gifts when the front door opens and a group of guys from the senior class walk in.

I recognize them immediately. They’re mostly football players—one is from the basketball team, and almost all of them are carrying a case or two of beer as they join the party.

The last person through the door is probably the most popular guy at our school—Grant Newcastle. He’s the captain of the football team, senior class president, and I fucking hate him.

He and Hallie are both in the student council, and ever since they planned the winter dance together, he’s been all over her.

“What the hell is he doing here?” I ask Luke, my tone sharp.

He looks at me suspiciously. “What happened to ‘why are you being weird’ and ‘we’re all friends?’”

“We’re not friends with that guy.”

Though, I do think Luke might give up a kidney if he could be.

“He asked Hallie to prom yesterday and she felt bad for saying no, so she invited him to her birthday party, I guess.”

I swear my eyes almost explode out of my head. “Excuse me, what?”

“Not sure why you’re yelling at me or what you’re confused about.”

I fully turn, facing him, but he’s still got his attention on the newcomers. “He asked your sister to prom?”

“Yeah.”

“And she said no?”

“Yep.”

“Because youtoldher to say no or because she didn’t want to go with him?”

Luke shrugs casually, and how he can be so casual about this, I have no fucking clue. “Probably because she assumed I wouldn’t be okay with it and said no before I could. I don’t know for sure.”

“But... are you saying you’d be okay with it?”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

What the actual fuck?

“I mean, it’s Grant Newcastle,” he continues. “Who wouldn’t want to go to the senior prom with the guy? Hell, even I’d say yes if he asked me. I told her she should tell him she changed her mind, but she didn’t want to.”

Grant scans the room and when he spots my girl, he instantly starts in her direction, a cocky smile plastered on his lips. He taps on her shoulder, and when he gets her attention, she grins that gorgeous smile, but I can’t tell if that’s a typical Hallie smile because she’s nice to everyone or if that one is reserved specifically for him.

Then he wraps her in a hug and holds on for way longer than he needs to.

I feel like I could throw up. Grant fucking Newcastle. How the hell am I supposed to compete with him? And why wouldn’t she go for him? The guy is going to Boston College on a full ride next year to play football. He’s got a perfect GPA. She wouldn’t have to hide him from her brother, and he’s staying close to town. Fucking great.

“Where’s the hard stuff?” one of the seniors asks, the same one holding two cases of beer.

No one responds because there isn’t any.

“Hart,” Grant calls out to Luke.

Leaning on the wall next to me, Luke stands up straighter like a puppy who’s finally about to get some attention.

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