Page 1 of The Perfect Game

One

Serena

My eyelids lowered for the tenth time as I tried to concentrate on Mr. Kendall’s lecture. It would be easy to say this was the first time I’d been ready for a nap while listening to his monotone voice, but that would be a lie. He could make the most exciting story sound like it was just another day at the park.

The scent of garbage sent my gag reflex into motion, and my eyes opened to find a sneaker held in front of my nose. I swatted it away, doing my best to keep from throwing up. Once I was under control, I turned to the kid next to me, Colt Buttars. What a jerk.

“Are you serious right now? Those are disgusting,” I whispered as harshly as I could, sneaking a glance toward the front to see if Mr. Kendall noticed. Nope, still focused on his notes.

Even with the shoe away from my face, it was as if the stench had formed its own cloud and was stuck there. I leaned away from Colt and did my best to wave away the air in front of me. It was all I could do to control my breathing as I kept my bagel down. Why were guys so gross?

It didn’t help that I had one of the most sensitive noses known to man. Well, that was an exaggeration. More sensitive than anyone I’d ever met.

“Do you have something to add to the discussion, Miss Gates?” Mr. Kendall asked from the front of the room.

I frowned, not sure what he meant, until I looked at my waving hand.

Shaking my head, I said, “No. Just trying to get some air in here.” I shot Colt a look, grinding my teeth together. He was so immature. Just like James.

I rolled my eyes and sank down in the chair of my desk, swallowing to get rid of the ball that had formed in my throat at the thought of another jerk in my life. As much as I wanted to think I was different from every other girl at Rosemont High, or at least in the sophomore class, I’d been duped by a boy. I’d had a crush on James, a senior basketball player, since day one of the school year, and when he finally paid attention to me a few weeks back, I’d become the giggling, swooning teenage girl I’d always made fun of.

When I found him making out with another girl at a party a week after we’d started talking and hanging out, I was the typical girl in a romantic comedy, eating pints of ice cream and forgetting what day it was as I cried my eyes out. But that Serena Gates was now behind me. I’d sworn off men for the foreseeable future. It had already made things so much easier.

If only that resolution had been able to raise my grades that fast.

I stared out the window, wishing I was in the pool in our backyard instead of trying to stay awake from the boredom. If my ability to play volleyball in the fall wasn’t directly affected by my current less-than-stellar grades, I probably would have skipped today to do just that.

“What do you think was the purpose of the play,Our Town?” Mr. Kendall asked, strolling back and forth in front of the class. He was a younger teacher, and he was cool for the most part, but I could definitely see the nerdy side of him every once in a while. Like now, with this lame stage play.

Lisa, the girl who answered just about every question in class, raised her hand. I flicked my gaze to the clock on the wall to my left, groaning when I saw it had only been five minutes since the last time I looked. The girl’s voice filtered through the room, and only a few words made it to my brain before I tuned her out.

I pulled out my phone, holding it under the desk with my left hand. My right hand held a pen and hovered over a notebook in the hopes that it would look like I was taking notes. Penny, one of my best friends and the star softball pitcher, would probably laugh at the whole scene. I’d never seen anyone with notes as meticulous as hers. I just had to make sure she never saw my report card or she’d probably disown me as a friend.

I scrolled through my social media accounts, trying not to focus on how I would probably grow old and die right there with how slow this class was going today. My ears finally picked up a topic I actually needed, and I put my phone away, focusing on what Mr. Kendall had to say.

“As a way to earn some last-minute extra-credit points for my class, you can attendOur Townat the Hayes Theater this weekend. If you write a five-page paper at the end of it, you’ll earn fifty points toward your final grade.”

My mouth dropped open, and the first surge of excitement I’d felt all day sent tingles through my upper body. Mr. Kendallnevergave out extra credit, but fifty points could go a long way toward helping my D+ turn into a passing grade. I needed to remember the relief of an extra-credit opportunity at this time next year. Maybe starting out the semester with better habits wouldn’t have me scrambling to make grades.

“How was your little nap there, Gates?” Colt asked, walking next to me as we left the room.

“If I ever have to smell an article of your clothing again, I’ll beat you.” I tried to keep a fierce expression, but I couldn’t help but smile as he looked like he didn’t believe me. I’d known him since elementary school, being in the same grade, and the kid was the most annoying person I’d ever met, but when it came to sports, he was pretty chill. Penny had said something about him beating out a senior for the starting spot as third baseman, so he must be pretty good at baseball.

“I’d like to see that,” said a familiar voice behind me in the hall.

I turned to find Jake, Penny’s boyfriend, passing with a couple of the other baseball players trailing him. Colt moved into their group like a duck to his family, and I shook my head. Boys.

One of the guys at the back of the group stared at me as the group walked down the hall, his head turning back until they’d moved around the corner. I only knew him as Ben the Pitcher, which is how Penny distinguished all the guys for us non-baseball fans. He was cute, but I’d never really talked to him before. And now was not the time to start liking other boys.

Shaking my head, I headed in the direction of my locker.

“How was English today, Serena?” Brynn asked, pulling a book out of her locker as I stopped by mine a few doors down. I looked at the book I recognized as being for one of the advanced placement classes and groaned. The two of us were only sophomores, but Brynn took school as seriously as Penny, which made it hard to fully complain about what I was going through in my regular classes.

I shrugged. “It was all right. I’ve got to go see a play to get some extra credit. Are you free on Friday?”

Brynn frowned. “I wish. My parents want to go camping this weekend. Not exactly the thing I want to do with how hot it’s supposed to be outside. Maybe Penny or Kate?”

“I doubt Penny will be free. Ever since prom, she’s attached to Jake at the hip. But I’ll see what Kate’s doing.” It hadn’t hit me until now but I did not want to go to this play by myself, bonus points or not.

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