Page 34 of Love Me Steadfast
“Unequivocally good.”
“Nice.”
We turn the corner and enter the shade of the courtyard. Sometimes kids hang out here after school, but it’s almost empty today. From the front of the school comes the rumble of several buses pulling away.
“So, I um, want to ask you something.”
My stomach takes a dive.
“Homecoming,” he blurts. “Will you go with me?”
It’s like the words travel through molasses to get to my brain. Homecoming? “Oh, Crosby, I…”
“We can go as friends, if you want. There’s a group going. Josh and Crystal, and Neil’s asking Emmie. It would be fun.”
Homecoming isn’t even on my radar. It’s a month away! And it’s not that I don’t want to go, but maybe I was hoping it would be more…special.
“Do you mean it, about the friends part?” I risk a glance at him.
“Of course.” His tone has an edge of hurt, and I feel bad for avoiding him these past few weeks. “I’m sorry about the…kiss. It won’t happen again.”
I file this away for later. “Then, yes. I’d love to go.” I mean, what if this is my only chance?
His face lights up. “Excellent!”
At the band room, we say goodbye—thankfully, without one ofhis awkward hugs—and he continues on to where his dad picks him up on the other side of the field to avoid the traffic.
As I step into the noisy band room to trade my backpack for my trumpet, I wait for the excitement to kick on inside me. After all, I have a date to HoCo and it’s only the first day of school! And I’m sure Emmie will say yes to Neil because they’ve been meeting under the bleachers to make out after band practice since August. So I’ll get to go with one of my best friends. Maybe we can go dress shopping together. Her mom is super nice.
But it’s like my internal thermostat is set at lukewarm.Be grateful, I tell myself. Crosby’s a little nerdy, but he can be fun. We’ll have a good time, with minimal drama. That’s a better experience than a lot of people will have.
“Will’sfamily’s having a cookout at Hazel Creek on Saturday for his birthday,” Theo says when he picks me up after band practice. “They’ve invited us.”
“Us?” I ask to clarify.
“Linnea’s friends with Mo. I think it’d be good for them to hang out. She’s a good kid.”
The things he’s not saying blip in my mind like a neon sign. Morgan’s got a reason to go, and Theo’s got a reason to go, but I’m only invited because we run in a pack?
“Who else will be there?” I try to stop myself from picturing Will with one of his many admirers hanging on him all night, but it happens anyway.
Theo shakes his head. “It’s just his family.”
During Friday’s game,the Falcons score so many touchdowns, we play the victory song on repeat. I try hard not to hyperfocus on William, but whenever number 26 takes to the field, it’s like the air molecules vibrate on an alternate frequency. He’s so commandingout there. So confident. Theo says Will has a gift, and even though I pride myself in knowing as little as possible about sports, it’s obvious my brother’s right.
Throughout it all, I try to keep an eye on Morgan, who spends all of five minutes watching the game and the rest of the time hanging out with her various friend groups. During a break before the second half, I catch her with a group of upperclassmen—all guys. One of them is tickling her and she’s laughing and squirming like a little kid. It’s so blatant what they’re doing, and she’s so fucking clueless that it’s happening. Or maybe she just can’t resist the attention?
After the game, I can’t find her in the spot we agreed to meet, and panic starts licking up my spine. I scan the families and groups of kids filtering down from the stadium to the access road leading to the parking lot, but I don’t see her. I weave through the crowd, asking everyone I recognize, but nobody’s seen her. My worry spreads like a burn inside my chest. I end up outside the boy’s locker room to intercept Theo when he comes out.
“Charlotte?”
I whirl around, nearly crashing into William. He’s wearing a Falcons T-shirt and a pair of gray sweats, and blue and white pool slides with white socks on his feet. His football gear bag is slung over one shoulder and his helmet and pads dangle from his opposite hand.
“Is Theo still in there?” I ask him.
“Yeah, he had to meet with the trainer.” He frowns. “What’s up?”
“I can’t find Morgan. She didn’t show up at our meeting spot.”
