Page 87 of Chasing Infinity

Despite our insignificant moment in the hallway, nothing has changed other than me not making her life miserable at every opportunity. No, if anything, it leads to a truce at best and an understanding at worst.

I roll my eyes, choosing not to linger on the subject. Instead, I walk into the school to stick my stuff in my locker. It doesn’t even matter. As far as I can tell, Parks is still hung up on Eli Montgomery. Not that I’d be interested in her anyway, but it makes my friends’ efforts moot. She’s part of the light side, and I’m over here firmly rooted in the dark. As long as Declan McCoy is mayor, I’m not sure I’ll ever get the chance to be seen as anything other than his son. Which means all the negative connotations that come with that title.

I am a McCoy, after all. There’s really no getting around that. Addison Parks can do a lot better than me, even if it is with stupid Eli.

I hear a commotion down the hallway, and I look up from what I’m doing, and my mouth goes dry.Holy shit,Caleb was right. It’s as if Addison Parks left at the end of last summer as ugly a duckling as ever but came back a swan. She’s down the hall catching up with Grace. She tosses her head back with a laugh, and I blink at her as if I’m not sure what I’m seeing.

Her normally mousy brown hair has a tint of gold in it from the hours spent in the sun. It catches in the light as she tosses it over her shoulders. I can see those freckles over her nose, more pronounced even from where I’m standing a few yards away from her. Her skin looks soft, now tan from the summer, accentuated by the white tank top she wears. I avert my eyes when I notice the jean shorts, displaying her toned legs.

Something tightens in my chest, and I absently rub at it as I stare at her, taking her in entirely for the first time. Addison Parks looks—wow.

Grace closes her locker, and then the two of them walk down the hallway toward where I’m standing like I just got struck by lightening. Addison’s walking on the side closest to me, and as she gets closer, panic sets in. I turn around and focus on my task at my locker, trying not to make it obvious that I was watching her.

Still, I can’t help but peek as she walks by me. My heart is beating so fast I can hear it in my ears. Parks glances over at me as she passes, her lips pulling up slightly as she gives me a small wave. I do nothing to respond, but I turn and watch her as she walks toward her classroom. The scent of vanilla and lavender follows in her wake and overwhelms my senses.

As soon as she’s out of my vicinity, my heart rate calms to a healthier pace. However, my stomach is left in knots. I wonder if something that I ate for breakfast wasn’t fresh or maybe the smell of her perfume was too strong. That’s the only thing I allow myself to think as explanation for the weird visceral reaction I just had.

It happens again the next day, and this time, I conclude it has nothing to do with what I’ve eaten. I’m standing outside in the school’s courtyard, polishing off a bagel I snatched from the breakfast menu. She sneaks up and startles me enough, making me drop my bagel onto the grass. I turn to her and arch a brow, waiting.

“Hi Noah,” she says softly, unsure where we stand with each other. I can’t really blame her. It’s like we’re in limbo right now. I wouldn’t call us friends, but we’re no longer enemies.

“Parks,” I say back. I must have grown another inch or two over the summer. She seems so much shorter than me than a few months ago. “Good summer?”

Addison looks down at the grass and then bends to pick up my poor discarded bagel. She hands it back to me. “Yes, you? I didn’t see you around town much.”

Something flutters in my chest, but I suppress it and clear my throat. “We were in Florida for the summer. My mom wanted to get us away from my father.”

“Oh,” her eyes find mine again, and she searches my face. “Is everything… are you okay?”

“As good as I can be when your father’s the mayor,” I say, trying to come off as jovial, but I know she can see right through it. The scent of her perfume lingers around me again, lavender and vanilla. Now that I’m getting more of a whiff, I realize that Ireallylike it.

The bell rings, and Parks looks away from me towards the school. “I better go. Charlie and Eli will probably wonder where I am. I’ll… see you around?”

“Sure. Later, Parks.”

She offers me a soft smile and then turns away from me to walk into the school. My stomach twists almost painfully as I stare after her. I look down at the bagel in my hand. It’s covered in dirt with a few pieces of grass plastered to the top. I scowl before walking over to the trash can and chucking it in. I head to class and try not to think about the lavender and vanilla essence surrounding me.

The year continues uneventfully. I do my best to keep my good grades and maintain my GPA, but I always come in right behind Parks no matter how hard I try. It may be one of the few things I admire about her—her ability to keep her head down and do what she needs to do to succeed.

Fall rolls around, and the posters go up to remind everyone to purchase tickets for the homecoming game and dance the following night. The minute word about a dance gets out, everyone acts like absolute fools. All the girls come to school dressed up as if they’re trying to attract the attention of a male to take them to the dance. And the guys? Well, most of them buy right into it.

Thankfully, for the second year in a row, I’m single. That means I don’t have to waste my money buying the limo and the special dinner or stress myself out trying to find a tie that matches her dress perfectly. Not having a girlfriend has turned into a blessing in disguise.

As the dance gets closer and closer, I’m forced to witness and listen to more homecoming proposals than I ever care to hear. But the most annoying one of all comes on a random Thursday at lunch hour.

“Can I have everyone’s attention?” Eli Montgomery’s annoying ass announces to the cafeteria. I look up from where I’m leaning against the wall and see him standing up on a table bench. My nose crinkles at him, and I know I will not like whatever he’s about to do. Jordan and Caleb look at me, silently asking if they should put a stop to it. I shake my head, curious to see how this will play out.

Eli hops down off the bench and then turns towards Parks, reaching down to take her hand so he can help her stand up too. Addison looks between him and her other friends, still sitting at the table. I notice the blush forming on her cheeks from across the room, and I narrow my eyes. She doesn’t like attention, it seems.

“What are you doing?” she asks Eli.

Eli leans in and whispers something in her ear before turning towards the rest of the student body in the cafeteria and looking at them victoriously. He turns back to Parks and takes her other hand.

“Addison Parks, will you go to homecoming with me?” Eli asks her in a voice loud enough that everyone can hear. He puffs his chest out, standing straight. A vast, confident smile takes root on his face, and it suddenly occurs to me that there’s no doubt in his mind that she’ll say yes.

I’m not sure why, but that bugs me. A lot.

I suddenly decide I don’t want to watch this entire exchange anymore, and I turn to leave out of the cafeteria. I decide to eat somewhere else, not sure I can stomach the sight of Eli and Parks canoodling across the cafeteria while I try to eat a ham sandwich. Jordan and Caleb trail after me, snickering.

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