Page 72 of Fighting Fate

“Is that not what you want?” he asks.

“It is,” I say. “It’s just not what my mother wanted.”

The smirk falls from his face. “Your mom was a teenager when she had you, right?”

I nod. “She says I ruined her body.”

Hunter huffs. “Your mother is an idiot.”

I don’t have an argument against what he’s saying, so I keep my lips pressed together. He is right. Sheisan idiot.

Before the football game begins, the dance team performs. I can’t bother to pay attention to their routine. Instead, I’m imagining what a future with Hunter would look like. It’s a dangerous game to play, but sometimes I wonder. I’m so lost in my thoughts that I don’t notice somebody walk up and sit down on the other side of me.

“Cove, hey.”

I look over and see Griffin take a seat. I furrow my brows, confused why he’s sitting by me. I thought we had left things pretty clear yesterday afternoon.

“Hey,” I say.

Hunter grunts. I look over and see him glaring at Griffin.

“Hey, Hunter,” Griffin nods at him.

Hunter doesn’t respond to Griffin, which surprises me. Maybe he’s mad at him for what happened yesterday. He is really protective of me and he doesn’t get that it wasn’t Griffin that made me cry, but I can’t explain that to him.

“What’s up?” I ask, turning back to Griffin.

He shrugs. “I just kind of felt bad about ditching you the day before homecoming without a date, so I wanted to come apologize. And if you really need a date, we can go as friends.”

Hunter turns to him. “I’m taking her, so don’t worry about it. Go sit with your East Raven friends.”

Griffin smirks, not at all put off by Hunter’s attitude toward him.

“I guess I’ll see you around, Cove.” Griffin smiles widely at me as he walks off.

He thinks he was right, but he couldn’t have been further from the truth. Hunter doesn’t like me, not at all.

When my phone vibrates a few seconds after he walks off, I already know it’s going to be Griffin. When I see Hunter pull his phone out, I want to snatch it from his hand before he can read it.

Hunter snorts. “That guy is annoying.”

I pull out my phone to see what he said.

GRIFFIN:Now you get to go to homecoming with who you want to go with.

I frown.

Why do people keep saying that? Eventually Hunter is going to figure out the truth and that is going to be really embarrassing. I don’t want him thinking I have a crush on him, even though Ido.

“Don’t worry about it, Trouble. You and I know the truth.” He slips his arm around the seat behind me.

Before I can respond, I see pink hair coming toward us. I sigh in relief when I see Harper. She will be a good buffer.

Harper is all decked out with a school jersey on—one of Reed’s, if I’m not mistaken. Her hair is pulled back with a big, red scrunchie, and she even has her face panted.

She grins widely as she takes the seat Griffin just vacated. “Sorry I’m late. I was giving Reed a pep talk before the same.”

I raise an eyebrow at her, calling her bluff. “Right. And you two didn’t make out at all.”

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