Page 1 of Love is a Game

Prologue

The cafeteria seemed to grow louder each day as the end of the school year approached. Teenagers sat on tables and ran through the room, taking advantage of their burned-out teachers. In the back corner, at a nearly empty table, Sadie twirled the end of her long, blonde ponytail around her finger as she watched her sister write the wrong answer on her math practice sheet for the third time.

“Don’t forget the order of operations,” Sadie reminded her gently.

“The order of what? You mean the parentheses thing?” Julie asked.

Sadie sighed. “Yes, the parentheses thing. Focus, okay? I’ll show you again.”

Julie dropped her head to the table and groaned. “It’s useless. I’ll never remember it all.”

“You only need to remember enough to pass,” Sadie offered reassuringly.

Julie whimpered. “I hate math.”

“So let’s make sure you don’t have to do it over again.” Sadie wiggled the practice sheet out from under her sister’s face and put a hand on her back. “Watch.”

She went through the questions again, poking Julie’s arm every time her eyes began to glaze over. She had offered to help her sister study dozens of times during the school year, but it wasn’t until Mr. Alvarez told her she’d have to repeat freshman algebra if she didn’t pass her final that Julie finally accepted her help

“You can do this. I know you can.”

Julie’s mumbled response didn’t sound very optimistic.

Sadie leaned in and said quietly, “Mr. Alvarez gives extra credit points for jokes and drawings. Do your best on the test, and then draw him one of your masterpieces on the back of the paper, okay? It might just make the difference.”

Julie sat up, her eyes wide with sudden hope. “Really?”

“Yes, but don’t tell anyone. He told us during the senior campout last summer, but I don’t think he meant to.”

Julie grabbed her in a tight hug. “I knew having a nerd for a sister would pay off. Thank you!”

“Wow, thanks,” Sadie said, rolling her eyes and grinning. She straightened up the books and papers in front of them and packed them into Julie’s too-small messenger bag for her. “I have to get to chem. You’ve got this.”

“Wait!” Julie sat up and reached for her hand. “Can you drive me to the mall after school? Everyone wants to go see a movie.”

“Sorry, can’t. I’m golfing with Dad.”

Julie looked crestfallen. “Are you serious? Can’t you drop me off first? Please?” She clasped her hands in a prayer position and pulled a pathetic face. Sadie chuckled but was unmoved.

“Why don’t you ask that sophomore boyfriend of yours to drive you? He has a car, right?”

Julie’s cheeks exploded with color. “Tyson’s not my boyfriend,” she hissed, looking around to make sure no one overheard.

“Maybe if he drives you to the movies, he will be.” Sadie wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, laughing at her sister’s discomfort.

The bell rang, and she stood, slinging her own backpack over her shoulder. She’d already returned most of her textbooks so the lighter load felt strange.

“Now I really have to go. Good luck,” she said, moving away from the table.

“With my test or with . . . the other thing?” Julie asked.

Sadie grinned. “Tell him you want to celebrate passing your final. He’ll drive you.”

She left the cafeteria and headed toward her class. There were fewer of her senior classmates in the hallway now. Senioritis had set in months earlier, but not for her. She hadn’t made it to the top of her class by slacking off at the end of the year.

As she entered her chemistry class, her teacher stopped her. “Oh, Sadie, Ms. Haverman wants to see you. You can head up there now.”

“Okay, thanks,” Sadie said, trying to hide her widening smile as she turned away from the classroom.

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