Page 19 of Betting on You

I opened my mouth to argue, because he’d described theoppositeof Nekesa, but he added with a laugh, “Just kidding—they obviously have you on the wrong team.”

“Right?” She reached up and gathered her hair in her hands, like she was making a ponytail. “It’s the wrong team, but I’m glad because I want to be with Bailey.”

She gestured to me with her head, and once again, neither ofthem looked my way. She said, “I still can’t believe you’re here. When did you guys move back to Omaha?”

“Last summer. I go to Kennedy Prep.”

Ah, Kennedy Prep.So the Rolex might actually be real.

“How come I haven’t seen you at mass?” Nekesa let go of her hair, looked at me, and explained, “We used to be CCD buddies.”

I wasn’t Catholic, but a surprising number of my friends in Fairbanks had spent their elementary years going to those weekly classes at the church too. I didn’t even know whatC-C-Dstood for, but we’d never really been a church family either.

“We go to St. Patrick’s now.” He looked a little embarrassed and added, “It’s closer to our house.”

“Ooh—uptown,” she teased.

They shared a smile, and I wondered what their history was. CCD was way before I moved to Omaha, so I didn’t know Nekesa back then. But their vibe today felt a little flirty, which was weird because Nekesa was wildly in love with her boyfriend, Aaron.

I was probably reading it wrong.

I tuned out their catching-up chatter as I saw food approaching. I was starving but also mildly nervous about what kind of culinary offerings this place was going to have. Would an establishment whose core values werefunandbelly laughingreally care if their snacks were FDA approved?

“I heard there’s a hidden pub, just beyond the Galaxy of Funstaurants, that has better food than all the other places put together.”

I turned to my right, and there was Charlie.Where did he comefrom?I looked up at his face—damn, so tall—and was still torn between dreading the sight of him and finding a strange comfort in his presence.

It was a little unnerving, wondering when Mr. Nothing was going to show up and cancel out thisCharlie.So I just said, “Really?”

He leaned in a little closer, his lips turning up into a slow smirk. “It’s designated as a kid-free zone, so they put it in a separate corridor. The DJ told the Red Giants about it in confidence, but since I’m now of the House of Proto, betrayal of the Red Giants is my duty.”

“Nekesa—did you hear that?” I nudged her with my elbow and turned to my left. “Bar food up ahead.”

Charlie muttered, “You left out the part about my dutiful bravery.”

“I know,” I replied, not looking back at him.

I heard him say “Ouch,” and it kind of made me want to laugh.

Nekesa glanced at me and then looked back at Theo. “Bar food up ahead.”

Theo shook his head. “Constellation Pizza has calzones in the shape of Saturn. Rumor has it the rings are made out of breadsticks. Youcannotmiss out on that, Nekesa.”

She looked back and me and Charlie. “You guys, come on. Planetary pizza? We have to do that shit.”

Charlie shoved his hands into the pockets of his flight suit and turned to face us, so he was walking backward. “I’m sticking with bar food—Saturn pizza is too nauseatingly cute for me. Feel free tojoin me, Bailey, if you’d rather have fries and amazing conversation than fuckshit pizza.”

Did he just invite me to join him for lunch?

And if yes, why? Why would he do that?

“I believe the first is possible,” I said breezily, even though my mind was turning, clueless of how to make sense of this version of Mr. Nothing. “But not so much the second.”

I really wanted bar food, but I wasn’t sure I wanted the company that came with it.

“Oh, come on—we can finish whining to each other about our nightmarish home lives.” Charlie turned back around and slowed his pace, so he was walking right beside me. He lowered his voice so he was just talking to me and said, “Vent together now so we don’t kill later.”

He didn’tlooklike he was messing with me. His eyes were on mine, but he looked like he was waiting for my answer—nothing more, nothing less. Was it possible he’d grown up?

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