“Or hitlist,” Val muttered.
Scarlett shrugged, “You know what they say. Better to be talked about than not noticed at all. Anyway, I’m done. You wanna go lift some weights?”
“Let’s go,” as they walked, Val asked, “So what did Addison say happened between me and Porter.”
“Just that you two were alone for a whole hour and when you came back you didn’t have any makeup on.”
“So?”
Scarlett eyed Val, “So the obvious conclusion is that—“ she made a bobbing motion with her head; when Val still looked at her with raised eyebrows she said, “You’re gonna make me say it, aren’t you?”
“I don’t get what you’re trying to say,” Val admitted, “So yeah, it would help if you just came right out and explained.”
Scarlett grimaced, stopping in the stairwell that led down into the weight room. “What I’m trying to say is that the most logical sequence of events is you two went somewhere to have a little fun, and Porter had a little too much fun on your face, and you had to clean it up. Get it now?”
Bile filled Val’s mouth as comprehension dawned on her, “Oh my gosh—I can see why Avery would hate me, if she thinks that. But it’s not what happened!”
“Doesn’t matter,” Scarlett replied, “Everyone thinks it did, so as far as Palm Lake is concerned you and Porter hooked up. It’s not entirely a bad thing; there are a lot of people, especially seniors, who wanted to see Avery brought down a peg, and you did it. A freshman stealing her boyfriend! And during school, too!” A small smile crept across the redhead’s face, “It makes for a good story, at the very least.”
Val nodded, lost in her own thoughts. She followed Scarlett down into the weight room, where several muscled boys were busily moving about.
“This is the football team,” Scarlett explained, anticipating Val’s question, “They lift during the same time we normally have practice, but they don’t get Fridays off like we do.”
“Scarlett!” Josh from Val’s Flag Football class walked up. He set the dumbbell he was holding on the floor and hugged Val’s friend.
“Hey Josh,” Scarlett said, “I brought a friend today.”
“I can see that.” Josh looked at Val, “You’re the girl in my p.e. class, right? Porter’s friend?”
Val nodded, “Is he here?”
“Yeah, he’s down there,” Josh pointed to a row of shoulder press machines.
“Oh, well—you know what Scarlett, maybe I should just go?” Val looked at Scarlett, hoping the older girl would let her avoid the potentially awkward situation without much fuss.
“Nonsense,” Scarlett leaned in and whispered so Josh wouldn’t overhear, “It’s no use avoiding him now. Best thing to do is pretend that nothing happened. The more you react to gossip like this, the more you feed it.”
“Yeah,” Val replied, “I guess you have a point. What do you want to do first, then?”
“Squats,” Scarlett pointed to a few bars that were raised to approximately shoulder level by a metal shelf. Each one had a belt attached to it that fell slowly as the boys at the occupied bars lowered themselves down, and raised back as they stood back up.
“Is this one taken?” Scarlett asked as both she and Val took positions at the empty station.
“Nope,” an extremely tall boy answered. He smiled, “Why, you two want a go?”
“Yeah,” Scarlett answered.
The tall boy laughed, “You sure you’re not gonna break your back or something? Your friend especially looks a little—small,” he leered at Val; the way his eyes worked up and down, digesting her, made Val uncomfortable.
“We’re fine. Go back to whatever you were gonna do,” Scarlett replied; she pulled weights off the end of their station’s bar and placed them on a nearby rack.
“Well I was spotting Cameron here, but all of a sudden I’m thinking I’d much rather—take in the scenery,” he returned his gaze to Val, winking to emphasize his point, “Speaking of which, what’s your name, honey?”
“Valentina—or Val. I don’t really—“
“She’s too young for you,” Scarlett scowled, “You’re a senior, right?”
“Yes ma’am,” the tall boy replied, “But too young for me is kind of a relative term.” He took a step closer to Val, “I think you’re the perfect age for me, Val. Perfect height too, and perfect name. Come to think about it, you’re just perfect.” With a jolt, Val noticed Porter walking towards the three of them.
Val blushed, “Thank you.”
Before she could say anything else, Scarlett laid a hand on her arm, “Nevermind, let’s go do something else.”
Porter was getting closer, close enough to hear the conversation. “No, I think we should do some squats,” Val said; she batted her eyelashes at the tall boy, “Would you want to spot me?” With satisfaction, she noticed Porter tense. Maybe if I make him jealous, he’ll admit that he actually has feelings for me. She didn’t believe that he viewed her as just a friend.
“Val?”
“Oh, hey Porter,” Val smiled sweetly.
“What are you doing here?”
“Me and my new friend were just going to do some squats,” she put an arm around the tall boy, and he mirrored the gesture.
“No you weren’t,” Porter said flatly. “Isn’t that right, Ethan?”
The tall boy tensed as well, “I can do what I want, Porter. You’re not the boss of me.”
“Maybe not, but I can speak to Coach about your—personal habits.” The last part didn’t make sense to Val, but it took all the fight out of Ethan.
“Fine,” he said, taking his arm away from Val, “I’ll just go do some dead lifts.” He walked away.
Porter shook his head at Val, an angry look on his face, “What was that about?”
Val maintained as innocent a look as she could, “Like I said, we were just gonna do some squats. I don’t see why you had to scare him off.”
Porter took a step closer to Val, so she could see the individual flecks of color in his blue eyes, “Ethan has been known to—do things with young girls.”
“Like what?” Val asked.
Scarlett sidestepped so she could be a part of the conversation, “Like rufi-ing them.”
“Oh,” comprehension dawned on Val’s face; she wrapped her arms around Porter, “But you saved me!”
Porter ducked out of the embrace, “Don’t read too much into it. This means nothing. I only intervened because I know Keenan would be devastated if something happened to you. He’s head over heels for you, you know.” He left before Val could reply.
Val turned to Scarlett, “I think I should just go home.”
“Yeah, that would probably be for the best,” Scarlett agreed, “Some days it’s like that down here. I think all the weightlifting just brings out a lot of testosterone, especially if Mr. Sharp isn’t here to keep the boys in check. Oh well,” Scarlett looked at the squat bar, “We didn’t really get a workout like I planned, but I guess there’s always next week.”
“Sorry, that was probably my fault.” Val followed Scarlett back up the steps and into the girls’ locker room.
“A little,” Scarlett admitted, “You can’t encourage guys like Ethan. If they don’t think they have a shot, they’ll back off. But not if you actively flirt with them.”
Val sighed, “I was just trying to make him jealous.”
“Who? Porter?”
Val nodded.
Scarlett laughed, “Mission accomplished. He was pretty intense down there.”
“Yeah, but only because he wanted to keep Keenan from getting hurt.”
“If you think that’s all there was to it,” Scarlett caught Val’s gaze, “You don’t read people very well. Heck, Porter did everything but come out and stake his claim on you.”
“He did?” Val allowed her hopes to rise, “But he told me earlier today that he only thought of me as a friend.”
“Well yeah, but he kinda has to say that. Think about it; ho
w bad would it be if he admitted that he wanted his brother’s girl?” Scarlett pulled her bag from her locker, “Especially because you obviously like Porter more. If he told you he felt the same way, you’d dump his brother in a second.”
“I don’t like Porter more though,” Val replied, a little defensively.
Scarlett raised her eyebrows, “Uh huh. I’m not judging you for it, but I’m just saying—if you were so infatuated with Porter’s brother, you wouldn’t even be looking at any other guy.”
Their conversation, and the events leading up to it, gave Val a lot to think about. She called a cab to take her home, and while on the way all sorts of thoughts climbed through Val’s mind. Do I like Porter better? If so, is there a nice way to say, ‘hey, I’m ditching you for your brother?’ The invariable answer was no; the only way to do right by Keenan was to allow their relationship to take its course.
Keenan was waiting for Val in the basement when she got home, “Hey, I thought you’d be home around five.” He twisted to see her from his spot on the couch.
“Oh, Val gulped, “Yeah, sorry. I forgot I was gonna have to call someone to drive me home, so it took a bit longer than I expected.” She looked at the roman-style clock on the wall: it read 5:27. “So, my parents said they’d be home by eleven, but I was thinking the best way to do this would be if we finished at ten-thirty.”
“Cool,” Keenan pulled out his phone, “I’ll text Alex and see if he’s willing to pick me up then. Speaking of which,” he completed the text and put his phone away, “Alex told me he heard some rather disturbing rumors regarding you and my brother.”
Wow, that was fast. Val supposed it shouldn’t have surprised her that Alex had already heard the rumor; he knew a lot of upperclassmen. “Just rumors,” was all Val said.
“Good,” Keenan breathed an audible sigh of relief, “I don’t know what I’d do if you left me, Val. You’re just so great, and I—“ he touched Val’s face as she sat down on the couch next to him, “—I love you.”
Val panicked, “Um—“ she tried to keep her emotions from showing on her face, but Keenan’s falling expression told her she was doing a lousy job. “Me too,” she lied, a little too late.
“You don’t have to say it if you don’t mean it,” Keenan looked crestfallen; it hurt to see him so obviously wounded.
“No, I do. Here, let me show you,” before Keenan could move, she leaned in and planted a kiss on his lips.
Keenan laughed, his face only inches from Val’s; at that distance, he looked almost identical to Porter. “Prove it again,” he joked, and closed for another kiss.
Val tried to forget all her worries of the day in that kiss, and just live in the present. When they pulled apart a full minute later, Keenan smiled. “You’re a really good kisser,” he said.
“Thanks. You are too.” Val returned his smile; her stomach growled loudly.
“Oh my god, was that you?”
Val nodded sheepishly, “Sorry. I haven’t eaten in a while.”
“It’s fine. But we should get some food in you,” Keenan stood up from the couch. “Do you have anything in your fridge?”
“Yeah, we have leftover chicken marsala. We could share it, if you want.”
“Sounds like a good deal,” Keenan frowned, then added, “But only so long as you get your fair share. You’re thin enough as is.”
Val stuck her tongue out at Keenan, “I’m not too skinny, am I?”
“No, you’re perfect. And besides, you’ve got meat in all the right places,” Keenan winked.
Val couldn’t help but laugh, “That started out as such a nice complement!” She took Keenan by the hand, “Here, let’s go eat dinner.”
They went up the stairs; Val popped the chicken and noodles in the microwave, and talked with Keenan while it cooked.
“Have you ever dated anyone else?” she asked.
Keenan shook his head, “Nope. How about you?”
“Nope,” Val smiled, “Obviously not. So I guess we’re both pretty new to this.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
The conversation faltered for a minute; Val started at the microwave.
Keenan finally broke the silence, “What actually happened with you and Porter?”
Val shrugged, “It’s a long story.”
“We have time.” The microwave buzzer rang.
Val retrieved their food and grabbed two forks and a pair of plates. She set the steaming microwave-safe plastic container on the small table just outside the kitchen; it was supposed to be reserved for private family meals, but Val preferred the small table to the much more sizable one in her family’s dining room. “Well,” she began as Keenan dropped into the chair beside her and helped himself to a healthy portion of noodles, “You know Avery, right?”
“Yeah, we’ve met,” Keenan frowned, “I usually try to avoid her though.”
“Ok, well Avery is the captain of the soccer team—“ Val relayed the whole incident, taking small pauses to eat a few forkfuls of the chicken, which had been dried out by its long stint in the microwave. She left out what Porter had said at the end of their lunch, and also failed to mention the incident in the weight room.
“Oh,” Keenan said when she’d finished, “That’s not that bad. Based on the rumors, I thought you guys had like made out—or worse.”
Val shook her head, “I would never do that to you.” Although, in her mind, she wondered how she would react if a situation that would test her promise ever came to pass.
“Me either,” Keenan smiled, “So what do you have planned for the rest of the night?” Val noticed that he’d already finished his food.
“I didn’t really plan anything,” Val said, “I thought the boy was supposed to make the plans.”
Keenan laughed his most sincere laugh of the night, “We’re at your house, and you provided the meal. I think it’s safe to say you’re taking the reins on this one.”
Val bit her lip, “But I don’t know what to do.”
“I can think of a few ways to pass time,” Keenan smiled mischievously.
“Oh? Like what?” Val got up from the table and placed their plates in the sink.
“It depends on what you’re up for.”
“What I’m up for—“ Val repeated, “Hmm, well give me some ideas and I’ll say if they sound fun.”
“We could keep talking.”
“Nah, that sounds kinda boring.”
“Nothing is ever boring, when I’m doing it with you,” it took Val a moment to realize Keenan was being serious.
“Awh, that’s so sweet,” she cooed, “Any other ideas?”
Keenan frowned, “I don’t know if you’d be up for them.”
“Try me.”
“We could kiss some more, or—go a bit further.”
Val shook her head, “I feel like that kind of thing is supposed to be more spontaneous than that.”
“Yeah,” Keenan agreed, “I get that. Okay, then my last suggestion—we could play twenty-one questions.”
“Twenty-one questions?”
“Yeah. It’s like truth or dare without dares. Basically I ask a question and you have to answer honestly, and then you ask and I answer.”
“That sounds fun, only—“ Val gestured to the basement stairs, “You wanna go back to the couch? It’s more comfortable.”
“Sure.” They traipsed down the stairs and found seats on the couch. “I’ll start,” Keenan said, “How do you like Palm Lake so far?”
“It’s alright,” Val answered, “I’m starting to make friends, and I’m really happy that I got elected to be freshman class president.”
The game lasted much longer than Val expected it to; by the time ten thirty came, she felt like she had learned a lot more about Keenan. “Well, it’s time to kick you out,” Val announced.
“That was fast,” Keenan remarked, “Are you sure it’s ten thirty?”
“Very sure. Don’t worry, though, I won’t let you go home empty-handed.” She lean
ed across the couch and kissed him on the neck.
“Well that’s not exactly what I was hoping for,” Keenan joked.
“What were you hoping for?”
Keenan’s response was to place a hand behind Val’s head and kiss her. When they broke, he broke into a wide grin, “Now that’s what I’m talking about.”
Val giggled, “I’ll see you Monday.”
“Yes ma’am. Have I ever told you how pretty you are?”
“Yes,” Val laughed again, “Now go, before my parents get here.”
“We have another half hour, technically,” Keenan argued. “Just sayin’, think of all we could get done in that time.”
“There’ll be plenty of time for stuff like that,” Val pulled Keenan up from the couch, with his help. “Besides, I’m getting tired.” They walked up the stairs and to the house’s entryway.
“Yeah, and I know that you need to get your sleep tonight because you have such a big day tomorrow,” Keenan mocked.
“Are you making fun of me?”
“Yup.” Keenan’s phone buzzed, “Right on time. Alex says he’s outside.”
“Bye,” Val hugged Keenan, laying her head across his shoulders for a moment before breaking the contact.
“Bye.” Keenan was gone before Val knew it; she walked upstairs to her room and sat down on the bed, more confused than ever.
Chapter 15
Val spent Saturday morning and afternoon working on homework and trying to figure out how to get her parents to let her go to Aaliyah’s party. I could just tell them I apologized to Jenny, she thought; it was the best plan she could come up with. The only alternative was attempting to sneak out, but Val knew that would only land her in more trouble if her parents found out. There was also a timing aspect to consider: if Val lied about her apology to Jenny right before asking if she could go to Aaliyah’s party, she knew her parents would make a connection between the two.
So instead, Val decided to tell them during lunch, which left at least five hours for her parents to digest the lie before she would want to leave for the party—or soiree, as Aaliyah had called it. “So I apologized to Jenny,” Val said simply as they sat around the table; Saturday lunch was one of the few meals they still ate as a family.