Reckless Play | ✓

8. Troublemaker

a/n: Two updates in a week! To make up for this slightly shorter chapter. Enjoy! :)

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This can't be happening to me.

Was my first thought as I watched the overconfident guy standing in the middle of the field, a smirk curling the sides of his mouth. His feet were planted on the ground, arm stretched, index finger pointing right at me. The same finger that minutes ago had curled into a fist with his brothers and sisters as he'd banged at his chest.

He scored.

He scored and then his eyes searched around until he found me on the bleachers, standing right next to Hannah.

I should have known he meant trouble the moment I noticed the curving of his lips. But nothing could have prepared me for what came next: Ryan raising his fist and dedicating his goal to me. In the middle of the field. With all his football buddies as witnesses.

What the hell was he doing?

Even Hannah beside me had fallen quiet all of a sudden, her jaw dropping to the floor.

I stared at him disbelieving. Half wanting to dash across the field and smack him across that good-looking face of his, the other half considering making a run for it.

My skin began to burn with the weight of the stares aimed in my direction. I was going to kill him. I was going to murder him. Slowly. Twice.

"Pinch me."

Hannah's head swirled towards me, "What?"

"Pinch me." I repeated, clutching the fabric of my jeans at the side of my knees. This couldn't be real. He wouldn't just do that to me in front of all this people. Would he?

If I'd have expected an honest concerned reply like 'Are you ok?' I'd have been severely disappointed because that's most definitely not what Hannah did. Instead, she frowned slightly at the oddity of my request, but without much thought reached out to pinch my forearm.

"Owie!" I jumped, rubbing the spot she'd just squeezed. My eyes narrowed in on her thin frame. How could she have such a hard grasp was beyond me.

"You told me to!" She defended herself, raising both hands in front of her.

I couldn't argue with her. Maybe next time I'd think twice before asking stupid things.

And as the pain in my forearm subsided I had my answer: this was really happening.

Why?

My gaze drifted back to the field only to find Ryan had turned back towards his mates, the game still running.

"What the hell is wrong with him?" I hissed.

"Who? Ryan?" Hannah asked. "Don't worry about it, he's always loved to call attention towards him."

"Well, that's good for him, but I want nothing to do with it!" I met eyes with a few girls from the cheerleading team who had stopped what they were doing and were now staring. They weren't looking. They were definitely staring at me.

I knew how this worked. You gave them the slight hint of weakness and they would stomp all over you. I wouldn't let that happen in here.

I met the gaze of the team captain unflinching until she looked away. She said something to the group and then one by one they turned back to their business.

I let out a deep sigh.

"You're lucky Emily wasn't there." Came Hannah's voice by my side.

I turned my head to find her watching the same group of girls I'd been staring at. If I didn't knew her better I'd have sworn there was hostility in her eyes. I wondered what could have caused the expression on her face. What could they have done to make it into her small list of sworn enemies. It had to be bad.

"Who's Emily?" I asked suddenly curious.

Beside me Hannah snorted. "Trust me. You don't want to know."

I tipped my head to the side, catching her gray eyes. If I learned something during these few days with Hannah, it was that she couldn't keep anything to herself.

"Fine, fine." She finally gave in with a roll of her eyes. "She's this pretty girl who is in the cheer team, as I suppose you've already assumed. Long brown hair, big eyes. She flirts with a different guy every week. I'd like to think boys tolerate her because she's got the longest legs in the world, but that's not it. She's smart and funny to be around." She concluded with an irritated sigh.

"Then why do you hate her so much?" I wondered while at the same time I compared Hannah's description of Emily to the image I'd stuck to my mind.

"I don't hate her. I just don't like her either."

I raised my brows.

"She's a troublemaker." She finally blurted out. "And you'd have definitely gotten into trouble with her if you gave her that stare down you just delivered to her friends. Especially after what Ryan did."

I frowned. "What does Ryan had to do with this?"

Hannah made a 'humph' noise at the back of her throat. "Let's just say he's an adrenaline junkie."

"You mean he gets into trouble." It wasn't a question.

She tilted her head to the side. "More like trouble is his middle name."

My lips pressed together as I processed our little conversation. I couldn't keep my eyes from searching the field until they settled on number 22.

"He's a good guy and I can tell he likes you. But I don't know If you are ready for the kind of trouble he could put you in. Unintentionally or not." She patted my knee. "He has his flaws, but we all do."

I turned my attention back to her as she shrugged her shoulders. "Just be careful around him."

Why was she talking to me like I was considering going into a relationship with him? I wasn't.

He was attractive. Yes.
He could make me swoon.
He gave me the flutters whenever he was close.
I thought about kissing him. Yes.

But none of that meant I wanted to be with him. He was too selfish for his own good. And I've had my fill of self confident bastards back at my previous school.

So why did talking about him make my heart want to burst out of my chest?