She Drives Me Crazy(65)

Charlotte goes very, very still. “Whatever she told you, it’s bullshit.”

“It’s not.” She looks ready to pounce, so I raise my hands. “And before you freak out, you should know that she told me in confidence and I’m not going to tell anyone else. But I get it: You’re hurting. You’re acting like a complete and utter asshole because you’re in pain. That’s not an excuse, but still. I know how it feels to be in love with someone and to lose her, and then make bad decisions because you miss her so much. I’ve been there. I get it. But I thought you should know it doesn’t have to be that way.”

Charlotte blinks. “I don’t understand your angle here. You hurt her. You’re no better than me.”

There’s the tiniest note of fragility in her voice. It nearly bowls me over. I just stand there, trying to figure out how to answer her. She’s not wrong, but we are not the same.

“Look, Scottie, whatever your deal is, I don’t know why you’re trying to explain it to me,” Charlotte says, shaking her head like she can shake off this entire conversation. “It’s the rest of the school you have to prove yourself to.”

“I don’t have to prove anything. My feelings are between Irene and me.”

She smiles almost pityingly, like she’s battle-worn and I’m naive. “Don’t be ridiculous. We have to prove everything. That’s what I do every time I step onto the field. That’s what you do every time you step onto the court. What we do when we walk these halls. What are we doing, if not proving ourselves?”

“Maybe we are,” I concede. “But I think we’d all be much happier if we just believed each other.”

Charlotte swallows. She looks like she wants to say something else, but instead she turns around and stalks off.

Her voice plays in my head all night. We have to prove everything. I think of Kevin trying to prove himself on guitar. Danielle trying to prove herself with test scores and leadership. Irene trying to prove herself to our whole school with one performance after another.

Irene on the sidelines, commanding attention, mirroring the crowd’s feelings back to them …

And that’s when it hits me.

I know what I have to do.





18


I find Honey-Belle before school the next morning. She must pick up on my urgency, because she stops reading her horoscope and gives me her full attention.

“She’s not mad at you,” she says before I can even open my mouth. “It just hurt her to see that picture again. And it hurt her that Charlotte turned your fake dating scheme against her.”

I stiffen, realizing Honey-Belle knows the truth about our whole charade. Irene must have told her after Charlotte’s antics in the parking lot.

“I’m sorry,” I tell her feebly. “I hate that everyone assumes Irene is the bad guy.” I pause, lowering my eyes. “For a while, I thought she was, too. Turns out she’s actually amazing.”

Honey-Belle shakes her head. She seems disappointed, but not surprised. “People just don’t see Irene. They see her looks, her charisma, her social status, but they don’t see the way she cares about things. Cheerleading. Grandma Earl. You. Why are our classmates so willing to believe Irene would use you, but not willing to believe she’s in love with you?”

My breath catches. “She told you she’s in love with me?”

“Of course not.” Honey-Belle stares at me impatiently. “I’m a free association thinker, Scottie. I’m reading between the lines here.”

“Right.” I bite my lip. “Look, I have an idea to fix everything, but I’m gonna need your help.”

Honey-Belle assesses me. Her gray eyes seem to go right through me. “Are you over Tally? Like, for real for real?”

It’s the first time I’ve been asked in a while, and I’m shocked to realize the answer now.

“Yeah.” I smile, unable to keep from laughing. “Yeah, I really am.”

Honey-Belle grins. “Then it’s time we win back your girl. What do we need to do?”

“You and I wear the same size. Do you happen to have an extra cheerleading uniform?”



* * *



We have less than a week to pull everything together. First, I have to convince the cheerleading squad behind Irene’s back. They’re understandably wary of me, but with Honey-Belle making my case, we’re able to get them on board. They agree to help even though it means extra practice on top of their regular practice time. Next, I enlist my friends. I’ll need both Kevin and Gunther’s help to pull this off. Danielle even gives me her blessing to sit out the first half of the Candlehawk game. She says it with the authority of an official coach.

I sprint through the next few days on pure adrenaline and anxiety. School, then basketball practice, then secret cheerleading practice after Irene leaves each day. There’s one evening where I’m convinced none of this will come together, but Honey-Belle hugs me and assures me the universe is working in our favor.

On the day before the district championship game against Candlehawk, I don’t set foot in the gym. Instead, I leave school at the regular dismissal time and drive to the middle of town. Grandma Earl Eye Associates sits next door to the karate studio where I used to come when I was younger. No wonder the name sounded so familiar.