Unknown (The Secret Life of Cassie Martin #1)(17)
I know I heard everything she was saying, but I don’t understand most of it. What sorts of tasks do we have to do? How will they know we’ve done them? Lara’s brow creases in confusion as we glance at each other, and I shrug.
Janice concludes her speech with a reminder about no switching teams. She then invites Mr. Smyth back up. Again, there’s applause for them as they change places. “Now that we’ve established the main rules, you will have additional directives in the planner provided to your team lead. I would like to introduce to you Mr. Harold Baker, head boys’ counselor.”
Everyone claps again as Mr. Baker heads to the pulpit.
Mr. Baker sets down a stack of papers. Mr. Smyth stands in front of our pews while Ms. Carlton stands on the other side. “As I call your name, please walk up to the appropriate leader. Boys’ teams will be with Mr. Smyth and girls’ teams with Ms. Carlton. They will hand the lead the planner that has been assigned to that team.”
I listen as he calls out the names. Lily ends up on a team with one of the girls sitting next to her. Lara joins a team with the other girl next to us but also has Jenny on her team. None of the boys have been called yet, and neither has Fallon. As the numbers reduce, I tap my foot, excited I might end up with Fallon. I ignore the possibility of ending up with Mindy since her name hasn’t been called, either.
Mr. Baker calls Parker’s name. I watch him as he walks by. He skips to the front, happy to be the team lead. Next, Mr. Baker calls up Noah. If Parker wasn’t happy before, he should be now. They seem to get along well. Noah passes me and gives me a quick wink. After Noah, a Jameson Wright is called. I search the crowd to see who that is, but Jay stands up. Jay must be a nickname for Jameson. Last, he calls for Lucca. Sighs echo from some of the girls left sitting around me. How silly to get caught up over some guy that will probably never talk to them. I assume they’re done when Mr. Baker talks again. “Cassandra Martin.”
My eyes shift to the people around me then to Fallon. Was my name called? I stay in my seat. There has to be a mistake. Fallon purses her lips at me like she doesn’t understand either. Mr. Baker lifts the paper to review it closer. I remain still until Mr. Baker says my name again. I slowly stand. The boys grin at me as I slide from the middle of the pew.
Did they know about this? Is this why they’ve been so nice to me? Mr. Smyth smirks as well. I’m really confused at this point.
I stand in front of the boys who tower over me and look back at the room. Stunned faces spin to whisper to their neighbors. One of the boys must have said something because someone pokes me in the back. “We have to sit down now, Boo,” Parker whispers into my ear.
I climb down the steps and follow Lucca into the next empty pew. My mind races with possibilities.
Lucca leans over to me and whispers, “It’ll be alright. We’ve got you. You aren’t alone here.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
As the last few teams are called up, I sit in stunned silence. I’m glad Fallon didn’t end up with Mindy. Parker whispers to me that Mindy’s team includes a team lead whose group came in last the previous year, Mindy, and two newbies. This surprises me because the teams are supposed to be even. The newbies must be able to walk on water or have superpowers.
As they release us to our assigned classrooms in the basement under the auditorium, a buzz of confusion and discontent fills the air. Sideways glances and snide comments float from the people we pass. I shrink back into Jay. The boys notice my discomfort and surround me in a diamond pattern with Jay still behind me, Noah and Lucca to my left and right, and Parker in front. Mr. Smyth gives me a slight smile as we pass him.
When we reach our classroom, Parker unlocks the door for us and lets me enter first. I go immediately to one of the desks, sit, and put my head down. Someone kneels next to me and gently rubs my back.
“You guys knew I was going to be on your team. That’s why you’ve been so nice to me,” I mumble into my arms.
After about thirty seconds of silence, Parker responds, “Noah hacked into the records to figure out the teams. We were surprised to see a girl’s name on our list, but we didn’t care. We did want to find out more about you and let you get comfortable with us before this started. I can’t say that we wouldn’t have talked to you. You’re the hottest girl here. We just may not have all talked to you.”
Did he just add that hot comment to make me feel better? Only perverts who make me cringe have ever called me hot, at least not to my face. I decide to ignore them for a few minutes while I think this through. If I had to guess, my name was incorrectly submitted as a boy at one point, which is why I was assigned to a boys’ cabin. Why didn’t Kelly fix my team assignment when she fixed my cabin assignment?
I shouldn’t blame the boys, though. They didn’t create the assignments. “Why didn’t you tell me yesterday what was going on?” My eyes meet Jay’s. “I asked you directly why you were hanging out with me. You told me that it was because you didn’t want me to think everyone was like Mindy. You lied to me.”
Jay kneels in front of my desk and places his hands on either side of my face, forcing me to pay attention to him. “I didn’t lie, but I’m sorry for not telling you the whole truth. After lunch, the four of us got together and decided we wanted to keep you on the team. You had already met Lucca and Parker. We didn’t want to scare you away by telling you everything. By dinnertime, our minds were made up. We planned on telling you that evening, but you never came back out of your cabin. I’m sorry if we hurt you or you feel betrayed. That was not our intention.”