The Stand-In Boyfriend (Grove Valley High #1)(48)
“Dude!” Jessie snaps. “She has a headache. Don’t pull her like that.”
Chase glares over at Jessie before looking back at me. I try to smile and pretend it didn’t hurt, but Jessie’s right. Not being jostled around would be great right now.
“What’s wrong?” he asks.
I shrug my shoulders slightly. It’s hard to summon the energy to speak, and I’m starting to feel more and more exhausted, like I’m here at my lunch table but not really. I really do need to go home.
“She’s not well,” Sophie informs Chase, and I don’t even have the energy to show her I’m grateful for her answering for me. “She shouldn’t have come in but she wanted to be there for Ms. Peters’ test.”
“Aww, Chapman.” His arm reaches out to stroke my back and he rubs it a couple of times in what I’m sure he thinks is a comforting gesture, but it just makes me want to hurl. I can’t help my grimace, especially when his arm snakes up to my shoulder and he gently pulls me over so my head is on his shoulder.
“Dude!” Jessie snaps again. “Fucking back off her. She hates being touched when she’s sick.”
Chase stiffens beside me. “Be careful, Stephenson.” His voice has a warning in it.
I summon up enough energy to turn to face him. The last thing I need is these two fighting right now. “It’s just…” I start before having to pause and swallow a couple of times because my throat is that dry. “It’s just I have this horrible headache and moving makes me feel like I’m going to be sick.” I glance over a Jessie, who is still glaring at Chase as Sophie glances warily between the two of them. “Jessie’s just being protective.”
Chase’s eyes flash with something—anger, perhaps annoyance, I’m not entirely sure—but he nods slightly and slides a bit farther away from me, giving me some room.
Jessie makes some sort of noise of irritation then abruptly stands and leaves the table. I don’t even have enough energy to glance his way.
“What’s wrong?” Chase asks quietly, and I feel awful that he seems cautious around me now, like he’s unsure if he can ask me something after I’ve sided with Jessie.
“My head,” I manage to mutter, “and my whole body is aching. Literally everything hurts.”
His face creases in sympathy and he shakes his head. “You shouldn’t have come to school.”
He’s right, I shouldn’t have, but I really don’t have the energy right now to explain that I managed to get myself so worked up about missing a stupid test that I was convinced skipping today would mean I wouldn’t get a scholarship. Even I can see how ridiculous that sounds right now.
“Come on,” he tells me, going to stand. “I’ll take you—”
“I’m already doing it,” Jessie cuts in. He’s suddenly behind me and places a bottle of chocolate milk down in front of me, having already unscrewed the lid. I actually manage to smile and turn to face him. It’s the only thing I like when I’m sick, and he’s been buying me chocolate milk when I’m sick or fed up for as long as I can remember. I take a sip and, as always, as soon as the liquid hits my lips, I feel marginally better. Jessie bends down and picks up my bag off the floor, along with my gym bag, throwing it over his shoulder. “What time later?”
“Uh…” It takes me a second to think of what he’s referring to. I manage to glance over at Sophie, who’s watching us. “I’m gonna sleep for a bit, so around 7?”
Sophie nods and glances over at Chase. “We do it every time one of us is sick,” she tells him, almost apologetically, and I realize Jessie and I have shut him out and I didn’t even realize. “We go over to their house, watch Disney movies, and eat apple pie.”
“Yeah, um…” I start, thinking I should probably invite Chase to join.
“Sounds like fun,” he tells me. “I’ll see you when you’re feeling better then.”
I nod my head, relief flooding me. As much as Chase and I are friends now, I just want to get home, sleep, and then pig out with my best friends tonight. I don’t want to have to deal with the Jessie versus Chase show. Jessie reaches out his hand and I gratefully take it, slowly standing up from the table and letting him lead me out of the cafeteria and into his car.
A crappy day turns into a crappy week, and I have the full-blown flu. I’m so out of it I don’t even stress about missing school or practice. All I do all week is sleep, try to force a little bit of food down my throat, and then watch Disney movies with Jessie and Sophie before sleeping some more. It’s not until Sunday afternoon that I start to feel slightly more human.
My mom appears at my door. “How you feeling, Livipops?”
I smile at that old nickname. She only uses it on special occasions, and apparently me being sick is one of them. “I feel better.”
“It’s taking everything I have to keep Scotty out of here.”
I chuckle. “He can come in.”
She raises an eyebrow. “You might regret that. He’s even more hyper than usual this week. He’s out with Ray right now anyway.”
I grin at her. I miss my crazy, hyper, adorable little brother. Usually he’s throwing himself all over me at all times, but my mom has insisted he give me some space this week so he’s taken to babbling at me outside my door, talking in his incomprehensible toddler language and singing songs.