Blurred Lines: A Rixon High Prequel Read online

  “I think I’ll have another.” Miley waved her empty cup at Micah and he whooped.

  “My kind of girl.”

  Grabbing her wrist, I yanked her out of the kitchen and down the quiet, darkened hall. The majority of kids were outside, enjoying the lingering warmth of summer.

  “What the hell, Avery?” Miley hissed, snatching her hand back.

  “What the fuck are you doing?”

  “I was enjoying myself until you rudely interrupted me.”

  “What game are you playing?” I studied her face. Heart-shaped pouty lips, a button nose littered with freckles, and tawny eyes that looked right through me. She was pretty, gorgeous even, but I knew it was a smokescreen for the treacherous snake she really was.

  “I was invited.”

  “But why? Why the hell would you want to come here and be at a party no one wants you at?”

  “Micah wants me—”

  “Micah wants to get you drunk and then embarrass you.” Anger rolled through me, but it wasn’t only at her, it was at what she’d said.

  Micah wants me.

  He didn’t, I knew that. But I wouldn’t put it past him to try something with her just to spread a vicious rumor Monday at school.

  I released a frustrated breath. “You should go before you make things any worse for yourself.”

  There was that dejected look again. What right did she have feeling hurt, when she’d completely betrayed me and the team?

  “You hate me, I get it. I do.” She took a shuddering breath. “But I still need to write this article, and I don’t quit. Ever.”

  “Well, maybe you should.” I glowered at her, the air crackling between us.

  Just then, a couple of guys stumbled down the hall, knocking me straight into Miley. My hands automatically went to her shoulders, steadying her as we careened into the wall.

  “Thanks,” she croaked, her eyes darting to my mouth. My dick twitched, more than ready to roll with whatever was happening between us. I moved closer, pressing the lines of my body against hers. Miley’s breath caught, her lips parting on a soft gasp.

  “Avery?” she said, my name a rough whisper.

  My heart crashed against my chest, my palms slick and hands shaking. My body remembered; the fickle fucking thing remembered what it was like to have her so close. Close enough to kiss… to taste.

  “Avery?” she said again, leaning in enough that I felt her warm liquor-scented breath.

  I didn’t want to kiss her.

  I didn’t want to even think about kissing her.

  But I couldn’t stop myself. She pulled me in like gravity until my lips ghosted over hers in a featherlight touch that made her shiver.

  “Miley,” her name formed on my tongue but then music boomed through the house, ripping me from the moment. I staggered back, blinking at her. A crestfallen expression washed over her.

  “You need to go,” I barked, before taking off down the hall.

  “Where’d you go?” Micah smirked as I headed straight for the cooler and grabbed a beer.

  “To tell her to get the hell out of here, why?”

  “No reason.” His eyes danced with amusement, but I didn’t stick around for any more of his interrogations. I slipped outside into his massive yard and found a quiet spot over by the firepit.

  It wasn’t long before a girl sought me out.

  “Hey, Avery. Why are you sitting out here all alone?” Kendall Novak lowered herself into my lap as if she owned me. Sliding her arms around my neck, she leaned forward a little, giving me a front row ticket to her impressive cleavage.

  Kendall was a cheerleader. She wasn’t captain, but everyone knew she was the favorite. And she’d had her eye on me since I’d become first string quarterback in sophomore year. But I didn’t date. And I especially didn’t date girls like Kendall. They were too clingy, too high maintenance, and once they got their claws into you, they became a bad rash you couldn’t shake. I didn’t have the time or energy for that.

  But that didn’t mean my dick didn’t want a taste. She was hot as fuck and I was as horny as the next guy.

  “Avery?” she purred, commanding my attention.

  “Just chilling,” I said, aware of her tight little body pressed up against mine in all the right places. If she wiggled her ass, she’d be as good as grinding on my dick.

  Laughter filled the air as Micah and the rest of the guys spilled outside, Miley still tucked under his arm.

  “Seriously, what’s with Micah and the snitch?”

  “Beats me,” I ground out. She still looked like a rabbit caught in headlights.

  Why the fuck was she still here?

  As if she heard me, her eyes snapped over in my direction, widening when she saw Kendall. Without thinking, I slipped my arm around her waist and brought my lips to her neck, not taking my eyes off of Miley as I kissed her soft skin.

  Even though she was across the yard, I saw the hitch in her breath. Hurt flashed over her face, and for a second, I felt triumphant. Until she took off toward the pool with Micah.

  What the fuck was he doing?

  And more importantly, what the fuck was she doing?

  Chapter Six

  Miley

  I’d made a mistake.

  When Avery had made it obvious he didn’t want me at the party, I’d dug in my heels and accepted Micah’s invitation. But now I was watching Avery cuddle up to Kendall Novak while I pretended I could party like one of them—the cool kids, the popular kids, the kids I’d spent my entire life avoiding— all while trying to keep control of my reflexes.

  I felt a little weird though. I’d only had like one or two drinks when we first arrived, and Micah had given them to me directly. And I’d eaten a handful of the snacks out on the counter while I stood around listening to them talk about the upcoming season. So it wasn’t like I’d been drinking on an empty stomach.

  “It’s warm out here,” I said, tugging on Micah’s hand. I knew he was probably setting me up for some big fall, but I couldn’t back down. Not now.

  “You should lose the cardigan,” he suggested.

  “Good idea.” I pulled it off my arms and draped it over the back of a garden lounger. Kids were littered around the yard, huddled in groups chatting and dancing, while others played water polo in the pool.

  The water looked so inviting, rippling and shimmering under the moonlight.

  “Better?” Micah brushed his finger over my shoulder and a shiver rolled through me. His touch was nice, comforting. But he was supposed to be the bad guy, wasn’t he?

  Avery was the good guy. He was the leader; the cool, composed captain. Only, when I glanced over at him, he was practically making out with Kendall.

  My stomach dropped.

  He was kissing her…

  I didn’t come here so he could kiss her, I came here so he would kiss me.

  “Hey, Miley, come meet some people.” Micah beckoned me over and I stuffed down all my thoughts about Avery.

  “Hey.” I smiled, my cheeks aching.

  “You know Christina and Thea. That’s Jordan, Kercher, and Sam.”

  I lifted my hand in a small wave. “Hey.”

  “Didn’t think we’d see you around here again.” Christina glowered at me.

  “We all deserve a second chance, right?” I exploded with laughter, the five of them staring at me with a mix of confusion and amusement.

  “You should take it easy, babe,” Micah whispered.

  A song blasted out over the sound system and I did a little leap on the spot. “I love this one.” My hips began to move as I felt my limbs follow. I didn’t usually dance, but I couldn’t seem to stand still. Beads of sweat trickled down my back and between my cleavage as I stood on the edge of the pool, dancing in my own little world.

  “Micah, come join me,” I hollered.

  “Oh, I’m good,” he smirked, “just enjoying the view.”

  I shrugged, letting the music carry me away to another place. I hadn’t felt so free in a long time. My body felt relaxed and my thoughts were mellow. Whatever beer they were serving here was good stuff because I felt freaking great.

  “You look a little hot, Miley. You should take your t-shirt off.”

  “You think?” My brows knitted. It made my face feel weird and I touched a finger to my cheeks.

  “Yeah, babe. All the girls are in bikini tops, look.” He nodded over to the pool, and sure enough, most of the girls sitting around the edge were half-naked.

  “It’ll be fine, babe.” Micah gave me a reassuring smile, and before I knew it, I was pulling off my t-shirt. The crowd cheered, and I blushed from head to toe, but I was so warm, and I didn’t want to end up a sweaty mess before the night was out.

  The balmy air felt great on my heated skin and I balled up my t-shirt and threw it at Micah.

  “Hell, yeah,” he wolf-whistled, setting off the crowd again. I didn’t know what they were cheering and laughing at. But I didn’t care. Everything felt too good. I felt too good.

  “What the fuck?” A voice boomed, and I looked around to find Avery marching toward us.

  He looked pissed; his sexy jaw clenched tight as his eyes lasered in on Micah. “What the fuck are you doing?”

  “She was a little hot.” Micah shrugged.

  “Put your t-shirt back on.” Avery snatched it off his friend and held it out for me.

  “But all the girls are—”

  “Just put it on, Miley.”

  “Relax, man, we were just having a little fun. Weren’t we, snitch?”

  My chest tightened.

  Snitch.

  That’s what they all called me before…

  “You called me snitch,” I said, planting my hands on my hips. “That’s not a very nice thing to call y
our friend and I thought we were friends now.”

  “Nah, baby, we were never friends. Just thought you should get a little taste of your own medicine.”

  My eyes narrowed. His face looked funny. Everything looked a little funny. Faces were elongated and wobbly, the trees growing into huge giants in the distance. I blinked rapidly, trying to make it all go away.

  “I don’t feel so good.”

  “What the fuck did you give her?”

  “Just a few edibles…”

  “You’re a real fucking idiot at times.”

  Avery wrapped his arm around my side, steadying me. But I felt sick all of a sudden, like I was spinning on the Tilt-A-Whirl at the funfair.

  “I don’t feel so good,” I repeated.

  “Come on,” he said, “let’s get you out of here.”

  “Chase, come on, man, it was a joke.”

  “Fucking asshole.”

  I slumped against Avery’s side, my stomach churning.

  “Think you can make it to my car?” was the last thing I heard before I leaned over and puked all over myself.

  The ride back to my house was quiet. After I’d puked up the entire contents of my stomach, Avery found me a bottle of water and some paper towels and I’d managed to clean myself up enough to go home.

  I felt like shit. My head and tummy hurt so bad, but Avery assured me it would wear off by morning.

  “How are you holding up over there?”

  “I’ll live.” I couldn’t look at him. He’d seen me like that, high as a kite dancing in my bra to an audience who were laughing at me.

  God, I was an idiot.

  “You shouldn’t have come tonight.”

  “You think I don’t know that?” I hissed.

  “So, why did you?”

  “I don’t know.” My shoulders lifted in a small shrug as I peeked over at him. He looked so freaking good in his Raiders jersey and ball cap pulled on backwards. And I was a mess.

  “I think you do.”

  “Fine. You want to know the truth? I came because I know I screwed up. I get it, okay? I thought if you’d just give me a chance to explain, that maybe we could—”

  “There is no ‘we,’ Miley.” He rolled up outside my house and cut the engine. “You need to get that into your head. Anything that happened between us in junior year was a mistake.”

  I knew I’d hurt Avery, betrayed his confidence, so I guess I should have been prepared for his cruel words, but I couldn’t process what he was saying. Because I still felt it. I still felt the tether between us every time he was near.

  And he… didn’t?

  “You don’t mean that,” I whispered, the words thick in my throat.

  “Yeah,” he let out a steady breath, “I do. You lied to me for months, let me think you were someone else. That you were this smart, funny, cool girl determined to push her boundaries and try new things. I fell for you, Miley, and you fucking betrayed me.”

  “You fell for me?” Hope blossomed in my chest.

  “No, I fell for that girl. The one you pretended to be. I didn’t fall for you.”

  “Oh.” God, it hurt.

  It hurt so freaking much.

  I’d spent all summer trying to figure out a way to make it up to Avery. I’d written list after list, plotted all the ways I’d make him see that what we’d shared was real.

  But it didn’t matter. I realized that now.

  He didn’t want me. He never had. He’d wanted the girl I’d become undercover. The quietly confident cheerleader out to make the most of her junior year.

  I’d surprised everyone at tryouts last year. Half the girls didn’t even recognize me, someone they’d gone to school with for the last two years. But that only aided my cause. No one had paid me any attention previously, so I could carve out my own story. Get close to them and become their new interesting friend.

  And it had worked.

  But I hadn’t banked on getting close to the star quarterback. It had happened by accident. I’d been early for practice one day and he’d been running drills with Coach on the football field. I heard him telling Coach he was struggling in English class and I offered to tutor him.

  Avery didn’t want anyone to know, so for almost six months, we’d studied in private. It was the perfect ruse at first, a chance to really get to know Rixon’s golden boy. By the time spring rolled around, and the article was due, I’d slowly started making excuses to miss our appointments.

  Then one day, he’d kissed me.

  Avery Chase kissed me.

  I’d been so shocked, so confused… that I’d sat there dumbfounded.

  I’d never returned his calls after that. Because the truth was, I’d fallen for him. I’d fallen for my mark. And it was so cliché, so ridiculous, that I tried to pretend it had never happened.

  Until the final newspaper hit the halls at school.

  God, I still remembered seeing Avery right after it went live. The anger in his eyes. The bitter disappointment. It was the talk of the school.

  I was the talk of the school.

  And Avery had looked at me with complete disgust.

  “Look, something tells me Coach isn’t going to let either of us wiggle our way out of this, so let’s just call a truce. I’ll keep the guys in line, if you promise no more theatrics.”

  “I can do that.”

  I needed to get out of his car. The air was too thick, and I felt nauseous again.

  “Are you okay, you look a little green again?”

  “I’m fine,” I rushed out, grabbing the door handle. “And thank you for tonight. It won’t happen again. From now on, I’ll be nothing but professional.”

  “Glad to hear it.”

  “Well, I guess I’ll see you around then.”

  “Yeah.” An awkward silence followed and I couldn’t take it for a second longer, so I shouldered the door and stumbled out…

  Dragging my withering heart with me.

  I kept my distance after that.

  Monday at school after my edible-induced show was interesting. I’d entered the building to a loud applause and hollers of ‘strip for me, snitch.’

  But once the laughter subsided, Avery, true to his word, kept the team off my back. I observed their practices and interviewed a couple of the new players about their experiences so far. Coach gave me a ton of game footage to watch and made his staff available for interviews. Avery avoided me like the plague, and I did the same with him.

  After his confession, my heart felt more bruised than ever.

  “How’s the article coming?” Mr. Jones asked me as he entered the Rixon Riot HQ on Thursday afternoon. I was finishing up my day’s notes.

  “It’s… coming. Give it a couple more weeks and I’ll have plenty to work with.” I shoved everything in my bag.

  “That’s what I want to hear. If we want to run a Homecoming edition, I’m going to need your final draft in two weeks.”

  “You got it, sir.”

  Ugh. Homecoming. The social event of the year that celebrated both football and school spirit.

  At least the article would be finished by then, so I wouldn’t have to go in the name of reporting.

  “Now go on, get out of here. You must have more exciting things to do on a Thursday afternoon than hang out here.” He smiled.

  “Yeah, exciting things.”

  He obviously hadn’t heard the rumors about all my excitement at the party. But that was the thing with kids, they were good at hiding things. Rumors, fights, parties… there was some unspoken word that what happened between teenagers stayed between teenagers.

  I shouldered the door and slipped into the hall. School was already half empty. I’d almost reached the main doors when I heard a shriek from the girl’s bathroom.

  Without thinking, I ran inside.

  “Lily?” I said, eyes wide with horror as I watched the gang of girls slowly back away from her.

  “What did you do to her?” I snapped.

  “N-nothing,” one of them said. “We were just… talking, and she started pulling her hair and screaming at us.”

  “Did they hurt you?” It came out softer as I met Lily’s frantic gaze. She shook her head, but I didn’t like the fear in her eyes.

  “You,” I jabbed my finger at the ringleader. “What’s your name?”

  “Why do I need to tell you?”