Kiss Cam [Teaser/Published October 2016]

CHAPTER SEVEN | RESCUE BREATH

IT'S ANOTHER FREEZING morning in the backseat of Jasper's car. The heat is turned all the way up, but the only thing his car spits out is cold air. My hands are tucked under my thighs to keep them warm, and my jacket is pulled up past my lips so that my breath warms my neck and chest. Jasper is quietly maneuvering his way around traffic with his gloved hands tight on the steering wheel. Lenny bops his head along to the heavy drumbeat of the mix tape he brought along to play in the car. Again, nobody is up to talking since sleep still sits heavily in our systems. However, it seems every other stoplight, Lenny and Jasper will make eye contact and share silent smiles. Then Lenny will swallow down laughter and the moment is gone.

I let out a loud breath and tuck myself into a tighter ball, allowing my head to swivel over and my eyes to follow the many cars that hurry past Jasper's at above-speed-limit speeds. Again, out of the corner of my eye I see Lenny and Jasper share matching grins. I'm too tired for games but am quickly getting annoyed. I wonder if they're giggling about something I've done, if there's a hole in the crotch of my pants or even something on my face. Choosing to ignore them for the remainder of the drive proves to be difficult.

Once parked and minutes from being late, I open the door swiftly and start a quick stride across the parking lot. Jasper's and Lenny's voices follow me, giggles and hushed whispers about things they refuse to include me in. It's early and they're acting ridiculous and I don't have time for it, so I enter the school alone and make my way to class.

Jasper and Lenny hung out yesterday, and now they seem to have some inside joke I don't understand. Their secretiveness is making me irritable, especially since I have a feeling it's about me. Some part of me has a feeling it's about the No Peeking Rule. It's the same part of me that's making me blush every time the thought crosses my mind.

Jasper has an unusual way of making me flustered today. It's a new, impish side to him that's making me irritated. It's as if he's doing this stuff to get a reaction from me.

Sometimes you need to confide in another girl. So I decided to confide in Allison. She's one of my closest girlfriends—or rather, one of my only girlfriends. She's smart, quick-tongued, and most often mysterious. She can keep a secret, and that's why I chose to keep her close.

Allison stares at me blankly from her desk. "He . . . peeked?" she asks with narrowed eyes after I relate to her what happened this weekend with Jasper.

I nod. "That's totally weird, right? It's not just me overreacting?"

The bell rings for class to start, and the students around us take their seats. The chime barely makes an impression on us and we lean in closer, lowering our voices so that we can still talk somewhat undetected during attendance.

"Uh, yeah," she states easily, and then shakes her head. "June, this whole thing just doesn't feel right. . . ."

I wave her off. "I know, I know—"

"And that should have definitely been a red flag. . . ."

"Yep."

"So, tell me again, why you're still going through with Kiss Cam?" Her brows are furrowed together and confused, and there's something else twinkling in her eye that I just can't place.

Our history teacher calls out my name and I raise my hand absently while my body leans in closer to Allison, trying to decide how to justify myself.

The whole No Peeking Rule episode between Jasper and me has been bugging me even after he apologized. I needed to talk to someone who wasn't Lenny and wasn't my parents. There was something about the way he worded it. How he wouldn't go "bragging" about seeing me in my underwear—as if he liked the view. I admit that looking back on the moment makes me uncomfortable. Especially since he's my best friend and especially because of the Kiss Cam. To me it's beginning to feel as though one wrong turn and Jasper and I could end up together. It scares me because I don't want to ultimately end up losing him.