Dared

Chapter 10

Sunday passes by agonizingly slowly. For the first time in my life, I force myself to complete the assignment for History.

I don't want to act like a complete fool in front of Kara and make her think that I am someone who does not even bother to complete his homework.

I don't know if that is something that Kara would mind, but I don't want to take the chance.

Thinking back, I feel stupid for not pulling out a notebook and filling notes about Modern art the evening I visited the museum with Kara. She probably thinks that I am an idiot. A loser.

Maybe I can sound smarter if I can get my hands on her notes. I could add things to my assignment to make it sound smarter.

I pull out my phone and dial her number.

But what if she thinks that I am a loser for asking her the notes in the first place. I'd bragged about being able to complete the assignment with just the internet.

Before it can ring, I disconnect the call. Damn!

Don't be a stupid loser, Brian!

I try to shut the irritating voice in my brain, but it keeps nagging me about a lot of things. All of them somehow linked to Kara. Before I know it, I am on my bed, scrolling through her Instagram feed.

She has a ton of pictures, the majority featuring Hailey. I wonder if she ever posts anything that is about herself.

A million questions whiz through my mind. What games does she like? Does she like watching football? Or is cheerleading the only thing tying her to the games? Does she like watching me play?

My mind is a mess, full of thoughts when I show up to school on Monday. The bell rings as soon as I show up at the locker room. Deciding against, ditching my bag in the locker, I walk straight to History.

Mr. Kendricks is still not at the class. I breathe a sigh of relief.

An all too friendly warmth spreads through me as soon as I see Kara at our usual table. She smiles, acknowledging me. I smile back, automatically.

As soon as I plop onto the seat beside her, the feeling of internal warmth spreads through me. Like a cup of coffee. Knots in my stomach that I didn't know were there, seem to untangle themselves.

"Hey," Kara says, to which I answer with a broad grin.

"Hey."

Her hair is swept to one side, and her eyes are brighter than ever.

She's beautiful.

"What are you staring at?" she teases me, biting down on her lips.

"You, of course," I say, "You're beautiful."

A deep blush creeps to her cheeks and she tucks a piece of hair behind her ears, "Thank you."

"Why the special compliment, today?" she raises her eyebrow.

"Well, you're beautiful and I think people don't tell that to you enough," I say, my voice teasing.

"Alright, that's enough," she lightly slaps my arm, giving me a look that tells me I should stop.

"What's wrong about that?"

She doesn't reply, she just shakes her head at me. But her blush deepens, and it somehow makes my insides feel fluttery.

Damn, I sound like a stupid boy who's crushing on a girl!

I'm not crushing on Kara, am I? I don't know. It's hard to say.

All that I know is that I shouldn't be crushing on her. It's gonna be hard when it comes to winning the dare. Damn, the dare! It seems so far away and irrelevant when I am sitting beside Kara.

But it eats me on the inside. I can't lose the dare. I don't want to feel like a loser. It would be better shipping myself off to Antarctica than losing to the boys. Especially to the guys from the team.

I try not to think about how it shall turn out when the month comes to an end. I don't want to think about it. It could mean, losing what I have with Kara for the rest of my life. It's not something I want to ponder right now.

Because however much I want to deny it, I think I may have a crush on Kara.