Chapter 30 The unexpected meet up

Chapter 30 The unexpected meet up
Stephanie

It wasn't Harry that showed up as I walked out of the clinic, it was Kendrix. My guess was that one of our parents had asked him to pick me up again.

Something was wrong. I felt it before I stepped into the car. Kendrix had changed out of his school uniform. He was wearing casual clothes, his hair was still wet, probably from showering after practice.

“I thought Harry was picking me up.” I frowned and shut the door after me.

“Dad sent me instead.” he said almost quietly.

That was the first sign. Kendrix was never quiet. The guy was louder than the engine of his sports car.

I fastened my seatbelt and he drove off without saying a word to me. Normally, his silence wouldn't have bothered me, but with the video circulating and the rumours flying around, I expected him to at least say something about that.

He didn't. The tension in the car was a stark opposite of the friendly energy buzzing between us hours ago, before Brooklyn's text. That felt like a lifetime ago.

If Kendrix was going to ignore me and pretend nothing happened, I was going to do the same.

I turned to the window and stared outside. But after ten minutes, I couldn't stand the silence anymore.

“Did you find him?” I asked.

Kendrix finally tore his gaze away from the road. His voice sounded tired as he said, “Find who?”

“The guy who posted the video. Cisco told Brooklyn that you went looking for him.”

“Oh,” Anger flickered in his emotionless face. “He got what he deserved.”

He didn't say anything else after that. I resumed staring out the window and tapping my fingers on my backpack.

I hadn't bought any of my books to school. It would be a great way to fix the suffocating silence.

Five more minutes passed—or maybe it was ten—and the silence grew unbearable.

“Did the video bother you that much?” I asked.

Kendrix glanced at me in surprise, one hand still on the wheel. “What? No. It's just stupid rumors.”

I didn't expect his words to sting the way they did, which made no sense. Our entire interaction since we met was built on traded insults.

“Well, if it's just ‘stupid rumors’ and it didn't bother you, why the hell have you been giving me the cold shoulder?” I demanded, successfully masking the tiny bit of hurt in my tone.

“Not everything is about you.” he muttered.

Well, ouch.

If his previous words had stung, this one had sliced my heart with a pointy dagger.

Point taken.

I turned back to the window, silently cursing myself for inquiring and for assuming he was still upset about the video. I deserved his cold response for not minding my own damn business.

From now on, I would never ask him anything again. He could be drowning and I wouldn't ask if he needed help.

Actually, no. I would because I wasn't a monster, but well, I was going to start minding my business from now on because—

“We lost the state championship title.” Kendrix's solemn voice interrupted my building rage.

Of all the things I expected him to say, that hadn't even cracked the top hundred. My anger dissipated immediately and I turned to him.

I looked at him, really looked past my anger and saw him. He appeared tired and defeated, but also defiant. He wasn't going to give his enemy the satisfaction of seeing him broken.

“I'm sorry.” I said. I didn't know much about football, but I knew enough to understand the humiliation that came with losing a title.

“The state board decided to revoke the title today. Apparently, they had gotten some anonymous tip that one of our players had violated the academic requirement. We're no longer the state champions.” His grip on the steering wheel tightened, his teeth ground together with rage.

“That's horrible. What did the school say about it? There's gotta be something they can do. They can't just watch as they take your title away.”

It didn't sound fair that some board members just decided they weren't worth the title they worked for.

“There's nothing anyone can do about it.” he said in a resigned tone.

I stared at him and debated what to do. I wasn't very good at comforting other people. Hell, I couldn't even comfort myself. I preferred to just shove all my emotions away until they overwhelm me and cause panic attacks in the wrong places ever.

But there was one thing I could do, one thing I was extremely good at. I pulled out my phone and sent a message.

“Can you take a left turn over there, please?” I asked, pointing to the next turning.

“Why?”

“Nothing. I just need to pick up something for my mom before we go home.” I shrugged casually.

Kendrix nodded and turned to where I asked him to. I gave him the rest of the directions. Few minutes later, we were standing in front of a pizzeria.

“You're picking up pizza for your mom?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah, she has… a sudden craving for pizza.” the lie rolled off my tongue.

“We could have just ordered in. We didn't have to drive halfway across the city to your old neighborhood to get it.” he frowned.

“She wanted it from this particular pizzeria.” I unfastened my seatbelt. Maybe bringing Kendrix here was a terrible idea, but it was too late now.

It's not that I cared about cheering him up, I just didn't want to be stuck in a car with an angry person. Also, he did just lose something important to him.

“Are you going to keep questioning me and come with me, or are you going to let me head in all alone?”

He inclined his head a little bit, amusement flickered in his eyes. At least, they didn't look so devastated anymore. Small wins.

“Lead the way, ma'am.” he chuckled and unbuckled his seatbelt. We both got out of the car and walked into the small shop.

“Hey, Doris.” I smiled at the middle aged woman behind the counter. His eyes brightened when he saw me.

“Oh my God, Stephanie! It's really you. It's been so long since we've seen you on the side of town.” Doris said.

“That's why I'm here. I came to say ‘hi’ to my people, and to also get a taste of your amazing pizza. I've missed it.” I chuckled.

I could feel Kendrix's eyes boring into me from behind. He was definitely upset about being tricked, but he didn't say anything.

“Oh honey, that's so sweet of you. I got your text and cleared your favorite booth for you.” She pointed to the booth that had held lots of memories for me.

Emily and I used to sit in that booth when we came here. It was easily our favorite place in the neighborhood. I hadn't thought about her while directing Kendrix to this place. I made a silent prayer that I didn't run into her.

“I haven't seen your friend in a while too. Although, that boyfriend of yours comes around every once in a while and I make sure to give him the stink eye.” Doris said while I laughed.

“Thank you, Doris.”

Emily and I had come here on prom night after I found out Noah was cheating on me. Doris was about to close for the day but kept the doors opened while I cried my eyes out. She had given me an extra large pizza with my favorite toppings.

I wonder how she would feel when I told her that Emily had been the reason for the breakup.

I made sure Kendrix and I sat in a different booth while Doris made our pizza. He crossed his arms, staring at me with an eyebrow raised.

“You can just talk instead of staring like you're contemplating my murder.” I said.

“Murdering you would require lot of work and I'm exhausted.” he sighed. “I'm just wondering why you lied to me and dragged us all the way here just for pizza. Can't believe your favorite food is pizza.” he rolled his eyes.

“It's not my favorite food, it's my comfort food.” I corrected.

Doris's pizza had a way of elevating sadness or frustration, which was why I had brought him here. Kendrix looked like he was trying to hold back his laughter.

“Do not laugh at me.” I frowned, but that only seem to set him off as he burst out laughing.

It was difficult to hold onto my anger when his laughter was so rich and full of life. His entire expression was so different from his he was in the car. I felt a little satisfied that I had managed to make him loosen up.

“You drink raw eggs and hot sauce, you don't get to judge my taste.” I scoffed.

“Fair enough.” he shrugged. “But I wasn't laughing because of your taste in food.”

“Then why were you laughing?” I demanded.

“You look cute when you're annoyed.” he grinned.

The moment he said those words, it was like all the air between us had been sucked away. I found myself holding my breath for no reason.

Kendrix's grin fell as if he just realized what he said. I opened my mouth to say something, anything to clear the tension between us when the entrance door opened and the last person I expected to see walked in.

I froze as I watch Noah walked in.