Chapter 30: CHAPTER 30

Several minutes before practice, Cross's teammates surrounded him by his locker. No surprise there --cheerleaders always lingered near these halls, pretending to wait for friends while sneaking glances at him. Naturally, his teammates followed the trail of pretty girls like moths to a flame.

It'd be nice if one particular cheerleader made half the effort. That'd make things a heck of a lot easier. You'd think with all the flirting he threw her way, and the way she blushed like crazy, that she'd start seeking him out as the others did when he so much as winked.

But no. Clara James was different. Instead of giving in, she eyed him warily, throwing his past at him like a shield. She meant to keep him at a distance, but the more she pulled away, the more he wanted to close in and trap her. Why did she even care so much about the past? If he treated her right, that should be enough.

He wanted to kiss her senseless, just to see what it would take to break her. Knowing Clara, she'd probably slap him right after.

I'd take a hit, he thought, smiling to himself. Only the kiss would be too short, and he didn't just want to kiss her.

He wanted to devour her.

A folded white paper slipped from his locker the moment he opened it. It fluttered to the floor, landing face-up with a pink, hand-drawn hearts decorating the top.

Another one.

He bent to pick it up, thumb grazing over the first line of neatly typed words.

"Ooo, what is that?" a girl enthused.

Cross shrugged, already halfway to crumpling it when Jared snatched the note from his hand.

"Let's see what lover girl wrote this time," he jeered, clearing his throat in expectation. They always made a show of reading love letters sent to him.

"Dear Cross, ever since the party I haven't stopped thinking of you. The way your muscles looked when you had your shirt off and they squirted whipped cream on you made me want to…"

A bigger crowd gathered around them as Jared continued in a high-pitched voice, milking every word for laughter. Cross had gotten plenty of love letters before, but this one was very specific, and wildly desperate compared to the others.

It was also typed, not handwritten, which made him question if it was from an actual person.

Probably a prank.

"I hope one day I gain the courage to tell you my deep feelings in person. Love, C.J."

Laughter echoed down the hall as the crowd proceeded to guess who the mystery admirer was.

"But isn't that strange..." a girl began.

Rubi, if he remembered correctly. The girl who obsessed over David until he finally blocked her.

David had a short fuse, so that was bound to happen. Cross flattered himself as more patiernt (but really it was to be thorough). He ended things face-to-face to avoid misunderstandings.

But with Clara in the picture now, it'd be best to clean house. The last thing he needed was an old flame messaging him and stirring up problems.

Clara barely believed him as it was. He needed her to trust him and take him seriously.

After gaining everyone's attention, Rubi continued.

"She initialed C.J. instead of writing 'secret admirer. It's almost like she was hinting at her name.

Cross chuckled. There was only one person he knew with the initials C.J., and she would never flatter him with such flowery language. Finding the thought amusing though, he poured gas over Rubi's logs.

"Who in this school has the initials C.J?" Cross's tone was light, threaded with innocent curiosity. But as he switched his books in the privacy of his locker, his smile turned lethal.

After a moment, he looked over his shoulder to the pondering circle. Rubi had a hand over her chin in fake thought. Her acting was awful.

"Carla Jenkins," one of the players said.

"No," Rubi quickly dismissed. She waved off his guess with annoyance. "She likes someone else. Oh- but there is a cheerleader with those initials..." she trailed off suggestively.

Eliza fell into her bait, eyes narrowing. "Clara James."

"Oh yeah, didn't she rate you a ten at the party?" Someone added.

As the circle's speculation grew, Cross bit his cheek to contain a smile. Clara might've refused to be his girlfriend, but he'd let this rumor fly if it kept the other guys in check. She was doing a lousy job keeping them off her anyway.

"What are you going to do Cross?" Rubi asked, she was unsure of his thoughts based off his reserved reaction.

Cross took the letter back from his teammate and folded it neatly. The gentle, almost caring way he slipped it into his pocket filled them with surprise.

Each time he got a love letter he was quick to rip it. Why hold onto this one?

With an impish smile he answered Rubi's question. What would he do?

"Respond, of course."

The hallway fell quiet for a beat. Then erupted again.

What do you mean?

She's very pretty, I just didn't know she was this unhinged.

Are you going to reject her?

Cross didn't answer. He closed his locker and began to walk in the direction of the girl now rumored to have a fanatic obsession over him.