Chapter 9: The first prize

The school ground the next day was rowdy as if it were a supermarket on black Friday sales. From the entrance to the hallways, people kept blabbering about some race that happened the day before.

They all seemed to have forgotten what happened with Piper and Rollins. Piper barely even had eyes on her today. Who was it that made themselves the gossip of the day?

Piper was just about to walk past the cafeteria, which was swarming with people, when she was pounced upon by a certain energetic individual.

“Hey, Piper!” Ember called out excitedly, grinning widely. She seemed overhyped by something. Piper concluded it was probably some juicy gossip.

She showed zero interest, her eyes leveling on Ember with a dry look. “What is it?” she asked flatly

Ember made a shrill noise “Guess. What?”

Piper shrugged. “What?” She was getting more and more apathetic to whatever it was she had to say.

Ember was too excited, she couldn't say it. So she pulled her into the cafeteria “Come see for yourself”

Piper rolled her eyes. She looked at the far corner of the spot meant for cheerleaders and athletes. There was nothing new, it was just more crowded than it usually is.

“Okay, a bunch of people. What else?” She said sarcastically, rolling her eyes again.

Ember grabbed her face, startling her, and turned it to the spot. “Look at who they're celebrating”

Piper squinted at them. When her eyes landed on Archie, they shot wide. Her jaw dropped to the ground “What ?” she muttered. Archie sat there proudly, man spreading like a king while they showered praises on him.

Even Elsa and her little pack of runts were there too.

“Shocking right?” Ember giggled.

“W-what happened? What did he do?” Piper asked, her interest piqued.

Ember's smile broadened “He had a race with that jerk Rollins. The Captain's band was the bet.”

“Archie won?” Piper looked back at him, and in that moment, their eyes met. His expression seemed to light up even more when he saw her. Piper shifted her gaze back to Ember “Where is Rollins right now?”

“Who cares?” Ember shrugged her shoulders. “He's probably crying his eyes out somewhere. He deserves it.”

Just as Archie rose to make his way toward her, Piper spun on her heel and slipped out the side door.

She followed the dull energy to the locker room. Rollins would always sulk there whenever he lost a game. She opened the door, and as expected, found him sitting on the bench with his head down.

When he felt her presence, he looked up. “Piper,” he called out, rising to his feet instantly. He swallowed. “What are you doing here?”

“I heard the news,” she answered, closing the space between them, but leaving a little distance.

He collapsed back on the bench, sighing “I'm a loser,”

Piper's brows came together and her eyes softened. “Don't say that,” she said, sitting near him on the bench, and lifting her hand to his back, gently stroking it. “I've heard it's only for a week,”

“Fact remains that I still lost to Archie. It's demeaning. Now, Everyone thinks he'd make a better Captain”

“Not everyone,” she corrected. “I still believe you are amazing as a Captain. Instead of sulking here, you should show them that they're wrong.” She reminded him, “There's a game coming up with the team from the West. You can prove it to everyone then,” she suggested.

Rollins looked up at her, already coaxed by her words. He pulled her into a tight hug “Thank you so much, Piper. I knew you'd come around”

It felt weird, but Piper hugged him back, patting him stiffly. “Yeah, yeah. Now let go of me”

They parted, and Rollins sniffed, though there were no signs of tears. “Does this mean you've forgiven me?” he asked.

“I'm working on it,” Piper said, giving him a small smile. She wasn't going to accept him back easily. She chose to give him a chance to correct things. She declared “Whatever it is that you and Elsa have going on. It's over!”

“You're the boss,” Rollins smiled. He just couldn't resist, he cupped her face and pulled her in again, smashing his lips against hers. Piper didn't fight it. She kissed him back.

When she finally stepped back, her heart was pounding, her face flushed. She muttered something under her breath about needing to go and hurried out of the locker room.

Unknown to her, Archie witnessed everything. Earlier, when he saw her leave suddenly, he chased after her. When he reached the locker room door and heard voices inside, he paused.

And then he saw them.

He saw that.

The kiss hit him harder than he expected. For a moment, he just stood there, frozen in place, watching the girl he was drawn to, wrap her arms around the guy who hurt her.

His chest tightened painfully, but he couldn't do anything. He took a quiet step back, his jaw set.

When Piper returned to class later, she found Archie already seated. Their eyes met briefly. He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. She waved half-heartedly and sat down two rows away.

The lecture dragged on. Piper tried to focus on the teacher’s words, but her mind kept replaying what had just happened in the locker room. Maybe Rollins was right. He did make a mistake. Elsa must have tried to confuse him to choose her over his fated mate.

Piper was glad they were going to work things out. It made a smile appear on her face.

Now and then, Archie would steal a glance at her. She seemed to be happier now. The fact that Rollins was the reason made his blood itch.

Unable to sit still, he quietly stood up and left for the bathroom.

The hallway was quiet compared to the noisy class. He walked slowly, hands in pockets, until he passed an old, abandoned classroom.

That’s when he heard it.

A muffled sound. Voices. A low laugh disrupting the quiet hallway.

Curiosity led him. He stepped closer to one of the broken windows, careful not to make noise. He peered through the crack, just enough to see what was happening inside.

And what he saw made his stomach twist. But at the same time caused him great relief.