Page 19 of The Cheerleader is Off Limits

“Wait,” Ellie says excitedly while bouncing on her toes, “I want to know more about this. Should I hold off on setting you up?”

“There’s nothing to know. We can talk about it tomorrow.”

Twenty minutes later, I’m back at my house, and after brushing my teeth, I practically collapse on my bed as the fatigue of the past week sets in. I turn on the television, in preparation forsleep in the next thirty seconds, when I realize my phone is almost dead, and I need to charge it. I unzip my backpack, and, when I reach inside to grab it, I pull out a piece of paper folded in half. I frown in confusion, wondering why I’d have a sleeve of what looks like loose-leaf paper.

I can’t even stop the excitement that courses through me when I see Sloane’s name and the ten numbers written neatly beneath it. My previous exhaustion is long forgotten as I type the number into my phone. I freeze momentarily, a list of questions running through my mind one after the other.

Maybe it’s too late to text her?

Should I text her at all?

You’ve been thinking about her since you left the airport. If you don’t now, you will the second you have a few drinks.

Fuck it.

I type out a message and my thumb hovers over the send button briefly before I click it.

Me:

So did you go through my stuff when you were sliding your number into my backpack?

Sloane:

I’m sorry, who is this?

I panic briefly before realizing that she’s definitely playing with meafter confirming very carefully that I typed the number in correctly,twice.

Me:

Did you give your number out to a lot of people today?

Sloane:

Still doesn’t answer my question.

Me:

You didn’t answer mine either

Sloane:

Guess we’re at a standstill

I narrow my eyes at my screen, not wanting to give in first, but on the off chance she’s really not sure, I don’t want her to feel uneasy.

Me:

It’s River.

The bubbles pop up, indicating that she’s typing before they disappear. They appear and then disappear again before one word pops up on my screen that causes a chuckle to leave me.

Sloane:

Who?

Me:

Cute.