Page 6 of Never Not Friends

“I’ll pay you back.”

“Oh, stop it!” She waves my suggestion away. “I love donating to my favorite elementary school teacher’s classroom.” She nods at Vinny to follow her. “We’ll meet you at the front.”

He immediately grabs the basket of books from her so she doesn’t have to carry the weight. Things would be easier for my heart if he weren’t such a gentleman.

They walk side by side toward the checkout. His free hand reaches for hers. My gaze lingers wantingly for a second until even I’m annoyed by my patheticness. Then I head to the cafe—alone—to order my matcha.

EMMA

9th Grade - August

“Each group has their recipes and all their ingredients.” Mrs. Hicksenbaugh walks around the orange cooking classroom, talking to the students. “Although this is a quick recipe that doesn’t need time to rise, you still need to mix the dough, bake it, and eat it, so I suggest you get started and not waste time.”

The room immediately erupts in organized chaos as teenagers pretend like they know how to bake. But really, we’re all here for an easy A.

I turn to my partner, Brett, and see Vinny Brooks standing there as if he spawned from another dimension.

My heart skips like it’s in the middle of a hopscotch game.

He doesn’t look at me. “Hey, Brett, do you want to switch partners?”

Brett glances over, checking out who the switch would pair him with.

“You’d be with Weston,” Vinny supplies.

“Yeah, I do.” Brett doesn’t spare me a glance as he walks away to the other station.

Vinny slides in beside me, casually explaining, “I like your oven better.”

I like your oven better? Aren’t they all the same?

“Oh.” I nod as if I don’t care either way.

I ABSOLUTELY DO CARE.

I’ve had a crush on him for months. At first, it was the dimple. Then it was the way he treated everyone. Unfortunately, other girls noticed him too, and within a week of moving here, he’d already gotten a girlfriend.

But Juliet heard they broke up over the summer. And I haven’t seen them together in the halls. Granted, we’ve only been back to school for one week, but still, a girl can hope.

I pick up the recipe on the counter. “It looks like we’re making sugar buns.”

Vinny smiles. “You mean, cinnamon rolls?”

My cheeks pinken as I hold up the recipe. “It says sugar buns.”

“Okay.” He smiles again, showing off that distracting dimple.

But with this closer vantage point, I’m learning it’s not necessarily a dimple. It’s more like a mischievous indentation in the side line of his smile than a dimple in the center of his cheek. Either way, I love everything about it.

“What does it say we need to do first?”

“Uh.” I glance down at the instructions. “For the sugar buns, you first melt the butter and milk.”

His lips break into another smile. “I’ll work on that.” Slowly, he reaches past me, his arm brushing mine as he grabs the butter. He smells amazing, like cheap cologne made specifically to cause me to fall in love with him even more.

I watch him, feeling the dance of butterflies in my stomach. He looks so cute in his blue hoodie, jeans, and black Vans; I might die. The corner of his mouth lifts as he glances back at me—the kind of smile that says I got caught checking him out.

Why, Emma? Why!?!