Read Full Count (The Catcher Series Book 1) Online
Authors: Bri Izzo
“Can
’
t do what?” Benny
questions me as I bow my head to avert my eyes.
“I can
’
t fucking be here when
she
’
s hanging on his arm like that,”
I
admit. I don’
t care if it makes me sound lame; my insides are boiling.
Watching her, I can tell she
’
s a little nervous to be with
him in this setting. Being his date comes with some expectations. I have a
feeling if she knew what they actually were she would be just as upset as me.
“So you
’
re just going to leave?
That
’
ll only make things worse,” he points out.
“I
’
ll be back,” I tell him. I
storm through the small crowd which includes Alex and Leah and push open the
door to stand outside. I can hear the music rumbling on the other side of the
door once it closes, but the wind soon masks it. I dig my hands into my pockets
and feel around for my phone in my dress pants. When I pull it out, I
surprisingly have a text message that must
’
ve gotten
skipped over.
Buzz Ferrari:
Save
me a dance?
Fuck yeah!
I pump my fist into the air like I
just won a baseball game.
I guess my homemade cookies and fucking cream
gesture at her birthday dinner did make a difference.
My excitement slowly
dwindles when I hear the door open behind me.
“Hey, Leah and I saw you cut through to come out
here. You alright?” Alex wonders, joining me on the back patio of the
cafeteria.
“Did you see your sister tonight?” I ask, knowing I
didn
’
t answer his question.
“Yeah, just for a second,” he says shrugging.
“Did you see her date?” I press, trying with all I
can to not throw up at the image. I
’
m also trying not to
freak the fuck out on Alex for not acting like the big brother in this
situation. I do
not
want to have to step in as the big brother to the
girl who
’
s my crush. But I guess that
’
s
why it
’
s called a crush. Because when they don
’
t want to be with you it fucking crushes you. And Buzz is
crushing me into the tiniest of crumbs.
“She said she wasn
’
t his date
since they didn
’
t buy each other flowers and didn
’
t go out for dinner,” Alex half-laughs. I don
’
t
know if his laugh is from us awkwardly skirting around the real issue between
us or if he also thinks that reasoning is bull shit.
“They walked in together; that
’
s
all that matters,” I mutter under my breath. “Tell me you saw what Chase was
doing when they walked in a few minutes ago.”
“No, I guess not,” he confesses. His expression
turns into pure concern. “What happened?”
“Just the way he was touching her and acting like
she was a fucking toy,” I vaguely explain. I
’
m not sure
how it feels for him to hear me talk about his sister being groped; it can
’
t be much worse than what I
’
m feeling. He
looks kind of nauseous, and I feel bad for causing it but only a little. I need
him to care and fucking do something about it.
“Skyler, she
’
s growing up. I
don
’
t like guys hanging on her either, but I
’
ve
learned to look the other way,” he tells me.
Look the other way? He didn
’
t do that with me
.
“I
’
m not going to let him
fucking take advantage of her. I won
’
t let anyone do that,
not to her,” I declare, turning away from him and re-entering the cafeteria.
Someone needs to fucking care about Buzz, and I should know after all these
years it
’
s going to end up being only me. Going
back to where Benny remains, I stand next to him silently until a song partway
through the night when Buzz finally approaches me. Since her birthday dinner we
still haven
’
t really talked unless she wants to practice
her pitching at the park. It
’
s not ideal but it
’
s better than when she was completely shutting me out.
“Did you get my text?” she asks nervously. She
’
s fidgeting with her hands, and I totally notice.
Not a
typical Buzz move.
“I did,” I reply. I
’
m not sure
if she
’
s redeeming the saved dance or coming to tease me,
so I wait before saying more.
“Can I have the dance now?” she hopes. Her small,
innocent smile is so sexy, and I look beyond her at Chase Morgan standing in a
group of guys across the room. He
’
s watching us carefully
and even looks a little jealous to me.
“Yeah, of course,” I oblige, shooting Benny a quick
glare. I hope he knows that means for him to watch out for Chase.
Buzz
reaches out her hand, and I gladly take it in mine as she starts leading me to
the center of the dance floor where couples are scattered about holding each
other and barely swaying to the slow music. “Are you having fun at your first
homecoming?” I awkwardly ask her quietly as her hands brush the back of my neck
and I wrap mine around her waist. My stomach somersaults from feeling her hands
on me, but I have to convince myself it
’
s not real. It
’
s just a dance, nothing more. Even though it feels perfect, it
’
s not. She
’
s here with Chase, not me.
Nodding, she gives me a pathetically fake smile. “It
’
s fun. I just always hoped I would be going with you,” she
mumbles.
Ugh, me too
. She
’
s killing me. I should
’
ve made it happen despite Chase fucking Morgan.
“I heard you were going with him before I had the
chance to ask you,” I grumble. Her eyes dart up at me in surprise. I think I
must
’
ve caught her off guard by saying I was going to ask
her, but that
’
s not what surprised her.
“You heard I was going with him? How?” she asks.
“It
’
s high school. People talk,”
I explain briefly. This doesn
’
t ease her mind at all. In
fact, it sends her into a panic. She begins frantically observing our
surroundings as if everyone is still talking about her this second. Before she
has the chance to leave me, I blurt out, “In case you haven
’
t
heard from anyone else tonight, you look stunning.”
Her shimmering eyes have been darting around the room
since I said ‘people talk
’
but the moment I finish saying ‘stunning
’
it
’
s like her brain melts and stops all
messages from being sent. “I
’
m sorry… what?” Buzz calmly
asks. She looks like she was just told she
’
s going to meet
Team USA’s best pitcher, her idol Jennie Finch, and can
’
t
believe it.
“Buzz, please tell me
someone
complimented
you tonight besides me,” I beg. Even if Chase said something dirty or
derogatory, I still want him to at least acknowledge her appearance.
“Mrs. Young said something when I walked in and gave
her my ticket, but I think she was saying it to everyone,” she brushes it off
and lowers her head. She
’
s so close to leaning on me and
resting her head on my chest, but I can tell she
’
s
hesitant. We used to be so comfortable with each other. It
’
s
only natural to fall into old habits even if we are kind of fighting and her
assfuck-of-a-kind-of-boyfriend is watching us.
Fuck Chase Morgan for not saying anything to Buzz
about how gorgeous she looks. I can
’
t wait to beat the
shit out of him later.
“Buzz, look at me,” I lightly demand. I wait for her
to shyly bring her eyes up to me before I tell her, “You look incredible
tonight. Easily the prettiest one here.” I make sure to look her in the eyes so
she knows there isn
’
t an ounce of sarcasm in my
compliment. I want her to fucking hear me for once.
“Thank you,” she whispers. For a moment I can feel
that she
’
s only looking at me, like she forgot that she
came here with someone else. It
’
s the look she
’
s always given me since we were little kids. With the help of
my parents and friends, I always knew Buzz had a crush on me, and my mom taught
me from a young age to not tease her about it. Those eyes have never changed
the way they
’
ve fallen on me since we were munchkins.
“B, if you need anything tonight… a ride or somewhere
to sleep, just call me,” I tell her as she tightens her arms around me to pull
us closer. She
’
s barefoot so I
’
m
careful to not step on her toes, but I follow her lead and squeeze her a little
more. It feels good to be that close to her again - almost too good though. I
don
’
t want to let her go. But then the moment immediately
dies when she runs back to what
’
s-his-fuck once the song
ends.
Holy. Swoon
.
The way Skyler was
looking at me while we were slow dancing to “I
’
ll Be
” could make Jennifer Aniston melt at his mercy. I almost
forgot that I went to the dance with Chase. Actually I secretly hope he gets
amnesia so he
’
ll forget too and I can spend the rest of
the night with Sky. But sadly I know that isn
’
t going to
happen. And surprisingly Chase is a decent date; he isn
’
t
clingy and lets me do my own thing - even dance with Skyler when he hates him -
and actually dances with me when I ask, which isn
’
t that
often. When I
’
m dancing with Skyler, out of the corner of
my eye I see Chase staring at us waiting for the song to end so we
’
ll stop touching each other.
As it ends, Skyler leans down and kisses my cheek
before whispering, “
You look beautiful, B.
”
I bite my lip to keep from grinning too big, but I
can
’
t hide the rush I get when my lifelong crush tells me
I look stunning and beautiful within five minutes of each other. Like my facial
isn
’
t obvious, I ask Chase, “What
’
s
wrong?” when I approach him and see a scowl on his face.
“You know I don
’
t like him,” he
reminds me. That
’
s pretty much all I heard all summer. I
always had to pinch my tongue and divert the conversation elsewhere before we
got in a death match; I refused to have an argument over my friendship with
Skyler, even if him and I weren
’
t on the best of terms at
the time.
“We
’
ve been friends since we
were kids. Let it go,” I demand with an eye roll. I drape my arm around his
neck and rock back and forth on my barefooted heels. “I came here with you,
didn
’
t I?” I try to say it flirtatiously, but it doesn
’
t work.
“Yeah because you
’
re mad at him!
” he snaps, grabbing my wrist and throwing it back
at me.
“Chase!” I exclaim in surprise. I barely have time
to catch my own wrist before it
’
s going to hit me in the
face. Luckily I do, but I
’
m sure it doesn
’
t
look good from an outsider
’
s perspective. I
’
m
nervous that Skyler is going to see this and come attack Chase, which will make
things even worse.
“What? You
’
re just using me.
You aren
’
t going to give it up to me because you
’
re holding out for him,” he blurts out.
“I
’
m fifteen. I didn
’
t think I had to give it up immediately upon stepping foot in
high school,” I tell him in a quieter voice.
When we get to the after party, I have no idea who is
hosting it or that my brother and his friends are there until later. I just see
tons of alcohol and people from school. The place is a mansion near a horse
ranch and the parents must be sleeping or gone for the weekend because the
music is shaking the main floor from the basement when I walk inside. I change
into spandex and a t-shirt in the bathroom and come out completely dumbfounded
when every other girl is wearing a prissy come-hither outfit instead of
something casual like mine. Another reason for them to call me butch. Great.
Whatever.
“Hi sweetie! You look like you need a drink,” a
tall, lanky brunette girl throws her arm around me in a greeting, pulling me
towards the wet bar in the basement.
“Oh, uhh… sure,”
I accept.
“I
’
m Bianca.”
“I know,” she tells me with a smile that says she
knows everyone and everything.
“You know?”
I question her. I can
’
t say I know her or even recognize her from anywhere.
“Yeah. I
’
ve just heard about
you. Nothing bad,” she brushes me off. “I
’
m Makenna, by
the way.”
“Nice to meet you,” I casually reply, closely
examining how much alcohol she
’
s putting in my drink.
Usually I make my own concoctions; Chase taught me how to make the perfect
vodka and soda mixer. “So do you know who
’
s house this is?”
“It
’
s mine,” she informs me
with a proud grin and hair flip. Her long, silky brown hair put my rags to
shame. I would kill to have hair like that. “If you need to sleepover tonight
you can. My parents won
’
t mind.”
“Are they home?” I wonder curiously. It
’
s weird to be in someone
’
s house where
alcohol is easily accessible.
“Yeah, they
’
re asleep. I gave
them earplugs before I left for the dance,” she cheerfully explains. Wow… I can
’
t tell if that
’
s awesome or just totally
stupid of them.
“C
’
mon. Let
’
s
go play some drinking games!”
Makenna grabs my hand and leads me through one room
and into the next where a ping pong table is set up for beer pong. Some people
I recognize from school that are in my brother
’
s class are
in the middle of a game, so we linger on the sideline until they dramatically
finish. When we step up to take the losers
’
places, I receive
some questionable looks from the crowd. A few are from some of Rex
’
s acquaintances, and at first I
’
m a little
nervous to be in the spotlight while drinking, but eventually I stop caring and
their faces soften into only a slight disbelief that Perfect Rex
’
s
little sister is a daredevil.
I pretty much sweep the other team by myself, but I
step aside to let a whole new group of people play when Makenna and I finish.
Just as I
’
m about to leave the
side room, Chase comes up from behind me and whispers, “Hey, Bianca,” and wraps
an arm across my stomach.
“Hey, have you been drinking already?” I wonder,
hoping it doesn
’
t sound too motherly. I really am just
curious because I don
’
t smell anything on him but he
sounds tipsy.
“No… can
’
t I just be excited to
see you? I lost you for like an hour,” he scowls, releasing his hold on me.
“Yeah, Makenna grabbed me to be her partner for beer
pong,” I explain, reaching for his hand. When my fingers brush his and then
clench tightly, his eyes light up in question. It
’
s very
unusual for me to be showing public affection to him, and we both know it.
“How many have you had?” he asks me, clearly
noticing my flirty banter.
“
Just a couple,
” I tell him. I
’
m just tipsy - no where near drunk like the first time he came
over to drink with Tiffany and me.
“Tiffany was looking for you a few minutes ago
upstairs,” Chase blurts out.
Admiring his loose athletic shorts and unbuttoned
dress shirt, I tease, “Was it urgent, or do you think she can wait… a half
hour?”
“Depends why you
’
re making her
wait,” he chuckles, yanking my hand towards him so my whole body jerks closer.
Our lips are still a few inches apart, but we both know where it
’
s
headed - to a room where no one can see us.
“Is that bedroom empty?” I nod towards the next door
over that
’
s wide open with the lights off. He raises his
eyebrows at me and tries to hide his growing smile but fails miserably.
“If it
’
s not, I
’
ll
kick out whoever is in there,” he decides, leading me into the room. He shuts
the door before flipping the light switch on, sees we
’
re
alone, locks the door, and shuts the lights off again. He reaches for my side
and moves me closer to his chest. Unlike Skyler who towers over me, Chase is
only a few inches taller than me so I don
’
t have to work
as hard to find his lips in the darkness. He lets me have one short kiss, but
then he whispers, “Bianca…” This makes me push back, but my eyes are still
adjusting to the darkness so I can
’
t see him very well. We
meet again and kiss for a few minutes, and by then my eyes adjust enough to see
him questioningly looking at me when he breaks our lips apart.
“What, Chase?” I press, wondering why he stopped
kissing me when he was so ready to kick someone out of the room a few minutes
ago.
“You
’
re thinking about him,” he
states, and I can see the disappointment in his eyes. His mind is already made
up: nothing is happening between us tonight.
“Um… I wasn
’
t actually,” I
admit with a giggle. He ruined the moment all on his own; for the first time in
a while Skyler wasn
’
t running through my head.
“I can tell. I
’
m just gonna go,”
he tells me, letting go of me and turning around to open the door. When he
does, everyone in the outside room stops to stare at him, shirt unbuttoned and
probably a frustrated expression upon his face, and waits for me to follow him.
So I do. And instead of being embarrassed, I walk past him, brushing my arm
against his, and make my way upstairs to the kitchen where Tiffany is sitting
with Chloe.
“Where the hell have you been?” Tiffany exclaim when
she sees me.
“Downstairs,” I reply vaguely. I
’
m
not sure if she
’
s mad or not, so telling her I
’
m drinking and almost hooked up with Chase isn
’
t
on my to do list just yet.
“
I don’
t even know
whose house this is, so we were thinking we should leave and go to my house for
the night,” she suggests. Luckily she and Chloe are also dressed in t-shirts
like me, not trying to impress anyone. It was Chase
’
s idea
to come here even though we clearly don
’
t fit in with the
crowd.
“It
’
s Makenna
’
s,”
I tell her matter-of-factly like I actually knew the girl before she greeted me
a while ago and made me a drink.
“Who
’
s Makenna?” Chloe wonders
as she crosses her arms over her chest.
“
I don’
t know exactly, but she
seemed nice,”
I decides.
“You
’
re going to love this,” Tiffany
announces with a light hearted chuckle. My heart races in anticipation; I can
tell by the look on her face I am
not
going to love whatever she says. “Makenna
is the girl Skyler brought to the cabin on the Fourth of July.”