FAKE DATING THE FOOTBALL CAPTAIN

I had just finished writing my ridiculously embarrassing love letter to Noah Carter. My crush. Noah Carter the star football player. Future heartbreaker. Owner of the world's most unfair smile. Unfortunately for me, I was... well, me. A nerdy girl with oversized glasses, zero athletic ability, and a special talent for tripping over perfectly flat surfaces. I folded the letter for what felt like the hundredth time and shoved it into my jacket pocket. "You're seriously doing this?" Freda asked, staring at me like I'd just announced I was joining the circus. "Doing what?" "Trying to secretly deliver a love letter in the twenty-first century." I gasped. "It's called being romantic." "It's called being weird." I rolled my eyes. Freda had spent months telling me to just talk to Noah, but there was one tiny problem. I couldn't. Sure, he smiled at me whenever we crossed paths. Sure, he always remembered my name. But Noah Carter was the kind of guy girls wrote songs about. I was the kind of girl who accidentally walked into glass doors. There was a difference. A very large difference. Which was exactly why I found myself sneaking toward the football locker room fifteen minutes later. The team was outside practicing. The coast was clear. At least, that was what I thought. My heart pounded as I slipped inside and found that the room was empty. Rows of lockers lined the walls. Noah's locker sat near the corner. Perfect. I hurried over, pulled the letter from my pocket, and reached for the locker handle. Almost done. Untill the locker room door slammed shut. I froze. Slowly, very slowly, I turned around. And immediately wished I hadn't. Standing a few feet away was Xander Hayes. Football captain. School menace. My sworn enemy since middle school The single most annoying person I had ever met. We literally hate each other but somehow our parents are friends and that annoys me so much since we tend to see each other more often at gatherings and all. And unfortunately for my rapidly dying dignity, he had just come from practice. His dark hair was damp with sweat. His jersey was hanging over one shoulder. And his shirt? Missing. Completely missing. My brain promptly stopped functioning. Xander's gaze dropped to the pink envelope in my hand. Then to Noah's locker. Then back to me. A slow grin spread across his face. "Oh, this is priceless." My stomach dropped. "No." "Oh yes." He took a step closer. "Are you sneaking love letters into lockers?" I clutched the envelope to my chest. "Mind your business." "I would," he said, fighting a laugh, "but watching you commit crimes against dignity is suddenly my business." I wanted the floor to open up and swallow me whole. Instead, Xander held out his hand. "Give me the letter." My eyes widened. "Absolutely not." His grin only grew. "Then I guess I'll have to find out who it's for the hard way.” "Back off, Hayes." "Give me the envelope." "No." "Come on." "No." "Just one look." "Absolutely not." A slow grin spread across his face. That grin. The one that always meant trouble. Before I could react, he lunged. I let out a startled squeak and spun away, clutching the letter against my chest. "Xander!" "What? I'm curious!" "You need a hobby!" "I have one." "Being annoying doesn't count!" His laugh echoed through the locker room as he chased after me. I darted around a row of lockers. He followed. I dodged left. He blocked me. I dodged right. He blocked me again. "Will you stop?!" "Will you give me the letter?" "No!" "Then no." I groaned. This guy was impossible. I turned to run again, but suddenly a hand closed around my wrist. My eyes widened. Xander's widened too. Neither of us had expected him to actually catch me. For one second, we just stared at each other. Then I yanked my arm free. Unfortunately, I also lost my balance. "Oh crap—" My foot slipped. Xander reached for me. I grabbed onto the front of his jersey. A terrible decision. Because instead of stopping my fall, I dragged him down with me. The world tilted. There was a loud crash. And then— Silence. My brain stopped working. Completely. Because somehow I had landed flat on my back. And Xander had landed directly on top of me. Our faces were inches apart. Too close. Way too close. I could feel my heart pounding against my ribs. Could hear his breathing. Could see the tiny scar above his eyebrow. Then he shifted. Just slightly. And our lips brushed. For the briefest second. Barely a touch. But enough. Enough to make my entire body freeze. Enough to make his eyes go wide. Neither of us moved. Neither of us breathed. What just happened? Then we both jerked apart like we'd been struck by lightning. "Oh my God!" "What the hell?!" We spoke at the same time. My face instantly caught fire. Xander looked equally horrified. "That was your fault," I blurted. "My fault?" "You chased me!" I blurted out loud enough for everyone to hear but unfortunately nobody is here "You tripped!" "You grabbed me!" "You attacked my jersey!" I opened my mouth but closed it because I couldn't think of any counter back I opened it again. Fair point. Before I could come up with another argument, a victorious grin slowly spread across his face. My stomach dropped. No! No, no, no. His hand lifted. And there it was. The pink envelope. My pink envelope. The letter must have slipped from my pocket during the fall. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me." Xander stood and held it above his head before I could snatch it back. "Well, well, well." "Give it back." "Nope." "Xander." "Nope." "Xander Hayes." His eyes flicked to the front of the envelope. The grin disappeared. For the first time all afternoon, he looked genuinely surprised. My heart sank. Because he had just seen the name written across it. Noah Carter.