Pen Pals: A Sweet YA Romance, page 1
Pen Pals
A.J. Moran
Copyright © 2022 by A.J. Moran
All rights reserved.
No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.
For my girls, there are still good guys (or girls) out there. I love you to the moon and back.
Contents
1. Drew
2. Drew
3. Drew
4. Adrian
5. Drew
6. Drew
7. Drew
8. Adrian
9. Adrian
10. Drew
11. Adrian
12. Drew
13. Drew
14. Drew
15. Adrian
16. Drew
17. Adrian
18. Drew
19. Adrian
20. Drew
21. Drew
22. Adrian
23. Drew
24. Drew
25. Adrian
26. Drew
27. Adrian
28. Drew
29. Adrian
30. Drew
31. Adrian
32. Epilogue
Author Note
Drew
The musty smell of male sweat permeated the air around us, and I wrinkled my nose as I tried to hold my breath. Christina snickered as I secured the last zip tie between the previous set of lockers. I blew a few stray strands of my dark hair from my eyes as I snipped the end of the zip tie with a smirk. That was the last of them. I stood up straight and dusted nonexistent dust from my gloved hands, and looked again, dusted at my best friend.
"All set." I breathed the words quietly.
Not that it mattered. No one else was around to hear them. Still, we had to be quiet. We didn't want to alert anyone that we were here.
If we were caught sneaking around, we would be in so much trouble. It had taken everything we had to convince the others to hang back and call if they thought there was the slightest chance someone would be coming into the locker room.
It was the risk we had to take to pull this prank off, though. The last one, the Mustangs, did to us had to be repaid. Coming back to our locker rooms from a game and all of our towels soaking on the shower room floor had been horrible, not just in water but paint in their school colors. This would be worse. Those boys wouldn't know what to do, not being able to get into their lockers and get their stuff.
"Shariess already grabbed all the scissors." Christina snickered again, tugging on her ponytail to make it tighter. "Man, I wish I could stay and see their faces. It would be epic, probably not as epic as their cheer team holding up those signs, though. I don't think we can top that one."
That was a great one. Hanging around to see their reactions was risky, and we totally almost got caught that time. Although Christina only thought it was epic because embarrassing people is what she reveals in and if it is someone she feels is an enemy, like our rival school, she really loves it.
Shariess grins at me as she holds up the five pairs of scissors she found as she rounds the row of lockers we are in before putting them in her bag. Who needs five pairs of scissors in a locker room? I thought maybe one, but five?
"Got them all, Drew. You guys ready?" She patted the side of her bag after zipping the scissors into it securely.
With a quick nod towards the door, we make our way out of the building. Luckily no one noticed our departure from the building, and we made our way quickly out of the stadium. Once we were safely in my car, I pulled off the rubber gloves I had on and put them in my purse to throw away later—no leaving fingerprints behind today. I had learned from a senior that got caught doing pranks when I was a freshman. He was expelled and everything once they proved who did it.
Crazy stuff.
That wasn't going to be me. I was relying on the help of cheer to get me into a good school. I couldn't do that if I got expelled.
Six members of our football team pile into Adam's SUV parked next to my tiny little cruiser. I rolled down my window when they rolled down the passenger side ones.
"You guys get it done?" Tyler asks as soon as my window is down.
I smirk and raise an eyebrow at him in question. "What do you think?" Not that I've never pulled through with my pranks. I wasn't the wuss of the group. Unlike some of my teammates, I could mention.
"That is AWESOME!" Bruce cheers from the back seat, and Nate punches him in celebration. Guys are weird.
The smile feels permanent on my face and only drops slightly when Adam gives a slight nod in acknowledgment and taps the steering wheel like he is impatient to leave. Of course, he can't say 'great job Drew,' or 'I knew you'd pull through.' Or maybe even, 'you always have the best ideas.' His ego is the reason we called it quits two weeks ago. I can't handle his need to have his ego stroked, yet he wasn't willing to give a little in return.
"So, are we all going somewhere?" Adam finally looks back over to my car. His head tilts back, and his gaze lands on his moon roof like he could care less about our answer. It's irritating and dampens my previous excitement.
Christina leans over the center council and calls over to them, "We could go to Denny's or Steak and Shake. I would kill for a mint chocolate chip shake."
I glance over at her and release the tension I had started to build with Adam's indifference. The dreamy smile on her face at the thought of that shake makes me laugh.
One of the guys in the back row of the SUV leaned up into the second row with a shout, "Steak and shake!" I couldn't tell in the dimness of the vehicle if it was Vince or Victor, and since they were twins, it is hard in standard lighting. Unless you know that Vince's smile is a little tilted, one side goes up slightly higher than the other. I was pretty sure it was due to an accident he had been in when they were little.
Shariess echo's Vince or Victor from my back seat, and I grin back at her. Her tight curls bounce around her face as she almost vibrates with excitement.
Two hours later, we took up a few booths at Steak and Shake. The laughter and conversation were coming from us, filling the whole room. We were on a high. Pranks always did that to us, though. It was great. Shariess and Christina took turns giving a play-by-play of how we snuck into the locker room and zip-tied the lockers. Everyone was laughing, including me. I wasn't letting Adam sitting across the table from me bring me down. If he could ignore what we had been, so could I.
At the chiming of the bells on the door, I naturally glanced over, the waitress in me taking over even though I wasn't working. I took in the guys walking into the place. It was obvious who they were.
"Park Hill has arrived," I said in a low voice. A grin spread across my face at their scowls at our tables. They were all in the same t-shirt and sweat combination of the Park Hill clothing. Even after they got into their lockers, their clothing wasn't wearable, all soapy and soaking wet. That had been Christina's idea.
My eyes drifted down to their feet. They were all still wearing their cleats. I laughed out loud at that. Two of the guys broke off from the group and boldly walked over to where we were.
"We know it was you," one of them pointed a finger at our table.
I smiled and looked over at Christina, who had plastered on an innocent expression, the one she used to make herself look like she had no thoughts in her head.
Completely fake.
"What was us?" Her eyes opened wide, and she looked up at them with her big blue eyes the size of giant doe eyes and shaped into innocent saucers.
"Our lockers."
"Our stuff." They both growled at once.
"Dude, back off." Tyler pushed away from the table and stood up. "You've got no proof."
One of the guys stepped forward, and Vince pushed his chair back to stand up, too, his chest puffed out, ready to fight. I watched as he clenched his fist and then let them go a few times. Male peacocking at its best.
"Guys, not here." I hissed. We could get in so much trouble. The coach would kick us from the team if we were involved in a public fight. Appearance is everything to Coach Kelly. Besides, if we got into it, the pranks would be linked back to us.
Adam glanced back at me over his shoulder, his face screaming that he was itching for a fight. I climb out from behind the table and put myself between the guys with a sigh. This would escalate into a full-blown conflict and get us all kicked from the team in seconds with the way it was going.
Placing my hand on Adam's chest, I hold him where he is before looking at the guys from Park Hill. It's hard not to smile at their outfits, knowing that I did that. But I hold it back.
"Look, we don't know what you guys are talking about. We have been here for hours. Just ask our waitress." I nod my head in the direction of our current waitress. When one of them looks over at her and then back at me, I raise my chin and add, "go on."
He kind of shuffled his feet like he was unsure if he should listen to me when another guy came up and pulled him away. "It's not worth it, dude." The new guy tells his friend. Saying more to him as they walk away. I feel the tension melt out of me and almost turn into a puddle on the ground in relief. It was just one of the possible downsides to the pranks. Actual fits were not on my list of things to do.
The warmth still under my palm makes me pull my hand away like I've been burned. I move past Adam without looking at him and slide back into my chair. I can feel his eyes on me, but I do not want to go there. No, thank you.
Dr
Since Friday, the pranks had increased; a big Mustang was painted onto the football field at some point last night. It was painted so that it appeared that the Bear was being violated. I couldn't hold back my grin at the stupid prank. It was hard not to laugh out loud at the Principal as she went on and on about what a tragedy it was. With our first home game in five days against the Mustangs of Park Hill High, I supposed that I could see her point, but it didn't make it less funny.
It was so funny that I almost wished I had thought of it first. Sure, the different things I had thought of and completed with my team were witty and intelligent; what they did was a new level of humor. Of course, going by my sense of humor probably wasn't standard for anyone. I held in another laugh as I tuned back into what the Principal was saying.
"It is offensive. This latest vandalism has crossed a line and was provoked by all of you with your last vandalism against the Mustangs." The Principal's eyebrows rose as she looked at each of us.
The Principal had gathered the team in the gym for a lecture. The lectures usually followed any of the pranks that were done. With general threats of not playing in the games if it was found out they were involved. All of them were involved. It was a team sport, after all. And it seemed she had caught on to that fact. Well, that wasn't going to go over well. I held in a sigh that could have been a chuckle and leaned back, my elbows propped on the bleacher bench behind me.
The football team was riled up, and I could hear the muttering around me in the stands of the gym. Christine grabbed my hand and squeezed in warning when an actual chuckle slipped out.
"Drew-" She hissed at me when another laugh came from me. I gave her an apologetic look and covered my mouth with a hand, stifling the noise that tried to escape.
Being a cheerleader, it probably wasn't right for me to find so much amusement at the current prank, but I couldn't help it. It was stupid and funny, and I wished we had thought of it first. It was undeniable that the rest of the team did not share my amusement.
"This has to stop, this rivalry, this vandalism at both schools." Principal Adams continued. I bit my lip to hold in another laugh before it slipped out. "So, we have come together with a solution." Huh? Who came together?
"Principal Peters of Park Hill High has agreed that this may be the only way to make you see that just because you go to different schools doesn't mean that you are that different."
What in the world was she talking about? The humor in the situation evaporated, and I felt my back go ridged as I sat up straight and leaned forward to listen to the rest of what Principal Adams said. She had my complete attention now. And it appeared she had the attention of every other person in the gym. You could hear a pin drop as she looked around at us silently.
Without a breath, she continued. "You will each be assigned a pen pal for the remainder of the season. Writing your pen pal twice a week will be a graded requirement. There will be no exchanging of phone numbers, no pictures, and no contact besides the letters that each of you writes to one another. Our homecoming dance will be pushed back to December, along with our second game against Park Hill, and instead, we will have a joint homecoming dance after our game against each other, and your pen pal will be revealed there. The theme will be 'masquerade' as it was before." Groans echoed off the gym walls, and she held up her hands to silence everyone. "Anyone that does not choose to participate will be removed from the team." Her voice bounced off of the now silent gym walls as she continued. "You will be paired up with someone of your same-sex, so you will have more to talk about."
What was this the 50s? Same-Sex pen-pals, so that we would 'have more to talk about,' sounded sexist. Not that I want to write to any of them. Writing notes to people was so fourth grade.
However, not participating was not an option for me. I needed Cheer, even sideline cheer. It was my only outlet away from home life. Suddenly the pranks didn't seem so funny. Writing to one of the stuck-up girls on the other team wasn't so appealing. I did not want to do this.
The noise level rose like a crashing wave in the gym filling it with protest and complaints and drowning out the rest of Principal Adam's words. I sat silently staring down at the PrincipalPrincipalPrincipal'sPrincipalPrincipal, my outrage just below the surface. How could she do this to the teams? It wasn't their fault that the Mustangs vandalized their field right before the big game. Everyone around me echoed my thoughts out loud.
When the noise level dropped, the Principal raised her hands, indicating that everyone should be silent. "Pen pal assignments will be given out after school. You have until then to think through your choice." And that was that. They were dismissed. No more arguments, no more voicing displeasure. I stood up and filed out with the rest of the grumbling team.
"Can you believe we will have to write those girls?" Shariess muttered, her tight curls bouncing as she walked down the steps.
"What are we even going to say to them?" Christine shrugged helplessly and followed her down the steps.
Mallory pushed through the gym doors with more force than was needed. "God, they are all bitches."
"We don't have anything in common with them," Alexis complained.
My teammates continued to voice their feelings, but I couldn't bring myself to say anything. Yeah, it sucked. But what choice was there? I would do it. Being at home with my drunken and abusive father wasn't something I was willing to do, and it wasn't like I had to say anything of real meaning to the girl. My thoughts had me feeling better about it already. Two and a half months wasn't anything. It would be a piece of cake.
Most of the team had decided to play by the new rules. It probably didn't mean the pranks would stop. They may even get some new ideas in the letters. At least, that was what I was gathering from the football team and the girls. This whole plan sounded like it would backfire for the administration of both schools.
Principal Adams sat behind a table with a clipboard in front of her. A list of names already assigned to each other. I needed to find my calm again. Mentally shaking myself, I put my trademark smile on my face and stepped up for my turn to pick a name. It was like a Russian Rolette. Only I didn't want any of the names. I looked down at the list of names that were left. I should have arrived earlier.
Brian
Garret
Eric
Jeremy
Mark
Michael
Ashton
Blake
Adrian
Elizabeth
Mary
Sasha
Destiny
Emma
Kelsey
Bree
So much for them separating the guys from the girls. However, it looked like they were sort of separate. I ran my finger down the clipboard. The first seven were guys or, most likely, guys. My guess would be Blake starts the girls. Blake was definitely a snotty cheerleader's name. I wish I had paid better attention to the girls' names on the other team to put a face with the name. There were just some of them I did not want to talk to, like the blonde with the super fake smile and probably bought and paid for boobs.
"Well, Drew, do you plan on picking a name, or would you like me to choose for you?" Principal Adams smiled up at me like I was signing up to decorate for the homecoming dance.
Which I already did; I always helped with everything. It was all part of my plan to never be at home. The later I arrived home, the better the chance my father would be passed out on the couch or the back lawn or the front porch or out in the garage. Just passed out. It was the only requirement. He was a mean drunk, and I didn't want to end up in the hospital. I sighed and smiled brightly before writing my name next to Adrian's name.
Adrian didn't sound as snotty as Blake would be. And I pictured Adrian as a brunette. None of the brunettes seemed too bad. As long as it wasn't that blonde, I would be golden.
"Great. The first letter exchange will be in two days on Wednesday. We will collect the letters and give you your letter then. After that, we will alternate between collecting from them and giving them the letters first. We gave our school the first choice of names because of the level of the vandalism done to us by their team last night." I nodded my head automatically like she was making perfect sense when really nothing was making sense in this. How would writing to them change anything? Sneak peek, it won't.
