Miss Match (6 page)

“Right, of course. Well, we’ll see what kind of grade we get and I’ll tell you then,” I say, loud enough for all the eavesdroppers to hear. Then, more quietly, “I have an extra towel in my locker. Hang on a sec and I’ll grab it.”

He smiles. “Thanks, Sasha.”

I take my time fetching the towel—which has a big yellow Funshine Bear on it, but at least it’s freshly washed—so I can have him all to myself. Once the locker room fills with wet, chattery chicks, I head back out to the pool. “Here ya go,” I say, handing the towel to Derek.

He rubs it through his hair and then shakes his head like he’s got water in his ears. “Man, that was quite the workout. You girls are tough!”

I laugh. “Well, it’s too bad Maddie wasn’t here. But you’ll get to meet her after school. So that’s cool…” Oh! Wait a minute. I can’t tell Derek that Kevin’s hot on Maddie’s trail when he hasn’t officially met her yet. Derek might panic and ask her to the dance right away. Maddie would think he was totally whacked, and she’d find a nice way to let him down easy. His chances with her would be forever ruined! I can’t let that happen. Best to just play it cool until they meet. I hope they hit it off!

The rest of the day I stake out Maddie’s locker, but I don’t catch Kevin in the act. Which is good, ’cause it’s almost time for Maddie’s Algebra Tutorial: Take Two.

Maddie spots me in the hallway and says, “Hey, sweetie.”

We stand by her locker for a few minutes, people watching. I figure it’s best to just stay with her so she doesn’t get sidetracked this time. I check my watch. Still a few more minutes till she needs to head to the library.

“So how was Synch Swimming?” she asks, rummaging in her locker.

“Where were you, by the way?” I’m sure it has something to do with hanging out
with her friends, or worse, Kevin. I’m not so sure I want to hear the answer.

“I was studying.”

“Really?” Shoot. That just slipped out. I don’t want to piss Maddie off. After all, she needs to be in the best mood possible when she meets Derek for the first time.

She whips around to face me and snarls, “This might come as a surprise to you, Sasha, but I really do want to get good grades. And it’s more than just staying on the cheerleading squad.” She slams her locker shut. “I want to prove to myself that I’m smart. Like you.”

“But you
are
smart, Maddie,” I say, feeling simultaneously lousy for having doubted her integrity and relieved that she wasn’t ditching to be with Kevin. “You just need a little help now and then, that’s all.”

Waving her algebra book in my face, she says, “And I’m getting it.”

“Yes, you are. Well, I’d better let you go get that help. Have fun!” I point her in the right direction and smooth a flyaway on the top of her head. Once I’ve sent her off, I follow her down the hall, all quiet so she won’t notice me.

When I get to the library, I peep in
to make sure she finds Derek. She walks straight over to him. Aw, how sweet. Looks like he dressed up a little more than usual. He’s sporting a maroon polo and chinos and his hair looks freshly combed. I bet he smells wonderful.

I sneak in closer and hide behind the biography shelf, listening in on their conversation. It’s Miss Match’s responsibility to make sure this meeting goes as smoothly as possible.

Maddie is the first to speak. “Thanks for helping me…” She gives him that void
what the heck is your name
look.

“Derek. It’s my pleasure, Maddie.” He stands and holds out his hand.

She looks at him like he’s crazy. Come on, Maddie. Work with him…

She takes his hand and shakes it, outing her dazzling smile. “My sister says you’re the best algebra tutor ever.”

He waits for her to sit and then follows suit. “Well, I don’t know about that…”

Ah, modesty. Good goin’, Derek.

“I haven’t seen you around.”

“My family just moved to Utah.”

“Oh? Where are you from? Australia or somewhere?”

“Australia?”

Australia
?

“You’ve got an accent.”

It takes every ounce of self-control for me not to laugh out loud.

“Actually, I’m from Paris.”

“Oooooh! Well, that explains it. How exciting!”

“Er, yeah.”

“Are you looking for something in particular, Sasha?” I about jump out of my skin when Mrs. Leonard accosts me. I look up at her and smile, acting like I’m really into these biographies and not eavesdropping in the least.

“Nope, I’m doing just fine down here; thanks for your help,” I whisper ever so quietly, sending a telepathic
Go away before you blow my cover!
message to the overly attentive librarian. I don’t move a muscle, scared Derek or Maddie will discover me crouching behind the shelf.

Mrs. Leonard arches an eyebrow at the Donald Trump book in my hand and peers over at Derek and Maddie. “I see.”

Once she finally leaves me in peace, I venture a quick peek through the books. They’re both leaning over Maddie’s math assignment,
oblivious to the spy on the other side of the bookshelf. Whew. Close call! Convinced the two potential lovebirds have gotten off to a good start, I leave to track Kevin down and run a little interference.

When I catch up with the football players out on the field, it sounds like Coach Cunningham is wrapping up practice. “And no drinking this weekend, guys. I need everyone to be in tip-top shape if we’re going to clobber Harrison for the big homecoming game.”

The players sound off their grunts and howls and then stampede toward the locker room. I stay put under the bleachers for a few beats before trailing Kevin and his posse.

“Dude, did I tell you guys Kennedy said yes?” a junior called Bart says.

“To homecoming?” Kevin asks.

Another guy jumps in. “What did ya do? Threaten to book all her hairstylist’s appointments from now till the big day unless she said yes to you?” They laugh and slap Bart on the back. I never knew Kennedy’s hair was a hot topic in the male circle as well as the female. Seriously, that girl’s locks are unreal. And she knows it.

“So did you ask Maddie to the dance?”
one of the guys asks Kevin. I scurry to catch up. I don’t want to miss any important info.

“Not yet. But I’m all set to do it. She’s getting tutored by some brainiac in the library right now. I’ll just meet her at her locker when she’s done.”

“Cool.”

Not
cool. Okay, this is it. I’ve got to be on my toes. As the boys file into the locker room, I pull out my cell and dial Yasmin.

“Hey, girl, what’s up?” she answers.

“Can you meet me at school? I’ll be at Maddie’s locker.”

“You betcha. I’m just at Subway. See you in five.”

I race to the library and sneak a quick look at my subjects. They’re still sitting side by side, bent over Maddie’s textbook. If I didn’t know better, I’d think they were whispering sweet nothings to each other. It won’t be long, if everything goes as planned. But anyhow it doesn’t look like they’re in any hurry to wrap up this lesson. Relieved, I jog back to Maddie’s locker, where Yasmin is waiting. “Maddie’s in the library,” I tell her. “Stake out the door and call me when she’s heading this way.”

“Gotcha. I’ll just hang out by our lockers.
Mine already needs to be cleaned out.” And with that, my friend slips into Miss Match sidekick mode.

I hear guys laughing and poke my head around the corner. It’s Kevin and a couple of his buddies. They’re coming! I flip open my notebook, slither down to a sitting position, and pretend to be writing. It’s my signature
I’m minding my own business
routine.

“You’re such a dork, dude,” one of the guys says. “That has got to be the lamest thing I’ve ever heard of. Toilet paper? Dude, get real.” The jocks smell freshly showered, and when I steal a quick peek, I see they’re wearing coordinated shorts and baseball caps.

“Yeah, well, she’s gonna love it.” Sounds like Kevin. “It’s
creative
. Flowers and balloons are totally overdone.”

“Say whatever you want, but asking a girl with a roll of ass-wipe is just
wrong
.”

My cell phone rings. It’s Yasmin, undoubtedly calling to give me an update on Maddie and Derek. Maybe they’ve wrapped up and Maddie’s heading to her locker this very minute! Before I have a chance to answer, however, three heads pop around the corner.

“What are you doing here?” Bart asks.

“Hello, guys!” I say, pleasantly enough. “Don’t mind me. I’m just writing in my journal.” I waggle my pen in the air. “You know, for English class.”

Kevin looks at me all weird. He’s holding a roll of Charmin.
If you gotta go, go with Kevin
is scrawled on it with a thick black Sharpie. Oh my God! I can’t keep it in another nanosecond. I let out this horrendous snort-laugh.

“Aren’t you going to answer that?” he asks. Right. My phone is definitely still ringing. “Hey, aren’t you Maddie’s little sister?”

I rise and stuff my notebook into my backpack. Finally, the phone shuts up. Then I hear Yasmin’s kitten heels clicking on the floor. Is she running? Yikes! Maddie’s got to be close.

Fake sneezing, I snatch the toilet paper out of Kevin’s hands. “Oh, crap! I must be allergic—
Aaa-choo!
—to your aftershave”—I start unrolling the paper like crazy and blow my nose—“or your jock-itch powder or something.” I unroll even more and blow away, hoping the snotty noises I’m making with my mouth sound convincing. After I’ve used up half the roll, I toss the enormous wad in the
trash can and hand the remainder of the TP back to Kevin.

He’s staring at me, agog. His friends are rolling.

“Wow,” I say, after I catch my breath. “That was crazy. Thank you so much for offering me your paper.”

Maddie waves good-bye to Derek, and he veers toward the student parking lot. She’s coming straight for us, smiling widely. Her lesson must’ve gone well. Yay!

But I don’t have time to celebrate. I’ve got to keep Kevin from popping the question.

“Oh, hey guys,” Maddie singsongs, cradling her algebra book. When she notices me, she looks around suspiciously. “Hey, sis. What are you still doing here?”

“Oh. Um, I had a little homework to finish.”

She scrunches her nose. “But can’t you do it, you know, at
home
?”

“Right. Well, you know me. The big geek. Can’t get enough of this fluorescent-lit prison.”

She giggles and pats me on the head like a doggie. I smile obediently.

Yas is waving at me from down the hall. When no one is watching, I give her the
thumbs-up. The Miss Match sidekick takes off, another job well done and majorly appreciated.

However, my job here isn’t done. Not yet.

“And what are you guys doing at my locker?” Maddie asks the guys, twirling her hair. “Don’t you have somewhere important to be?” She pokes Kevin’s arm playfully. “Don’t tell me you guys were going to TP my locker! That’s so last year.”

Kevin gives his friends a covert nudge. “Well, we’re outta here,” Bart says. The other guys grunt something and then bail.

This is getting dangerously close to an opportune moment for Kevin. The way I figure it, the only thing that’s stopping him from asking Maddie to the dance right this very moment is…me! And I’m not going anywhere, not without my sister.

Kevin tosses the toilet paper into the trash can. “So, Maddie. What’s up this weekend? Any parties?”

Maddie squints at me. “Sasha?”

“Hmm?”

“Did you need something?”

“Oh!”
Think fast, Miss Match.
“Well, actually…yes. My, uh…Vespa won’t start up. Can I get a ride home?”

“Sure. I’ll just meet you outside.” Oh, man. This isn’t going very well. But I’m so not going to give up!

“Er, okay. But I, uh…well, you know, just started my…you know, and…”

Kevin’s face turns bright red, and it appears his arm is suddenly very itchy. Bingo.

“Oh!” Maddie quickly opens her locker and shuffles her books around. “I get it. No problem. Let’s go.” She jumps up and kisses Kevin McGregor on the cheek. He looks even happier than when he scores a touchdown. Oh no. Derek’s got mega competition.

My sister and I hurry out to her VW Beetle, which is conveniently parked in the front row of the student lot. Before she unlocks the doors, she says, “Wait a minute.”

Now what?

“You’re not going to make a mess on my seat, are you?”

Ugh. She’s got a good point. I squint like I’m concentrating really hard. “Oh! You know what? I think it’s stopped. Must’ve been a false alarm. Actually, I had my period last week.” I laugh. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

She shrugs and clicks her remote entry. We pile in.

“What’s the deal with that Kevin guy?” I ask, digging out my iPod.

“I think he’s going to ask me to homecoming!” She swipes lip gloss on her lips, throws the VW into reverse, and then hits the gas.

I do my best
I’m so not impressed
impression, complete with a partial yawn. “If you’re crowned homecoming queen—which is all the buzz, by the way—you’ll want to have the coolest date possible.”

“People are saying I’m going to be the homecoming queen?” she asks, her voice juiced on hope.

I nod and slip on my sunglasses. They’re all scratched up, but I love them anyway. I feel all 007 in them.

Maddie pulls out of the student parking lot. “Like who? Who’s saying that?”

“Er…Yasmin. She knows everything about everything. She
is
the yearbook editor this year, you know.”

Her freshly glossed lips curl up into her famously dazzling smile.

“You’re not going to say yes to Kevin, are you?” I ask a few minutes later, as Maddie merges onto John Stockton Boulevard.

“What’s wrong with Kevin? He’s totally nice. He even checked my oil for me the other day ’cause I don’t have a clue how to do that dipsticky thing. And God, he’s hot. I seriously think he’s the hottest guy at Snowcrest. Did you see his butt in those cargo shorts? Yum-mee!”

I shrug. “He’s all right, if you like the tall, muscle-ripped, athletic type.”

She smirks. “As opposed to the short, scrawny, couch-potato type?”

“It’s just…you can’t show up with the dude everyone is
expecting
you to go with. That would be as boring as Barbie going with Ken. You’ve gotta wow the entire student body with a mysterious, überhot guy—the guy every girl wants but only
you
can have.”

Her green eyes grow a size. I must be finally getting to her. “Who should Barbie go with if not Ken?”

I blow my bangs out of my eyes. “I don’t know—G.I. Joe? Darth Vader? But that’s not the point. The point is, this is your last high-school homecoming
ever
. You want it to be perfect. Exciting. Romantic. Am I right, or am I right?”

When she pulls up the driveway, her cell
phone starts ringing. Maddie dives over my lap to grab her Nokia out of her backpack. “Kevin, hi!”

Oh no.

“Tomorrow night?…Yeah, that sounds way fun…. Okay…Buh-bye.” She flips her phone shut and shuffles her Skechers excitedly.

“How was your algebra lesson?” I ask, desperate to get her mind off Kevin.

“Oh. It was great. Derek’s really nice.”

“And cute, too,” I prompt.

“He’s way smart.”

“Don’t you think he smells heavenly?”

“Yeah. He does smell good. I wonder what kind of cologne he wears. I’ve never smelled it before.”