The Geek Girl's Guide to Cheerleading (24 page)

He laughed. “Maybe. I really liked mine. It got me thinking, you know? About everything.” He stepped forward and took the ring from my hand. “Will you wear it?”

At some point I must have nodded or said yes. It was the only explanation for how the ring came to rest on my finger and for the quick, soap-scented kiss from Jack.

“So,” he said, his eyes warm and mischievous. He glanced toward the school. “You going inside?”

He scooped up the basketball, his gym bag, and my pom-poms, and we raced through the cold to the back door.

At the gym entrance, I tugged some loose bills from my coat pocket while Jack pulled out his wallet.

“Let me?” I asked, four dollars in hand.

His chin tilted with that hint of pride, but his face softened. “Next time, okay?”

Jack opened his wallet. Inside were five twenty-dollar bills.

I felt my eyes go wide. “What the heck?”

But Jack only grinned. Without another word, he pulled me inside the gym. I dumped my coat and pom-poms in a corner, one not far from where Todd stood, surrounded by debate dorks, a few freshman wrestlers, and oddly enough, a couple of gauntlet girls. Okay, so they were third-tier gauntlet girls. Still, apparently the wow factor had kicked in.

Maybe some things did change.

The DJ cued up a slow song. “This one goes out to all the girls on the Prairie Stone High School varsity cheerleading squad.”

The dedication echoed through the space. A squeal went up from the center of the gym. I rolled my eyes. Jack laughed.

Then again, some things never changed.

Jack tugged me toward the dance floor. He hadn’t shed his letter jacket. He pulled me close, pulled me into the jacket itself. My arms went around his neck, my head rested against his chest, the cotton T-shirt soft against my cheek.

Geek Girl,
I thought, and snuggled closer to Jack.

Meet World.