Bailey's POV

The sun shines through the window waking me up minutes before my alarm, interrupting the sexual dream I was having about Hunter but before I get out of bed I close my eyes one more time and reminiscence his hands all over my body and his lips pressed against mine. What I would do to make that dream a reality. Then I remember, I'm no longer a single woman.

Last night Levi and I made things official, well as official as it can be and today we are going to strut through that school and announce it to everyone. My body fills with anxiety as I think about this. So many questions flood my head. Will this work? What if Levi humiliates me in front of everyone? What if everyone sees right through our facade? What if they think I'm not good enough for him.

I rush to the vanity and pull out my makeup and it's not something I'm used to wearing so I better give myself enough time to practice and after four failed attempts at eyeliner I decide eyeshadow is enough. I pull out three different shirts and a pair of jeans trying them with three different pairs of shoes to find the right outfit. All eyes will be on me today. I settle on brown riding boots, high waisted jeans and an over-sized sweater that I tuck messily into the waistband. When I look out the window I see the blue truck sitting in my driveway and of course he would show up early.

I check myself once more in the mirror and realize I haven't styled my hair. There isn't enough time to pull my hair into a messy bun because I can never do those on the first try so instead I brush my hair back into a low ponytail. The horn beeps, reminding me that he is waiting. I spray some knock off brand perfume I got from the mall and I rush down the staircase grabbing my backpack and throwing my coat on.

Before I exit the house one last time as a single woman, I take a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves but the negative thoughts of how this is a bad idea still lingers.

The horn beeps again and Levi is already annoying me before the sun is really up.

I can't believe I am actually doing this. I can't believe I am dating Levi Bedford.

Levi's POV

"Good morning!" I sing as she climbs into my Chevy.

Right away I notice she's wearing makeup which is unusual for her and she smells like flowers, a scent unfamiliar to me.

"Shut up," she grumbles

"Hey, be nice to me. We talked about this," I say.

"There's no one here to hear us," she replies.

"So that gives you the right to abuse your boyfriend?" I ask.

She rolls her eyes. "Sorry, dear. Good morning sunshine? I hope you slept well!"

I smile at her, "much better."

+++++++

We pull into the school parking lot and I park the car in my usual spot near the gymnasium. Today is the first day we are coming out as an official couple and I'm nervous about all the questions and stares we will get. I just hope we can fool everyone.

I look over and see Bailey focused on her bookbag. She was quiet the entire drive here, another usual thing for her. I was expecting her sassiness during our ride, but instead she said nothing. She must be nervous, too. She knows, everyone will notice us together and I wonder if she's worried if they will judge her. Most people won't care about our relationship but the only person I fear of running into is Hayley.

"Hey, I know this is all new to you, but if you feel uncomfortable, scared, or nervous, just squeeze my hand three times, and I will take care of it, okay?"

She draws out a long breath, "okay."

"What no smart remark this time?" I ask, trying to lighten the mood.

"No, I'm not in the mood," she mumbles.

I lift her chin and turn it towards me and I lean forward, staring into her amber colored eyes. I want her to know that I'm being serious. "Everything will be fine, I promise. I won't let anything bad happen."

She says nothing, but nods and I'm starting to learn when she's being serious, she doesn't speak, only makes head motions.

We both climb out of the truck and walk toward the school. I slip my fingers between hers and give it a light squeeze, reassuring her of what I said earlier. At first she tenses up, but then relaxes her hands accepting mine.

"What class are you going to? I'll walk you there."

"I actually need to go to my locker," she says.

Damn. Her locker is in the freshman hallway and I haven't been down that way in two years. A junior walking down the freshman hallway will for sure make heads turn.

"Alright, that's fine," I reply.

We enter the building and make our way through the crowded hallways. I take the lead and she follows in line still holding my hand. We stay close to the wall as I maneuver through the hallways and so far no one seems to notice us. It's not until we pass the gym that I hear her loud pitched annoyed voice. "What the fuck?" Hayley says.

I stop dead in my tracks and I'm not sure why. I look over and see Hayley leaning against the wall next to AnnaMae and Hunter. All of them look shocked with a mixture of disgust. Well, there's no turning back now.

"Are you fucking Jack's little sister?" Hunter asks with a hint of anger.

AnnaMae nudges him in the arm, at his fowl language but it doesn't stop him from glaring at me. I'm not sure why she's with a creep like him. Actually, I know exactly why she's with him.

"What the actual fuck? First Clair, now Jack's little sister?" Hayley gripes.

"My name's Bailey but I'm sure you already knew that," Bailey steps out from behind me joining next to me as my equal.

Hayley leans into her face, "Whatever." Then looks at me, "So, what, you trying out all the Moretti girls?"

"It's not like that," I say.

"Hmm, then how come I have this picture of you and Clair kissing?" AnnaMae shows us her phone and sure enough there we are in the sunroom sitting on the couch, Clair drunkenly kissing me.

"Come on AnnaMae, delete that. It was a misunderstanding and Clair knows that. I'm with Bailey, officially," I affirm.

"All you care about is money," Hayley says.

"All you care about is status," I reply.

Bailey giggles under her breath but quickly covers it up with a cough. Hayley throws her hand up to her chest as if she's protecting her heart and gasps at my statement. Before she can respond with a comeback, AnnaMae pulls on her arm. "Come on Hayley, he's not worth it."

All three of them walk in the opposite direction, disappearing into the crowded hallway. I turn toward Bailey, "Come on, let's go."

++++++++

The news spread like wildfire. Mainly, because Hayley wouldn't stop complaining about it to everyone. I overheard her complaining about it to another cheerleader in algebra. I heard her complain about it before lunch. She also texted me, complaining. Why did I ever date her?

It's the last period of the day which for me is gym. I change into my gym clothes and toss the others into my locker.

"A junior dating a freshman," Jake, a teammate of mine states.

"I don't blame him, the juniors here suck," Devon remarks, sitting on the bench and tying his shoes.

Hunter must have overheard our conversation because he walks over. "Just had to wait for Jack to kick the can first, huh?"

He never knows when to stay out of other people's business. I Turn around and face him, "What did you say?"

"Relax, it's a joke," Hunter says. I know he's lying. He's trying to get under my skin, but I won't let him.

"Well, I don't find it funny," I say back.

"Jack probably doesn't either. How many times did he tell you no?" Hunter replies.

"Shut the fuck up Hunter."

More athletes overhear our conversation and walk over. Our audience includes a few baseball players, basketball players, and a couple more football players. Everyone else knows better to not get involved.

"If I remember correctly, he used to call you pervert because of your insane crush on her. Yeah, Jack used to tell me that you would ask him for his permission to date his little sister. How gentlemen like. If it were me and I wanted to hit that, I would have just taken her, and asked Jack for forgiveness." Hunter snorts.

A few athletes laugh with him but I'm not laughing at all. I'm pissed. I slam my locker shut and march toward him, fist ready to swing. Hunter crossed the line.

"Really, you're going to punch me? for what, Bailey's honor? We all know you're not doing it because of Jack," Hunter steps forward and before I realize what I'm doing, my fist connects with his jaw, forcing him to look away. Normally, I wouldn't fight with Hunter. I learned quickly, back in the fifth grade when I started a fight with him and it ended with me having a black eye. I knew he could kick my ass. Although he's similar in height, he benches more than me and he never knows when to stop.

Hunter swings back and hits me in the jaw. Before it turns into an all-out brawl, Jake and Devon pull me back and a few of the other football players pull Hunter back.

"Dude, if you two get caught fighting at school, you'll both be thrown off the football team." Devon comments.

He's right. If my dad finds out, it will be hell at home. Before things escalate between us, I leave the locker room. Jake and Devon follow behind me.

++++++++

Hunter's POV

After the last bell rings, I make my way over to my usual spot in the courtyard, and lean against the brick wall, waiting for AnnaMae to exit. The anger inside of me is still brewing from my conversation earlier with Levi and I want nothing more than to get my revenge on him. How dare he date Jack's little sister when he knows it would piss Jack off. That is the ultimate betrayal a friend can do. Not that Levi was ever as good a friend as I was to Jack.

Then there's Bailey also going against her brother's wishes but I can't put too much blame on her. She's young, naive and Levi is using her vulnerability to get what he wants. He doesn't deserve a happy ending, especially with her.

I look over across the courtyard and see AnnaMae and Jackson walking side by side. Of course, she would throw herself at another man, that's how she got me. They part ways when she notices me staring at her and makes her way over.

"Why are you talking to Jackson?" I growl.

"I dropped something and he returned it to me. It's no big deal. What happened to your face?" She asks.

"Levi," I hiss.

"Levi did this to you? What has gotten into him!" She wonders.

"He's fucking nuts. That's what. How can he date Bailey when we all knew what Jack wanted?" I think out loud.

"That's true. That's really shitty of her to do that to her brother," she says.

"Both of them are shitty," I argue.

"Do you want me to take care of the wound?" she asks.

"No, I want you to take care of me in other ways," I suggest.

Levi's POV

I sit in the truck and wait for Bailey thinking about how today has been absolute shit. Maybe I shouldn't have agreed to date her. Hunter's right, Jack wouldn't approve of our relationship and he wouldn't approve of her being on the cheerleading squad. He wouldn't approve of her hanging around those kinds of people. He's probably turning in his grave as we speak. I rest my head on my steering wheel. What was I thinking?

I hear the passenger door open and I lift my head to see Bailey's tiny head appear as she looks up at me. She climbs up in the truck and slams the doors shut.

"Your truck is so big." She leans back in the seat and lets out a deep breath, "Oh, my god, the day I've had. Girls sure like you, Levi. All day I had strangers ask if you were a good kisser, if you were good at hugging, if you'd given me your football hoodie yet."

Her statement makes me chuckle. Sounds like she had a better day than me.

She rolls her head over and looks at me. "I'm hungry. What the hell happened to your lip?"

"I'll buy you dinner tonight, if you don't ask about it or bring it up again."

Bailey thinks for a few seconds and nods. "I'm really hungry and I couldn't care less what happens to you."

"My girlfriend is the sweetest," I say dryly, starting the engine, and pulling out of the parking lot.

Maybe Jack isn't turning in his grave. Maybe instead, he's laughing at me because of how she treats me.

~~~~~3/18/20 • 2194 words~~~~~

Are you a sassy person? I am so sassy. I love to tease people and I love when people tease me.

Do you drive? If so, what kind of car do you drive? In high school I drove a big truck. I looked so tiny in the thing.

Thank you for reading, please vote/comment if you enjoyed the chapter!