CHAPTER FIVE
( THE GAME )

        ANDY FAILED THE Spanish test on Monday.

The class got their grades back on Wednesday. Andy glanced at it. She didn't care much, but she knew she'd have to put up with her dad yelling at her for at least half an hour. Even though it wasn't worth much of her grade. He'd remind her that he wasn't planning on paying for her college (because he was paying for Brooks and Cody's) which meant that she'd need to work harder if she wanted to go. Then, he'd scream at her because she was ignoring him. Finally, he'd finish it off by grounding her.

She was glad when lunch rolled around. She sat at her and her friends' lunch table with a sigh, dropping her backpack — which was way heavier than it should've been for the first month of school — by the leg of the table.

"You okay?" Laney asked.

"No," Andy shook her head. "I'm going to overdose on Tylenol tonight."

"I can get you stronger stuff," Felix joked, making Laney slap his shoulder.

"I'm pretty sure you can't die from Tylenol," Vince told her. "It'll mess up your liver, but you won't die."

"I wasn't going to use it to kill myself," Andy huffed. "Though, now that I'm thinking about it, I might."

"Why?" Nolan furrowed his brows.

"The sound of my dad's irritating, grating voice shouting at me is going to give me a headache." She could already feel it forming.

"What's he going to yell at you for this time? You forget to take Wren on a walk again?" Laney lightly teased, trying to lighten Andy's mood. Dallas Prescott tended to make things sour, even by just the mention of his name.

"I failed my Spanish test," Andy answered. "You know how he is about grades."

The group shared a look. The thing about Mr. Prescott was that he didn't care who was near, he'd yell at Andy and then kick her friends out. Like he wanted them to know she was a failure and that he thought half of it was their fault. So, yeah, they knew how he was.

"You can come over to my place," Vince offered. "To avoid him a little longer."

Andy smiled at him. It was times like these where she really appreciated her friends. "You're a lifesaver. I love you, and I will repay you with a coffee."

"You don't have to repay me," Vince rolled his eyes at her. "It's fine."

"You're right," Andy nodded. "You're already rich."

Vince and Holland's mom was the mayor of Woodvale Cove, and their dad was a retired NHL player. To say they were loaded would be quite an understatement.

"You're rich, too," Felix reminded her.

"No, I'm not rich," Andy argued, pointing at herself. "My father is. The difference is that Vince's parents actually love him and Holland."

Andy was glad when Wren texted her that he was going to a friend's house to hang out before the game tonight. It meant that she'd be free to go to Vince's after school and not have to get yelled at about not walking home with her brother on top of her grades. Felix opted out, wanting to go home and finish the sign he'd started to make Nolan. The others almost thought he was joking, but he was completely serious.

The Roberts' house clearly showed how wealthy they were. Juliet and Dean, Vince and Holland's parents, were nice and funny, the décor just made them seem like boring robots. Aside from the occasional pop, the inside was neutral and minimalistic.

The three of them settled in the living room and Vince naturally pulled out his homework. After about 15 minutes of Andy and Laney making themselves comfortable on the couch and watching Breaking Bad, Andy groaned.

"I'm hungry," she complained. "You're a bad host."

"You know where the kitchen is," Vince looked at her. "Also, says you."

Andy huffed and stood, heading into the kitchen. She wondered why they didn't hang out at Vince's house more as she searched through the fully stocked cupboards. His house was big, his parents were nice, and he didn't have a little brother who ate all the snacks.

"Oh, you have mac and cheese!" she reached up, pulling down the box. "Ooh, it's Annie's."

Vince ended up coming into the kitchen to make it for her. She and Laney sat at the island, watching him. It wasn't long before Holland and Lorelai Montgomery came down.

"Hey, Vin," Holland greeted her brother.

"Oh, hey," Vince replied, not looking up.

Holland moved closer to him, attempting to look over his shoulder. "What are you making?"

"Mac and cheese."

"Boxed or homemade?"

"Boxed. Annie's, actually."

"How kind of you to make that for us," Holland smirked mischievously.

"Excuse you?" Vince scoffed, lightly pushing her away. "Make your own food."

Andy watched the twins bicker for a moment before she shifted her gaze to Lorelei, who'd sat next to her on the island. Lorelei's mom was the PR executive for Juliet Roberts, which was why she was close with the twins. She'd been dating Benjamin Lockhart, but the two broke up over the summer for no reason. Andy didn't care much if she was being honest. She tried not to involve herself in the drama-filled lives of the 'popular kids'.

"Are you going to The River on Friday?" Andy wondered when Lorelei pulled out her phone. She wasn't sure who had decided to throw the party at the quarry in the woods outside of Woodvale Cove on Friday, but word of it was going around the school.

"As of right now, yeah," Lorelei nodded. "You?"

"Maybe," Andy shrugged. She preferred house parties. Outside parties just didn't have the same vibes. Plus, she'd have to convince Laney to go. God, it would be so much easier if she could drive like most people her age, but she had nobody to teach her. "We'll see what happens."

"It'll be fun," Lorelei encouraged. "You should definitely come."

Holland groaned, unknowingly cutting Andy off when she went to open her mouth. Apparently, she'd lost her argument with Vince about the food. "Lor, let's go watch something and I'll just order us dinner for before the game."

"Okay," Lorelei agreed, getting up from the stool.

After the mac and cheese was done and they ate, Laney and Andy left. Vince told her he'd ask his sister if they could pick her up because they had to be at the game early due to Holland being the photographer for the school paper and Lorelei running the social media. And though she dreaded the idea of riding with them (not because she didn't like them, but because she simply had nothing in common except with them except for Vince), she dreaded her father even more.

Andy rushed to her room when she got home to avoid the off-chance that her mom was awake. The game tonight was a whiteout, so she changed into a cropped shirt that said Boston USA on it that she'd thrifted and baggy, ripped jeans. She didn't do much otherwise besides brush her tangled hair and put on some mascara. She debated putting a number 11 on her cheek with an eyeshadow pallet her mom had gifted her for her birthday one year for Nolan, but ultimately decided against it. He'd have enough girls supporting his number.

She waited for Holland to text her that they were here and hurried downstairs. The short ride to the school was awkward, as Andy anticipated, and she shivered when the cold air hit her body. She headed to the bleachers, snagging the front row.

Holland and Lorelei went around taking pictures of the cheerleaders warming up. Andy's eyebrows furrowed when she caught sight of Carina, who did in fact have an 11 painted on her cheek. Carina beamed when she saw her and managed a small wave when Rebecca Chambers, the head cheerleader, wasn't looking.

A pit formed in Andy's stomach. Carina was nice. She was nice, she was smart, she was tall and beautiful, and she was a cheerleader. She had everything that Nolan could want and they would compliment each other well. Andy could envision Carina wearing Nolan's letterman jacket, or a jersey with his number and last name on it. She could picture him running to her after the team won a game.

She stood and headed to the concession stands. She bought herself a pretzel before meeting up with her friends. Felix was holding a sign that said I like the game but I ♡ the player with a fat number 11 in the heart.

"You two should just kiss already," Laney remarked.

"When they win this, I'm running onto the field and giving him a big ol' smooch," Felix nodded, puckering his lips. He leaned in closer to Laney, who shoved him away. He let out a yelp and landed on the ground.

The game started after that. Andy didn't understand football, not caring about the sport one bit, but she knew from the crowd that they were winning. Her eyes followed Nolan's figure. They went into overtime before the crowd started cheering.

"What?" Andy demanded as she clapped. "Did we win?"

"Yeah," Vince confirmed. "We won."

The cheerleaders had taken a picture with the team. It took the group a while to find him in the crowd. When they did, Andy's stomach dropped. She swallowed thickly at the sight of Carina talking to Nolan and his parents. She was charming and grinning as she took the phone from Mrs. Rivers so they could get a picture with their son.

Her friends moved over to them. Andy blinked and quickly followed. Why did she care? She didn't. This was normal. It was normal for girls to come up to him after his games and try to flirt with him. He always brushed them off, oblivious to the fact that they were flirting and not just being nice.

But none of those girls had ever spoken to his parents. They'd never had Mr. Rivers beam and take their phone as they wrapped their arm around his torso and he slung his arm over their neck.

Carina left after that, having been called over by her friends.

"I like her," Mrs. Rivers told her son. "She's a nice girl. Pretty, too."

"I keep telling him that," Felix replied. "He says they're just friends."

"Nolan," Mr. Rivers brought his son closer. "No girl who looks at you like that wants to be just your friend."

Andy's stomach churned. Was it from the pretzel or the mac and cheese?

"Are you cold, Andy?" Andy looked over to see Mrs. Rivers looking at her.

She shivered. "Um—"

"Here," Nolan reached into his bag and pulled out his jacket. His letterman jacket. "It'll warm you up."

"Thanks," Andy muttered, taking it from him. She slid her arms into it. It reached her thighs and went way past the tips of her fingers.

The five of them went to get ice cream after that to celebrate Nolan's win. And when he dropped her off, he didn't ask for the jacket back. It added another thing for her father to yell about, but she fell asleep engulfed in its warmth.

𝒎𝒆𝒍 𝒎𝒆𝒍 !!
this isn't proofread but enjoy!!!