I lose it. Laughter bubbles up uncontrollably. Aurora shoves me lightly, though she’s clearly trying not to laugh too.
“It’s not funny,” she mutters, but the grin she’s fighting to hide tells me otherwise. “You’d be pissed too if you spent three days on a piece just to get the same grade as the Ketchup King.”
I wrap my arm around her shoulders, pulling her into a side hug. “I’m sorry. If it’s any consolation, I think you’re an amazing artist.”
Aurora lets out a long dramatic sigh, slouching against me. “God, why do I even try? The only thing that’s keeping me sane is knowing I’m heading to Westbrook this weekend.”
I glance over at Aurora, catching the hint of a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. “You’re seeing Zach?”
She nods, her gaze flicking ahead. “Feels like forever,” she murmurs with a sigh. “I wish I could’ve gone to his game last week.”
My fingers curl slightly around the strap of my bag, and a quiet kind of pride settles in my chest. I’m still riding the high from that game. The guys actually listened to my advice, my dad stayed out of the way, and for once, I wasn’t just the coach’s daughter on the sidelines. I was the one calling the plays. Tweaking strategies. Watching them execute what I’d drawn up.
And it worked. We won.
“Anyway. Enough about me,” she says waving a hand. “Let’s talk about you and Ryan.”
“Oh god,” I groan, already bracing for her questions.
“Still hooking up with him?”
I exhale. “Yes.”
She gives me a skeptical look. “And?”
I glance at her, lifting a shoulder. “We’re just having fun.”
Aurora narrows her eyes. “Really?”
“Mhmm.”
She lets out a slow, knowing hum. Ugh, I hate when she does that. She's always been way too good at reading me before I even have a chance to lie.
She shoots me a sideways look, eyebrow raised. “So, if he, I don’t know, hooked up with someone else tonight… that wouldn’t bother you?”
My head jerks toward her before I can stop it.
“Oh my god,” she stops dead in her tracks, a grin splitting her face wide open. “You like him.”
“Shut up.”
“You didn’t even try to deny it.”
“It was a stupid question.”
“Isa.” She halts and pulls me to a stop with her. “Just be honest. Do you like him?”
I could lie. Say no and move on. Keep pretending I don’t have feelings for him. That Ryan’s just a distraction.
But I let out a long sigh, knowing there's no point in lying to her. “Maybe.”
Aurora’s eyes widen in disbelief. “Holy shit.”
I roll my eyes. “It doesn’t matter. He doesn’t do relationships.”
She raises a brow. “And you don’t do casual.”
“Exactly.” My voice comes out tighter than I mean it to. “I thought I could handle it, but…”
