Free Fever Pitch by Heidi Cullinan Page B

Jilly touched her hair. “I hope I see you in choir.”
    He winked at her. “Pretty sure you both will.” After waving at them both, he disappeared into the room.
    Jilly and Aaron stared at the closed door a moment.
    â€œGod, he’s seriously cute,” Jilly said at last.
    â€œYeah,” Aaron agreed without thinking. When he realized what he’d confessed, he went rigid.
    Jilly simply smiled, almost easing a little if anything. Then she held out her arm. “Come on. It’s time for a celebration dinner.”
    Letting out the breath he’d been holding, Aaron took her arm, and Jilly led him away.
    Giles didn’t see Aaron again after the glimpse in the hallway outside of orientation, but he watched for him constantly. As they left orchestra tryouts, Mina asked him what was wrong.
    â€œFor someone who killed it at his orchestra audition, you don’t look happy.” She nudged him with her elbow. “You keep glancing around like you’re waiting for the boogeyman. What’s going on?”
    â€œI saw someone I didn’t expect to be here. It’s no big deal.” A lie, but he was working on making it truth.
    â€œWho did you see?”
    â€œSomeone from Oak Grove.”
    Mina nudged him harder. “ Who? ”
    He started to deflect as usual, but apparently college was different, because instead of hemming and hawing, Giles told the truth. “Aaron Seavers.”
    â€œ Get out. I had no idea he was coming here.” She paused as she put two and two together. “Wait. Why is Aaron Seavers at Timothy upsetting to you?”
    Apparently once unmuzzled, Giles was a babbling brook. “Because he got drunk and came on to me at Catherine’s party. We made out, and now he’s weird. And here.”
    Mina stopped walking, mouth hanging open.
    Tucking his violin to his side, Giles faced her. Every secret he’d kept since seventh grade threatened to come pouring out of him. He did his best to control the flow. “Aaron and I fucked. Half the guys you’ve crushed on, I’ve fucked, in fact, or sucked off. After, they go strange, and I end up dodging threats. Now Aaron is one of them, and I’m so pissed I can’t see straight.”
    Mina staggered back a few steps. “Giles?”
    He should stop talking, but he couldn’t. “This is why I never wanted to go to parties. This is why I hated A-H, why I wanted out. It was supposed to be different here , and now it’s the same.” He fisted his hand in his hair. “ Goddamn it. Why did he come here? He said he hadn’t picked a college. I told him I was going here. I don’t get it. ”
    Mina smoothed a lock of long black hair behind her ear. “So you and Aaron Seavers had a thing.”
    â€œYes. And now it’s going to be awful.”
    â€œThat you were ringleader in some A-H sex club is a surprise, but why Aaron being here means—”
    â€œ Because it’s what they do, Min. They follow me, they fuck me, then they bully me.”
    He’d thrown her off her game at first, but now she was back in bulldog mode. “He knew you’d be here and picked his college after you told him. Why would he pay nearly thirty grand a year to make your life hell? Also, how was it he hadn’t picked his school in June?”
    â€œHe was all nervous about his dad. Or something. I don’t remember. He was drunk.” And I was infatuated. Giles sat on a nearby bench, hunching his body forward over his violin case. “He was sweet. He was cute and sweet, and I’d already been crushing on him. I fell hard, Min. I fell for him, and then he went stone cold after, like they always do.”
    Mina sat beside him. “Maybe it’s more complicated than that. Maybe…maybe he came here for you .”
    Giles broke out of his reverie of misery long enough to give her a withering glare.
    She swatted his arm. “I’m serious.