Managing Boys

Managing Boys (22)

“Annabelle yelled at the boys like crazy about the secret concert,” I informed Parker as we sat in the food court of the mall, much like Zoey and I had done the week before. “The only reason she didn't yell at me was because I mentioned my father and she started acting like a freaking teenage girl.”

Parker made a face. "Are you ever going to tell your dad you know about the two of them being together?"

I shook my head immediately. "Heck no. That's the worst thing I could do. At least if they think we don't know, they won't do act like a couple in front of us."

"Speaking of couples," Parker began, and I knew exactly where he was going. "How is Mr. and Mrs. Ryder?"

I scowled at him, a blush creeping up my neck at the nickname he had given me. Everyone at school, and I guess everyone else on the planet, thought I was dating Ash. I wanted to set them straight and tell them we weren't really dating, but the boys had told me to save my breath because everyone would have thought we were just trying to deny it.

I tried to bring up another subject, but noticed that Parker wasn't even listening. “Parker,” I tried, trying to get his attention, but it wasn't working. “Parker!”

He was staring off into space, not even listening to me anymore. I waved my hand in front of his face, but this did nothing.

I scowled at him. “You know, I'd really appreciate it if you listened to me.”

He still didn't acknowledge me. Without a second thought, I slammed my fist on the table, and he jumped. "Why'd you do that for?” he demanded.

I rolled my eyes at him. “Because you're zoning out and not paying attention to me!”

Parker's eyes now softened. “I'm sorry, Aria.” He sighed and shook his head. “I'm just... thinking about things.”

“I know,” I snapped, shooting him a flat look. “You're thinking about Zoey and Sawyer.”

Parker scowled at the mention of the guitarist. “Sawyer. Do you know that's a girl's name?”

“Do you know Parker is, too?”

The scowl on my best friend's face only deepened, and I felt bad for not being on his side. It wasn't that I had taken Sawyer's side, but they were both my friends so I wasn't going to be angry at either one of them. I just wished that this whole problem would just resolve itself.

“I understand you’re angry,” I started. He looked off into the distance to zone out again, but I clapped my hands to stop him from doing so. “And honestly, I think you have every right to be angry. But you can’t ignore Zoey forever or else she’s going to know something’s up.”

Parker stabbed at his pasta. “Let her think something's right. Maybe she'll finally pay attention to someone else other than herself and famous men.”

I let out a groan, running my hands through my hair. Why was everyone being so difficult?

Parker and I ate in silence for the next few minutes, neither of us knowing what we were supposed to say. I felt like the only thing on his mind was Zoey, and there wasn’t anything I could say that would make him forget about her for even two seconds. He really had it bad for her.

When I saw Ben suddenly making his way towards us, I was surprised, just like I had been surprised when I saw Gwen the week before, almost in the exact same spot. Was it smart for famous people to just walk around the mall?

“Aria, hi!” he greeted, a wide grin on his face. 

I blinked at him. “Hey, Ben.” I then looked around for the other boys, but saw no one. “Are the boys with you?”