the prom queen

chapter three

k e e f e   s e n c e n

that was not how keefe was expecting that conversation to go. he wasn't familiar on the feeling of rejection. he didn't experience it much, if at all. keefe wasn't going to lie, he was kind of hurt. he walked back to his table defeated and slightly annoyed. when he looked up to see fitz's irritatingly perfect movie star worthy smile he wanted to smack him across the face. keefe wasn't going to let fitz win. not this time. not ever.
"give up yet? that's fine. i'm sure there are plenty of wig stores around here." fitz said with a smug smile.
keefe scowled and flipped him off in return. "you wish. she agreed to go out with me tonight." he lied trying to wipe away that stupid smile from his face. it wavered a little, but stayed all the same. there was no way keefe was going bald. maybe he shouldn't have been as quick as he was to bet on it. he pet his product packed hair making sure it was still there.
actually getting a date with sophie would be a challenge, but he was determined to prove fitz wrong and if biana happened to get a little jealous that would certainly be a bonus. keefe still had two classes left in the day and he had no doubt that he'd be distracted enough from the stares he'd be getting from everyone but now he had to worry about finding sophie before the end of the day. "no way. that nerd would never go out on a school night." fitz retorted.
"well believe it because i missed the last taco tuesday of the year to get this date." keefe grumbled. he actually hadn't eaten a taco or gotten a date with sophie. he'd have to make up for both of them after school. the lunch ladies usually had to go boxes for the teachers to take the lunch leftovers for dinner and if he put on his charming smile hopefully he'd score a box of tacos. when the bell rang everyone poured out of the doors and into the hallway. as for keefe, he stood still waiting for the lies he told to catch up with him.
after history, keefe dashed out the door to his locker. he struggled to put in his combination, from his nerves, and yanked off the lock when he finally got the right combo. throwing his books into his locker, keefe slammed the door shut and clipped the lock back together. he ran through crowds of people to reach the front of the school before it was too late. he had to catch up to sophie before she left. he didn't know what bus she rode, or even if she did ride a bus, so finding her was going to be a challenge.
okay think keefe. what was she wearing today? he thought. since sophie was pretty much a loner he associated her with darker colors and this would help him get his answer. black hoodie! she was wearing a black hoodie! scanning the crowd, keefe looked for her jet black hoodie begging to god that he would see it. there! in the distance he saw a person with a black hoodie pulled over their head climbing onto bus 522. sprinting, keefe ran up the steps to the bus and looked over his classmates sitting down. the bus driver didn't pay him much attention, none of them really paid any of the students their attention, so he let him pass.
walking down the aisle, he looked for the black hoodie from before in each row finally finding it in the ninth seat to the left. "there you are sophie i was looking all over for-" keefe stopped suddenly once he saw who was under the hoodie. linh song. "you are not sophie." he groaned. right when he thought his day was starting to turn around. defeated, keefe threw himself into seat across from linh. what was he going to do? lie to fitz about his "date" with sophie? maybe he could ask someone for her number? then again she wasn't the most social person at foxfire so he doubted anyone had it. he ripped a hand through his hair as he glared out the window. he hated all of the people laughing and talking outside. why did they deserve to have great days and not him? and that's when he saw her. keefes eyes widened and he dashed off the bus.
jumping over and shoving past freshman, keefe was determined to get a date with sophie. she was walking down a hill towards the turf fields which gave him enough power to sprint down the hill and grab the bag in her hand. thank the lord his mom forced him to do track. "hey!" she shouted.
no. sophie was not the one who should be complaining right now. "you. are. not. getting. this. back." keefe started. he was panting from all the running he had done to get to this point. trying to catch his breath, keefe bent over and put his hands on his knees. once he had stabilized his breathing he stood back up and continued. "until you agree to go on a date with me."
sophie glared and tried to snatch her backpack back from keefe but he raised it over his head so she wouldn't be able to reach it. "or i could just tell the principal that you stole my bag." she offered with a false smile. keefe was already in enough trouble as it was, he pulled a few pranks here and there but made sure to go undetected so his parents wouldn't find out. unfortunately he wasn't as slick as he thought the last time he teepeed the his math teachers house.
"that wouldn't do you much good as it was him who sent me here." keefe lied.
"to steal my bag?"
"to ask you a question." he corrected. "i need a tutor for...." keefe thought through all the classes he sucked at which were...none. the downside to being smart was that he couldn't hire a hot tutor to help him. "english." he blurted out. even though he had an a+ in english that was the only class he could think of that he thought sophie might be good at. keefe vaguely remembered her wining the spelling bee early that year.
"i can't help you there." she shrugged. "i'm failing that class right now so i don't think i'd be very helpful. now can i have my bag back?"
"didn't you win the spelling bee?"
"no that was sophie harting. now give. me. my. bag." sophie stuck out her hand and waited for him to give up her backpack.
"i think i'll hold onto it for now. and i got mixed up. it's distracting when there's such an attractive person standing in front of me." he winked at her trying to get on her good side. sophie blushed and he fist pumped in the air, that was a point in his book. "anyway dr.dugray wanted me to help you get up your grade in english so you don't get rejected from college."
keefe was a little surprised to hear that sophie was failing english, he thought she was supposed to be super smart or something. "i have a hard time believing the principal assigned you." she said looking him up and down with an unimpressed look on her face "to help me."
"for your information sophie foster i am not failing a single class unlike some people." he retorted. sophie gave him the death stare and they stood there in silence as she thought over his offer.
"fair enough. i could use some help on the english paper due on monday." she gave in. "but first i need my backpack back." keefe happily nodded and returned the bag. he was beyond ecstatic that she agreed to let him tutor her.
as the buses drove out of the parking lot, keefe suggested a time for a study session. "what about 3:30?" he offered.
"today?" sophie asked.
"unless you have something better to do."
"just to be clear this has nothing to do with what happened at lunch, right?" she checked, making sure his intentions were true.
"obviously not. it's just a coincidence that we would meet twice in one day." keefe assured getting a little too comfortable lying. sophie looked down at the phone in her hand and then back up at keefe.
"it's 3:00. shouldn't we just start studying in the library now? why wait a half hour?" sophie asked in confusion.
keefe wrapped his arm around her shoulders and smirked. "well foster, first we've got to drop off something at the cafeteria."
"what?"
"my appetite." he smiled.