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It started with a Valentine.
That was all it was. A small, red card, cut in the shape of a heart from construction paper. On the front was her name, Waverly , scrawled in messy but charming cursive. On the inside, four simple words: Happy Valentine’s Day, Cutie .
It fluttered down from the top of her locker when she opened it first thing in the morning. Which, frankly, impressed Waverly because she arrived at school earlier than most. Whoever put it in her locker must have planned ahead and put it in her locker yesterday after school or gotten there even earlier than her today. She appreciated the effort, first of all.
Second, well, Waverly smiled. Someone had written her a Valentine. Sure, the holiday was sappy, and, sure, it was about consumerism more than it was about romance, but she still smiled. Someone had written her a Valentine. Someone liked her.
Waverly wasn’t going to deny her loneliness around this time of year. She focused on her school work, more so than her peers, and she had her sister and her aunt and uncle, but she was still a teenager. She was still a sixteen-year-old girl who wanted romance just like any other sixteen-year-old girl. And with all of her friends with boyfriends and nagging her to finally give into Champ Hardy’s begging to take her on a date, Waverly was getting tired of feeling lonely.
And this led her to her third thought: Champ Hardy. The moment the card fell from her locker, Champ hadn’t even come to her mind, and for good reason. Champ had done nothing but flirt obnoxiously with her and ask her, despite her many rejections and refusals, to let him take her out on a date. At first, she was sure it wasn’t him. But when she took the time to think about it, the idea didn’t seem as ridiculous. Waverly didn’t think he was so considerate as to make a handmade Valentine’s Day card and plant it in her locker, but the message on the inside of the card was what she questioned.
Happy Valentine’s Day, Cutie.
The name “Cutie” just screamed flirty. But, for some reason, it didn’t scream “Champ” to her. Maybe it was the handwriting, or the cursive scrawl on the front, or the overall effort and thought put into the card, but Waverly couldn’t (and didn’t want to) picture Champ making this card.
Which then brought Waverly to her fourth (and final) thought: Who was it from?
“Whatcha got there?”
Waverly turned to see Chrissy Nedley standing right beside her locker, looking curiously at the card in her hands.
“Oh, nothing.” Waverly dismissed, shoving the card into the first folder she could reach in her locker. “Just some silly little Valentine’s Day card.”
“A Valentine? How romantic!” Chrissy gushed. “Do you know who it’s from?”
Waverly shrugged, “No, it wasn’t signed.”
“It must be from Champ. He’s been crushing on you for months.”
“Has he? I hadn’t noticed.” Waverly deadpanned, grabbing her things out of her locker.
Chrissy laughed, “Shut up, as if you haven’t noticed. You’ve only rejected him like ten times.”
“Has it only been ten? It feels like more.”
“Ha ha, very funny.” Chrissy paused. “I really don’t understand why you don’t just say yes. I mean, it’s one date. What’s the worst that could happen?”
“Yeah, and it’s not like there’s a long line of guys willing to date an Earp.”
Waverly spun around, seeing Stephanie Jones standing behind her, inserting herself into the conversation.
Chrissy shrugged her off. “Stephanie’s ignorance aside, I don’t really see what the problem is. Worst case scenario, you get a free meal out of it.”
“God, will you two just stop?” Waverly blurted, slamming her locker shut. “I don’t want to go out with him. I am not interested. That’s the end of that. I have to get to class.”
Waverly strutted away, briskly heading to her first period English class. She was walking so fast that she didn’t even notice the tall redhead standing at the corner of the hall, watching her curiously, until she walked right into her, dropping all of her books onto the floor.
“Oh my God, I am so sorry, I-” Waverly started, stopping when she saw who it was.
Nicole smiled, “It’s okay, Waverly. Here, let me help you with that.”
Waverly watched as Nicole bent down to pick up her things. She stood back up, and instead of handing the books back to Waverly, just held them herself.
“Wanna walk to class together?” Nicole asked.
Waverly just nodded, and they started walking.
Nicole Haught was a senior, captain of the girls’ basketball team and girls’ softball team. She was the same age as Wynonna, and one of the few kids at their school who hadn’t completely shunned the Earps after what happened with their family. She and Wynonna weren’t the best of friends, but they had hung out on a few occasions, and she was probably the closest thing Wynonna had to a friend at their school.
As for Waverly, well, they were acquaintances. They had first period English class together, solely because Waverly was in the senior-level English and history classes as a junior. They sat near each other, worked in partners together when they needed to, and engaged in casual conversation, but Waverly had never quite been able to consider them friends. Not when she always felt like the annoying younger sister of Nicole’s actual sort-of friend.
“You wanna tell me what’s got you so riled up that you’re barrelling people down in the halls? And why I was first on your list?” Nicole joked.
Waverly blushed, “I really am sorry about that. I just needed to get away from my friends, and you just happened to be in my way at the time.”
“Understandable.” Nicole replied. “Why were you needing to get away from your friends?”
“It’s nothing, really…” Waverly trailed off, deciding whether or not she wanted to tell Nicole the real reason. “It’s just that I got this dumb little Valentine in my locker this morning, and they’re convinced it’s from Champ, and they keep telling me to say yes to going out with him.”
“Champ Hardy?”
“Yes, unfortunately.” Waverly answered as they arrived at their classroom and made their way to their seats.
“Let me see this so-called dumb Valentine.” Nicole suggested, eyebrows raised expectantly.
Waverly opened her folder and took it out, handing it over to the redhead. Nicole inspected it briefly, looking at the name on the front, opening the card, and chuckling at the message on the inside. She closed it and handed it back to Waverly, their fingers brushing in the exchange, sending floods of warmth up through her fingers and arms which Waverly promptly ignored.
“Well?” Waverly questioned.
“I’ve decided that this card could not have come from Champ Hardy.”
Waverly grinned. “And what makes you say that?”
“Well,” Nicole began, “For one, I don’t think he could even spell ‘Valentine’ correctly, so there’s that. Two, I don’t think he has the motor skills to cut out a heart, or to even properly draw a heart. Three, he’s lazy, and I would highly doubt he would put this much energy into anything besides sports and being a jackass.”
Waverly laughed loudly, garnering looks from the other students in the room and her teacher. “You know, I think you’re right.”
Nicole smiled brightly, eyes filled with mirth. “I usually am.” She stifled a yawn and shook her head, her hair becoming a little messy. “Sorry, I’m a little more tired than usual today.”
“And why is that?” Waverly asked before she could stop herself.
“Oh, we had an early morning basketball practice instead of after school, so our coach could go home and spend the night with his wife.” Nicole explained, gesturing at her long hair that was in a ponytail instead of her usual braid.
“Aw, that’s sweet.” Waverly commented. “Romance comes so naturally to some people.” She thought about her Valentine from her mysterious admirer.
Nicole nodded. “And others wouldn’t know love if it hit them in the face."
One week after Valentine’s Day, the following Friday, Waverly got another note in her locker.
This one was similar, just a small piece of paper folded up with her name scrawled in that same sloppy cursive on the front, with a short message on the inside. This time, it said You and me would make a good pear! with a little drawing of a pear next to it.
It brought a smile to Waverly’s face. So the Valentine’s Day incident wasn’t a one-time thing. Secretly, Waverly had hoped it wouldn’t be, but she didn’t get her hopes up. She knew it could’ve been a fluke, a one-and-done situation. The person could have just been feeling particularly bold last week and just went for it because it was Valentine’s Day and why the hell not? Or it could’ve been a joke, an elaborate prank done to make Waverly feel pathetic.
She hoped it wasn’t.
This time, she made sure that Chrissy and Steph didn’t see the note. It was her secret.
Well, her and her secret admirer’s secret.
Well, her, her secret admirer, and Nicole’s secret.
Waverly couldn’t help but tell Nicole about the second note. She was the only other person that knew besides Chrissy and Steph, and Waverly certainly didn’t want to tell them and have a repeat of last week. So, Nicole it was.
“I got another note.” Waverly whispered right when she got into class and sat in her seat next to Nicole’s.
Nicole looked intrigued. “Oh, really?”
“Yeah, here, look.”
Nicole took the note from Waverly’s outstretched hand, their fingers brushing again, and this time Waverly couldn’t ignore the electricity that shot up her arm from the mere contact.
What the hell? What was that?
Her thoughts were interrupted by quiet laughter from Nicole. “It’s cute,” the redhead remarked.
“I can’t decide if I want to try and figure out who it is, or if I want to just let it play out and see what happens.” Waverly pondered.
Nicole raised an eyebrow. “Is there anyone you would want it to be?”
Waverly thought about her question. Was there anyone she wanted it to be? She knew who she hoped it wasn’t, but as far as her loneliness went, she didn’t actually have anyone in particular she hoped it would be.
“I don’t think so.”
“Well, I say you let it play out then.” Nicole suggested nonchalantly. “I mean, why not, you know? Let yourself enjoy the attention without worrying about who is behind it.”
Waverly hummed. “You’re right. It’s flattering anyway. Sorry, I keep talking about this.”
“No, it’s alright. I like talking to you. It’s nice to know that there’s more to you than being the smartest kid in school and also Wynonna’s younger sister.”
“The smartest kid in school? I think that’s a bit of a stretch.” Waverly blushed.
“I don’t. You’re the only person in the history of this school to literally skip a grade for two subjects.” Nicole pointed out.
“That’s not totally true! Jeremy Chetri, a sophomore, is in my advanced math class for juniors this year.”
“And his second subject?” Nicole asked expectantly. Waverly was silent. “That’s what I thought. Just face it, Wave. You’re super smart.”
“Not smart enough to know who is behind these love notes.” Waverly muttered.
Nicole smiled, eyes gleaming. “I’m sure you’ll figure it out in no time. You’re smart like that.”
It went on for weeks.
Every Friday, Waverly would open her locker in the morning, and a new note would come fluttering down. They said things like Bee mine! with a small cartoon bee, or Are you a chicken? Cause you’re im-peck-able! Sometimes they had sweeter messages, like one that said Your smile lights up the whole room , or another that simply said You are beautiful. Every time, without fail, they brought a smile to her face.
One night, she was looking at one of the notes in her room when Wynonna came in, unannounced. Waverly scrambled to hide the note under her pillow and looked at Wynonna anxiously.
Wynonna just laughed. “What is it, porn or drugs?”
“What?” Waverly was dumbstruck.
“Come on, what else would you hide away like that?”
“It’s neither of those things.” Waverly replied, slowly pulling the note back out from under her pillow. “It’s… well, it’s a love note.”
Wynonna groaned. “Waves, don’t tell me Rodeo Champ Hardy has been flirting with you through notes, and you’ve been taking them seriously.”
“No, they aren’t from Champ.” Waverly insisted. “At least, I’m pretty sure they’re not.”
“Let me see.”
Waverly handed the note to Wynonna, who instantly grabbed it and read what it said out loud. “ ‘If you were a vegetable, you’d be a cute-cumber.’ Okay, seriously? Please don’t tell me they are all this bad.”
Waverly scoffed. “Hey! They aren’t all like that. Some of them are, but others are actually really sweet. The first one was on Valentine’s Day.”
“And how do you know this isn’t you-know-who?”
“Voldemort? Wynonna, I’m pretty sure he’s a fictional character.” Waverly laughed at her own joke. Wynonna just stared at her. “Voldemort? Harry Potter? No? Okay. Anyway, I don’t know for sure that it isn’t Champ, but I just have a gut feeling that it isn’t, and Nicole agrees with me.”
“Haught? Since when have you been talking to her?”
“She’s in my English class. I told her about the first one, and I’ve kinda been keeping her updated ever since.” Waverly explained.
“What, are you and Nicole best friends now?”
“No, we’re just… I don’t know. It’s nice to talk to someone that isn’t biased in one way or another. And she’s easy to talk to, and I like talking to her.”
Wynonna laughed. “Yeah, yeah, I get it. Haught Shit is perfect, blah blah blah. How am I biased?”
“Wynonna, you’re my sister. The last time I went on a date with someone you showed up and threatened to castrate him if he even held my hand.” Waverly said.
And it was true. It was her freshman year, and she had been on a date with Perry Crofte, who was a sophomore. Needless to say, he didn’t ask her out on a second date.
“What if it’s Perry behind these notes?” Wynonna suggested.
“It might be… but, regardless, you’re not going to interfere.”
Wynonna pouted. “Boo, you’re no fun. Now, come on, we need to go to the store.”
“For what?”
“Stuff.”
Stuff turned out to be Wynonna’s monthly craving for Ketchup chips and Mountain Dew. Ketchup chips in hand, much to Waverly’s disgust, they walked over to the pop section of the grocery store.
Standing there was none other than Nicole Haught, eyeing the rows of pop with disdain.
“Well, look who we have here. We were just talking about you, Haught Stuff, weren’t we, Waves?” Wynonna quipped.
Waverly blushed and watched Nicole turn towards them, looking amused. “Were you?” Nicole asked.
“Sort of, yeah. Wynonna saw one of my notes, so I explained the whole thing to her.”
Nicole’s eyes flashed with something unidentifiable before she ran her hand across the top of her head to smooth down any flyaways and asked, “The whole thing?”
“Yeah, just about how I keep getting them, and I’ve been talking to you about them.” Waverly answered, elbowing Wynonna for making this conversation awkward.
“Oh,” Nicole breathed out. “Well, that makes sense. Was Wynonna able to shed any further insight into who it might be?”
Waverly thought about Perry Crofte. “She might have. I’m still not really sure.”
“I definitely did. If it’s not Chump, it has to be Perry.” Wynonna insisted.
“Perry Crofte, you say?” Nicole said. “He’s a cool guy.”
Wynonna scoffed. “Of course you’d think that.”
“And what is that supposed to mean?”
“Oh, you know, just that all you jocks have to say that about each other. I’m sure you think Dolls is a ‘cool guy’ too.”
“Yeah, because he is .” Nicole laughed. “And I’m sure you think that John Henry Holliday is a great guy.”
“‘Because he is.’” Wynonna mocked the redhead.
“Anyway,” Waverly interrupted, “We’re here for Wynonna’s awful eating habits. What are you doing here so late at night?"
“I just got off of basketball practice, and I had to stop by and get some stuff for the house.” Nicole explained.
It was at that point that Waverly noticed that Nicole was in a muscle tank and sweatpants, thin layer of sweat coating her face and arms, and she couldn’t help but drag her eyes across the muscle definition in her biceps and forearms. Waverly knew Nicole played basketball, obviously, but she had never noticed just how lean yet muscular her arms were. She looked really strong, like she could–
“Some pop?” Wynonna questioned, interrupting Waverly’s train of thought. “Aren’t you athletes all-natural these days?”
“That’s why I said it’s for the house , not for me.” Nicole emphasized, rolling her eyes.
“We should really get going.” Waverly tugged on Wynonna’s arm and nudged her to grab her pop. “See you tomorrow?”
“Looking forward to it.” Nicole winked at her, and Waverly’s body flooded with heat.
Waverly walked away, shaking her head and wondering why her body was reacting to Nicole in ways she wasn’t ready to understand.
Later that week, Waverly opened her locker Friday morning, but no note fluttered down from the top. Instead, she noticed something sitting at the bottom of her locker. She bent over and picked up the object.
It was a single can of Orange Crush with a note that read, I have a CRUSH on you!
Waverly couldn’t help but smile.
She grabbed her materials and walked to class, a hop in her step. She sat down in her seat and stared at the note, tracing the curves of each letter with her finger. When Nicole got to class, Waverly looked up at her and lost her breath.
Nicole had gotten a haircut. There she stood, short, red hair falling midway down her neck. Waverly couldn’t stop staring. Really, she had been staring for a long time now, but she couldn’t bring herself to look away.
Nicole raised an eyebrow and grinned. “Like what you see?”
Waverly blushed and met her eyes. “Sorry, I just–your hair, it’s…”
“Shorter?”
“Yeah.” Waverly exhaled softly.
“Thanks for noticing.” Nicole laughed. “I’d wanted to cut it for a while, and my ex-girlfriend used to tell me I should because it would look great, but I never really committed to it until I finally just said ‘Screw it’, and I did it.”
Waverly paused, taking in all of that information. Her ex-girlfriend?
Oh.
Oh.
Waverly knew there had been rumors floating around about Nicole playing for the other team, but she never wanted to assume anything. But now? Now she knew that Nicole was open about it, and she knew that Nicole liked girls.
And Waverly got an electric shock every time they touched, and her heart sped up every time she saw Nicole, and she couldn’t stop staring at her new haircut and how it framed her face so perfectly and showed off her neck and–
Oh.
Well.
“Well,” Waverly started, her mind reeling with this sudden comprehension of her own feelings. “It, um, it looks good. Really, really good.”
“Thank you.” Nicole sat down and gestured toward the note sitting in front of Waverly. “Whatcha got there?”
Oh, right. Waverly still had the secret love notes to deal with. Except she liked Nicole. But she wanted to know who was writing these damn notes.
Waverly handed the scrap of paper to her and explained, “It came with a can of Orange Crush.”
Nicole chuckled after she read the note. “It’s cute.”
“You know, now that I’m thinking about it, I’m starting to think that it might actually be Champ.” Waverly said, watching Nicole carefully. “I mean, he hasn’t said anything to me since these notes started. Maybe it’s his way of trying to ask me out again.”
Nicole’s eyes flashed. “Are you sure about that?”
Waverly shook her head. “No, but it makes sense. Doesn’t it?”
It made sense, at least in Waverly’s head. Champ could have (finally) noticed how annoyed Waverly was getting with his constant nagging to date him, so he took a different route and started leaving her little notes once a week to warm her up to the idea of dating him. A different tactic.
“What ever happened to crossing Champ off of the list entirely?” Nicole ran a hand through her hair.
“I thought I did, but…” Waverly trailed off.
“You can’t possibly be considering this.”
Waverly looked away. She really didn’t want to, but who else could it be? It wasn’t Perry; Wynonna had asked (read: threatened) him to stay away from Waverly yesterday, and he had no clue what she was even talking about. It wasn’t Jeremy, the nerdy sophomore from her math class; he didn’t even know where her locker was. (Waverly asked.) And there weren’t many other boys at her school that willingly talked to the Earp sisters.
“I…” Waverly didn’t know what to say.
Nicole shook her head. “I really thought you were smarter than this.”
Okay, ouch.
Waverly frowned, tears forming in her eyes. “Okay, Nicole. Thanks a lot.”
“Waverly, wait. You know that’s not what I meant.”
“No, Nicole, it’s fine. I’m dumb, right? I’m stupid for thinking someone would put this much effort into someone like me.” Waverly choked out. “You know, this probably is just an elaborate prank from one of the guys on the hockey team. Make the Earp girl think she’s wanted.”
She knew she was being dramatic. She did. But Waverly just wanted to know who her secret admirer is, and every time she had come close to figuring it out, it had been proved wrong. Could you blame her for reconsidering Champ, especially considering the circumstances?
And, in addition to her newly discovered feelings for Nicole (like, as of a minute ago,) Waverly was feeling all sorts of confused.
“I’m sorry.” Nicole apologized, eyes desperately seeking out Waverly’s. Waverly met her eyes and saw nothing but regret and something else that Waverly couldn’t quite identify.
That night, Waverly couldn’t hold it all in anymore, and she poured everything out to Wynonna. Everything.
“Oh, shit.” Wynonna’s eyes widened.
Waverly watched her sister’s reaction carefully. “You don’t have to… say anything. I just needed to tell someone.”
Wynonna stared at Waverly for a few seconds before she pulled her into a tight hug. Super tight. Really, like Waverly couldn’t breathe for a moment there.
“I take it this means you’re okay with it?” Waverly asked unsurely into her sister’s shoulder.
Wynonna pulled back and looked at Waverly again. “Of course I am. You can’t help who you wanna bone.”
Waverly gasped, smacking Wynonna’s arm. “I don’t wanna bone Nicole!”
Although, now that Waverly was thinking about it, she wouldn’t necessarily be opposed.
“Don’t lie to me. You should see how red you are right now.” Wynonna laughed. “Besides, you could totally do worse than Haught Shot. And I totally made out with Mercedes Gardener last summer, so, you know, I get it.”
Waverly’s jaw dropped. “You did what?”
“Anyway, enough about me.” Wynonna diverted. “Despite Red’s general assholery and your sudden attraction to her, she has a point. I thought we knocked Chump Hardy off the list?”
“Why is it so crazy to think that this might be him and not some drawn-out prank that has gone on for too long?”
“Why are those the only options?” Wynonna shot back.
“Because there’s no way there’s someone else at school who actually likes me and wants to be with me besides him.” Waverly admitted.
“Guess there’s only one way to find out.”
The following Friday morning, Waverly arrived at school extra early and hid in the corner of the hallway, watching her locker before class started. After half an hour, Waverly gave up and went to her locker to grab her things. However, there was a note that fell down from the top.
How had she missed someone putting it in there? She had been watching all morning!
She opened the note.
You are the smartest person in this whole damn school. Meet me in the bleachers before class starts today?
Waverly knew she shouldn’t. She shouldn’t skip class. Really, she shouldn’t.
But she had to know.
Waverly went outside and headed toward the stadium without even thinking. It was unusually warm outside for a late-winter, early-spring day, and Waverly was glad. She reached the bleachers, and sitting just a few rows away was a familiar redhead. Waverly stopped in her tracks.
“Nicole?”
Nicole looked at Waverly and stood up from where she was sitting. “Hey.”
Why was Nicole out here? Why wasn’t she in class? Waverly was supposed to be meeting her secret admirer, not—
Waverly gasped. She stared at Nicole, in her dark, cuffed jeans, blue baseball tee, her gently curled hair blowing softly in the wind.
Oh.
A whirlwind of emotions overcame her. Shock. Disbelief. Anger. Confusion. Joy .
“I can explain.” Nicole said, walking slowly towards Waverly.
Waverly didn’t move, letting Nicole come closer and closer to her. She stopped a few feet in front of her, and Waverly took a breath and asked shakily, “You… you’re the person?”
Nicole only nodded. Waverly sat down on the seat nearest to her, needing to process this. Nicole sat down beside her, leaving space between them. Waverly stared down at her hands, wringing them nervously as she tried to wrap her head around this.
Nicole was her secret admirer. Nicole had been leaving her notes for weeks. Nicole had left every single note, said all of those nice things about her, liked her. Nicole liked her.
And Waverly liked Nicole. Could it really be that simple?
“You… like me?” Waverly suddenly felt very shy.
“I…” Nicole trailed off. “Yeah, I do.”
Waverly blushed. She looked up at Nicole, seeing that same emotion that she couldn’t identify before now swirling in her eyes. It was adoration, Waverly decided.
“I’m still mad at you.” Waverly stated.
Nicole shook her head. “I’m sorry about what I said last week. God, I’m so sorry. I really didn’t mean it at all; you have to know that. I was just frustrated that you weren’t putting the pieces together like I hoped you would.”
Pieces? What pieces?
Suddenly, everything made sense.
Nicole had been there Valentine’s Day morning, standing at the corner of the hallway. (Her locker was on the complete opposite side of the school with the rest of the seniors.) Nicole had gone into school early that same morning for basketball practice, the perfect opportunity to also slip that first Valentine into Waverly’s locker. She had been at the store getting pop, and then Waverly had gotten a can of Orange Crush with her note.
“And others wouldn’t know love if it hit them in the face.”
“I’m sure you’ll figure it out in no time. You’re smart like that.”
“I really thought you were smarter than this.”
You are the smartest person in this whole damn school.
Waverly suddenly felt very stupid.
“Don’t do that.” Nicole warned. “Don’t beat yourself up for missing the signs. It isn’t your fault. I really am sorry for what I said. I shouldn’t have expected you to put it all together.”
Was Nicole reading her mind? It sure seemed like it.
“Oh my God.” Waverly suddenly blurted out. “I have been telling you about these notes since Valentine’s Day!”
Nicole looked confused. “Yes?”
“And you’ve been letting me think it was Champ behind it this whole time?”
“I was pretty clear that I was sure it wasn’t him.” Nicole pointed out. “And, again, I had hoped you would figure it out on your own, which was my fault.”
Waverly paused. Nicole liked her. Like, had a crush on her. Wanted to date her.
“You really like me?” Waverly had to ask.
Nicole chuckled, nervously running a hand through her hair. “Yes, I think we’ve established that.”
Waverly really couldn’t believe it. What was she supposed to do now? Her eyes instantly flew up to Nicole’s eyes, before dropping to her lips.
“I hope you know…” Nicole started, interrupting Waverly’s thoughts. “That this totally doesn’t have to mean anything if you don’t want it to, and we can just move on, or take some time apart if you need to, or just pretend this never happened if you want to, or—”
Waverly leaned forward and gently captured Nicole’s bottom lip between her own. Her eyes fluttered shut as she savored the feeling of her lips caressing Nicole’s, and she pulled back.
“I like you, too.” Waverly whispered.
Nicole’s face lit up; she smiled brightly, and her eyes shone with delight. “Really?”
Waverly nodded shyly. Nicole grinned and leaned forward, but Waverly stopped her.
“Wait, what about class?” Waverly couldn’t help but ask.
Nicole grinned. “No worries, I have passes for us. You and I had a meeting with my basketball coach this morning because you’re writing an article about the team for the school newspaper.”
God, this girl. Of course she came prepared.
“Well, in that case…”
Waverly met Nicole’s lips again, burying a hand in her hair. She let herself kiss and be kissed by Nicole, and everything slotted into place.
Thank God for Valentine’s Day.