(18) Miss Popular

On the way home, Theo and Makennah jammed out to popular hits on the radio. The caffeine buzzed through her system and gave her spurts of energy. She impressed Theo with her lyric memorization skills as she killed every verse and chorus. The lighthearted drive helped Makennah to unwind from all that she had unloaded on Theo.

Part of her regretted allowing him in to see all of the dirt and baggage she carried. Makennah was damaged goods. Now he knew. More than anyone else knew.

Theo cruised up to the Sinclair's house. Will was mowing the lawn in athletic shorts and a Wolverine's t-shirt. He waved and smiled when they arrived but continued his task.

"What am I going to tell Matt?" Makenna asked. Theo and she had never discussed hanging out behind Matt's back, but it was understood that he wouldn't be a fan. So they didn't tell him...or anyone, considering their sneaking around behind Matt's back was solely for his benefit – secrecy was of the essence with a delicate matter.

"Just tell him that I saw you running and offered to take you to breakfast after he turned me down to hang out with his cheating unfaithful girlfriend," Theo answered, resting his hand on the back of Makennah's headrest.

"Can I modify that?" She grabbed her headphones and phone carrier.

"I prefer you didn't," he responded with a smirk.

"He'll take that well," she said sarcastically. "Do you want your t-shirt back?"

Theo watched her with amused eyes. A smirk played on his lips. "No, keep it." He cleared his throat. "Unless you want to undress. I'm cool with that."

"Goodbye, Theo," she spat out and rolled her eyes.

"Ahh I love the way you say my name, so angelic." Feigning warmth, Theo laid his other hand over his heart and reveled in the moment.

Shaking her head at his dramatics, she opened the door and got out.

"Wait!" He shifted the car in park and popped the trunk. Circling the vehicle, he dug in the drunk while Makennah waited impatiently. Shutting the trunk, he crossed the driveway to her side and extended out his hand with the gift – his jersey. "For tomorrow."

She fingered the silky material and stuttered over her words. "I didn't..."

Theo winked. "Can't break tradition now."

"Are you sure there isn't someone else who you would rather wear this?" He had girls drooling at his feet daily. And he wanted Makennah to wear it?

"If I wanted them to wear it, why would I give it to you? See ya, Mr. Sinclair!" Theo waved goodbye to Will and hopped in his car before Makennah could argue her point. Feeling very insecure wearing both Theo's t-shirt and carrying his jersey, Makennah hoped to sneak inside and slink up the stairs to her bedroom without running into anyone.

She wasn't so lucky.

"Is that Theo's jersey?"

Makennah felt like throwing up. "Hey, Jonah," she greeted the littliest Sinclair as she continued to mount to stairs to her room. She couldn't turn back now.

"Is that Theo's jersey?" He asked again, following her up the stairs to the second floor.

Her heart pounded. She didn't know why. It's not like she had anything to hide. "Yes."

"What is this....the third week?"

"Mhmm," she hummed noncommittally.

"In a row?"

At the top of the stairs, she sighed. "Yes it is." She pivoted in Jonah's direction, knowing he wasn't about to drop it.

In fact, he followed her all the way up the stairs to her bedroom and welcomed himself inside without her invitation. "Does he like you?" Jonah asked. "Because typically girls only wear a player's jersey several times in a row if they like each other."

"No, he just doesn't want this other girl to wear it and she keeps bugging him about it." Makennah lied straight to her teeth and felt horribly guilty about it. Jonah didn't deserve to be lied to. He was just too smart for his own good and extremely intuitive. He could piece facts and things together like a master detective.

"Who?" Jonah crossed his arms over his chest and looked at Makennah with curious eyes.

"He didn't tell me who." Another lie.

"Maybe he's lying," Jonah offered.

"I don't think so." Only she was.

"How do you know?"

Okay that was enough. She felt like such an older sister as she took Jonah by the shoulder and showed him to the door. "I have to shower now."

Jonah thought about rebutting her. He opened his mouth to say something but decided otherwise. "Fine. You wanna watch Shrek later? It's on Netflix."

"Sure, buddy." And she meant it because Shrek was one of her favorite movies.

"Okay, I'll leave. But you should think about whether Theo is lying or no."

She rolled her eyes. "He's not, but okay." She kicked him out and locked the door after him.

Close call with that one.

---------------------------------

"Charlie asked me about you for one of the guy's on the football team."

Makennah quirked an eyebrow and kept walking, tugging her jacket tighter around her body. True to Colorado weather, the temperature suddenly nosedived into the sixties which required jeans and jackets. It seemed to happen overnight...oh wait, it did.

"What? Who is that?"

Grace walked beside Makennah to the concession stands inside the Wolverines' Stadium. She intended to purchase a soda even though it would mess up her stomach and make her lethargic on her run tomorrow morning. "It's my honey boo."

Makennah mentally recorded his name for future reference. "Oh right. What did he say again?"

"Guys on the team are asking about you. Wanna know if you're single." Grace wiggled her eyebrows as if that were great news.

Unwarranted attention made Makennah very uncomfortable. Wearing Theo's jersey was enough to make her squirm every time someone glanced her way. She didn't need people asking about her now.

"No comment?" Grace asked.

"No, because I don't care."

"Um you definitely should!" Grace elbowed her and sidestepped behind her to let a family and their kids pass by in the tight space between the stadium stands and the fence surrounding the field.

"Uh why?" Makennah didn't know how long she would be staying with the Sinclairs. She didn't need special attention or people asking about her. It would only make things more awkward for the Sinclairs when she had to leave and they would have to answer more questions about her disappearance.

"You're gaining more popularity! More guys on the market are interested in you. Not to mention, you need to find a date for homecoming!" Grace declared, flailing her arms about excitedly as if it were the event of the season.

Which it kind of was the more she thought about it...at a fancy school like Braxton High Academy, she couldn't even imagine how big of a deal homecoming could be. "Maybe I don't want to go to homecoming."

"You're lying." Grace laughed that off. "Maybe what you mean is that you don't want to go to homecoming with any random guy...you wanna go with Theo," Grace dropped her voice to a whisper so that no other people would overhear. Grace got the lowdown on all things Theo and Makennah; however, she was great at keeping secrets and never spilled the beans....although Makennah still wasn't positive what those beans were.

"Hey, Mack!" Bree, a girl who played defense for the soccer team, waved Grace and Makennah over.

Smiling because she didn't have to talk about Theo anymore with Grace, she gladly walked over to Bree and her friends. "What's up?"

"So..." Bree reached into her pocket and pulled out a slip of paper. "My brother wanted me to give you his number."

Grace started laughing as Makennah blushed. Her hands stayed frozen by her side. "What?" She screeched.

"My brother Aaron...his number and Instagram." Bree held out the paper and rolled her eyes. "Sorry I know this is weird. I would never do this but he has some dirt on me so I have to or he would tell. You definitely don't have to text him. But I have to give you the paper."

"He couldn't give it to her himself?" one of her friends snickered and rolled her eyes.

Makennah wanted to ask that question himself.

Bree tucked her hair behind her ears once Makennah accepted the paper. "Yeah, lame. That's what I'm saying. You definitely don't have to text him."

"Um..." She didn't know what to say. "Yeah, we'll see." She had no clue who on earth her brother even was. Or his name. Or that he even existed.

"Please don't hate me," Bree pleaded sincerely.

"Hey, brothers are weird," Makennah comforted Bree. She happened to actually know what that was like now. Boys were indeed weird.

When they walked away, Grace slipped the paper out of Makennah's hand and flipped it open. "Aaron is hot. You have to at least add him on Instagram. Speaking of, you went to breakfast and created an Instagram without me?"

"I didn't do any of those things purposefully," Makennah informed her. She kept looking straight ahead and focused on the concessions stands. At this point, she felt like she needed something a little stronger than a Sprite.

"Who did you go to breakfast with?" Grace asked.

Makennah should have known that she wouldn't drop it. "Theo," she admitted in low tones.

Grace sighed contently. "It is all suddenly very clear to me...you do like Theo. And you do want to date him. And you want to take him to homecoming. And you like wearing his jersey. And you..."

"No, I don't." Makennah butted in but Grace kept talking.

"...want to kiss him. And..."

"Stop it!" Makennah slapped her hand over Grace's mouth.  Grace dissolved into laughter and shoved Makennah's hand away.

"I'm just teasing you. But you wouldn't react this way if all of those things weren't true."

Makennah hated that Grace was right. Typically in the boy department, Grace knew what she was talking about. Makennah knew her way around a little flirting, touching, and kissing. But when it came to hints and cues, she was clueless. Couldn't pick them up for nothing. And she always second guessed her intuition.

"Listen, it's not a bad thing to like him..."

"Yes. It is." She insisted.

"Why?"

"Because...I don't even really know him. There's no way he could actually like me. And he's probably a player."

"Whoa. Stop." Grace tugged Makennah by the arm until she stopped dead in her tracks. "Don't do that. Don't create fake scenarios in your head. None of those things are true. First of all, he could like you, and I would bet money that he already does. You don't see your own beauty or hear how funny you are or understand how great of a friend you are. You're a good time, you're fun to hang out with, you're smart, and you're kind. You care about people. There's no reason that he wouldn't like you. You're a total catch, and you just don't see it. Second, Theo is not a player. I don't know where that thought came from, but it's not true. Don't get me wrong, I don't know the guy extremely well. But the gossip line is almost never wrong in school. And Theo is almost never in that gossip line. He doesn't mess around. He doesn't do random hook ups. He doesn't lead girls on. He's genuinely a decent guy. He's kind to everyone. I mean yeah...he's kind of a flirt but he's been single for forever. it never goes beyond flirting with anyone. He just does it to be fun and have a good time. Plus, I'm sure he knows he's pretty hot...just look at him. He knows what he has working for him. Last I checked, that's not a crime, and neither is harmless flirting. So stop with the dramatics."

Speechless, Makennah just stood there. She didn't know that Grace considered all of those nice things about Makennah. What dumbfounded her more was the fact that Grace seemed pretty serious about Theo not being a player.

Every fiber of her being relaxed with this information. She didn't realize how firmly she held onto the belief that somehow Theo had to be bad news. Every time he touched her, smiled at her, or winked at her, she thought about how he might do that to multiple other females.

"You're quiet now," Grace commented. She released her arm and started walking again towards the concession stands. There were two lines streaming out of the stands, so Grace chose the shorter one and stood in it to hold their place.

Makennah crossed her arms over her chest. "I really thought he was a player."

"No," Grace shook her head. Makennah was struck again by her beauty. It was no wonder she had a boyfriend or an almost-boyfriend. "His junior year, he dated this girl for a long time. He was very loyal and very committed. Major boyfriend-envy. Every girl wished they were her. Ever since they broke up, he's been single and hasn't messed around. He's a one-girl type of guy."

"Why did they break up?" Before then, Makennah hadn't even considered the fact that Theo had an ex-girlfriend.

"He ended it. There were several rumors that she cheated. Personally, I don't think she did. I know for a fact that he didn't."

Makennah raised her eyebrows in question. "How do you know that?"

"Because at the time, I was dating a guy who was close friends with Matt and Theo. He told me that Theo swore up and down that he didn't cheat. However, he never said what really happened. Probably not a big deal. They looked good together but maybe the chemistry wasn't right. However, I can say without a doubt that he would be the best boyfriend you could ever have."

"I never said anything about that." Again, like habit, Makennah rolled her eyes and stepped up in line.

"Makennah...get a grip. The guy likes you. He hasn't shown this much interest in one girl in like forever," Grace pointed out.

Makennah glanced around to make sure no one was listening. It may be a big school, but word travelled like wildfire. "Not possible. We...can't."

"Why?" Grace cried incredulously. Makennah realized more and more that Grace had such a romantic heart.

"Because," Makennah whispered. "He's Matt's best friend. It's not right." What she meant was that she couldn't upset Matt anymore...she was his foster sister after all. The Sinclairs could pack her up and ship her out at a moment's notice.

For the first time in her life, Makennah was learning to really love this season of life. She got along well at school. She had friends. The Sinclairs were the best family she ever had. She played soccer for an incredible team. She held down a steady job and did things like go to football games and dream of homecoming.

But Grace wouldn't understand.

"That doesn't matter, Mack. Matt is a good guy. I really don't think he would care."

"I just can't..."

"Why not?" Grace insisted, stomping her foot.

"Because, Grace!" She yelled.

"Tell me why!"

"Because I'm a foster kid!" She whisper-yelled.

Grace's eyes went wide. "Wh-what?"

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Cliffhanger! Next chapter will be up soon!

Xoxo

W. Carolina