The Nerd Who Stole The Quarterback (Astra and Zayne) novel Chapter 40

Chapter 40

Chapter 40

ZANE

Astra was ignoring me.

And it was seriously starting to piss me the fuck off.

At first I thought it would blow over in a day or two. But no. She was committed.

Every morning she snuck out of the house early on that pathetic scooter before I could even get to my car. Rain or shine. she zipped off like I was radioactive.

At school it got worse.

If she saw me in the hallway, she turned around so fast she once walked straight into a janitor’s cart. In the cafeteria, she suddenly “remembered” she had committee work on the opposite side of the room. Even in the halls between classes, she became a ghost.

Tyler noticed, of course.

“Bro… what the fuck did you do to Hawthorne?” he asked yesterday, watching her literally change direction when she spotted

“Nothing,” I snapped.

Tyler laughed harder. “She looks terrified every time you breathe near her.”

Good.

…Except it wasn’t good.

Because the more she ran, the more I wanted to chase.

By Thursday I was volunteering for shit I’d never touched before, banner setup, pep rally prep, equipment transport just to be in the same spaces as her. And every single time she realized I was assigned to the same task, she magically found an excuse to be somewhere else.

It was almost impressive.

Almost.

Friday morning arrived with the away game against Westbridge.

The parking lot was pure chaos, buses loading, cheerleaders with pom-poms, coolers being shoved into compartments, students yelling over each other.

Astra stood near the activity bus with a clipboard clutched to her chest, glasses slipping down her nose as she checked names. Her oversized navy hoodie swallowed her frame again.

The second she saw me walking toward the buses, she froze.

Then immediately turned and pretended to be extremely busy with the transportation list.

Tyler wheezed beside me. “She actually fled. This is getting sad, man.”

“Shut the fuck up.”

11:52 Fri, Jul 3 J

Chapter 40

I slammed an equipment crate into the storage compartment harder than necessary.

Across the lot, Jason walked up to her. She relaxed instantly and smiled at something he said.

Something ugly twisted in my chest.

I started walking toward them.

Astra noticed me halfway there.

Her eyes widened in panic. She grabbed Priya’s arm.

“Actually! I should check the back seats before everyone gets on…”

And she disappeared into the bus like her life depended on it.

Tyler was dying behind me. “Oh my God. She’s speedrunning avoidance.”

I ignored him and climbed onto the athletic bus.

But Coach Benson had other plans.

“Some of you are moving to the activity bus! We’re balancing numbers!”

Guess who ended up on the same bus as Astra.

Me.

When I stepped onto the activity bus, the noise dipped slightly. Astra was sitting three rows from the front, clipboard in her lap. The second she saw me, pure horror crossed her face.

Priya, sitting beside her, took one look at us… and grinned like a devil.

“Oh! Zane, you can sit here!” She stood up quickly, sliding out of the seat.

“Priya…” Astra hissed, mortified.

Too late.

The seat next to Astra was now empty.

I stared down at her.

She stared up at me, cheeks slowly turning pink.

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