Page 14 of Billionaires Don’t Date Cheerleaders (Texting the Boyband #2)

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Call Me Jude @judeturner

I am attending my first ever "pep rally" today

Sloane @its_sloane

You've never been to a pep rally??

Call Me Jude @judeturner

Remember I have never been to a real high school

Sloane @its_sloane

Oh yeah that's why you're so weird

Call Me Jude @judeturner

I am being bullied on my own post

Sloane @its_sloane

Sorry (I'm not sorry)

Call Me Jude @judeturner

Anyway back to what I was saying before I was rudely interrupted

Sloane @its_sloane

Does it count as an interruption if I’m just replying to your post?

Call Me Jude @judeturner

Do you have the speaking flower? No? Then shut up

Sloane @its_sloane

The speaking flower doesn't exist on twitter

Call Me Jude @judeturner

Say that again and I'm asking for a new guide

Sloane @its_sloane

It's already October. If you haven't found your way around the school yet, that's your own problem

Call Me Jude @judeturner

Or maybe it's that my guide didn't show me around well enough

Sloane @its_sloane

I have given you a tour of the school THREE TIMES. What more can I do??

Hudson @hudsonshaw

Ignore him @its_sloane . He'd never replace you. He pretends not to know where anything is so you have to come rescue him

Call Me Jude @judeturner

That's it, I'm deleting my account

Summerfield Preparatory School @summerfieldprep

Don’t forget about the football game tonight! Come out and support our boys

Sloane @its_sloane

And don’t forget about the pep rally last period

Call Me Jude @judeturner

Wait wait wait. Fridays are already a half day and on top of that, last period is a pep rally?? When do y’all have time to LEARN

Sloane @its_sloane

Great question! We don’t :)

Group name: I promise this isn’t a group chat, Dad

Members: Ni-Ni, Bay, Sharky, Tis Moi Luca, Eggo, Not Zesty, I cheer you cheer

Sloane

Who’s coming to the football game tonight?

Eggo

Does it matter who says yes?

You don’t know anybody’s name in the chat

Sloane

The correct answer is “everybody”

So it doesn’t matter if I know individual names

Consider this a threat

Sharky

I promise we’ll all be there

Tis Moi Luca

I’ll drag them all there if I have to

Not Zesty

I really don’t think that will be necessary Luca

Tis Moi Luca

But I like dragging people!

“Eloise, can you do my makeup?” I asked.

“Yeah, of course!” She grabbed the face paint from our shared makeup bin. “What do you want? Dots around one eye?”

“Yeah, that would be perfect,” I said. As she expertly dabbed the brush onto my face, I looked around the room as much as I could without moving my head.

The room was bustling with activity. Everywhere I looked, cheerleaders were getting ready for the big game. On one side of the room, the freshmen of the team were applying their lipstick in front of the mirror while they chatted about where to get a late night snack after the game. On the other side of the room, a group of girls were doing their hair, spraying down sleek ponytails with hairspray and gel and putting in their disgustingly big bows. There was a buzzing energy in the room, one that only came about on the important games.

“Are you nervous?” Eloise asked.

“Why would I be nervous?”

“Because Jude is going to be watching.”

“What? What makes you think that?”

“He mentioned it on twitter,” she said. She put the face paint down and put her hands on her hips, smiling at me knowingly. “I mean, he was totally subtle about it. Said something going to cheer on his girlfriend for something, but... it was easy to read between the lines.”

“He called me his girlfriend?” I asked. I hated how hopeful my voice sounded.

“All right, girls!” Coach Bee came into the room, clapping her hands to draw our attention. Eloise and I both turned to look at her. “Time to head outside.”

We all scrambled to finish putting on our shoes and grabbing our pom-poms before we filed outside. The sun was just setting, casting a beautiful orange and pink hue across the sky. The stadium was already packed with people. Eloise nudged me and nodded toward one of the stands down the field. I looked over and saw Jude there, along with the rest of Take Five.

The game began, and we cheered our hearts out as our team made quick work of their opponents. The excitement was palpable in the air, and I could feel my skin prickling with anticipation. Every time we stepped out onto the field, I found Jude again in the stands--and every single time, I saw him staring right back at me.

“Any plans tonight?” Jess asked me at the end of the game.

“Well, I?—”

“Sloane!” Kinsleigh appeared out of nowhere and threw her arms around my shoulders in some weird hug.

“Hey, Kinsleigh,” I said. I couldn’t really hug her back since she was pinning my arms down, so I had to just stand there uncomfortably until she stepped away again. I wasn’t sure why she was hugging me anyway since we’d never been that close. While most girls on the cheer squad were really touchy-feely, I only hugged the girls that I was friends with. “What’s up?”

She pulled away and rested her fists on her hips as if she were about to perform another routine.

“Mikayla’s hosting a party,” she said. “And a bunch of us are heading over there. And I know you totes don’t normally come to parties after games?—”

“Well, actually, I?—”

“—but I was thinking that, like, maybe you could get some of your friends to come?”

I faltered. I’d been ready to explain to her that, actually, I did usually come to parties, but she hadn’t seen me much this year because I’d been grounded for a bit, but her comment about my “friends” put a bad taste in my mouth. Last year, I wouldn’t have thought twice about it, but this year, I knew exactly which friends she wanted there and why she was asking me… and I didn’t appreciate being used like that.

As if they sensed the conversation, Hudson, Jude, and Megan walked up to us right then. I didn’t miss the way that Kinsleigh straightened up, smiled brightly, and started twirling her hair around her finger as she looked at them.

“Oh my gosh, hey,” she said, her voice raising an octave higher. I awkwardly cleared my throat and looked away.

“Good cheering today,” Jude said. Kinsleigh giggled like he’d said the funniest thing she’d ever heard.

“Thank you.”

“Sloane,” he said, “I was just coming to tell you we're having a bonfire at our place tonight. You're welcome to come.” His eyes flitted over to Kinsleigh and then back to me. “That is if you don’t have other plans.”

“Actually—" Kinsleigh said, but I quickly cut her off, not wanting to know where that sentence was going.

“Kinsleigh was just inviting me to a party,” I said. “Well, actually, not me but my friends. You specifically.”

“Oh, um, I can’t tonight,” Jude said. “But maybe another time, okay?”

“Of course,” Kinsleigh said, nodding emphatically. She looked at Jude and Hudson again before running off to her friends.

“Well, that was painful to watch,” Jess said.

“They’re just excited,” Jude said. “I think it will get better with time. They’ll get used to seeing us around.”

“Well, have fun tonight,” Jess said. “I have to go catch up with Mikayla. I’ll see you later.”

“Zach, Finn, and Neil already headed home,” Hudson told me. “They’re going to get the bonfire started.”

“Assuming you’re coming,” Jude added. “I know you didn’t really get the chance to say yes.”

“You really think I would say no?” I asked.

“In that case… my car’s right over here.”

“This is not your house,” I said as Jude drove us up later that night. To even get onto the property, we had to make it through a large iron-wrought gate, fit with security cameras and an intercom. It was three stories high and bigger than any house I'd ever seen--it looked like it was taking up two lots instead of one.

“Funny,” Jude said as he turned off the car engine. “Hudson said that’s exactly what Megan said when she saw the house for the first time, too.”

“Best friends think alike,” I murmured. I leaned forward in my seat, trying to see as much of the house as possible through the windshield.

Jude laughed and opened his door. “Come on,” he said.

I hesitated for a moment before I followed him out of the car. He had parked on the circular driveway--lit up in the dark night by warm lantern lights--leaving the car right by the front door even though there were three garages we could have parked in.

“Do you want to take a look inside?” he asked.

“Aren't the rest of the boys waiting for us?”

Jude had invited me back to his place for the weekly bonfire the boys had. Apparently, it was a tradition that had started back when they were still on The Next Great Boyband, and they’d continued it on. When I glanced around the side of the house, I could see the flickering light in the distance, and I could smell the wood burning.

“I guess the tour can wait, then,” Jude said. He held his hand out to me and I slipped mine into it. “Let's go.”

When we got to the backyard, we found all four of the boys and Megan sitting around the bonfire. Neil and Zach were both roasting marshmallows on sticks, and Hudson was strumming absentmindedly on a guitar, humming under his breath.

“Hey guys,” Jude said as we walked up. “You all remember Sloane, right?”

“You mean the girl who’s eaten lunch with us almost every day since we started at school?” Neil asked flatly. “Nah, doesn’t ring a bell.”

“Shut up, Neil,” Jude said with a smirk before he pulled me down onto the blanket next to him.

“Want to roast a marshmallow, Sloane?” Neil asked. He held out a roasting stick and a bag of marshmallows toward me.

“Thanks,” I said, taking them from him.

“We have the rest of the stuff for s’mores, too,” Jude said. “Graham crackers, chocolate, and all that.”

“You guys really go all out for these bonfires, huh?” I asked.

“It was actually Jude’s idea to keep this going on after we have moved in here,” Neil said. “He wanted to make sure we could still spend time together like we did when we were on the show.”

“It was a good idea, too,” Hudson added. He strummed a few more chords before he set the guitar down and turned to look at me. “We may not be on the show anymore, but it's nice to have something that reminds us of it. And it keeps us close as a band.”

I knocked my shoulder against Jude. “And here you called me a softie.”

Jude sighed. “Okay, I admit it, I’m a softie too. But I just loved our time on the show so much and I wanted to make sure we didn't lose it.”

“You didn’t move here right after the show ended, though, right?” Megan asked. “It’s been a while.”

“Awww, look at you actually having an idea of when we were on the show,” Hudson said. He wrapped an arm around her, and she leaned into him. “Are we turning you into a fan?”

“No,” Megan said immediately, but she smiled up at him with a loving look in her eyes. “I just happened to know that you went on an American tour since then, so you had to be living elsewhere for a while.”

“We were,” Jude said. “But obviously, since we were on the road, we couldn't do stuff like this. When we moved into the house here, it felt like we were going back on the show again.”

“But with more space,” Neil added.

“Hear, hear!” Hudson said, holding his thermos up in a cheers. “I no longer have to share a bunk bed with Jude while he has nightmares every night from eating chocolate.”

“What?” I laughed. I looked at him. “Is that true?”

Even with only the firelight to see, the blush on Jude’s face was clear.

“Maybe,” he said. “But it didn’t happen every night.”

“Most nights,” Neil said.

“How would you know? You didn’t even share a room with us.”

“How would you know? You didn’t even share a room with us.”

“The bunk beds rattled against the wall whenever you got up, so I could hear you climbing into Hudson’s bed every night.”

“You climbed into his bed?” I asked.

“I needed comfort from the nightmares!” Jude said. “And he was the only guy around.”

“I think we should clarify, this hasn’t actually stopped,” Hudson said. “To this day, he breaks into my room every time he has a nightmare.”

“Okay, story time is over,” Jude said.

I looked at Jude appraisingly. “Do you get nightmares a lot?”

He looked at the marshmallow he was roasting instead of at me.

“Not as much anymore,” he said. “I mostly had them when we were on the show... It was the first time I’d ever been away from home like that, and it was all a little overwhelming. Going from being an ordinary kid in a small town to being talked about in gossip magazines overnight... well, it was hard.”

“Still is sometimes,” Neil murmured.

I felt stupid for never realizing before how hard it must have been for all of them to do that. Of course, it was their choice to go on the show, and I was sure all of them dreamt of the level of fame they had now, but that didn't mean they couldn’t also have days where it was difficult. Before they came to my school, it was easy to see them as these larger-than-life figures--almost as if they'd been born in the spotlight and were destined to be famous, even though I knew intellectually it wasn't true. But now, seeing them here around the fire, sharing stories of their lives, I saw them for who they were: five teenage boys who had been given the chance of a lifetime but had to give up any sense of normalcy to see it through. Boys who had to leave their families and, in some cases, move to another country entirely on their own. Would I have the guts to do that if my mom had ever let me? If moving across the country would be my opportunity to be on the all-star cheer team, would I take it?

I wasn't sure I could. I wasn't sure I would even want to—that cheer was a dream I loved enough to pursue that much. I guess I just didn't want it badly enough.

I looked around at all of them with a newfound appreciation. They were more than just the stars of my favorite show—they were real people with tangible stories and lives that existed outside their fame.

I shivered and crossed my arms across my chest like that was going to keep me warm at all. Why hadn’t I changed out of my cheer uniform before coming here? It wasn’t exactly designed to keep me warm once the sun was down.

“Are you cold?” Jude asked.

“Oh, just a little,” I said. “But it’s okay.”

Jude smiled and got up, grabbing a blanket that had been folded near the fire. He came back and draped it around both of us, enveloping us in its warmth. I snuggled closer to him, so grateful for the comforting heat he’d provided.

“Better?” he asked.

“More than you know.”

We talked around the fire for hours, telling stories from our time on the show and laughing at memories that had been forgotten until then. I learned so much about the other boys—how they acted behind the scenes, their favorite songs from their album, the funny pranks they liked to pull on each other, and more.

Finally, when the fire had been reduced to a few glowing embers and the moon was shining brightly in the night sky, Jude yawned loudly.

“I think it might be time for me to head in,” he said. He ran his hand through my hair. “Are your parents expecting you home tonight?”

“No, I told them I'm sleeping at Jess’s place,” I said. I glanced at Megan and Hudson, who had fallen asleep on their blanket for about twenty minutes, tangled up in each other's arms. “Normally, I’d tell them I was at Megan’s, but I wasn't sure if she was planning to stay home tonight... she's been going out a lot more since she started dating Hudson.”

“Well,” he said, “if you're not in a rush, why don't you come up to my room? You could… stay over if you wanted.” He smiled at me, and I felt my heart do a flip. The offer had me blushing a little—it felt very intimate. But before I could say anything, Jude had already stood up.

“Come on,” he said with a mischievous smile. “I promise you won't regret it.”

I hesitated for a moment before grabbing his outstretched hand and letting him pull me to my feet.

“Are you fine putting out the fire?” Jude asked Zach and Neil.

“Yeah, we’ve got it,” Zach said.

“See you in the morning,” Neil said with a knowing smile.

Jude led me through the house, and even though I wanted to take the time to look around and take it all in, I also knew I was way too tired to do that. Between school, cheering at the pep rally and the game, and the campfire, I was ready to sleep for about ten hours straight. He led me upstairs, where his room was located at the end of the hall. Inside, his queen-sized bed was neatly made with navy blue sheets that stood out against the white walls. On one side of his desk sat a guitar and amp, while on the other, there were stacks of books about music theory and composition. The wall behind the door had shelves filled with all sorts of knick-knacks like a vintage typewriter and some worn books. The wall across from his bed was covered in pictures from home and posters of concerts they had gone to, as well articles that had been written about them as they began their rise to fame. It was as if he liked to spend his nights remembering his accomplishments before he went to bed.

I had already made so many sacrifices to get there and it seemed like a damn waste to throw them away now.

I walked over to the wall of photos and looked at each of them slowly, appreciating them for what they were: moments of his life that he wanted to carry with him wherever he went.

“Are those your siblings?” I asked, pointing to one of the photos. There were four people in the photo--Jude, one older boy, and two younger girls, along with a dog all piled on a couch. All of them looked the same, with dark hair and eyes and big happy smiles. They seemed to be laughing at something off-camera. Jude looked so young in the photo, but I could see that same mischievous glint in his eye that I had seen tonight around the campfire.

He stepped up right behind me and leaned his chin on my shoulder while wrapping his arms around my waist.

“That’s Asa,” he said, pointing at the boy. His finger slid to the girl closest to him. “That’s Nina. And the youngest there is Lilah.”

“You all look so happy.”

“Yeah, my dad was trying to make us laugh from behind the camera.” His voice was wistful. “I miss them so much. I hope they can come visit sometime soon.”

We stood there for a few moments longer, just enjoying being together.

“Hey,” I said. Looking at the photos of him and his siblings reminded me of something he’d said to me a while ago. “You never told me how your name actually matches your siblings.”

Jude was silent for a second before he laughed. “Oh, right! I totally forgot. The short version of it is that Jude’s not my first name.”

“It isn’t?” I turned my head so I could look at him as much as possible without having to pull away. “But why do you go by it then?”

Jude sighed. “Basically, when I first auditioned for The Next Great Boyband , I was nervous I was going to be rejected. Tons of people audition, you know, and I didn’t think I could handle it if I had to see my name up on TV when they told me to go home.”

“So you went with a different name instead?”

“My middle name,” he said. “I told everyone on the show, but we didn’t see any reason I really needed to tell the fans, especially in those early weeks. I guess, in a way, I didn’t really want to tell them because there was still a chance of getting sent home. And the longer it went on, the more I felt like I couldn’t tell anyone because they would feel betrayed or something from me hiding it for so long. So I kept it a secret, and then more time passed, and now, it’s just too late. I’ll be known as Jude Turner forever.”

“So, what is your real name, then?” I asked. “If you’re willing to tell me.”

Jude smiled at me. “Luca,” he said. “My real name is Luca.”

“Luca,” I repeated. I liked the sound of it. “I like that. Luca. I think it suits you better.”

“Really?”

I nodded. “Definitely. Luca Jude Turner.”

“Sloane… I don’t know your middle name… Evans.”

“That’s my new name,” I said. “Forget my current middle name, I’m legally changing it to ‘I don’t know your middle name’.”

“Now, will that be hyphenated or…”

“Oh, definitely hyphenated. I don’t need six middle names.”

Jude laughed. He finally let go of me and stepped back. I felt oddly empty without his arms around me.

“So, um, I’m guessing you want to change out of your cheer uniform, right? I’m sure I have something you could wear.”

“Oh, you don’t have to...”

“I don't mind,” he said. He opened his closet and dug around for a minute. Finally, he reappeared with a pair of sweatpants and an oversized shirt from their tour.

“Here you go,” he said, handing me the clothes. “I hope they fit.”

I took them from him gratefully and smiled up at him.

“Thank you so much,” I said, feeling my heart swell with gratitude. This was more than just a simple gesture—it was like he was giving me a piece of himself. Jude stepped into the hallway while I quickly changed. I didn’t have a bag in here with me, so I just folded my uniform and left it on his dresser for the time being. When he came back into the room, he had blankets piled up in his arms.

“What are you doing?” I asked. He dropped the blankets on the bed.

“If you’re going to stay here tonight, I wanted to make sure you were comfortable,” he said. His eyes widened a little. “I guess I didn’t actually ask if you were okay with sleeping in my bed. Because it’s okay if you’re not. We have tons of guest rooms and?—”

“Jude,” I interrupted with a laugh. “It’s okay. I kind of figured I’d be staying in your room if I slept over.”

Jude sighed in relief. “Okay. Good. I’m glad.”

“Though, now that I think about it,” I said. “Does your brother know I’m here?”

“Oh, he’s gone for the weekend,” Jude said.

“It’s like the night you stayed at my house,” I said. “But opposite… obviously.”

Jude laughed and slipped under the covers of his bed. He patted the spot beside him. “Come on.”

“I don’t know,” I said. “My mom always told me to never get into a boy’s bed.”

“Even if all they want to do is cuddle?”

“Well… I guess I can make an exception for that. But only because you’re really, really cute.”

I slid into the bed as well. He immediately moved his arm so I could cuddle up right next to him with my face pressed against his chest. If I had the chance, I would never leave here.

“Hey, Sloane?” he started.

“Yeah?” I asked sleepily.

“You can call me Luca if you want.”

I turned in his arms so I could look up at his face. His cheeks were slightly pink, and I could tell he was embarrassed about what he said, but there was also a hint of hope in his eyes.

“I'd like that,” I said softly. He smiled and let out a breath he must have been holding. We looked into each other's eyes for a moment, then he leaned forward and kissed me tenderly on the forehead. For some reason, the gesture felt more intimate than any kiss we had shared before. He pulled me close again, and I nestled against him contentedly as we drifted off to sleep together. The smell of his cologne filled my senses, along with the warmth of his embrace—it felt like nothing else mattered in the world when I was here with him. The only thing I needed was for us to be together.

Luca, I thought. Luca. I think I might be in love with you, Luca Jude.