Page 24 of Damaged Boys Don't Fall For Bubbly Girls

We both grin and watch the rest of the video in silence. I slowly move my eyes to Brock, loving the way his face grows brighter and brighter with each passing second. It’s great we have ocean life to bond over. Maybe it can help us return to the best friends we used to be.

“What’s going on?” a voice says.

Breaking my gaze from my phone screen, I notice all of the guys piling into the room, each of them looking confused why we’re in the cafeteria.

“You ditched us to watch videos?” Theo jokes as he ruffles my hair.

“Lay off the hair,” I warn as I pat it in place.

“Hey, dude.” Dean fist bumps Brock. “How’s it going?”

“What’re you guys watching?” Cooper grabs my phone and scans the screen. “Ocean life again? Geez, if you saved a whale every time you watched this kind of video, whales wouldn’t be endangered anymore.”

“If only,” I mutter at the exact time Brock does. We exchange a look and a smile.

“Freaky,” Gael says with wide brown eyes. “You two used to do that stuff years ago. Remember, guys?”

Finn shrugs. “Not really.”

Gael throws his hands up. “You don’t remember? They were like twins.”

Finn shrugs again. “Whatever.”

“You good, man?” Dean asks Finn.

Finn’s eyes meet mine for a second before he yanks them away. “Yeah. Just nervous about a test I have later today.”

Theo chuckles. “Why do you dudes always stress out about school? Lame.”

As the guys talk about various things, I try not to sigh. As much as I love them, I kind of enjoyed my time alone with Brock.

“Mrs. Hastings emailed me back my assignment last night, ordering me to fix my grammar,” Theo says with a laugh. “She said she would normally dock points for grammar and stuff, but my assignment was so unreadable that it was giving her an ulcer. Anyone want to fix it for me?”

None of us volunteer.

“Do your homework yourself, man,” Dean says, rolling his brown eyes.

“I won’t do your homework for you,” Brock informs him, “but I can help you with the grammar. We could do it during lunch if you want.”

Theo twists his nose like he’d rather find someone to do it for him, but then he sighs and says, “Fine.”

“That goes for all of you.” Brock’s eyes move from one to the other, and I may be wrong, but it seems like his eyes settle on me for a bit longer than the others. “If you guys need help with your essays and assignments, editing them or with grammar, I’m your guy.”

“I didn’t know you’re good with grammar,” Nate says, shaking his light brown hair out of his face.

“I remember,” I say with a smile. “You were like the only one who liked it in sixth grade. Mr. Topaz was so proud.”

“Teacher’s pet.” Theo playfully elbows him.

“I take after my dad, I guess,” Brock says. “Hey, do you know that when he and my mom were in high school, she pretended to have tons of grammar mistakes on her essay to get him to comeover to her house? It was super romantic. I think they almost kissed, too.”

The guys exchange a glance, Nate and Cooper raising their brows.

Brock sinks a little in his seat. “Right. You guys aren’t into romance.”

“Look at this guy.” Theo ruffles his hair. “Such a sweet pea.”

“Dude.” Brock shoves him away.