The Transfer Attraction | Book 1

Brookfield was a huge difference compared to Spring Hills. I was moving from one of the biggest cities in our state to a small town God knows where. All of this happened because my father was getting a big promotion at his company. Since he was newly appointed president, they wanted to start him out small thus sending us to Brookfield.

This wasn't how I wanted to spend my senior year. It was supposed to be easygoing with the friends I've known since middle school. Prom was going to be epic and I knew I'd get into almost any college I wanted because my grades were top-tier. On top of that, I was a part of the Spring Hills Academy gymnastics team and will sadly be missing state because I'm no longer there.

Everything about this year was leaning toward disaster until I got to my third-period class. It was Economics with Mr. Davis and not a class I was interested in. Though learning about the economy was important, I just always found myself bored.

However, my attention was sparked once a tall, sandy blond sat next to me. He seemed like a big deal as every time a student passed by he'd either wave, fist bump, or hi-five them. They were all clamoring for his acknowledgment too especially the females as expected. This guy was a beauty to look at so I don't even blame them.

It's still unclear why he sat next to me of all people but I took it as my sign to put myself out there. This was my first and only year at Brookfield High. I had better make the most of it before it was too late. Otherwise, I'd be known as the lonely new kid from the city.

"Someone's popular," I spoke ever so casually while resting my cheek in the palm of my hand.

The guy turned to me with a soft smirk playing on his lips. His eyes, a blue-gray, stared in amusement. "Well, that's what happens when you're the school's number 1 receiver and the reason we won the championship 2 years in a row." He bragged with confidence.

My eyebrows raised with great interest. "You're their number 1 receiver?" It was honestly quite shocking.

"Yep, and I plan to be the reason we win the championship a 3rd time." This guy was cocky and confident. I kind of loved it.

I sat up as he had my full attention. "Usually guys like you make for great tight ends."

Now his eyebrows raised with curiosity. "You know football?" It was like his world lit up.

"I know enough to know the different positions and their impacts on gameplay." I shrugged. Football was kind of a big thing in my family. From college to the big leagues, it was hard to escape it honestly.

Still, my main purpose for showing off my football prowess was to impress him. The guy was attractive and I wanted to be in his good graces. Maybe it'll lead to more conversation down the line and we could be friends. Or more because more never hurt anybody. Though I doubt people in this school would like that.

He licked his lips showing signs of interest the more he talked to me. "What's your name newbie?"

I smiled hoping he'd ask that. "Vanessa," I proudly said feeling like I accomplished my goal.

"Nicholas or Nick if you're feeling fancy." He winked at me.

That made me laugh as he was clearly flirting with me. We didn't have time to finish talking as Mr. Davis walked in to begin his first class of the year. I kind of drained him out while he was talking because I could feel eyes staring at me. Some were in curiosity while others looked like they wanted to snap my neck. All because I was talking to their star football player.

He was interested which is probably why people were staring too. Whatever the case, I was going to lock this golden boy down and no one was going to stop me from doing so.

I couldn't seem desperate though, so when the bell finally rang for lunch I walked in the opposite direction as him. It took him a minute but it wasn't long before his footsteps were trailing behind me. His gruff voice doting me with a nickname ever so sweetly.

"Yo, Nessa wait!" He jogged over without even breaking a sweat.

I turned to him with a smile. "Nessa?" I folded my arms intrigued by him shortening my name.

His hand stuffed inside his pockets as he shrugged. "It only seemed fitting." He smirked. "But seriously, you do realize it's lunch right?"

"I'm aware, yes."

"So, you were just going to eat alone and not with me?" He patiently awaited my answer but I'm sure he knew I would agree to anything he wanted to do.

This time I licked my lips because I truthfully didn't expect him to offer me to sit with him. "Okay, say I do agree, what do I get in return?"

He thought for a moment contemplating the right answer. "Name your price."

"Hold my hand on the way there?" I suggested to see how far I could go with someone like him. These types of guys value their reputation. How would he feel walking around holding the new girl's hand? Why did I like to test the waters so much?

Nick chuckled but didn't turn me down. Instead, he gladly accepted taking hold of mine hand in his with little hesitation. It was soft, warm, and practically swallowed my skinny fingers but it was comforting nonetheless. Especially seeing the looks on others' faces as we walked down the hall. It was only my first day and I was already going to go down in infamy. How sweet!

Nick realized what I was doing and wasn't mad about it. He was quite amused and stunned I would attempt such a feat. "It's very ballsy of you to set your sights on me your first day."

"What can I say? I like to stir the pot." I giggled. "Besides, I'm already a sore thumb. I had to do something to get my name out there."

"I'm more so afraid of what's gonna happen when Emma finds out." He sounded disgruntled just saying her name alone.

Still, it made me curious to know who this girl was and what I should look out for. "Emma? Who is she? Should I be scared?"

He scoffed with a roll of his eyes. "Please, she's all bark and no bite." That was good to know. "But because you're drop-dead gorgeous she'll certainly be jealous."

Now he was trying to make me blush. Nick wasn't slick with his subtle flirting but I was eating it right up as we finally made it to the cafeteria. This Emma girl held no barring over me but to avoid a catfight on my first day, I let go of his hand following closely behind until we got to a table.

There sat 4 other people who were happy to see Nick and shocked to see me behind him. They had no idea who I was but I recognized a few of them from previous periods. Even though we wore uniforms, nobody seemed to follow the dress code to a tee as their distinct styles showed through. They didn't seem like the type to form a group but I loved it already.

The guy with the locs smiled brightly. "Oh shit! Chocolate goddess alert!" He yelled excitedly. "Finally some more color at this damn table." He high-fived me to which I laughed.

"Don't mind him, he's an idiot." A girl with jet-black voluminous hair spoke. "You're that new girl I have AP Lit with."

I nodded remembering her face from the first period. "That's me. I'm Vanessa." I introduced myself.

"Jade and this is my idiot boyfriend Chase." She pointed to the boy with the locs. "This is Sophie, Landon, and you seem to already know that dumbass." She pointed to Nick.

Nick faked like he was hurt by that. "You're always so mean to me, Jade." He pouted.

The Landon guy, who had short dark hair and green eyes, spoke up this time. "Seriously though, why are you with him? He is pretty dumb." He was joking but it was funny nonetheless.

Their dynamic was already interesting and I could tell they were all pretty close. From their banter alone they seemed like a good group of friends meaning I made the right choice to talk to Nick. Who knows where I would've ended up if I hadn't?

I sat next to the Sophie girl, ready to intermingle myself in their clique. "I don't know, I thought he was kind of cute." My shoulders shrugged while I continued to subtly flirt with him.

Sophie groaned. "Join the club of the million other girls at this school that feel the same way." Her hair was quite long and auburn. It looked and smelled heavenly too.

"All I heard was he and cute." Nick smiled feeling himself a little too much.

"The words kind of were thrown in there too. Settle down." I humbled him.

He sarcastically laughed as everyone else enjoyed it as well. "Oh, we're keeping you," Chase said happily. "She fits right in."

It was great to be accepted into a group so soon. We spent the remainder of lunch with them asking me questions to get to know me. I told them where I was from and they were shocked my family moved from Spring Hills to Brookfield. The girls were also shocked when I told them I was a former gymnast with years of experience under my belt. Though, I wasn't sure how I felt about doing a brand new extracurricular activity.

"You should so try out for the cheer team," Sophie recommended. "We need someone who could do tumble passes effortlessly."

I scratched the back of my neck not too confident about this. "Uh, I don't know. My dad would probably just tell me to quit." He was very focused on me going to college this year and didn't want me wasting time on sports.

"Come on, it's just a tryout and I know you'll nail it!" She kept pushing.

"The main thing is that you may not even make it," Jade explained. "Surely he won't get mad just for trying."

She had a point and since I truly didn't know much about cheerleading it wasn't guaranteed I'd make the team anyway. Plus, they uprooted my life without my consent or even asking if I was okay with it. This is something he owed me.

Giving in, I sighed not sure if that'll bite me in the ass or not. "Fuck it, alright." I agreed.

Sophie clapped happily as Jade snapped her fingers in the guy's faces to gain their attention. "Cheer tryouts today after school. Be there to support our new friend."

"Ugh, you're gonna be a cheerleader? They suck." Landon groaned until he saw Jade and Sophie's faces. "I mean, not you guys."

"Another hot cheerleader let's go!" Did I mention Chase was my favorite?

I still wasn't too sure about this. If my father found out he would flip. However, that was a risk I was going to have to take.