MasterCard Theory

.o1. Mistaken Identity

Everyone has to love the freshmen. With their minds set on being friends with the upper class men, they let us seniors do anything we wanted to them. Myself for example… ever since I had met Adam Bailey (a freshman saxophone player) in marching band, he'd let me "bully" him. We'd always insult each other whenever the time proved right, but overall, we still had an odd friendship.

When the school year started, I'd always see him walking in front of my best friend and me from second block to lunch. One day, I spontaneously decided to swiftly kick the bottom of his backpack. He then turned around and gave me the middle finger after seeing who I was.

And that was what sparked our daily tradition. Halfway through October, and it was all still the same. I'd see him come out of room 347 with his gray and black backpack swinging against him.

Of course, that was until the day I had made that life changing error of the dreaded mistaken identity…

"Looking for your froshie?" Kayla Saunders grinned as we walked down the foreign language hallway. I flashed her a smile as we turned down the corridor, where I knew my victim laid waiting. For the past thirty or so days, Kayla had watched my freshman hazing attempts. She found it oddly amusing, as did I. Who cared what Adam thought of it?

Approaching room 347, I let out a snort. Usually, he would be out by now but he was nowhere in sight. He was probably trying to hide… that loser.

Right before we reached the room, I saw him come out. I felt that familiar excitement rise again. I always got a kick out of my tradition. No pun intended.

His gray and black backpack rhythmically hit him as his right arm rested on the blue and white duffel bag every varsity soccer player had in our school. I frowned at that. He was in the marching band, not soccer. Maybe he was holding it for his older brother?

Who knows?

I heard Kayla about to protest, but I paid no heed. Without another thought, I kicked him under his backpack… hard. He stumbled forward much to my amusement. Yet, I had that nagging feeling that something was not in place and it wasn't just because of Kayla's incoherent prattle. A piece of the puzzle simply did not fit together.

"I'm out." Kayla suddenly muttered and ran in the opposite direction before I could stop her. Best friend? Sure.

It was then that my giant mistake seemed to make sense. Instead of the copper hair I had grown accustomed to seeing, a head of darker brown shook in disbelief. Not only that, but this person was at least half a foot taller than my intended target. I had gotten so wrapped up in my goal that I couldn't even notice these glaring differences.

This could not be good.

The guy slowly turned around as I tried to shrink away slowly. Yeah, gigantic mistake. I discovered myself to be face to face with the captain of our three time state champion varsity soccer team, Conner Flannery. And to be completely honest, he did not look happy in the least.

"What… the… hell, North." He hissed, his blue eyes absolutely livid. His eyes drilled holes through my body as I lost usage of my limbs and vocal chords. I stood silently, not sure what I could say in the situation.

After all, I just kicked one of the most popular guys in my school. Plus, he was one of two of my twin brother's best friends. I'd personally say that would be a problem.

"Crap." I squeaked, hating the high falsetto tone. "I totally didn't mean to. I'm so sorry. I thought you were somebody else."

He cocked an eyebrow at me, shifting his duffel bag to his other arm. "Somebody else that looks like me? You would think after seeing me almost everyday at your house you would be able to tell who I was from the back of my head."

Did I also mention he had an ego that deserved to be burned to the ground?

"Shut up." I grumbled, slowing getting more nervous the longer those dark blue eyes held me rooted to my spot. "I thought you were Adam Bailey."

Conner snorted in disgust. Gulping, I knew this wasn't going to get me anywhere. Thank the Lord that there was no one left in the hall. I probably would have died of embarrassment by now. "You took me for a freshman? And to think I actually thought you were smart."

I banged my forehead with my fist, keeping my eyes locked with his. There were times when I truly despised him. But sometimes, I felt he truly understood me and that I could honestly trust him. Of course, that was only around two percent of the time, when he was kind enough to calm my parents down after I was suspended for punching Tyler Vespucci in the face.

"I am smart." I retorted helplessly, not moving my fist away from my face. When it came down to me and Conner, things weren't so great. He took any opportunity to mock me, and vice versa. With such an incident, I knew he would take this and make a laughing stock out of me. I truly did feel like an idiot at this point in time. I couldn't lie about that.

"You're not acting the part." He laughed, brushing his dark locks from his eyes. "But you know what. As amusing as this conversation has been, I have better things to do. You better not try that again." he warned. He turned around after those words as I stared after his departing back. "Actually." He spun around when he had walked at least five feet away from my current position. "You should watch yourself from now on. Who knows, someone might 'accidentally' kick you in the back one day. I don't know thought, it's just a possibility."

I watched him disappear down the stairs. His head was eventually no longer in sight as he descended. A few seconds later, I managed to pull away from my rooted spot. I walked towards our usual lunch spot by the Alum's Stairs, attempting to erase the previous conversation and happenings. But something in the back of my head was telling me it'd never happen anytime in the near future.

After all knowing Murphy's Law, what wouldn't happen?

Fifth block rolled by and I wasn't getting any sort of trouble from Conner's friends. Honestly, I was surprised even thought part of me figured that my brother, Blaine, had convinced him otherwise. But then again, he probably wanted to save himself the humiliation of having another girl think he was a freshman in the marching band.

I sat in the back of my Physics AP class, next to Conner and Blaine's other best friend, Travis Long. He too, was a captain of the Verona High School. Personally, I saw Travis as the better guy between Conner and him. (It would be highly unfair to throw Blaine in the mix; I was biased in a way when it came down to ranking the three power players). People always say the trio as similar, but I didn't see it like that. Sure, they were hot (not counting Blaine), at the least. No words could actually describe the physical dominance they had over the rest of the school. But when it came down to personality, the scale tipped in favor of Travis.

He was a smart guy with a crazy sense of humor, but overall, one of the most respectful guys I'd ever met. He never acted like those snobby athletic jocks and even admitted that if it wasn't for his parents' persuasion to join the soccer team, he would've joined marching band in a heartbeat.

Mr. Walker, our physics teacher, was pacing in front of the room while running a hand through his almost non-existent hair. I could see his lips moving, but no words were audible. It was another one of those days…

Senioritis truly sucks.

I heard the sound of a vibrating phone from my left. I smirked knowingly, quickly glancing at Travis. Sure enough, his hand had slipped down to his belt clip. Extracting his iPhone, he read the awaiting message. Suddenly, his eyes flashed towards me and back to his phone. He lifted his gaze again, his eyes laughing brightly.

Obviously, I was completely oblivious to what he found so hilarious. I knew he could sense my confusion as he shook his head. Stretching out his arms, he leaned over the back of his chair and gently placed the phone on the lab table.

'Read it'. Travis mouthed, taking a furtive look towards Walker. He didn't even have to care about that. Mr. Walker was the varsity soccer coach and absolutely adored Conner, Travis and Blaine, even though Blaine wasn't a captain. Even if Travis had killed the boy sitting in front of him in the middle of a lecture about planetary motion, Walker would look past it and grant him forgiveness.

Either way, walker had his back to us as he began re-explaining the equations for finding the coefficients of static and kinetic friction. Turning around swiftly, I grabbed the phone and laid it down on the desk to the right of my textbook. Leaning my left elbow against the cover and propping my cheek against my fist, I picked up my pencil. Placing the point on my blank sheet of notebook paper, my eyes flew over the text message.

You're in the same class as Alex North, aren't you? Well, anyway. Can you tell her this or show it to her? (After you kicked me all my pens exploded and got over everything. Thanks to you, I owe 300 in textbooks. You're paying.)

I gaped at the message. Was he serious? There was no way in hell I was paying him three hundred dollars! That was absolutely crazy! I wasn't about to withdraw from my bank because I needed parental permission in order to that. If I had to explain I had kicked one of the three boys they adored the most in their lives, I'd never get the end of it.

There was absolutely no way out of it.

I read the message again and again, not believing the words before my eyes. How was I supposed to pay him back? Did he want hard cash or in check form? I shut my eyes briefly. Why was I so stupid? When Kayla had begun to protest, why hadn't I listened to her? If I wasn't so intent on continuing some stupid tradition, none of this would have ever happened. I truly curse my instincts sometimes.

I knew now that this was going to slip out. After all, Travis knew. What was stopping Conner from telling the rest of the soccer team who weren't as gentlemen like as Travis? Ultimately, I'd be known as the girl who kicked the guy with the most impressive stats in soccer in the state of Pennsylvania.

I can already sense the drama.

In the midst of my thoughts, I felt something hit the side of my head. I stared that the crumpled piece of paper then back at Travis. He was tapping his pencil on the desk, while simultaneously pointing the eraser of his writing utensil at the paper.

Opening it, I saw Travis's messy scrawl.

What did you do to the kid?

Shaking my head, I wrote my answer on the paper and sneaked a glance at Walker. His attention was now honed in on Phil Holiday, who I discovered to be sleeping on his desk. Picking up the iPhone and the paper, I placed the items into Travis's waiting palms.

I sat in silence, as I patiently awaited the arrival of a note or the possible ringing of the 2:15 bell. Unfortunately, my moment was disturbed and not by either one of my hopes.

"Alex, what's the answer?"

Oh, God. Mr. Walker was staring straight at me as the entire class turned to look as well. I hated when people did that. It never did help my nerves. "Uh." I dragged out, taking a peek at the board. The numbers and symbols seemed familiar, but the methods to solving it were buried in the back of my mind.

My notebook was completely blank. I was usually always on top of things, but all that changed when I kicked Conner Flannery. I was forever humiliated.

"49 Newtons." Travis suddenly whispered lowly, making sure Mr. Walker couldn't hear. Before Walker could reprimand me for not paying attention, I had repeated the answer. He faltered slightly, nodding as the bell rang.

Quickly packing, I shoved Walker's words about homework out of my mind as I headed for the door. Attempting a swift exit, I felt someone pull me aside. I found myself staring into dark brown eyes.

"You thought he was Adam Bailey? Not even Nick Bailey? But the little freshman?"

I groaned and continued on the way to my locker. "Adam's my freshman. Everyday since September, he's come out of 347 right in front of me. I've always kicked him. This time, your buddy came out wearing the same book bag. Then you know the rest."

"Hmm." Travis quietly contemplated the situation. "Have you ever thought about joining the girls' soccer team? They need some-"

"No!" I snapped, pausing besides my locker. Unlocking the door and throwing my textbooks within, I saw Travis lean against the wall next to me. A few of the other guys on the varsity team passed by, giving me a weird look before pounding fists with Travis. "Everything is different now. I hate it! Because of a small mistake, every guy on the team now thinks I'm freaking insane."

"That's because you are." I groaned, instantly recognizing that voice. Slamming my locker shut, I tried to walk away, but Conner swiftly stepped in front of me.

Damn his reaction time.

"I'm already humiliated enough. Do you have to rub it in even more?"

Conner smirked, swiping his unruly hair. "Maybe so. But hell, you should be ecstatic I'm not making you pay in cold hard Franklins. You destroyed two of my books, Chemistry and Calculus. Brand new, might I add. The least you could do would be to treat me with the utmost respect."

He demanded respect for that reason? Just because he wasn't making me pay in cash, he truly believed that I should forever be in debt. Well, whoever he gets his logic from, they don't deserve a mind and soul of their own. But nonetheless, I brushed off his comment and continued. "So how is it you want me to pay you back then?"

Instead of responding, he picked up his duffel bag from the floor. "You'll find out soon enough." With a mock salute, he spun around and jogged down the stairs.

"Why the hell do I put up with him?" Travis muttered, while bidding me farewell. Before fully departing, he flashed me one more apologetic smile and followed his best friend's path.

I am so screwed.

--

"Alex!" The cry of his voice and the slamming of the door signaled the arrival of my twin brother. I merely groaned as I heard his heavy footsteps getting closer. He, obviously, was a senior who played on the varsity soccer team with Conner and Travis. As the best goalie with the most saves in the state, I would've thought him as the third captain. But because he was not a four year member (we had moved here our sophomore year), he wasn't entitled to that position. Instead, the not-so-bright right field defender, Charles Hammond, was the third captain. It was a pretty stupid move on Walker's behalf, but no one could argue. It was all about seniority.

"Alex?" Looking up, I saw a sweaty mop of auburn hair thrust through the threshold. I grimaced at the sight, but allowed him to come through anyway.

"Hi Blaine. You are intending on taking a shower, correct?"

"Yeah. Sure." He replied mindlessly and stood at the foot of my bed. Being the considerate brother he was, he sat down on the blankets after a few seconds of thinking. Typical. "So, you and Conner?"

Huh?

"Yeah, he told me what happened. You know, how you thought he was Adam Bailey, you kicked him, and now you owe him 300."

From the way he said it, everything seemed so simple. No one's reputation was at stake, and easy words make it look like money wasn't even playing a major role in the situation. But I was wise enough to know that it wasn't the case. Nothing beneficial could ever happen.

"What of it?" I replied, attempting to stay calm. I was hoping my voice seemed confident and not worried and shaking like I was on the inside. "Did the team come up with a master plan or something?"

"Yeah, actually we did." Blaine grinned. "Coach didn't show up for at least an hour, so we started making bets and deals."

Oh, damn.

"So we came up with one for you to pay back Conner." He continued. "You have to go out with Conner for the next few months." I attempted to talk over him, but it was to no avail. "Only when you've used 300 or a little more are you allowed to stop."

He stopped his explanation and stared at my still figure. Weren't brothers supposed to be overprotective of me? They weren't supposed to go around selling my freedom, especially to some guy who now had a vengeance to make my life hell.

Then again knowing Conner, it could have been a lot worse. He probably would have made me pay back two hundred percent or some crazy figure like that. But that wasn't the case. It was the fact that it was Conner Flannery that bothered me. He had an ego that had to be deflated, which unfortunately was bloated by the hordes of groupies in school.

But surprisingly on the soccer field, he refused to hog the spotlight. As a captain, he always tried to include all his teammates. If anything, his sportsmanship was the exact opposite of his true personality in real life. I suppose I had to respect him for that because that was usually where the boasting happens.

I let out a sigh, realizing that Blaine was still waiting for my response. I wrung my hands nervously, before speaking. "Why?" I asked, keeping my cool. I rarely ever lost my temper, I was always relatively calm. I hated hurting other people's feelings, especially when it was done by accident. Apologizing always drained a large portion of my energy.

"It was either that or the 300 plus a seventy five percent interest." Blaine replied. "Money which he would have wanted by next week. Plus, Travis thought it'd be more fun to put a twist on things."

Reminder, kill him later.

I let out a groan, pulling down my cheeks. "And do I get a say in this? Or have you already decided for me?"

"Cut me some slack. Of course you have a choice. Seventy five percent interest or 300 worth of dates. He said he'd pay for gas."

That's helpful.

I shook my head, debating the situation. Either was truly sucked, but was I truly willing to pay an extra 225? It honestly wasn't worth it.

But that also meant having to go out with Conner multiple times, not just once. I doubted he wanted to hang out during school, so that didn't really matter to me. But would it hurt? A couple times at T.G.I Friday's, and it would be covered.

"Whatever." I spat out, before I could change my mind. "I'll go out with him a few times. It won't hurt."

Blaine merely nodded and rubbed his eyes. "Conner's downstairs. You guys should lay out some ground rules." He disappeared around the corner as I sat there. Conner was already here? Was he really expecting me to give in that easily? That asshole…

I stumbled down the stairs, Conner's figure coming into vision. He stood in front of the fire place, examining my mom's crystal collection. "Why are you here?" I asked, as he slowly turned around. "Did you seriously expect me to agree to that condition so quickly?"

Conner snorted unattractively as he stepped forward. "I just needed to know which one you chose. That would, you could get your parents to sign a 525 dollar check for me while I explained to them the situation."

I grimaced at that. Ever since my brother became best friends with Conner, my parents adored him. I, on the other hand, barely ever saw him or talked with him while he was over our house. Sure, I had uncivilized conversations with him, but they were never worth my time. I knew if my parents heard about me kicking him, they'd stick me in an isolated room for two months with only Conner as company.

"But on the other hand. 300 in dates." He put his other hand out in front of him for a handshake. "Anything over 300 I'll pay. But the teachers want it by the end of the semester." He put a finger on his chin as he did the metal calculation. "You have to pay up the 300 by January twenty-ninth. If not, your parents will somehow discover the truth of their evil daughter who hates the courteous, young and dashing knight."

Rolling my eyes, I grasped his hand. He knew me far too well. He already knew I wouldn't back down as long as my parents were the only other ultimatum. "We have a deal." I muttered, not looking him in the eye.

"Good." He smirked, his hair falling in front of his line of vision. He didn't bother to move it aside as he spoke. "I'll see you in school tomorrow." He brushed past me quickly and headed for the front door. He suddenly stopped, but didn't turn to face me as he talked again. "You know in terms of the situation and the deal, we have to act like we're an actual couple during school hours."

I coughed noisily, taking in the back of Conner's figure. Was he actually serious? Who was he not to tell me before we had even shaken on it? Wait… "We haven't even agreed on that term. Plus, Blaine would kill you-"

"Sure." He scoffed, still facing the other direction. "That point was actually brought up by your dear brother himself. Terms were developed before hand. It was basically your fault for not asking about the rules."

I shook my head in disbelief. "This makes no sense though. Why the hell would Blaine agree to something like this? Plus, how is it even relative to me paying you back 300?"

"So many questions, so little time." he grunted. "Fortunately, the answers are related so I can finish it in one shot. Blaine agreed because it would keep the humiliation of the situation under wraps. It's beneficial to the both of us. It gives people the reason as to why we suddenly started going on dates for the next two months. They'll never have to know that you kicked me thinking I was a freshman, unless either of us reveals that information. Then when it's all done, we can break up and keep on living."

It all sounded fair enough. Though the entire dating during school thing wasn't sitting so well, I figured he had a point. At least now I had a legitimate reason to beat up Blaine. "Okay." I finally replied, my eyes still locked on his back. "Whatever. I'll see you tomorrow."

Silently, he waved me goodbye without facing me. Slamming the door behind him, I stood not moving for the second time that day because of Conner Flannery. I still couldn't believe the amount of trouble I had managed to get myself into.

To think it all started because of a simple mistake.

Author's Note

Version four. I hope this one's pretty good. Please don't ask where I get my ideas from, because frankly I don't know. This just spontaneously popped into my head and it became the new draft of MCT. I hope you guys liked it and hopefully I'll be able to continue this without starting a fifth version.

Happy New Year's, everybody!! It's almost 2008! Yay.

Posted by MadForFigs on December 28, 2007.