The Cure for Second Lead Syndrome by Amanda Abram

CHAPTER 4

“Are you going to the beach today?” I asked Braden the next afternoon.

He eyed me suspiciously as he took a big bite of his ham sandwich. “Who wants to know?” he asked with a full mouth.

“I do.” I sat down across from him at the kitchen table, leaned forward and clasped my hands together like we were getting ready to engage in a business deal. “If you are, I would like to go with you.”

Braden stopped mid-chew and snorted. “You? Go to the beach? Bria, there isn’t an SPF number high enough to make it safe for you to be exposed to that much sunlight.”

I shot him a glare. Yes, my skin was pale. Yes, if I stayed out in the sun too long, I would burn to a crisp. No, Braden didn’t have the same problem, and he often liked to rub it in.

“Very funny,” I said. “But seriously, I need to go to the beach today. And if you’re already going, I figured I could hitch a ride with you.”

His expression turned contemplative as he continued chewing. After finally swallowing, he sat back in chair and put on his what’s in it for me? face. “How badly do you want to go?”

Groaning inwardly, I said, “Can’t you do something nice for me once without expecting something in return?”

He thought about it for a split second before shaking his head. “Nah. That doesn’t sound like me.”

Pursing my lips and sitting up straight, I decided it was time to play dirty. “If you don’t give me a ride to the beach, I’ll drive there myself.”

Braden laughed. “Oh yeah? With whose car?”

“With our car.” I arched a brow and gave him a look that said, checkmate.

When Braden and I turned seventeen, our parents bought a new vehicle and passed down their old Toyota Corolla to us. We were supposed to take turns using it, but in the months since we inherited it, I had only asked to use it once so that Natalie and I could go to the mall. Braden, on the other hand, used it most days after school and on the weekends. I was pretty sure my parents were keeping track. And if I went to them with tears in my eyes, telling them how badly I wanted to go to the beach, but Braden refused to give me a ride, I’d have those car keys in my hand so fast it would make his head spin.

He knew it, too. The amusement on his face dissipated and was replaced by a scowl. “Okay, fine,” he grumbled. “I’ll give you a ride.”

I smiled sweetly at him. “Thanks so much, Brady, I knew I could count on you!”

His eyes narrowed in annoyance. He hated it when I called him Brady. “Why do you want to go to the beach, anyway? There’s no TV there.”

“I have an important project I’m working on,” I replied, pushing my chair back and standing up. “And it requires that I be at the beach today.”

He waited for me to continue. “Care to elaborate?”

“Nope.” I skipped around to the other side of the table and threw my arms around him in a quick sideways hug. “Let me know when you’re ready to go.”

He mumbled something under his breath, but I didn’t bother asking him to repeat it.

I rushed upstairs to get ready. I wasn’t planning on stepping foot in the ocean, so I didn’t need to change out of my shorts and tank top. I did, however, need to raid the bathroom cabinets to find the sunblock with the highest protection, and then I had to ask my mom to borrow her oversized floppy straw beach hat. Between those two things, I was confident I could avoid catching fire in the sunlight.

After I had the hat and bottle of sunblock in my possession, I took out my phone and called Caleb. I couldn’t wait to tell him about the plan I’d come up with. It was simple, yet I was sure it was going to be effective.

“Hello?” he answered.

“Hey there, Second Lead,” I said cheerfully. “It’s Bria.”

I heard a slight chuckle on his end. “Yeah, I know. Are you calling to fill me in on our plan for today?”

“I sure am.” I flopped onto my bed and stared at the ceiling. “It’s a doozy.”

Caleb snorted. “A doozy, huh? Well, I can’t wait to hear it. So, what’ve you got?”

“Okay,” I said, rolling onto my stomach. “So, here’s what you’re going to do: when you get to the beach, I want you to park as far away as possible. If Paige asks you why, tell her it’s because you’re cheap and don’t want to pay the ridiculous parking fee for the lots closest to the beach. Or make up whatever excuse you want.”

“Um, okay…”

“And then, once the two of you are on the beach, get her to go in the water with you.”

“You mean to swim?”

“You don’t have to swim. You could take a few steps in. It doesn’t matter. We just need her to leave her footwear behind unsupervised for a few minutes. That’s when the plan really begins.”

There was a silence on the other end, and for a second, I thought maybe he’d hung up.

“Caleb? You still with me?”

“Yeah. Just waiting for you to keep going. What happens next?”

I sat up. “Well, while you and Paige are frolicking in the waves, I’m going to steal her shoes.”

It sounded silly when I said it out loud. Apparently, Caleb thought that too because I could hear him snickering.

“I’m sorry, what? You’re going to steal her shoes?”

“More like borrow temporarily.”

“And why are you going to do that?”

“Because without shoes, she’s going to have to walk barefoot for half a mile to get back to your car. She’s not going to want to do that. Have you seen all the crap people drop onto the roads and sidewalks over there? Not to mention the tar is going to be too hot to walk on after baking in the sun most of the day.”

“Okay. And?”

“And this is where you give her a piggyback ride to her car—without injuring her or getting her drunk first.” Pleased with myself, I paused for a moment to allow Caleb’s brain to absorb the genius of my plan. When he took a little too long to respond, I said, “What do you think?”

“I think…it’s a plan.”

I deflated at the abundance of indifference in his voice. “I know it’s not much of anything, but it’s a start. And this particular plan comes with a bonus.”

“A bonus?” That seemed to pique his interest a little.

“Yes. I’ll keep Paige’s shoes and return them to you later tonight, and then you will then return them to her. You’ll tell her that you went back and combed the entire beach looking for them. She’ll be happy to have them back, but more importantly, she’ll think it was so sweet that you devoted the rest of your day to doing that for her. She’ll really appreciate it. You’ll win major brownie points for that. Trust me.”

I could tell that was the moment when Caleb realized my plan was solid. He was probably picturing how tightly Paige would hug him when he returned her beloved shoes to her tonight.

“Sounds good,” he said finally. “I’ll give it a shot.”

“Really?” I jumped up from the bed. “You won’t regret this, I promise!”

I heard a knock at my door and turned to see Braden poking his head in the room.

“I’m leaving. So, if you still want to go, you better get your butt out to the car right now, or I’m driving off without you.”

It wasn’t a threat; it was a promise.

“Caleb, I have to let you go,” I said into the phone as Braden disappeared from the doorway. “But I’ll see you at the beach, okay? I’ll text you when I think it’s a good time to put things in motion.”

“Okay. See you there.”

We ended the call, and I quickly gathered my stuff and made my way outside to the car, where Braden was already impatiently waiting for me.

“Are you going to tell me about this ‘important project’ you’re working on?” he asked.

“No.” I threw the hat and beach towel into the backseat.

“Are you sure you want to spend all afternoon at the beach by yourself?”

I leaned sideways over the center console, hooked my arm through his and batted my eyelashes up at him. “But I’m not going to be by myself; you’re going to be there with me!”

Braden’s features tightened, which was the reaction I was looking for. Of course, I wasn’t expecting him to hang out with me when we got to the beach; I just wanted to make him think I was.

I knew better than to encroach on his social gatherings.

“Relax,” I said, letting him go. “I’ll be fine by myself. I’ll probably call Natalie at some point. Oh, and I’m bringing a book.” I opened the canvas bag my mom also lent me and showed him its contents: a book, sunblock, a bottle of water, and my phone. The bag was also going to be where I was going to stash Paige’s shoes after I stole them, but Braden didn’t have to know that part.

“Okay, suit yourself.” Braden started the car and then turned to me. “You know, you can hang out with me and my friends if you want.”

“I don’t want, but thanks anyway.”

We shared a smile before he backed out of the driveway.

It was showtime.

***

By the time Caleb finally showed up at the beach with Paige, I was regretting only bringing one bottle of sunblock. I’d already slathered two layers onto every bit of exposed skin on my body, but I could still feel the sun penetrating the protective barrier and scorching my flesh with its harmful rays.

I was going to regret this tomorrow. Maybe even tonight.

It didn’t take Caleb long to spot me; my hat was so big, it made me stick out like a sore thumb. He gave me a subtle wave when Paige wasn’t looking, and I gave a single head nod in return. Taking out my phone, I sent him a quick text.

I’ll be ready when you are.

When he got it, he read it and immediately texted back, OK. Might wait a few.

I nodded and pulled my book out of my bag. Laying out on my stomach, I tried reading a few pages but found myself unable to concentrate. Giving up on it, I pretendedto read while watching Caleb and Paige instead.

I observed how they acted around each other, to see if I could detect any hints of how Paige felt about Caleb. But she was a hard read. They seemed close. She was constantly smiling at him and laughing at the things he said to her. Often, she’d even reach over and lightly touch his forearm with her fingertips while talking. Normally, that would be a huge clue that she was into him. But they were best friends and had been for years. The touching might have been a result of her feeling completely comfortable around him.

And then I observed her interactions with Tyler, who had apparently been invited along on this beach outing as well. She seemed a lot more reserved around him; almost shy. Flustered, even.

Bad sign.

I started worrying that this was a terrible idea. I wasn’t close with Caleb, but I didn’t want him to get hurt. Especially not because of me. Was I giving him false hope? Had this Tyler guy already managed to snag Paige’s heart? Was Caleb doomed to sit on the sidelines forever and watch as Paige fell for anyone but him?

You’re overthinking it, I assured myself. Tyler moved here after school let out for the summer and hadn’t been here long enough to do any lasting damage. Even if Paige was developing a crush on him, it wouldn’t be too late for Caleb to throw his hat in the ring.

Hopefully.

A while later, as I was about to apply a third layer of sunblock, my phone chirped next to me. Picking it up, I saw a text from Caleb: OK. Ready.

I glanced in his direction to assess the area. If there were too many people around—or anyone at all—I wouldn’t be able to steal Paige’s shoes without getting caught. Tyler was going to be a problem; I didn’t know he was going to be there.

There was only one solution. Bring Tyler with you guys, I texted back.

Caleb read it and made a face. Why?

Duh. Because I can’t have any witnesses to my theft.

I watched as Caleb cringed and then threw a subtle glance at Tyler when he wasn’t looking. OK, fine, he finally texted back. But make it quick.

His gaze flickered over to me, and I gave him a thumbs-up. He turned to Paige and said something to her. She smiled and nodded before they both kicked off their sandals. Caleb then turned to Tyler, presumably to invite him along, and Tyler also appeared to agree to Caleb’s proposal because he kicked off his own sandals before all three of them began heading towards the water.

So far, so good.

As soon as they were a safe distance away and their backs were turned to me, I scrambled to my feet, grabbed my bag, and threw all my stuff back into it. It was important I had as much in there as possible for the next step of the plan.

Hurrying over to the spot where Caleb, Paige, and Tyler had just been—and where all their stuff still was—I quickly scanned the area for Paige’s shoes. Hers were easy to find. Bright pink flip-flops with glittery toe thongs. At least, I assumed they were hers.

Once I made sure nobody nearby was paying any attention to me—and making sure Caleb had both Paige and Tyler distracted—I neared their beach towels and purposely tripped, dumping the contents of my bag onto the ground.

“Whoops,” I said, in case anyone had witnessed my clumsy accident. I looked up to see that nobody had. Or, if they had, they were choosing to ignore it. Which was a good thing, but at the same time it was kind of lame that no one was rushing to see if I was okay or offering to help me pick up my stuff.

Once the flip-flops were safely in my bag, along with everything else I had dropped, I made my way back to my own towel and texted Caleb.

It’s done. Next step: help her look for them. When you can’t find them, offer to give her a piggyback ride to your car. Do NOT take no for an answer!

He didn’t look at the text right away. When I got back to my towel and sat down, I looked over to see Caleb chasing Paige toward the water’s edge. They were both laughing as he ran past into the water and then kicked some of it up at her. She squealed and then joined him, splashing him right back.

Tyler, meanwhile, had joined my brother and a few other guys who were throwing a Frisbee around nearby.

Maybe this was going to be easier than I thought. Caleb and Paige got along so well and seemed to have a lot of fun together. Paige didn’t even seem to care that Tyler was no longer with them. It was almost like they were the only two people at the beach.

I was so busy watching them that, when an object suddenly landed on my towel in front of me, I jumped and yelped in surprise. Darting my eyes down, I saw that it was a red plastic disc that had narrowly missed hitting my knee. And the person who had thrown it was Braden, who dropped down next to me.

“Hey, sis,” he said breathlessly. He grabbed my bottle of water, opened it and took a big swig.

I glared at him as I reached out and took it back from him. “Get your own water,” I grumbled.

He rolled his eyes and fell back, propping himself up on his elbows, stretching out on my towel. “How’s it going over here?”

“Fine.”

He reached up and lowered his sunglasses halfway down his nose to get a good look at me. “Have you been using the sunblock? You’re looking pink.”

“Yes, I have.”

“Also, are you okay? I saw you trip a few minutes ago.”

My breath hitched in my throat. He had seen that? “Yeah, I’m okay,” I replied casually. “Did anyone else see me?” Like, for instance, Paige Bishop?

Braden shrugged. “I dunno.” He sat up. “Man, I’m so thirsty. Do you have any more water in here?”

He was referring to my bag, and before I could stop him, he opened it and started searching around inside to see for himself.

“Wait.” I quickly grabbed for it, but I was too late.

Braden lifted one of Paige’s flip-flops out and gave me a curious, confused look. “Are these yours?”

“Yep,” I said confidently. I could probably get away with that lie; Braden never paid any attention to anything I wore.

He lowered his gaze to my feet, where I was wearing my own flip-flops—although mine were a boring shade of gray.

“They’re my back-up pair,” I explained. “In case anything happens to these ones.” I quickly snatched the flip-flop from him and threw it back in the bag. “And no, I don’t have any more water. You should have thought to bring your own.”

“Why bother when you’re usually prepared enough for the both of us?”

I shook my head in annoyance. “Now that you know I have nothing to offer, you should probably run along back to your friends.”

Braden clutched the center of his chest. “So hurtful, Bria. Here I am trying to spend some quality time with my sister, and she’s shooing me away like I’m some sort of bug.”

I turned my head to smirk at him. “And yet you’re still here.”

“Rude,” he said, but then smiled. “So, have you been working on your ‘important project?”

“I’m working on it right now, actually,” I replied. My gaze flickered over to Caleb and Paige, who were starting to make their way back to their towels.

“What are you talking about? You weren’t doing anything when I came over.”

I ignored him, keeping my attention on Caleb. I wanted to see the moment they arrived back to find Paige’s flip-flops missing.

Braden waved a hand in front of my face and then gave me a look that clearly said, you’re a weirdo. Grabbing his Frisbee, he pushed to his feet.

“Okay, well, have fun with whatever it is you’re supposedly doing.” He followed my line of vision. With a slightly furrowed brow, he shrugged and jogged off toward his group of friends.

Caleb and Paige were laughing and chatting as they arrived back to their towels, and it only took a few seconds for Paige to grow serious as she started glancing around.

Hmm…my flip-flops appear to be missing, I imagined her saying.

Really? Caleb probably responded. That’s weird.

He was doing a good job looking confused. He ran a hand through his hair and began helping her look around. He lifted their towels to look underneath. Nothing. He said something to her, and she reluctantly nodded before they took off down the beach.

I almost felt sorry for stealing her flip-flops—she seemed genuinely distraught that they were gone—but then I reminded myself that she would have them again by the end of the night. Not only that, but maybe she would have a blossoming love connection with her best friend, too.

I pulled out my phone and texted Caleb.

When she’s ready to leave, give her the piggyback ride to your car. Bonus point if you offer to bring her somewhere and buy a new pair for her. That’s up to you, though.

A minute or so went by before he finally read the text and responded.

OK. Thx. Let you know how it turns out. I’ll stop by your house later to pick up the stolen goods.

I smiled. Setting my phone down, I traded it for my book. Once again, I pretended to read it while keeping tabs on Caleb and Paige. After only a few minutes, they were back at their original spot and Paige looked livid. I couldn’t blame her. I’d be mad too if someone had stolen something of mine. Even if it was just a pair of five-dollar flip-flops.

Caleb turned and said something to her. To suggest they go buy a new pair, perhaps? She seemed to consider it for a moment before nodding. He then said something else, most likely offering to give her a piggyback ride to his car, and she shook her head, laughing.

It was expected that she would have that reaction. She probably thought he was joking. But then Caleb quickly gathered up their towels and handed them to her before turning his back to her and dropping onto his knees, motioning for her to hop on.

In K-dramas, the male lead usually had to work hard to get the female lead on his back, due to her incapacitation, but there was rarely ever push-back from her. Paige, on the other hand, seemed hesitant; like she thought it was unnecessary. But after a little bit of coaxing from Caleb, she finally gave in and climbed onto his back.

I squealed with joy and clapped my hands together, earning a few quick glances from beachgoers nearby. But I ignored them as I watched Caleb and Paige make their way toward the parking lot.

Phase one of my plan was now officially under way. Hopefully, this trial run would yield some positive results and Caleb would agree to let me continue with my plan.

If not, it was going to be a long, boring summer.

***

When Caleb swung by later that night to pick up Paige’s flip-flops, he refused to tell me about anything that happened after he and Paige left the beach. He said he would call me after the flip-flops were back in Paige’s possession and let me know how everything went.

A couple hours later, though, I was still waiting for my phone to ring. Why hadn’t he called yet? Assuming he went straight to Paige’s house after he left mine, what could be taking him so long? Maybe our experiment had been a huge success, and they’d spent the last two hours making out with each other?

At that thought, my phone vibrated in my hand and lit up with the words Second Lead. Excitedly, I swiped to answer the call.

“Caleb,” I said, “how did it go? Tell me everything.”

“Uh, hello to you too, Bria,” Caleb said with a bit of amusement in his voice. “How are you?”

I fell back on my bed. “We don’t need to do small talk. Fill me in on everything.”

“Where do you want me to begin?”

“From the beginning, obviously. What was Paige’s reaction when she saw her flip-flops were missing?”

Caleb chuckled. “She was confused at first. She didn’t understand how they could disappear like that. And then she was angry when she realized someone must have stolen them, but then she went back to being confused because they’re just a cheap pair of flip-flops and not worth stealing.”

“Okay. So, then what?”

“Well, you were there; I’m sure you saw what happened. We looked for a few minutes, and when we couldn’t find them, I suggested we go buy her a new pair. At first, she declined, but I finally managed to convince her. That’s when I offered to give her a piggyback ride to my car, so she wouldn’t have to walk barefoot.”

“It looked like she turned you down at first,” I said.

“Oh, she did. She thought the idea was ridiculous. But once I talked her into it and got down on the ground, I think she decided it was the better choice. So, she hopped on.”

I smiled. “And? How was the ride?”

“Excruciating,” he groaned. “I don’t think piggyback rides are meant for long trips. Paige isn’t even heavy, but my back is killing me right now.”

“I wasn’t asking how the ride was for you. How was it for her?”

“Oh. I think she had fun. She was laughing the whole time. I used to give her piggyback rides when we were little, so I think it made her nostalgic.”

“Perfect. Nostalgia is always a good thing.” I played with a loose thread on my comforter. “So, how did tonight go? When you dropped off her flip-flops?”

“Just as you thought it would,” he said. I could tell from the tone of his voice that he didn’t want to admit it. “First, she was thrilled to have them back, then she thought it was so sweet that I would go back to the beach to look for them. She gave me a big hug.”

My eyes widened as I sat up. “Was it a quick, friendly, thank-you hug? Or was it more of a lingering, ‘mmm, this is nice’ type of hug?”

Caleb thought about it for a moment. “I don’t know. Maybe a little bit of both? Either way, she invited me in to watch a movie, so that’s why it took me so long to call you.”

I waited a few seconds before finally working up the nerve to ask him the next question. “So, would you say that today was a success?”

“Well…” His voice trailed off into silence and I held my breath, fearing what his answer was going to be. “It’s not like it made her fall in love with me or anything, but we did have fun. And I did seem to win some brownie points with her, so…”

“So…?”

“So, yeah. I’d say it was enough of a success for us to try another one of your ideas.”

“Yes!” I exclaimed, leaping off my bed and pumping my fist in the air. “I knew you’d be on board!”

“Don’t get too excited. We’re going to take this one idea at a time. If at any point I decide it’s not working, I’m pulling the plug.”

“Fair enough,” I said with a grin. “When are you two hanging out again?”

“Tomorrow, actually.”

“Great. Come over to my house an hour before you’re supposed to meet her. We can decide what your next move is going to be.”

“Okay,” he half-said, half-sighed. I could tell he was already regretting his decision to let me help him. “I’ll be over around noon. Goodnight, Bria.”

“Goodnight, Caleb.” I ended the call and tossed my phone onto my bed.

“What’s going on?”

The sudden sound of Braden’s suspicious voice in the doorway startled me. Whipping around, I blinked innocently at him. “What are you talking about?”

He pointed to my phone on the bed. “Who were you talking to just now?”

“Telemarketer,” I replied. It was the first thing that popped into my head.

Braden arched an eyebrow. “Oh, really? Caleb got a job as a telemarketer?”

I sighed and dropped down onto my bed. “If you were eavesdropping and already knew who I was talking to, why did you ask?”

“What’s going on between you two?” he asked, ignoring my question. “First, you leave the bonfire with him the other night. Then he comes over to watch one of your silly dramas with you. And earlier today at the beach, I noticed you couldn’t keep your eyes off him.” He paused, inhaling deeply. “Bria, are you forming a coup d’état?”

I didn’t even know how to respond to that. “Huh?”

“A coup d’état,” he repeated. “It’s when—”

“Yeah, I know what a coup d’état is,” I interrupted. “We were in the same history class in middle school, genius. I just don’t get why you think that’s what I’m doing by talking to Caleb.”

Braden threw his hands up in the air. “It makes sense. You’re trying to steal my friends, one by one. You’re trying to oust me as the leader of my group of friends so that you can take over in my place. Not cool, Bria.”

I threw my head back and laughed. “Since when are you the ‘leader’ of your friends?”

“Since…” He thought about it for a moment before shrugging and joining me on the bed. “Okay, fine, obviously you’re not forming a coup. But it is weird that you’re suddenly hanging out with Caleb.”

I nodded in agreement. “I can see why you would think that’s weird, but that doesn’t mean you need to know why I’m suddenly hanging out with him. Shouldn’t there be some secrets that you and I keep from each other?”

As I said that, I realized that the whiteboard with my plan scrawled out on it was still atop my dresser in plain sight. Fortunately, Braden hadn’t noticed it yet, and I had to make sure it stayed that way.

Quickly jumping up from the bed, I grabbed his hand and tugged in a useless attempt to pull him to his feet.

“I’m not leaving until you tell me what’s going on,” Braden said, resisting.

I stood directly between him and the dresser, blocking his line of vision to the whiteboard. “Fine,” I said. “I’m tutoring him.” Not a total lie; I was tutoring Caleb on how to get Paige to fall for him.

He didn’t look like he was buying it. “It’s summer vacation. Why would you be tutoring him? And tutoring him on what? And since when are you smart enough to tutor anyone on anything?”

I punched his shoulder and pointed at my door. “Get out.”

“Ow,” he grumbled, rubbing the spot I’d just hit with my fist as he stood. “Fine. I’ll leave.”

He pushed past me and exited the room, but as soon as he was out in the hallway, he spun around and thrust a finger in my face. “But don’t think for one second I’m going to give up on this. I’m gonna find out what’s really going on here.”

“You do that,” I said before slamming the door in his face.

I turned and stared at the whiteboard. I didn’t think Braden cared enough to investigate what Caleb and I were up to, but just in case, I’d have to keep the evidence hidden somewhere he wouldn’t stumble upon it.

Otherwise, I could kiss this summer project of mine goodbye.