The Pick

  The Pick

  Title Page

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  Chapter Fifty

  Chapter Fifty-One

  Chapter Fifty-Two

  The Pick

  Ashley Hardy Myers

  Copyright @ 2017 by Ashley Hardy Myers

  All right reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any format or in any medium without written permission of the author.

  Chapter One

  “Why did we decide to take AP Calculus again?” Kylie Brooks grumbled as she vigorously erased the incorrect solution for the third time.

  “Because we thought it would be a good idea to get college credit,” Allison Parker laughed halfheartedly.

  “Oh, yeah, that’s why,” Kylie said sarcastically as they both focused on their assignment again.

  As they were sitting at the kitchen table, Ally noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. She glanced up to see Tyson, Kylie’s twin brother, staring into the fridge searching for something to eat. He was 6’ 2” with dark brown hair. Ally could tell that he had spent all summer working out. His shoulders were broader and his muscles more toned. With it being his senior football season, he had college recruiters watching him as a potential football player at the next level. From what she had heard, his hard work had paid off.

  Ally missed the days when Tyson used to hang out with her and Kylie. Somewhere between middle school and their Sophomore year, Tyson became the most popular kid in school. While Ally and Kylie had remained close friends, Tyson soon began to hang out with new “cooler” friends. It wasn’t like Tyson ignored the girls or avoided them. He was always friendly when they passed each other in the hall and they occasionally talked when Ally was over at the Brooks’ home, but they had ended up in different social circles.

  Ally felt a twinge of jealousy when she thought of Tyson’s most recent girlfriend, Jenna. Jenna was blonde, tall, skinny, and absolutely gorgeous. They looked like Hollywood stars when they were together. Ally couldn’t understand why Tyson would fall for a girl like Jenna. She wasn’t exactly known for her smarts and used Tyson for his popularity and good looks. She was always negative and mean to everyone, except Tyson, of course. Their personalities were completely opposite. Tyson got good grades. He was nice to everyone and he always had a smile on his face. A smile that had Ally falling even more for him, even though she would never admit it.

  Ally shook her head. She had to stop thinking about Tyson.

  “Finally!” Kylie exclaimed as she found the correct solution to the problem.

  “Homework on the first day of school?” Tyson asked as he walked over with his freshly prepared sandwich and sat down at the table with Kylie and Ally.

  “Yeah. Ally thought it would be a good idea,” Kylie smirked.

  Ally said defensively, “It will be. College credit means we will get our degrees quicker and we will be making real money sooner than later.”

  “Good you know you are still my ambitious business girl,” Tyson teased as he smiled that charming smile at Ally. There had been more than one time that Ally had tried to convince her childhood friends to start a chocolate chip cookie business or help them keep track of their pennies to save up for a much-wanted toy. Ally loved everything about business and had taken all of the business classes available at their high school.

  Ally felt herself blush and was suddenly at a loss for words. Luckily, Kylie changed the subject by bringing up the Homecoming game and Tyson’s Homecoming royalty nomination.

  “I really wish that I hadn’t been picked as Homecoming royalty,” Tyson stated. “I would rather be in the locker room at halftime preparing with the team than being on stage in the center of the field.”

  “Ty, I’m pretty sure you are going to be Homecoming King, so just accept it and enjoy the attention. Speaking of which, have you asked Jenna to the dance yet?” Kylie asked.

  “We broke up,” Tyson said with a shrug, as he took another large bite of his sandwich.

  Ally and Kylie both looked at each other with surprise. Without having to be asked Tyson continued, “I just need to focus on getting a scholarship and preparing for a mission. She doesn’t think either is important. I don’t really know why I started dating her in the first place.

  “Wow, our little Tyson is growing up,” Kylie said as if Tyson was 3. She had always treated Tyson like a little brother, since she was technically 10 minutes older than Tyson. “Who are you going to ask? The Homecoming King needs a date.

  “I don’t know,” Tyson sighed. “A lot of the girls already have dates.”

  “Kylie doesn’t,” Ally chimed in. “You can always take your sister,” she said with a smile.

  “Yeah, I can just see the headline in the school newspaper, ‘Mr. Football Can’t Intercept Date for Homecoming’,” Kylie laughed.

  “Ha ha. Very clever,” Tyson couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well good luck with your college credit. I actually have some homework I need to do too.”

  Over the past couple of weeks, Tyson had felt like he needed to make some changes in his life. It suddenly seemed like he really needed to prepare for the future. Maybe it was because it was his senior year and he would be attending college next year. Or maybe it was because he had started to attend mission prep classes. Either way, what he wanted in the future was always at the forefront of his mind lately.

  As Tyson pulled out his scriptures, he turned to his patriarchal blessing he received only two weeks ago. His patriarch had asked him to put it in the topical guide under the heading, ‘Patriarchal Blessing’. Ally had helped him shrink it down so it would fit in his triple combination and even printed it out on tissue paper, so it blended in nicely with the rest of his scriptures. It was glued in as if it were a part of his scriptures.

  Tyson flipped to the paragraph that talked about choosing friends carefully, as his wife would be one of them. It then went on to describe his wife and all the wonderful qualities she would possess. He wasn’t exactly looking for a wife right now, but he had always heard that you marry who you date. This part of his blessing had hit home while the patriarch’s hands were on his head. He knew his girlfriend at the time, Jenna, didn’t have those qualities. Plus, Jenna had been pressuring T
yson to compromise his religious values lately, so he knew it would be better for both of them. He had ended their relationship a couple days before school started.

  Jenna had not taken it well. She complained that she had already purchased a dress for Homecoming and it would go to waste if no one else asked her to the dance. She was worried about how she would tell her friends and what everyone in school would think. Tyson had ensured Jenna that she would get asked by someone else. And Tyson was right. Jenna didn’t have to worry. Yesterday at practice, a fellow teammate had asked Tyson if he could ask Jenna to Homecoming.

  Tyson’s thoughts shifted to the dance. Who was he going to ask? Tyson ran through the list of girls that typically hung out with him and his friends. Every single one of them had already been asked. Tyson was realizing more and more how Jenna had made sure that she was the only girl he spent time with. Maybe he really was going to have to beg his sister to escort him on Friday night. She definitely would not like wearing a fancy dress.

  Kylie almost always wore a ponytail and was a tomboy through and through. She had always enjoyed sports and was more than willing to challenge Tyson to a game of basketball or a game of checkers. She was a little bossy and always pulled the I’m the oldest card, but they had been best friends growing up. They had been on the same basketball, tee ball, and flag football teams when they were young.

  Then there was Ally. She was Kylie’s best friend and he had grown up being friends with her too. Ally moved into their neighborhood when they were in 4th grade. It was the three of them. Ally fit in as if she were part of their family. She enjoyed sports as well and often it was Kylie and Ally against Tyson. As they got older, Kylie never really grew out of her tomboy phase. Ally, on the other hand, had embraced being a teenage girl a lot easier than Kylie had and helped her through the transition.

  When Tyson was 14, he had the biggest crush on Ally. They had 9th grade math together and it had been his favorite class that year. Every day, Ally would sit by him even though she had other friends in the class. She was always willing to help him with their assignments. Ally would brighten his day when she smiled at him and laughed at his funny comments. He couldn’t help but chuckle out loud when he remembered the way she would playfully smack him and say, “Whatever,” when he would comment about her gorgeous sunflower eyes that could be yellow, blue, green, and brown all at the same time which perfectly complimented her long brown hair.

  The next year, they entered high school and their paths never really crossed again. They would say “Hi” to each other in the hallways or have short conversations when she was over at Tyson’s house with Kylie, but their friendship had dwindled over the past three years.

  That was when it hit him. Ally. He would ask Ally to Homecoming. It was the perfect way to strengthen their friendship they once had and who knows where else it might lead.

  After he finished preparing for bed, he walked to Kylie’s room and was glad to see light was still escaping from behind the door.

  “Ky?” Tyson asked as he knocked on the door.

  “Come in,” Kylie responded. “What’s up?” she asked as he opened the door.

  “Well, I was just wondering if Ally had been asked to Homecoming yet?”

  Kylie sat on her bed with her laptop. “Nope. Why?” Kylie asked as she looked at Tyson with a questioning look.

  “Just wondering…” he said with a smile and closed her door behind him as he headed back to his room.

  That night, he drifted off to sleep thinking about the perfect way he would ask Ally to Homecoming.

  Chapter Two

  Even though Kylie was planning on a future career in the medical profession, Ally had talked Kylie into joining Future Business Leaders of America, otherwise known as FBLA. Ally was the President of the club and had chosen Kylie to be in her presidency as the Historian. Ally knew she needed someone that she could rely on to help her get things done. The remaining presidency members were boys, and they easily forgot things…. Things like their first presidency meeting to plan upcoming activities after school.

  As Ally and Kylie were heading out to Ally’s car after their delayed meeting, Ally was busy entering things to do on her phone and Kylie’s mind drifted to the question Tyson had asked her the night before. She was pretty sure that Tyson was going to ask Ally to Homecoming. Why else would he have asked Kylie if Ally had been asked yet?

  But why would he be asking her? She knew Tyson had a crush on Ally back a few years ago, but he hadn’t actually dated anyone like Ally. Kylie hadn’t been a big fan of Tyson’s past girlfriends. They were the girls who cared too much about what other people thought, what they looked like, and acted like they were better than everyone else. Ally was definitely the opposite of those girls.

  Kylie knew Ally and Tyson hadn’t really spent time together over the last couple of years. However, Ally was a little shy when she was talking to Tyson last night and blushed really easily. Kylie knew that was how Ally acted when she liked a guy. Usually Ally was quick to give Tyson a hard time like Kylie, but she was definitely hesitant. But Ally would tell Kylie if something was happening with Tyson, wouldn’t she? Was Ally hiding something? Had they been spending time together and she didn’t know about it?

  Kylie’s thoughts were interrupted as Ally exclaimed, “What in the world?”

  Ally’s car was covered in Post-It Notes. Ally and Kylie walked faster to cover the distance to the car. There was one note with writing on it located on the driver’s door that read, “Will you go to Homecoming with me?”

  Ally looked on the back of the Post-It Note hoping to find a name but there wasn’t anything. “Well I guess it’s time to search the entire car,” Ally stated. They began to search the car, looking on both sides of the Post-Its to find out who had asked Ally to the dance.

  “I can’t think of anyone who would have asked me,” Ally said. “Maybe it was one of the boys in FBLA. That could have explained why they were late to the meeting?”

  “Maybe,” Kylie answered. She was barely listening to Ally ramble on about the fact that she hadn’t ever been to Homecoming before or who it was that asked her. Kylie already knew who had asked Ally, but she was still having a hard time understanding why.

  “Or maybe it was that cute guy in our Calculus class. He has been talking to me a lot lately,” Ally said as she pondered who could have possibly asked her.

  Kylie knew she had to throw it out there to see if Tyson and Ally had been talking more or spending time together. “Do you think it could be Tyson?”

  Ally laughed, “Are you kidding? I hardly ever see him, let alone have a conversation with him. I’m lucky if I get a wave in the hallway. It doesn’t make any sense that someone that popular would...” Then she gasped and whispered, “Tyson.”

  Ally had found it. “Tyson” written on the back of a Post-It note located on the passenger rear tire. After that response, Kylie knew Ally wasn’t hiding anything.

  “How did you know?” Ally asked.

  “Last night, Tyson asked me if you had been asked to the dance yet,” Kylie said.

  A grin spread across Ally’s face, “I’m going to Homecoming with Tyson!” She jumped up and down with joy.

  On the car ride home, Kylie wasn’t listening to Ally ramble on about Tyson and finding a dress. Kylie wasn’t quite sure how she felt about her brother dating her best friend. Sure, it was only one dance, but when Ally fell for someone she fell hard and fast. Tyson’s relationships rarely lasted more than three or four months. With his recent shift to focusing on his future, Kylie worried that someone would get hurt and that that person was going to be Ally.

  Over the next week and a half, Homecoming preparations were in full swing. Dresses were purchased, dinner reservations were made, and Kylie grew increasingly uneasy about the situation. She could tell that Ally was falling for Tyson more and more each day. He was going out of his way to talk to Ally. They had even gone out for ice cream one night after football practice. Maybe it was an effo
rt to just make Homecoming more natural and less awkward, but Kylie still needed to figure out Tyson’s motive behind asking Ally to the dance. Was it sympathy because Ally hadn’t ever been to Homecoming? Did he run out of options and Ally was the only one left? Tyson wasn’t a jerk or one to knowingly hurt someone’s feelings, but Kylie needed to look out for her best friend, and her brother.

  It was the Thursday before Homecoming and Tyson sat on the couch half studying, half watching Thursday Night Football. Kylie sat down next to him and waited until a commercial break to ask the questions that had been haunting her all week.

  “Ty, I have a question for you,” Kylie said.

  “Okay,” Tyson responded as he continued to work on his homework.

  “Why did you ask Ally to Homecoming?”

  Tyson sighed, set down his homework and muttered frustrated, “Do I seriously have to make an announcement to the whole school as to why I asked Ally?”

  “What?” Kylie asked, surprised at his sudden frustration.

  “You aren’t the first person to ask me that question… I have already had to explain it to the guys on the football team, a couple of girls, and even Jenna,” Tyson responded in a tired tone.

  This was a twist Kylie wasn’t expecting. “Ty, come on. I’m your sister and Ally is my best friend. I just want to understand where all this is coming from, and Jenna?” Kylie asked as Tyson nodded his head. “Why does Jenna care why you asked Ally to Homecoming? And why do you care what she thinks anyways? You’ve never been one to let other people get in your head.”

  “Maybe because she is jealous. I don’t know. Do you have a problem with me dating Ally too?” Tyson said in a slightly annoyed voice.

  Kylie chose her next words carefully. “I don’t necessarily have a problem with it. I just care about my brother and my best friend. I don’t want either of them to get hurt. Ty, you haven’t dated anyone like Ally before and she hasn’t dated anyone like you.”

  Tyson took a deep breath. “I think that is what the problem is for everyone. They start out with the fact that I could have asked any girl at school to the dance. But what they don’t understand is I wanted to ask Ally. I’m tired of the type of girls I have dated.” Tyson rubbed his hand over his face. “I asked Ally because she isn’t one of the girls trying to get my attention. I actually wanted to ask her.”