The Enemy Hypothesis: A Brazos High Novella

punching him right in his handsome face. My jaw is set. For some reason my lower back is hurting. I guess all the anger I feel is building up in my bones.
He takes a breath. Scratches his neck. “So, yeah. I got the Jeep. And the paperwork is at the dealership. It’s not finalized yet.”
“So why the hell are you on my porch?”
His tongue flicks across his bottom lip. “Because I came to give you a ride to the dealership. I, uh, I told them you deserve the car, not me.”
“I don’t believe a single word you say.”
He reaches into his back pocket, pulling out a long blue and white paper. He unfolds it and hands it over. I’ve never bought a car before but it looks pretty legit. It’s a bill of sale from the dealership for the red Jeep, and my name is filled out as the owner, not his. I look at the paper and then up at him.
“There’s a slight catch,” he says, scratching his neck again. “The Un-bully people lost their minds when I told them I wanted to gift the car to you. So they got their cameraman and they want it on film. I know it’s going to be cringey and awful but… the car is yours. They’re waiting for us now.” He glances at his watch. “Well, in thirty minutes.”
“Who is that at the door?” Abuela calls out.
I fold the bill of sale and take a deep breath to try to slow down the rapid beating of my heart. “Do you want to come in for cookies first?”
His nervous expression bursts into a grin. “Sure,” he says, smiling at me. “I’d love a cookie.”

Sixteen
MARK
It’s been two weeks since I gave my winning prize to Abby. Our ordinary small Texas high school has mostly returned to normal. The Un-bully people have moved on to another town and another school, and most students have long forgotten about the competition and last month when we were all extra nice to each other. The cliques are still cliquey, the jerks are still jerks, and the nice people are still nice people.
The biggest thing that’s changed is my dating life. I no longer care to flirt with girls. I only care about one girl. And we’re going on a date tonight.
This will be our second official date, but we’ve been pretty much inseparable since the day I drove her to the car dealership to get her car. Luckily, the Un-bully people didn’t keep us there too long, but they absolutely loved the twist of having me, the winner, give up my car to the girl in second place. They’re making such a big deal out of it online, and the video clip of me telling the camera why I did it has gone viral.
Ironically, they haven’t disclosed the Annabel situation online. I guess the Un-bully app people want the rest of the schools to think that their system can’t be hacked, because then their whole system of honesty and being kind to one another blows up and becomes useless.
Julian thought it was pretty cool that I gave up my car, and he agreed to help me keep it a secret from our parents. My mom and dad would not be okay with the kind act of giving away a thirty thousand dollar payday, so I told a huge lie and said I didn’t win. Luckily, they’re so busy with the restaurant that they haven’t found out the truth. I don’t think they’ll go looking for it, either. They recently started going to couples counseling and seeing a financial advisor, so hopefully they will be getting their problems sorted out soon.
I take one last look in the mirror to confirm that I look pretty good tonight. The other day at school Abby said I looked cute in green, so I immediately went to the mall and bought a dark green button up shirt which I’m wearing with my black jeans. I look sharp. Hopefully she notices.
I’ve visited her house a few times, usually just to pick her and her sisters up for dinner at Caputo’s or to hang out and watch TV with her while her grandmother does this thing of peeking in on us randomly while trying to make it look like she’s not peeking in on us. Her sisters are nice to me but Abby says they’re just putting on a show because they like me. She swears they are little monsters when I’m not around. Abuela is nice too, and she’s always giving me this sweet look of approval. My parents never give me that look. So I can get used to it at Abby’s house.
I turn down her road and almost miss her house because I don’t see her Jeep in the driveway at first. It’s blocked in by a black car. I guess it’s a friend or something. But when I walk up to her front door I realize the horrible mistake I’ve made.
It’s not a friend.
It’s her parents.
“Well, hello there.” A tall man with dark brown skin and graying black hair answers the door. He looks me from head to toe and then grins. “You must be the boyfriend?”
“I, uh—” Did Abby say I’m her boyfriend? I want to be, don’t get me wrong, but we haven’t officially become official or anything. I don’t know if I should confirm this or deny it. Is this some kind of Father Trick designed for me to fail?
Abby appears behind him. “Please tell me you’re not scaring him away, Dad.”
He steps backward and frowns. “Aw, come on! My oldest daughter has a boyfriend now. It’s a rite of passage. I’m supposed to be mean!”
Abby rolls her eyes. “Mark, just ignore him.”
I know better than to ignore a girl’s dad. I extend my hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Sir.”
After surviving the parental introductions, I walk Abby to my car and open the door for her. “You’re