by Jamie Knight
And is going back to my dorm really a safe option? I knew Carrie hated me. She’s hated me since day one. But the whole cheating scandal made our relationship even worse. I don’t know how she could blame me for her own mistake, but it’s what she did. I just never thought she was going to pull such a dangerous and cruel ‘prank.’ It wasn’t really a prank. Like Jameson said, it was assault. How can I go back without worrying about the next ‘prank’ she’s going to pull?
What if whoever found me wasn’t a nice person? Jameson was such a gentleman. He went above and beyond to get me back home and make sure I was actually okay. He even stood up to Carrie for me, something I’ve never done effectively. I’m still kind of surprised he was so nice. Everything I’ve heard about him said that he was a jerk. I’d always hear the girls in my class talking about who got to spend the night with him and when and how good it was. I hated hearing about all of the people he’d slept with, and I knew there was a whole host of women sharing their stories online, which is why I avoided anything that had to do with him like the plague. It hurt knowing I wasn’t enough for him. Not then and probably not now.
When I woke up in that shower, I had no idea who was in there with me. All I felt were strong arms holding me down. I was worried they were about to hurt me, but, when I realized that he was helping me, I calmed down a little bit. Still, what if he had ravished me? There was nothing I could have done about it. That’s what scares me so much. Carrie left me in a situation where anyone could have taken advantage of me.
I hate to admit it, but I’m glad Jameson was the one who found me. But I can’t stop thinking about what could have been. Every second he got close to me, I wanted him to reach out and touch me. The thought should scare me because I wasn’t in my right frame of mind, but the fact is that I wanted it to happen so much. I’m turned on at the thought of him running his hands down my body or me running my hands down his. I could feel just how muscular he was when my back was pressed into his chest. And then I got a chance to see it when he sat me down on the bench.
My entire body warms even though I’m under a spray of cold water. I need to get out of this shower. If I don’t, I’m going to masturbate to thoughts of Jameson Kendrick, and I promised myself that I would never do that again. I am fully and truly done with him. After high school, when he broke my heart, I told myself that I could never get so wrapped up in someone who doesn’t care about me.
I don’t need to create a false intimacy between us. It’ll only complicate matters when I have to actually see him. I find towels and dry myself off, finding some clothes to wear so I can pick up my ‘fiancé’. I’m going to have to get used to saying that.
I spend too much time worrying about whether or not Jameson is going to like my outfit. In the end, I put on some leggings and a t-shirt because I shouldn’t care what he thinks about how I dress. Our relationship isn’t real, so my care for it should be nonexistent.
Chapter Six
Jameson
When I leave practice, Jenny is waiting for me in my car. She looks so good driving my convertible with her red hair blowing in the breeze. I don’t think anyone could look any better in the driver’s seat. I walk up to the car, leaning over the passenger side door.
“Why don’t you keep driving?”
“Me?” She points to herself.
“Yeah, you,” I say while opening the passenger side door. “I’m a bit sore from practice, so why not?” It’s a lame excuse because I drive myself home after all my practices, but Jenny doesn’t need to know that. I just want to watch her beautiful hands gripping my steering wheel.
“Okay, I can do that. Should I take you – us home?”
I like how she corrected herself. Even though our relationship is fake, and there’s no way it’ll go beyond fake, hearing her refer to her and me as us is pretty nice. Maybe it’s just having any woman talk like that. I’ve never been a relationship guy, and, before, it didn’t bother me, but, in therapy, I started to wonder if maybe it was because no one wanted to actually be with me. But now is not the time to psychoanalyze myself.
“Are you hungry?”
“Well,” she pauses for a few beats, “I could eat, I guess.”
I am absolutely starving. After my intense workout, I could probably eat about three full dinners.
“Let’s get dinner then. We can get acquainted, and maybe we’ll be able to pull off this engagement ruse, if you’re up for it?”
I know Jenny is still a little skeptical about this whole thing. She agreed to it, but I know the main motivator was a new place to live. Even if she wanted to back out of being my fake fiancée, I wouldn’t make her go back to her horrible roommate. That girl is too much. No one should have to deal with her.
“Are you in the mood for anything in particular?” she asks.
“Why don’t you decide.”
I can see Jenny thinking. I wonder if she’s going to find the perfect place for us to have a quiet conversation. My apartment would be the most private place to talk, but I want to do this somewhere where she can feel comfortable.
“Okay, I know a good place. It’s not too far from here.”
She starts the car without telling me where we’re going. I’m down for a surprise. After a long day of working out, I’ll honestly eat anything, but it’s always better when the food is actually good. It’s not a long drive. Jenny parks outside of this small out of the way restaurant.
“Maggiano’s?” I stare at the sign. I’ve never heard of this place. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen it. And it’s so close to our training camp.
“Yeah, it’s great. I’m sure you’ll find something you like.” She unbuckles herself and waits for me to follow her inside. I’m close behind, and Jenny takes me into this nice little Italian place. When we walk in, there’s nobody else inside.
“Jenny!” A loud voice calls from the back, and a friendly looking older man walks up to us. “It’s so nice to see you. We missed you last night.” They give one another a tight hug.
“Sorry, I got caught up in something with my roommate.”
His face suddenly drops. “Oh no, Carrie wasn’t being horrible to you again, was she?”
“I’m fine, Gio, really. You don’t need to worry about me. Where is Maria?”
“She is in the back, making your favorite dish. We were very hopeful that you would be in tonight.”
Jenny smiles widely. She looks absolutely gorgeous. Her entire face lights up.
“Thank you. You guys are the best. Let me introduce you to my friend,” she motions to me. “This is Jameson.”
“Ah, hello Jameson.” Gio gives Jenny a look, but I’m not totally sure what it means. They seem to be having a secret conversation without saying a single word. I’m pretty sure it has to do with me. I wonder what it is Gio is trying to silently say. “Let me take you two kids to a table.”
Whatever information they were trying to pass to one another seemingly passed. Gio leads me and Jenny to our seats and leaves the two of us alone to look at the menus.
“You seem really close with that guy.”
“Yeah, I came here every night my first year at NYU. Gio and his wife, Maria, own this place. The three of us all bonded because I was one of their few customers. They’re both really sweet.” It sounded like Gio knows the entire roommate saga. This must be her number one spot.
“What’s your favorite dish here?”
“Oh, I love this amazing lemon chicken pasta they have. I’ve had a lot of the things on the menu, though. All of them are delicious. Whatever your order, I know you’ll like.”
I peruse the menu and take a look at my options. It’s surprisingly extensive for such a small place. I’m not totally sure what I’m in the mood for. That lemon chicken Jenny described sounds amazing, but I think I’m in the mood for ravioli. Gio comes back soon to take my order, and then, once again, it’s just me and Jenny.
“So, tell me about yourself.”
“Uh, what do you want
to know?” she asks.
“Well, how about your last name?”
“Foster.”
“Siblings?”
She shakes her head, “Only child.”
“What are you studying?”
“Sports medicine.”
That’s interesting. She has to know quite a bit about football if she wants to get a job in that field.
“Really?”
“Yeah, I, uh… I like some sports, and I thought it would be cool to help athletes heal and stuff.”
“What kind of sports?”
Jenny stops answering my questions. She looks down at the table. Maybe I’m asking them in too much of a rapid-fire like way. It probably feels like an interrogation to her.
“Why don’t you ask me a few questions?” I tell her.
Jenny looks back up. “Um, I don’t know what to ask.”
“Well, I can tell you a few things about myself,” I pause for a second, thinking about where to start, “I have an older sister who I mentioned. Her name is Selena. I’d say we’re pretty close.”
When I got scouted in high school, we kind of had a small falling out. It was mainly my fault. I thought I was hot shit, and Selena was doing her best to bring me back down to earth. I refused to listen. After my accident, she moved into the apartment across the hall to help me out with getting to doctor’s appointments and having family close by to keep me from sinking lower than I thought I could. Our relationship has certainly gotten a lot better and stronger since.
“She does live across the way from you.”
“That she does,” I comment. “So,” I continue, “I did pretty decent in high school. You already know I play football. What else?” I don’t know what to tell to someone who you’re trying to give the quick rundown of your life. “This is harder than I thought.”
“Yeah,” Jenny smiles. Her smile makes me smile. It’s so beautiful. She doesn’t seem very confident. I could never understand why she feels this way. Looking at her, talking with her, I feel great.
Gio brings our food right then, and we get a break in conversation. Even though I am finding Jenny to be enjoyable company, we are having issues holding up a conversation. If we can’t hold a conversation, this whole thing might not work. Jenny seems to be holding back something, but I don’t know what. Maybe she’s not quite comfortable with me yet.
“Enjoy,” Gio says before walking away.
The delicious scents of the ravioli waft up to my nose, and it is all I can think about. It smells crazy good. I can’t even wait and immediately dig in. For a couple minutes, I am in the zone, the ravioli zone. The cheese inside bursts on to my tongue with an explosion of flavors.
This food is absolute ecstasy.
I finally look up for a second and notice Jenny staring at me. Do I have something on my face? That would be embarrassing. I know this isn’t like a date or anything like that, but I’d still rather not look like a fool with pasta sauce on my face.
“What is it?”
Jenny shakes her head, turning her eyes away from me. “Nothing,” she starts. “It’s just, you eat so fast. You’re almost halfway done.” She points to my plate.
I look down and see my food is about half gone. I know I’m a quick eater, my sister is always making fun of me because of this. Usually, when I’m out with other people, I’ll try to calm down the pace, but if I’m comfortable and not really thinking, I’ll maybe go a little too hard with the spoon and fork. Especially after a hard workout, my stomach feels like a cavern. My only thought is filling it.
I’m surprised I totally disregarded the fact that I’m with Jenny. I guess she’s just calming like that.
“I can slow down.”
“No, don’t,” she shakes her head. “It’s kind of cute.”
She picks up a bite of her food and places it in her mouth. It’s obvious she’s really enjoying the dish. The look of pure bliss on her face would be hard to misunderstand. And I get it. After one bite of my ravioli, I was in pasta heaven. I’m surprised this place isn’t packed with people given how absolutely amazing the food is.
“This place is phenomenal,” I comment.
“It is. It’s why I’m here all the time. I just wish Gio and Maria got the recognition they deserve. I’m worried that they’ll have to close down soon.”
If tonight is a typical night for them, it’s definitely a possibility. It would be a shame for such a great restaurant to be lost because no one bothered to give them a chance.
“But we can change the subject. Like what are we going to tell people about how we met?”
That is definitely an important detail we should work out. It’ll probably be one of the first questions we get asked. Even though Coach Kramer seemed pretty cool with everything, I know he’s going to want more information. Most of the trust I have with my team is nonexistent.
“I’m note sure. I haven’t really thought about it.” I’m trying to think and then recall that when the two of us were in her dorm, Jenny mentioned something about high school. “Hey, do you remember earlier, you were saying something about maybe knowing one another from high school?” Jenny’s eyes widen as she nods. “Did we go to the same one?”
“Uh, yeah, we did.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
Jenny shrugs and looks down at her plate.
It’s kind of weird that she did just tell me. Is she embarrassed or something? I’m starting to get the feeling that there is a lot I don’t know about her. I mean, we did just meet earlier today, but it seems like Jenny is the type to not let a lot slip out.
She doesn’t give me an answer regarding my question, and I don’t push it. “I guess it doesn’t really matter,” I continue. “We can say that we reconnected a few months back, and one thing led to another, and, now, we’re dating. It’s simple and easy to believe.”
“Okay.” Jenny pauses for a second, clearly thinking. Maybe my plan is a little too simple and stupid. “How do we say we reconnected?”
“Maybe we ran into one another randomly.”
“Where would our paths have crossed? I understand that the local library is not an option,” she jokes. I was a little overly surprised by that suggestion.
“No, not a library. A club, maybe? We met before my accident, exchanged numbers, and after I was hospitalized, you called to see if I was okay and things progressed from there. Basically, things with us moved pretty fast. You know, recently together, recently engaged.” Jenny makes a face. “What’s wrong with that story?”
“Nothing, I think it’ll work. Sorry if I seem a little off. I’m still trying to come to terms with the idea of pretending to be your fiancée. I think if I have some time, I’ll be able to be more normal about this.”
“Nah, I get it. I’m a little freaked out by this whole thing too. I’m sorry I got the two of us into this mess. If I hadn’t lied in the locker room, we wouldn’t have to be doing this.”
“If you hadn’t lied in the locker room, I might still be living with my monster roommate. I’m not mad or anything. And, I don’t know, maybe this could be fun.”
Maybe. Jenny is easy to talk to. This is the most relaxed I’ve felt in a while. Maybe this thing will really work.
We finish our meal, and I even get some to-go. I’m going to have to come to this place more often. I could bring the whole team here. Maybe that’ll get me on their good side finally. I could even treat them all.
Chapter Seven
Jameson
We leave Maggiano’s and head to my convertible. We’re about to get into the car when, suddenly, lights start flashing all around us.
Jenny grabs onto my arm. “What’s going on?”
It takes me a second to realize what’s going on, but I realize it. Soon, the reporters surround us. This is one of my least favorite experiences and one of the worst things about being famous. It feels like the world is closing in around me when the paparazzi descend.
What are they even doing here? It’s not lik
e I’ve done anything noteworthy since my accident. At first, they were hounding me, but, when it became evident I was just doing physical therapy and getting back into practice, they left me alone and I stopped being a constant gossip news story for them.
“Jameson! How did you and your fiancée meet?”
“What’s her name?”
“Show us the ring!”
They’re all yelling and pushing into our space. This has to be a punishment curated just for me. Even so, my biggest concern is: how did they find me? The only people who know about this ‘engagement’ were in the Leviathan’s locker room. Which means someone on the team must have called all these guys. They all must really hate me.
“Miss, do you have any juicy details on Jameson? Let me get a picture of the ring!” one reporter in particular asks. I know exactly who he is. Tad Baker. He’s always been quite pushy, trying to get whatever story he can, and, oftentimes, he’ll go to some crazy means to get what he wants. And, right now, he’s much too close.
“We need to get out of here,” I whisper into her ear. Pulling her into my side, I shield Jenny for all the cameras and questions. Tad doesn’t seem to get the hint and keeps trying to snap pictures and push a recorder into our faces. “Tad, you need to back off!”
“Come on Jameson, we just want to know how you and your new fiancée are doing? The people have missed hearing about your life! Tell the people your love story!”
“Baker, if you don’t back off, I’m going to do something you will regret,” I snap. I’ll probably regret it to but being around the pap makes me lose logic sometimes.
Tad must hear the fire in my voice because he finally takes a couple of steps away from us. I rush us into the car, avoiding all the questions. I’m sure by tomorrow our faces will be plastered all over the internet with whatever headline these leaches can come up with. I really hope no one snapped any pictures while we were in the locker room. That would be even more unfortunate.
I take the driver’s seat this time, worried Jenny might be a little shaken from having to deal with all those paparazzi. I hadn’t even thought about telling her all the ins and outs that come with being a football player or being associated with one. I drive us away from all the commotion.