by Mari Brown
I talk to my mom about how dance is going and Troy talks to my dad about football. As my mom and I talk, I realize just how much I miss talking to her every day. If you had asked me a year ago if I would miss my parents, I would have probably laughed. I remember that I couldn’t wait until I could go off to college. Now, I want to be back home with my parents, or maybe it is just nostalgia.
My parents have been here for about an hour when David finally comes downstairs. He greets our parents and then grabs some coffee before joining us in the living room. We talk for a little while, explaining about Mark, our new roommate. My dad then tells us to go wake Mark and Amy up because he wants to take us all out to lunch. I go off to wake Amy and one of the guys goes to wake Mark.
It takes everyone around an hour to get ready, and then we all make our way out to the cars. Amy and I ride with my parents while David drives the guys in his car. We wind up going to a Japanese Steak house for lunch. We have a great time talking with each other as we wait for our food to cook. We catch my parents up on all the craziness about college and Mark gets to take a few trips down memory lane with us. Rehashing all our childhood antics never loses its comedy.
Then I notice Charlie walking toward us. I can tell he has something up his sleeve. He greets me first, making me scoot closer to Troy. It is almost laughable that Charlie is not giving up. He recognizes my father and begins introducing himself. At first, my parents try to be polite. However, Charlie makes a mistake by asking me out in front of my dad.
My dad’s response shocks me. He looks dead at Troy and says, “Son, you gonna to let him get away with asking your girl out in front of you?” He has a knowing smirk on his face. I look at my mom to see the same knowing smile on her face.
“What? You don’t think we are smart enough to figure out you and Troy are finally together? The two of you have had a thing for each other for years. I also know that he promised your brother to wait until college.”
David speaks up then. “How did you know that, Mom?”
“I overheard you the day you made him promise that. Trust me, your dad and I are pleased about Troy and Destiny being together. We couldn’t ask for a better young man for our little girl.”
There we all sit in stunned silence, and my parents act all nonchalant. It is comical.
Finally, Troy looks at Charlie and says calmly, “Dude, this is the last time I tell you nicely. Stay away from my girl. The next time I find out you disrespected her or me, I will not be so nice about telling you. ”
He storms away from our table after that. Troy reaches out and grabs my hand in his. I am still in shock over my parent's whole reaction to everything. I guess I’ve been worried about nothing. They seem to have no problem with Troy and me being together. My family is really freaking me out lately.
It doesn’t take my parents long to figure out that Troy and I are sharing a bedroom in the house, either. Awkward. Dad even makes the big speech about killing Troy if he ever hurts me. I am getting beyond embarrassed now. Why do parents have this insane need to embarrass you? I mean really, what have I ever done to them? I have always been a good kid, right? Troy and David are both laughing at my obvious discomfort. Amy looks at me sympathetically and Mark, I don’t think he cares one way or the other.
Once we finish eating lunch, my mom decides she needs to take us shopping. David tries to tell her that I spent most of dad’s money at the mall yesterday. I punch him in the shoulder. Mom wants to buy something for us to have at the house, so we go to Bed Bath and Beyond. By the time we leave there, my dad probably really is broke. My mom goes a little crazy sometimes when it comes to shopping, but at least everyone knows where I got it.
Amy and I wind up stopping in at the Gap because I want to pick up some new jean shorts and jeans. We each come out with a bag full from the store. The guys have gone off to GameStop because they need a new video game. My mom and dad have stayed with Amy and me, and we shop for another couple hours before meeting up with the guys in the food court. We all have Starbucks and talk about whether everyone is ready for classes to start next week.
My parents decide they will head for home when they leave the mall so Amy and I ride back with the guys. Everyone pitches in to help move my stuff over to Troy’s room. For the rest of the night, Mark moves in, and Troy and I arrange our room.
I smile at Troy. “Still sure you want me in your room?” He grabs me close to him and gives me a deep kiss.
“I would like to see you try and stay away from me, Baby!”
I chuckle. It takes us about three hours to get me completely settled into our bedroom. I am ready to pass out but Troy has other ideas. I try hard at first to fight him off but soon he has my body humming, and me moaning. I am not complaining or anything though. I have just as much fun as he does.
The alarm is going off. I don’t want to get up, but today is the first day of classes. The only thing I am truly thankful for is that Amy and I are able to have the exact same schedule for this semester. Troy shifts in the bed next to me. He finally reaches over to hit snooze, and pulls me in to snuggle more. I don’t fight him because I figure it won’t hurt to lay there for a few more minutes.
I finally get up and dress for my day. Amy and I have History and English this morning, and then lunch followed by dance practice. We are meeting up with the guys for lunch, and won’t see them again until after football and dance practice. I am going to miss being with Troy during class.
Western Civilization is our first class. Like any freshman class at a large school, there are at least fifty or more students. Amy and I sit quietly talking while we wait for class to begin. A couple of guys sitting next to us keep sneaking looks at us. The single me would have loved the attention, but I am so happy being with Troy that I don’t even give them a second glance. Amy on the other hand is flirting away. Class finally begins and for the first half hour, the teacher talks about his expectations of us as college students and for his class. We have a major project to do in the class that we can do with a partner. Of course, Amy and I pair up. The second half-hour of the class we take notes as the teacher lectures. It is actually not a bad class. Walking out of our class, the guys Amy has been flirting decide to walk with us. I am laughing at something one of them says to her when I am suddenly being tugged away. I am instantly greeted with Troy’s smiling face.
“Hey, Princess! I had time to stop by, say hi, and give you this…” And he leans down and gives me a toe-curling kiss.
I naturally snake my hands around his neck and kiss him back. He walks outside with us, but when Amy and I head toward the English building, he heads in the opposite direction to the biology building. He leaves me with a parting kiss and says he will see me at lunch.
I realize Amy’s boy toys are still walking with us. Apparently, they have the same English class as us.
One of them asks, “Was that Troy Daniels?”
I reply, “Yes.”
“As in Troy Daniels, star quarterback?”
I laugh and say, “Yes, Troy is my boyfriend and my brother’s best friend. Known him my whole life.”
“Who is your brother?”
I almost hesitate to say who my brother is because this guy is going to make the connection to my dad as soon as I do.
“Well, how about before I answer that question, you tell me your name?”
“Oh sure, my name is Kent.”
I give him a glimpse over, taking in his average height and average build. Nothing stands out about him. He is cute and has short brown hair, but he does nothing for me like my Troy does.
“Well, Kent, it’s nice to meet you. My name is Destiny. And to answer your question, my brother is David Williams.”
“Wide Receiver? Which means your dad is Steve Williams, one of the all-time leading quarterbacks for the NFL!”
This is said with such excitement that I can’t help but laugh. His excitement is cute.
“Yep, but don’t tell everyone. It’s not always fun being used for wh
o your family is.”
“No, I understand, but it’s still awesome. You grew up with a dad who played in the NFL. Your brother and boyfriend are big time players at the college level, and most likely, both will be drafted to the NFL. Do you even like football?”
“I love football, believe it or not. Amy does, too.” I slyly direct the attention back to my best friend.
We finally make it to the English building and find our lit class. We have just taken our seats when my phone goes off a couple of times signifying I have text messages.
Troy: Miss You Princess ;) Can't wait to see you at lunch. Have a great class *kiss*
Daddy: Hey Babygirl! Have a wonderful first day of classes. LOVE YOU <3
I smile and text my dad back that classes are going great so far and that I love him, too. Then I text Troy and tell that I can’t wait to see him at lunch. Amy asks me who is texting me and I tell her it was my dad and Troy. Kent acts as if he is going to have a heart attack when he finds out my dad is texting me. Too funny.
Professor Foster, our English Literature professor, comes in. She is strict but seems like she is going to be a good teacher. I am excited about this class. I am such a geek when it comes to anything English or Literature related. I actually want to be a high school English teacher. This class will have three major grades. Two of them are papers on literary works, and the last is a group project on a literary work. I can’t wait.
When class is over, Amy and I walk out with Kent and his friend Tim towards the common area for lunch. Kent is still talking my ear off about football while Tim and Amy flirt. Tim is tall, like he could play basketball and has short blonde crew cut and I can tell Amy is into him a little by her flirting. Someone calls my name, and I turn to see Troy coming towards me. I wait for him to catch up and he picks me up to kiss me.
“Should I be worried about this guy?” he asks as he points toward Kent.
I laugh. “I think I should be the one worried. He has a serious man crush on you, David, and my dad.”
Troy reaches out to shake his hand and introduce himself, and I think Kent almost faints, seriously!
As we enter the Commons, Kent and Tim excuse themselves to go meet up with some of their friends and we go off to meet up with my brother and the other guys on the football team. Once again, I find myself sitting in Troy’s lap. I swear the boy just likes me sitting on his lap. He tells David about my new buddy Kent. David gets a kick out of the story.
I mumble, “I think he is trying to steal my boyfriend.” This causes the table to laugh. Really, I’m not being that funny. I think there is a serious bromance brewing.
After lunch, the guys head off to football practice, and Amy and I go to dance practice. As we are leaving, Troy gives me a very deep and delicious kiss goodbye. He acts as if he isn’t going to see me for three days, not three hours. Our kiss is finally interrupted. “Dude, really, that’s my sister. Not in front of me.”
Buffy is in rare form today at practice. I am ready to kill her five minutes into practice. She is still holding a major grudge against me for stealing Troy from her. It has become so bad that everyone but Vicky has commented on it to each other, me, or even to her. She is very careful around our coach not to go overboard, but I honestly am not sure how much more I can take before letting her have it.
Practice is finally over and I happily jump in the shower and get changed. As soon as we walk out of the building, Troy attacks me. He is still hot and sweaty from practice.
“Troy, that’s so gross. Now I have to take another shower.”
“Well, let’s go. You can shower with me in the locker room,” he says with a cocky grin.
“Eww! No, I don’t want to see all those ugly ass football players,” I say with a laugh.
Amy speaks up. “I do. Let me go shower in there.”
“Amy, you are such a perv.”
“Destiny,” she whines, “You are as pervy as I am.” All of a sudden, Troy pulls me into him tight and starts attacking my lips. I don’t know what has possessed him but I kiss him just as eagerly. It is only when we break apart for air that I notice Buffy standing and watching us.
“I need to shower but I will see you at the house, all right, Babe?”
I stand up on my tiptoes and plant a soft kiss on his lips. “Ya, I will be waiting.”
Amy and I take off toward her car but I can feel Troy watching us until we get in the car, and then he heads back into the football building. As I watch him walk away, I can’t help but feel a throbbing need start up in me. Wow, am I that weak when it comes to Troy that just the sight of him causes me to get wet? Amy must sense my problem because she sends me a knowing smirk.
“That boy makes you hot, doesn’t he?”
I groan. “Yes, I don’t know what I am going to do. I am so head over heels for him already, but I am so afraid this is not going to last.”
Amy sighs. “Troy loves you, Girl. He may not have admitted it to you or himself, but he has been in love with you for a long time. The only reason he’s waited until now is because he promised your brother.”
“I know he was trying to respect David by waiting. But that doesn’t mean he won’t grow tired of me now that he is finally able to have me.”
“Destiny, stop worrying about this stuff. It’s not like you to be so insecure.”
I let out a frustrated cry. “I know. I know. He is messing my head all up. I can’t think straight with him around.”
Amy says brightly, “You’re so in love.”
Once we get home, I get everything cooking and then sit at the kitchen counter to tackle my homework. I am still working when the guys come in, and Troy wraps his arms around me from behind before planting a soft kiss on my cheek. I smile and keep working as the guys all stand around me talking. I can tell they are getting excited about their first game. Truth be told, so am I. I have watched Troy play since peewee football, but this really is my first time watching him play as my boyfriend. I sigh out loud, which makes all three turn their questioning eyes on me. Luckily, I am saved from questioning when the timer for dinner goes off.
The guys are nice enough to get the table set and soon we call Amy down to join us for dinner. We enjoy a very relaxing meal. We all go our separate ways to do homework. No sooner then I enter our bedroom, Troy pulls me to the bed, sitting me in his lap, “Baby, what is wrong with you?”
I start having a mini freak out in my head. How is it Troy can read me so easy? It will be useless to lie to him because he will figure it out anyway. I glance around the room and love that we have his king size bed and are able to bring my couch into his room so I still have my place to relax. His desk is piled with textbooks and other mess. I do mean mess. Troy is a typical male, and while not a slob, he isn’t a neat freak, either. I realize I can’t put it off anymore. I am going to have to answer my boyfriend.
Buffy is in rare form today at practice. I am ready to kill her five minutes into practice. She is still holding a major grudge against me for stealing Troy from her. It has become so bad that everyone but Vicky has commented on it to each other, me, or even to her. She is very careful around our coach not to go overboard, but I honestly am not sure how much more I can take before letting her have it.
Practice is finally over and I happily jump in the shower and get changed. As soon as we walk out of the building, Troy attacks me. He is still hot and sweaty from practice.
“Troy, that’s so gross. Now I have to take another shower.”
“Well, let’s go. You can shower with me in the locker room,” he says with a cocky grin.
“Eww! No, I don’t want to see all those ugly ass football players,” I say with a laugh.
Amy speaks up. “I do. Let me go shower in there.”
“Amy, you are such a perv.”
“Destiny,” she whines, “You are as pervy as I am.” All of a sudden, Troy pulls me into him tight and starts attacking my lips. I don’t know what has possessed him but I kiss him just as eagerly. It is only
when we break apart for air that I notice Buffy standing and watching us.
“I need to shower but I will see you at the house, all right, Babe?”
I stand up on my tiptoes and plant a soft kiss on his lips. “Ya, I will be waiting.”
Amy and I take off toward her car but I can feel Troy watching us until we get in the car, and then he heads back into the football building. As I watch him walk away, I can’t help but feel a throbbing need start up in me. Wow, am I that weak when it comes to Troy that just the sight of him causes me to get wet? Amy must sense my problem because she sends me a knowing smirk.
“That boy makes you hot, doesn’t he?”
I groan. “Yes, I don’t know what I am going to do. I am so head over heels for him already, but I am so afraid this is not going to last.”
Amy sighs. “Troy loves you, Girl. He may not have admitted it to you or himself, but he has been in love with you for a long time. The only reason he’s waited until now is because he promised your brother.”
“I know he was trying to respect David by waiting. But that doesn’t mean he won’t grow tired of me now that he is finally able to have me.”
“Destiny, stop worrying about this stuff. It’s not like you to be so insecure.”
I let out a frustrated cry. “I know. I know. He is messing my head all up. I can’t think straight with him around.”
Amy says brightly, “You’re so in love.”
Once we get home, I get everything cooking and then sit at the kitchen counter to tackle my homework. I am still working when the guys come in, and Troy wraps his arms around me from behind before planting a soft kiss on my cheek. I smile and keep working as the guys all stand around me talking. I can tell they are getting excited about their first game. Truth be told, so am I. I have watched Troy play since peewee football, but this really is my first time watching him play as my boyfriend. I sigh out loud, which makes all three turn their questioning eyes on me. Luckily, I am saved from questioning when the timer for dinner goes off.