When I reached Coach, the look on his face let me know he was not happy, but that was normal for him. Had she said something to him? Only one way to find out.
“Hey, Coach. Who was that?”
“Don’t you worry about it,” he said, eyeing me closely. “Get to work!”
I put my helmet on and jogged out to the field for some practice with the running backs on our team. With each pass I threw, whether it was a completion or not, I kept thinking about Jocelyn, wondering what the hell she was up to.
Coach would not put up with any nonsense. Was a relationship with Brooke worth my entire football career? There were no laws or regulations against players dating, but Coach frowned on it, especially when he personally helped players like myself.
After twenty minutes, we switched to a quick scrimmage game. Trey and I still hadn’t talked to each other. Luckily, we were on the same team that day. I needed to talk to him and work things out, even if it meant dumping Brooke.
Would I be able to do that to her? Or myself? The fucking was nice, but I also loved hanging out with her. Throughout the rest of practice, my thoughts on the matter went back and forth, confusing the hell out of me.
TWENTY-ONE
Brooke
On the way home from class, I checked my phone again to make sure I hadn’t missed a message from Austin. Why hadn’t he tried to get ahold of me again? Had I made him mad? Was he done with me for real this time?
Doubts and self-doubt had cursed me since I was a little girl back in Indiana where I grew up. My fears were one of the reasons I had decided to go to college in New York, even if it was Buffalo not NYC.
Should I call him? Nah. His loss. A break might be good for us.
When I reached the front door of my apartment, I heard loud dance music coming from inside. Whenever Jocelyn played that techno-shit, it meant one thing, she was likely drinking.
I considered walking to the library to hang out for a while, but I didn’t like the idea of running from my own home, especially not because of someone like Jocelyn.
As soon as I opened the door and walked in, she jumped up from the couch and stumbled toward me. Here we go. I set my backpack down on the floor.
“Brooke!” she said, slurring the words.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
She threw her arms around me and squeezed.
“I live here, silly.”
“Don’t you have work tonight?”
“Not tonight,” she said, letting go of me. “Don’t you wanna hang out with me?”
“Don’t start,” I warned, walking toward the kitchen.
She followed.
“Have a drink with me,” she said. “We never drink anymore.”
“Because I work and go to school now. You know I don’t have time.”
“You make time for Austin. Why can’t you make time for me?”
I stopped near the kitchen table and turned to face her.
“Okay. I’ll have a drink or two, but I’m not getting drunk.”
She smiled and clapped her hands together rapidly.
“I’ll get the wine.”
With a sigh, I sat down and waited for her to return. She did, a minute later, carrying a box of wine, our favorite brand not because of its taste or quality but because of its low price.
She dumped the box on the table.
“I’ll get you a glass.”
I checked my phone one more time as she got a ceramic mug. She poured it half-full from the spigot on the side of the wine box.
“Whoa,” I said, reaching for it. “Not so much.”
“You need to let loose.”
I lifted the mug in the air while she grabbed her more traditional wine glass, the only one we had in the house. We clinked them together then both took a drink.
“Ugh. Awful,” I said, scrunching up my face.
“Right?” she said, giggling. “To old times.”
She raised her glass again. Reluctantly, I did the same. Two drinks soon turned into four somehow. Before I knew it, midnight had come and gone.
“Shit,” I said, standing up. “I need to sleep.”
“Hey Brooke,” she said, getting serious for the first time all night, “I’m sorry I’ve been such a wreck lately. I shouldn’t have been so cold about Austin. I just want you to be careful, alright?”
I saw sincerity in her eyes for the first time in a while. I nodded before shutting the door behind me.
TWENTY-ONE
Brooke
I usually allowed myself to sleep until I woke naturally on Saturday mornings, but the morning after getting tipsy with Jocelyn, I woke up to her playing music in the kitchen.
I threw the covers back and got out of bed. Jocelyn sat at the kitchen table, staring at her own cup of coffee.
“Thanks for making coffee,” I said.
She lifted her head. “No problem. Thought it was the least I could do after getting you wasted last night. Dude my head is killing me.”
“Yeah well your music isn’t helping,” I said turning it down.
I walked back into my room and sent Austin a text message, apologizing for missing his call while I was drinking and asking if he minded me coming over. Almost immediate, he sent the address.
*
He answered the door wearing boxers and nothing else.
“You always walk around the house half-naked?” I teased.
“Come on in. I usually sleep in on Saturdays, but my phone woke me up.”
I stepped inside, closing the door behind me.
“Tell me about it.”
“Someone called and woke you up?”
“No, not exactly.” I glanced over at two guys on the couch yelling at each other. “Can we go to your room and talk?”
“Sure,” he said.
I followed him up a staircase.
“Is that Trey’s room?” I asked, nodding my head at a second door across the hall from the one he was opening.
“Yeah. Mine’s bigger. And better.”
I walked into his room, glancing around and trying to take it all in at once. A Radiohead poster on the wall above his headboard caught my eye, as did the fact his bed was made. Other than that, the room looked sparse.
“What?” he asked, closing the door.
“It’s bigger than my room but not as romantic.”
“We’ll just have to add some romance.”
He closed the gap between us, sliding his arms around me. The night with Jocelyn slipped from my mind as his hand squeezed my ass.
Our lips touched, briefly at first then as if the world were about to be demolished by an asteroid. He moved us toward the bed.
Time slowed and sped up simultaneously. I swooned as he stripped my clothes off while I did the same to him. Naked, we faced each other.
I stared into his eyes as his finger traced a path from my cheek to my neck to my left breast. His finger slipped lower, moving slower as it made trails over my stomach. I breathed in, holding the breath as his magic digit moved over my mound.
I leaned against his body and kissed him on the mouth. My hands roamed, touching, feeling and loving with every caress.
We moved to the bed without thinking about it consciously. Each time his skin touched mine, I thought I would lose my mind.
On my back, my legs spread, I waited for him to take me. He crawls between them, kissing my face and neck.
Instead of screwing me right away, his kisses move lower on my body. I closed my eyes and smiled as I felt his palm gently rubbing between my legs.
Blood flowed. Time slowed. He replaced his hand with his mouth, teasing me while occasionally peering up with this look of total devotion.
Nice and wet, I wanted him inside me. He sensed my needs and desires without me having to say a single word. His condom covered cock slipped inside me.
I opened my eyes and saw him looking into mine, his solid facial features locked in a combination of concentration and bliss.
As he
slid in and out, he kissed me again. I would never tire of his lips, so soft and wet, always knowing where to go and what to do.
He reached under my knees and lifted my legs higher in the air, giving him better access, a new angle of entry. I moaned as he pounded faster.
“Austin…”
I loved the way his name sounded on my lips, and the way his face reacted when he heard it. Another kiss as our bodies move together, a single unit.
The world faded away. In that moment, only the growing desire between my legs mattered. He filled me completely, making everything else seem trivial.
Sounds from downstairs filtered through the floor, but I didn’t care. He slowed down, switching angles again. I ran my hands up his strong, oaken arms to his face.
Cradling his beautiful face, I made a wish for us to never part, to have this much pleasure every day for the rest of our lives. We would live together forever.
My chest rose and fell as my breaths came faster. I moved my hands down to his chest, loving the feel of his muscles as they moved, such a beautiful biological machine.
“I’m close,” he hissed urgently.
I rubbed my clit as he sped up his thrusts.
“Come for me, baby,” I cooed, coaxing him on.
He needed little help or more time. A minute later, he slowed his strokes, making each one deliberately and with a sense of urgency.
“Yes!” he shouted as his cock throbbed deep inside me.
The look on his face pushed me over the edge. My body shook as explosions of pleasure raced throughout my body, lighting up pleasure centers I never knew I had.
His thrusts slowed even further than stopped. Still inside me, he bent his head and kissed me again. I tasted the salty sweat on his lips as I wrapped my arms around his torso.
“I’m never letting you go,” I said.
He chuckled, still breathing heavy.
I let my arms drop to my side. As he pulled out, I felt as if I were losing a part of myself.
“Did you have plans for today?” he asked.
“This times ten? Maybe a pizza?”
He laughed.
“This is why I think I’m falling for you too.”
“Because I’m so good in bed?”
“That and your sense of humor.”
“You think I’m funny?”
He nodded. I took a deep breath, real life rushing back.
“I can’t wait until I graduate,” I said.
“You and me both.”
“But I wonder if all this hard work will pay off. Do you ever feel that way?”
“You have no idea, but we’ll be fine,” he said in a confident tone.
“You promise?”
“I do.”
He kissed me. The rest of the afternoon, we hung out together in the house he shared with the three other guys. At lunch, he took me to campus for a couple slices. On the way back, I talked him into a stroll through the park.
That night, I stayed in his room. We fell asleep nestled against each other like we had been together for years. My dreams comforted me, confirming my thoughts about Austin being the right man for me.
TWENTY-TWO
Austin
I woke in the morning before her and once again decided to let her sleep. She laid sprawled on her back, long black hair messy but still so damn cute. As I stood next to the bed, watching her while stretching, my phone buzzed on the nightstand.
She moaned as I snatched it and turned the volume down. Why did I suddenly have two dozen people sending me tweets? I wondered as I stared at the screen. Still in my underwear and nothing else, I went to my desk and sat down.
As I read one or two of the tweets, even more came in. My email inbox blew-up at the same time, with angry subject lines in ALL-CAPS. What the hell? Why were so many people hating on me all of a sudden? I had no answers.
The deluge stopped as quickly as it had started. I tapped the subject line of the final email and read, “You’re a dick, and we’re going to bring you down for your womanizing!” That was it. Nothing else.
I immediately thought about Jocelyn. Was she taking her in-person threats virtual? The fake email address gave me no information. Glancing at a few of the other messages and tweets, a pattern emerged. Someone wanted me to get kicked off the football team.
“Studying already?” Brooke asked from the bed.
“What?”
I glanced over as she sat up and stretched her arms, breasts bare and beautiful.
“It was a joke. I mean if you are studying that’s cool, I just thought I was the bookworm out of the two of us.”
“No,” I said, frowning. “People are complaining about me online, saying I use women.”
“Huh?”
She swung her feet over the edge of the bed and stood up, dressed only in purple panties. I held out my phone as she walked over.
“What am I looking at?”
“It’s your fucking roommate,” I said.
Her eyes opened wide before she turned to grab her shirt from the top of my dresser. I watched as she put it on, not saying a word.
“Well?” I asked.
She turned around to face me.
“Well what?”
“Your roommate has it out for me. This could affect my future career. She went to the coach about me. I thought it was nothing ‘cause you didn’t say anything, but clearly she’s got an issue.”
“Wait she went to your coach? Are you sure?”
“Yeah I saw her at practice. He didn’t say anything, but I know she went about me Brooke. And now this?”
“Is football all you care about?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
“No, of course not, but this is bullshit. She has it out for me. I can’t believe you’re taking her side.”
“I’m not taking anyone’s side. I just woke up. Can you give me a minute to start thinking clearly? Jocelyn is my friend, and I don’t think she would do this. Did she use her name?”
“Well, no, she’s not dumb, but I’m sure it’s her. She threatened me at your apartment a couple times too. I told you I was afraid of her. I wasn’t fucking kidding.”
She took a deep breath, arms still crossed.
“I’m going to go,” she said.
“Why?”
“You’re obviously beyond reasoning with, and I want to relax before classes and work tomorrow. We don’t have to be around each other every single moment of the day. Besides I gotta figure out what the hell is going on.”
“No shit,” I snapped, standing up. “Maybe this is what we do.”
She tilted her head to the right, peering at me intently.
“What?”
“Fight or fuck. There’s no in between for us.”
“I’m leaving.”
Her arms dropped to her side as she grabbed her pants and began putting them on.
“Come on, Brooke. Don’t be like this.”
“Like what, Austin? You got what you wanted yesterday, didn’t you?”
“You’re being ridiculous right now.”
“No, you are,” she snapped back.
“Whatever.”
I shook my head, watching as she looked around.
“Where’s my phone?”
“I don’t know.”
“Were you looking at my phone too?”
“No,” I said. “You left it on the nightstand.”
I pointed to it. She walked over and grabbed it.
“I’ll call you later, okay?”
“Maybe we should take a break for a few days.”
She glanced up from the screen of her phone, her brow furrowed in confusion.
“I’m just saying I have a lot going on. With all this social media bullshit, I’m sure Coach is going to be up my ass. And you have class…”
“No, it’s fine,” she said, cutting me off. “Later, Austin.”
While I didn’t want her to leave angry, I said nothing as she opened my door and left. What the hell just happe
ned? I wondered as I glanced around my room. Fuck her. Why am I still even messing with her when football was so important?
As I grabbed some clean clothes and headed to the upstairs bathroom, I told myself we were over. We’d had our fun, but it was time for me to move on.
In the shower, cold water rained down on my skin, cooling it. Images of her naked body flashed through my mind, but I pushed them aside. I had to take care of myself first.
TWENTY-THREE
Austin
My steel determination not to ever talk to her lasted a total of thirty-two hours. On Monday evening, I called her, ready to say anything to get her to come back over.
“Hey,” she said after answering.
“Brooke. How’s it going?”
“I’m fine. What’s up?”
“I miss you.”
“Funny, because I remember you saying you wanted to focus on your career.”
“I’m crazy, okay? You drive me insane. In a good way.”
“The cute kind of crazy, huh?”
“Exactly. You busy tonight? Everything going okay?”
“I’m fine. I have to work tonight. A half-shift.”
“Oh, bummer.”
“I can come over after work if you want.”
“Yeah, that’s good,” I said. “Jocelyn has backed off a bit.”
“I talked to her, and she said it wasn’t her that did it.”
“She’s lying, but I don’t want to argue about it.”
“I don’t either. I’ve missed you too.”
“Text me when you’re on your way over.”
“I will.”
“Talk to you tonight.”
“Soon…” she said then ended the call.
I put the phone down and glanced across the Quad, a grassy area with walkways between four buildings on campus. Students came to sit under trees and study or talk. Personally, I came to think about life and watch other people.
Resting my back against the trunk of a giant sycamore tree, I interlaced my fingers behind my head and wondered if Brooke might be the one. She made me crazy in so many ways, but I hadn’t been able to go two full days without hearing her voice.
An alarm on my phone buzzed, letting me know it was time for class. I grabbed my backpack by the strap and stood up. Slinging it over one shoulder, I walked toward the Mathematics building.
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