5 Ethan
September 2016
I opened my eyes to an empty bed, expecting to find Sloane next to me. Hoping to wake up to her freckled nose and hazel eyes, I was disappointed to realize she snuck out on me. After a few groggy minutes, I picked up my phone to check the time. It was barely 10 a.m., which meant I had at least another two hours before the guys would drag my ass to the gym. I ripped off my shirt, threw it on the ground, and got under the sheets. I hated sleeping with clothes on.
“Dude, get up.” Graham burst through the door.
“Knock much?” I groan.
“We have to be at the house by eleven for the tourney, remember?” He was gone before I could even argue. Reluctantly, I got out of bed, but before I made my way into the shower, I shot Sloane a quick text.
10:06 a.m.
Me:Where’d you sneak off to this morning?
10:08 a.m.
Sloane Hart: I needed a few hours of sleep in my own bed. Lauren’s dragging me to the volleyball tournament today.
Shit. She was going to be there? Usually each year I looked forward to the tournament, but knowing I’d be playing in front of Sloane on less than six hours of sleep made me sweat a little.
10:08 a.m.
Me:To cheer for me, right? ??
10:11 a.m.
Sloane Hart:I’ll be cheering for Graham’s team, so if you’re on that one, then I guess I have no choice. ??
***
The sun beat down on the sand as I stood with Graham, Jake, and a few other pledge brothers waiting for our turn. We hadn’t won the tournament in years past, but now that we were seniors, we were determined to. It’d be embarrassing if we didn’t.
Sports have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. When my dad wasn’t at work, he would toss a football with me in the front yard until the sun went down. Graham and I played on the same recreational soccer team until middle school when I signed up for football. I could’ve gone to college to play; I almost did. I got a few offers from out-of-state schools, but the tuition was insane, and they weren’t full rides. Instead, I chose to end my football career, stay close to home, and attend Wilmington College alongside Graham.
As we took our positions on the court, I couldn’t help but scan the crowd for Sloane. My heart raced with anticipation as I spotted her and Lauren walking into the backyard, the sunlight catching the lighter streaks of red in her hair. She was wearing a T-shirt dress, sneakers, and a baseball cap; you couldn’t even tell that she’d barely slept the night before. Of course, I knew.
The game began, and I was doing my best to focus on the match, but my eyes kept finding Sloane. She was engrossed in conversation with one of our brothers, Reese, and watching the way he made her laugh caused a ping of jealousy to rush through me. I couldn’t tear my gaze away, even as the volleyball sailed over the net, untouched by my distracted hands.
“Come on, Ethan, stay in the game!” Jake shouted, snapping me back to reality.
I shook my head and refocused. We were down a point, and I needed to make amends. The next serve came rocketing towards me, and I dove for it, sending it soaring over the net with a powerful spike. The crowd cheered, and I allowed myself a quick glance in Sloane’s direction, hoping she had noticed my play, but she was still wrapped up in conversation.
We battled on, point by point, but my mind kept drifting back to Sloane. Whether she was sharing a joke with one of my fraternity brothers or just sitting there, her presence was a constant distraction. Our team made it to the third round, but we were losing ground fast.
With the score tied at 13–13, it was do or die. The other team served the ball, and it came hurtling towards me. I knew I had to make this play count, but as I jumped to spike it, my thoughts strayed to Sloane once again. My spike sailed wide, hitting the grass just outside the court.
We had one more chance to come back from that embarrassing play. They served the ball, and unknowingly Graham and I dove for it at the same time. Just as luck would have it, we collided, causing the ball to land in the sand between us.
“Match point,” the ref called, and my heart sank. I had let my team down, distracted by my infatuation for Sloane. Why couldn’t I get her out of my mind?
“Brady, what was that?” Graham stood up and slapped his hand onto my shoulder. “You played horrible, man.”
I looked over to Sloane, who was now seated in the grass with only Lauren. I was glad that Reese was nowhere to be found. Graham must’ve followed my line of vision because it only took him a second to put two and two together.
“Is Sloane the reason you left the party early last night?” He kept his tone low. “And the reason we’re the losing senior team?”
“I dunno,” I huffed. “I need a drink. Is there any beer here? Or just mimosas?”
“Grab me whatever you find. I’m gonna go chat with our girls.” Graham winked and then jogged over to where Lauren and Sloane were before I even had a chance to rebut.
I dragged my feet up the stairs of the deck and into the house. The back door led right into the kitchen, where a bunch of brothers seemed to be concocting Bloody Marys.
“Lemme get two of those.”
“Anything for our MVP,” one of the younger guys said. “You’re the reason we actually have a chance of winning this year. Thanks, Brady.”
“Fuck off.” I rolled my eyes.
“I’d say better luck next year, but you won’t be here,” another chimed in.
“Go easy on him.” Reese emerged from the hall. Great. He was the last guy I wanted to see. I stood in silence hoping to avoid further conversation with him while the pledges finished making our drinks.
“Tough loss,” Reese said.
So much for that.
“I’m blaming it on the jersey party. Didn’t get much sleep last night.” I kept my sentences short.
“Oh yeah, Brady, that redhead I drove you home with is hot. Good for you, man,” one of the pledges cut in.
I didn’t even have to make eye contact with Reese to know that he knew exactly who the pledge was referring to.
“For that comment, you’re on sober-driving duty for the rest of the month.” And with that, I grabbed the two Solo cups off the counter and slammed the back door behind me.
From the top of the deck, I could see Graham, Lauren, and Sloane right where I’d left them. I thought about turning back around to get the girls fresh drinks, but I really didn’t want to know what was being said in the kitchen after I’d left. It was clear Reese was into Sloane. I wasn’t exactly sure how I felt about her yet, but I knew enough to know that I wasn’t going to let him have her.
As I approached the group, a smile immediately appeared across Sloane’s face.
“Sorry about your loss. You played well though!” she offered.
“You clearly know nothing about volleyball.” I laughed and sat next to her in the grass. “I sucked. But thank you.”
“Is that drink for me?” Graham interrupted us and reached over to grab his Bloody Mary. “Brady, this really isn’t your weekend. First beer pong then volleyball. Maybe you’re losing your touch?”
“Yeah, where’d you disappear to last night, Ethan?” Lauren asked before turning to Sloane. “You both must have left around the same time. You should’ve shared a ride. I hate when you Uber alone!”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a smirk appear on Sloane’s face. God, she’s even cuter when she’s uncomfortable. Her cheeks turned a shade of pink I’d never seen before, and she couldn’t stop the corners of her mouth from turning upward, unveiling a big toothy grin.
“Oh, they did.” Graham smirked.
“What!” Lauren choked back her drink.
“Don’t act like you didn’t already debrief this morning. I was the last one to find out,” he added.
“Sloane, why didn’t you tell me?!” Lauren exclaimed.
“You guys wanna grab some food at Jerry’s?” I cut in to save Sloane from having to answer.
“Let’s make moves; I’m starving,” Graham stood up and reached out for Lauren’s hand to help her up. As if it were instinct, I did the same for Sloane. We piled into Graham’s Jeep. Lauren took shotgun, but I wasn’t complaining because I got to sit next to Sloane.
“So why’d you really run off this morning?” I lowered my voice.
“I, um, just thought it would be less awkward that way,” she explained nervously. “Plus, sleeping on top of your comforter in my clothes from last night wasn’t exactly comfortable.”
“You could’ve gotten under them.” I placed my hand on her leg. She shot me a look that said What the fuck are you doing? and then removed my hand. I could tell she liked it though.
Since the day that I met her, I thought about kissing Sloane every time that I saw her. That moment was no different. I stared at her mouth and swallowed heavily. My eyes shifted from her mouth to her eyes. I knew that she knew exactly what I wanted.