Chapter 6 Grayson
Chapter 6
Grayson
Damien? Why did that name sound familiar? And why did I recognize that messy blond hair and cocky grin? A moment later, it clicked. Damien Stone. I’d thought talking about Paige’s first kiss was the worst thing to happen to me today. Apparently, I was wrong.
“Damien?” The way Paige gasped his name, you’d think he were the answer to all her prayers and the subject of all her dreams. She didn’t hesitate for another second—just rushed forward and launched herself into his arms.
He swung her around, pulling her feet right off the ground. I stood and watched, waiting for them to finish their reunion like my heart wasn’t aching at the sight. Paige was always smiling and joking around with the guys on the team, but something about seeing her with Damien hit differently.
Damien Stone had lived across the road when we were growing up. He hung out with me and my brothers sometimes, and other kids in the neighborhood. I’d never liked him, but he’d firmly cemented his name on my shit list the day of my eighth birthday, when he blew out my candles and stole my wish. In hindsight, it wasn’t the best reason to hate someone, but when you already had to share a birthday with your twin brother, you didn’t want to share your candles too. I hadn’t been the least bit sad to see him go when his dad got a job out of state, and he had to move away. Mostly, I was glad I no longer had to share Paige with him .
They’d been friends when we were younger too, and it had always felt like we were competing to see who she liked the best. I’d assumed it was Damien, because he could always make her laugh. Then there was the wedding. I shuddered at the memory. I could never recall whose idea it was to play dress-up that day. But I would never forget it was Damien who got to stand next to Paige under the tree at the bottom of her parents’ garden and pretend to get hitched. I had to stand on the sidelines as Paige’s maid of honor, watching my place in the friend zone become official.
“You’re all grown up.” Paige still sounded slightly breathless as Damien lowered her back to the ground. She was grinning brightly up at him, and his smile was just as wide. “And you got tall. You might actually be bigger than Grayson.”
I stood slightly straighter as I realized she could be right. Damien was taller than me. Not by much, but I rarely found myself eye to eye with another guy, and I was used to being the largest person in any room I entered. Not anymore, apparently.
“And you stayed short,” he replied, making her laugh. “How the hell are you guys doing?” Damien turned his friendly smile on me, but didn’t give me a chance to answer. “Still cheery as ever, hey, Grayson?”
I hadn’t even said anything. Was the pain on my face really that obvious? Usually, I found it easy to keep my emotions a closely guarded secret, but being around Damien must have been making it more difficult.
I decided to ignore his “cheery” jab and focus on what was important. “What are you doing back in town?” I asked .
Apparently, I’d said something hilarious, because Damien was laughing again and shaking his head. “You haven’t changed a bit.”
“Neither have you,” I grumbled. “Just visiting then?” I added hopefully.
“Actually...” he replied, “you’re looking at the newest member of the Ransom Devils.”
The hits just kept coming. Coach Ray had said something about a new player. Perhaps I should have listened more closely.
“That’s so great,” Paige replied excitedly. Did she have to sound quite so happy about it? “Isn’t that great, Grayson?”
“Yeah, the best.” I wasn’t even trying to hide the disdain in my voice. Damien didn’t seem bothered by my frosty attitude though. He was far more interested in Paige.
“But you’re moving schools in the middle of your senior year,” Paige said as she focused on him once more. “What happened?”
“My parents split up,” Damien replied. “My mom wanted to move back home to Ransom, so here I am.” He gave a weary smile. Clearly, returning to Ransom wasn’t his choice and he was doing his best to get through it. Hearing about his parents did make me feel a touch guilty about the cold reception I’d given him. But then Paige reached out her hand to touch his, and I immediately returned to loathing the very sight of him.
“I’m so sorry to hear that,” she said gently.
“It is what it is.” He shrugged. “I’m just glad to see some familiar faces. ”
“Well, we’re glad to see you.” Paige’s sunny expression returned. “What class do you have now?”
“Uh, let me check.” He fished a piece of paper from his pocket and glanced over it. “Biology. Though I have no idea where the classroom is.”
“Oh, that’s easy.” She laughed. “Just head up those stairs behind you, and it’s the first door on your left. Do you want me to show you?”
Damien shook his head. “It’s okay. I think I can handle that. If I get lost, I’ll just follow the smell of latex gloves and bleach.”
“Okay.” Paige laughed again, but this time the sound was high-pitched and spluttered awkwardly. I frowned at her. I hadn’t heard her nervous giggle in a while. It only usually made an appearance when she was really flustered or taken by surprise. The last time she’d fully unleashed that sound was when we’d been playing volleyball in PE last year. She’d been looking upward as she’d gone to bump the ball, but had accidentally hit Matt’s butt instead. It was an understandable reason to be mortified. I couldn’t make sense of what was causing it to appear now.
She quickly cleared her throat, as though she too had noticed it and was trying to compose herself. “Good luck,” she added.
“Thanks, P, I’ll see you later. We’ve got a lot of catching up to do.” He emphasized his words with a wink.
“We do,” she squeaked. Was she blushing? Why was she blushing ?
“Grayson.” Damien gave me a nod before heading for the stairs. I stared after him, still trying to come to terms with what had just happened. I was feeling a little blindsided. A little blindsided and a lot annoyed.
“Oh my gosh, can you believe Damien’s back?” Paige gushed as she turned to me, her eyes brimming with excitement. “He looks so different, but still familiar. Obviously taller. A lot taller. Bonnie was right, he’s kind of hot now, don’t you think?”
I took several deep breaths, trying to remind myself that I was a supportive best friend.
“Do you think I sounded okay?” she continued as we started down the hall. “I didn’t come off too ditzy or desperate, did I? Can you believe my first kiss could end up being Damien Stone?”
No, I couldn’t. I was still surprised by how seriously she was taking this first kiss thing. And I’d never seen her babble over a guy this way. Under normal circumstances, I’d have thought her reaction was cute. Her eyes were big, and her cheeks were lightly flushed. I loved when she got this excited about something and her every thought spilled from her lips. But right now, she was talking about another guy, and as cute as Paige was, it sucked.
“You were fine. Just the right amount of ditzy.”
She made a playful face at me, but then she started to frown. “You don’t seem very happy he’s back.”
I hated that her excitement dimmed because of me. I should have been happy for her. Instead I was ruining her mood because of some fifth-grade jealousy. It was moments like these that reminded me why I didn’t deserve her. Why she’d be so much better off with someone else .
“Why wouldn’t I be happy?”
Her gaze was intent, like she could see right through me. “He’s your friend, Grayson. But you’re looking at him like this is a hockey game and he’s on the other team.”
“He was on another team until today. And no, he’s your friend, Paige.”
She waved me off like that made no difference. “I wonder what he’s like now. He still seems so nice. Or do you think he’s changed since we last saw him?”
“Well, we haven’t seen him since we were, like, ten years old, so I’d hope so.”
Paige kept going, apparently deciding to ignore my comment. “I’m surprised he came back though, even if his parents split,” she said. “Starting a new school midway through your senior year must be hard.”
“I’m sure he’ll be okay.”
“Of course he will.” She smiled confidently. “He’s Damien.” She said his name like he was some kind of superstar.
I didn’t exactly trust myself to reply. It was becoming harder and harder to watch Paige’s growing enthusiasm for a guy who had just been selected as the perfect candidate for her to kiss. She and Bonnie had made that decision before they’d realized who he was though. When they thought he was just some random new kid. Maybe this changed things.
“So, do you think Damien is still the right guy to... you know...” I wasn’t sure I could finish the sentence, but Paige was watching me expectantly.
“To . . .” she prompted.
A sinkhole tragically opening up beneath my feet and sucking me down would be more comfortable than this conversation. “Kiss,” I replied. “Is he still the guy you want to kiss?”
Her cheeks warmed and she tucked a stray hair behind one ear. “Why? You don’t think he should be?”
“Uh, I don’t know. It’s Damien, isn’t it? We know him. He’s not a blank slate, like Bonnie said.”
“Well, have you threatened him recently?”
“No.”
“Then I think we’re good.”
“But . . .”
“Yeah?”
“I, uh, just figured with your history, he was probably in the friend zone.”
“The friend zone?” She stared at me for a moment, but then it was like a light bulb flicked on in her head. “You think he won’t want to kiss me because we’re friends?”
“That’s not really what I meant.”
“You don’t think friends can turn into something more?”
That question was essentially the bane of my existence, and her asking it to me directly had me dreaming about sinkholes again. “No, I’m not saying that.”
“Because we were friends a long time ago. Maybe we aren’t anymore. Also, I’m pretty sure the friend zone isn’t some impenetrable fortress. People can come and go.”
Was she serious? I didn’t know whether to feel suddenly hopeful or totally disheartened. Could you really just leave the friend zone as easily as that? Not in my experience. I was so firmly entrenched in the zone with Paige, I was practically its mayor. Maybe she was just trying to convince herself the friend zone was no big deal because she wanted to be right about Damien .
Either way, I hated that I’d made her doubt herself. She was now questioning whether a guy could possibly want her, and once again, it was because of me.
“You’re right,” I said. “It was a long time ago, and he’s an idiot if he’s not interested in you now.”
“I don’t know about that,” she said, a soft smile gracing her lips. “But I guess we’ll just have to see. You just make sure you don’t scare him off, okay?”
She playfully wagged a finger at me, but there was an uncertain look in her eyes. Was she really worried I’d try to ruin this for her on purpose? I guess she had every right to be. It seemed I had inadvertently scared away a few guys already, and right now every instinct in my body was telling me to do the same to Damien. But as much as I wanted to give in to the protective urges pulsing through me, I knew I had to keep my thoughts to myself.
“I won’t,” I agreed. Just because I wasn’t going to warn Damien not to hurt Paige didn’t mean I couldn’t still deal with him if he did. The thought gave me some small comfort.
“This is me,” she said, nodding to the classroom we’d just arrived at. “I know you have practice after school, but I’ll see you at home tonight?”
She darted into the room before I could reply.
As I watched her disappear through the door, I couldn’t help but wonder when my life had taken such a drastic wrong turn. Sure, Paige’s friend zone wasn’t my dream destination, but at least it was safe. It was comfortable. Things had suddenly gotten out of control though, and I had no idea where we were headed next. Paige was determined to find a guy to kiss, Damien had reappeared just at the wrong time, and I’d somehow ended up agreeing to help with the whole situation. But I was the absolute worst person for the job. All I wanted to do was pull Paige into my arms and kiss her myself so I could bring this nightmare journey to an end .
I just had to hope I’d already suffered enough for one day. I should have known things were only going to get worse.
It was only his first session with the Ransom Devils, but it didn’t take long for Damien to make himself at home. He was everywhere on the ice, stealing the puck and shouting instructions to other guys like he’d been training with us for years rather than minutes. I wasn’t sure how I was going to handle the remainder of the season with his overexuberant attitude. The fact he was a decent player only made everything worse. He was fast on his skates, and his passes were all smooth and direct. He was also unbeatable in defense.
Having a talented player join the team wouldn’t normally concern me, but Damien and I were both defensemen. He was coming for my spot on the team, and seeing as I was struggling with a bad knee, he might actually have a chance at taking it. I still needed to prove my worth to the coaches at Ryker, so I couldn’t afford to let my injured knee or Damien Stone get the better of me .
“Damien looked pretty good out there,” Reed said. “Could be a handy addition to the team.”
I grunted, and that one sound was apparently enough for him to know exactly what was going through my mind.
“Don’t worry,” he said, slapping his hand on my shoulder. “He’s not taking your spot. That infamous Grayson Glare is irreplaceable.” I narrowed my eyes at him, and he laughed as though I’d proved his point.
“Just count yourself lucky they already named you captain,” I scoffed. “I think you were the only one he wasn’t barking orders at.”
“I’m sure he’ll calm down as he adjusts to the team.” Reed shrugged. “Don’t let it get to you.”
I nodded, but then realized he was still watching me closely.
“What?” I demanded.
“Oh, nothing.” He smiled. “Just that if I didn’t know better, I’d say you were jealous.”
“He’s not that good a player.”
“I’m not talking about hockey.”
Before I could respond, Reed was called over by Coach Ray, so I settled for shooting him another glare. It didn’t have the same effect when it was aimed at someone’s back though, so I turned and continued toward the locker room.
“That was a great session,” Damien said, falling into step beside me.
I gave him a brief nod, hoping if I didn’t respond he might get the message and leave me alone, but apparently, he was completely oblivious to my cold shoulder .
“I have to admit,” he continued, “I was nervous about joining another team once the season had already started, but I feel like I’ll fit right in with you guys.”
“I’m sure you will,” I replied, though the words nearly killed me. I wanted to be at least somewhat friendly, because that’s how Paige would want me to treat Damien. I just wasn’t sure I had it in me. Not when the image of her gathered in his arms kept flashing in my mind. Not when she’d mentioned she’d happily abandon the friend zone to kiss him.
“It was great seeing Paige again today,” Damien added. Maybe my brother wasn’t the only one who could read my mind. “Looks like it will be us three amigos back together again.”
Except it had never been us three amigos. There had been Paige and him, and Paige and me. Three was a crowd.
Damien kept glancing at me cautiously, as though he was eager for me to reply. Eventually, he broke the silence. “You two aren’t together, are you?”
“No.” I hoped my short response would close the matter, but it only made Damien’s face light up.
“Really?” He sounded surprised. “I thought you might—”
“Paige and I are just friends. Nothing more.” It grew harder and harder every time I had to say those words. A pain lodged in my chest whenever they left my lips, but this time it hurt just a little bit more than usual.
“Okay,” he replied with a grin. “So, is she dating anyone?”
This was the part where I was supposed to be a supportive friend. Where I was meant to be the world’s best wingman and talk Paige up. But I couldn’t seem to get the words out of my mouth. Wasn’t it enough that I hadn’t threatened the guy ?
“Nope,” Parker said, joining us from behind. “She’s single.” If we were alone, I would have thumped him.
“How is that possible?” Damien asked. “She’s gotten really hot.”
Parker smirked in my direction. I wondered if he could tell that my blood was pulsing so hot with annoyance there was a distinct possibility my head might explode.
“I don’t think the right guy’s come along yet,” Parker replied. He spoke to Damien, but the mischievous glint in his eyes was directed at me.
“Hmm, well, maybe he’s just arrived.” The smug look on Damien’s face was enough to make me want to break every promise I’d made to Paige right here and now. But I wasn’t allowed to say or do anything. Paige would never forgive me if I did. So, instead, I was left quietly fuming.
“Maybe,” Parker agreed.
We entered the locker room, and Reed gave Damien a slap on the back as he caught up with us. “Great work out there, Stoney.” Was I seriously the only person who didn’t like this guy?
“Yeah,” Matt added as he went to sit across from us. “It’s like you’re one step ahead of everyone else. With you joining the ranks, no one’s going to get past our defense this season.” Apparently, Reed’s best friend wanted to be on my shit list too. Everyone sounded so excited, and I had a bad feeling Damien’s nauseating positivity was catching. It was like some kind of disease .
“Yeah, well, it’s only because I already have a great team to work with,” he said.
I turned my attention to my locker, so I didn’t have to share my own opinion about Damien.
“I’m going to shower,” I said to no one in particular.
“Take your time,” Parker replied. “I have to talk to Coach before we leave tonight...”
“But—”
He disappeared from the locker room before I could object. Surely Parker could grab a ride home with Reed. I didn’t want to be home late, because I knew Paige would be there.
“Can’t you take him, Reed?”
“I’m not going straight home,” he replied with a shrug. “Guess you’ll have to wait around.”
He was probably going to meet up with Violet. I couldn’t complain though. Reed had worked hard for his truck, picking up shifts with my dad and spending hours in the garage getting it fixed up. His reward was the freedom of having his own transport, while I was forced to share our old family pickup with Parker.
“He better not take too long,” I growled as I made my way to the showers.
Despite my urgency to get back home to Paige, I followed Parker’s advice and took my time. Knowing my brother, he’d finish with Coach Ray in no time at all but then get distracted by something shiny, like an excitable puppy. Who knew how long he’d be. But my knee was aching and the hot water running across my skin was a welcome relief. I’d pushed myself hard in training tonight because I hadn’t wanted Damien to outdo me. I was paying the price for that extra effort now, and it was taking everything in me not to grimace in pain .
When I returned to the locker room, it was quiet; the lights were dimmed and, for a moment, I wondered if everyone had taken off. But then I noticed people huddled around my locker. Reed was there, along with Matt and his younger brother, Owen. Parker had also returned from his meeting with Coach. He was standing on a chair and seemed to be sticking some sort of banner or sign above my locker.
“What’s going on?”
They all turned to me at once, identical looks of guilt plastered across their faces. Parker quickly hopped off the chair and tucked the sign behind his back.
“Well?” I repeated, nodding at the sign. “What’s that?”
“There’s no hiding it now,” Matt muttered.
“Yeah, just tell him,” Owen added.
“Now, Grayson, don’t freak out,” Reed said.
Parker slowly pulled the sign out from behind him and held it out wide for me to see. When I read the hastily written word plastered across it, I stared for a few moments in total confusion.
“Told you he can’t read.” Parker laughed.
“I can read just fine,” I rumbled. “What I don’t understand is why you’re sticking a sign with that word on it above my locker.”
Reed elbowed Parker in the side before stepping forward. His hands were outstretched as he approached, like he was walking toward a ticking time bomb.
“Because, brother, this is an intervention.”