Chapter 30
TROY
Besides getting caught by Ben in the kitchen, I’d say the rest of the morning went smoothly.
I wasn’t able to find a troll costume that I liked though, so that’s something I’ll need to sort in the coming week.
It’s bad enough that my curiosity got me roped into participating; I’m not going to wear something embarrassing.
We’re now just outside the stadium in line to get in.
It’s surreal to be with the fans and not in the locker room with my teammates.
Technically, I have to head there and get ready with them, even if I’m sitting on the bench, but I want to make sure Charlie and Ben are situated before I have to leave them.
We missed tailgating, but I’m not sure if Charlie would have enjoyed it anyway.
I still have hopes I can persuade her to come to the party tonight, and I didn’t want her turned off to the idea beforehand.
The issue is Ben. He’s a teen, so technically, he could stay home alone, but I’m sure Charlie wouldn’t want that.
And we can’t bring him with us since he’s a minor and it would be bad form to bring a kid to a party where booze was running freely.
As we stand in line, I’m recognized by some people, including fans of the opposing team.
They’re our rival school after all; they know my face and hate my guts.
The assholes attempt to get me riled up, but their taunts can’t find their mark.
They’re on my turf, and soon the Rushmore crowd drowns out their stupid shit.
Charlie becomes tense next to me, and with just a glance, I can tell she’s gearing up to defend my honor.
“Relax, babe. It’s okay. They’re gone now.”
“They were awful and so rude.” She seethes.
“I’m used to that. It’s no big deal.”
“Yeah, sis. If Troy cared about what others thought of him, he wouldn’t be dating you.” Ben laughs.
She hits him upside the head. “Quit being a brat.”
“Ouch.” He massages his head, glaring at Charlie. “I definitely shouldn’t have interrupted you two this morning. Now you’re in a mood.”
I chuckle, but when I catch her glowering at me, I try to cover my slipup with a cough.
We’re finally inside, and I make sure Charlie and Ben have everything they want from the concession stand before I escort them to their seats.
On our way down to the front row, I hear my name being called by someone in the crowd. I search the seats until I see Brooke waving animatedly at me. I wave back, but I don’t stop or change course. I can’t talk to her right now, nor do I want to.
“Was that your friend who came by the house when you got hurt?” Charlie asks.
“Yeah.”
“I’m surprised she hasn’t come by again,” Charlie adds.
“We’re not that close.” I almost add “anymore” but that would no doubt result in a string of questions, and now is not the time to go down memory lane.
Eventually, I’ll have to tell Charlie that Brooke is my ex. It was a punch to the gut to find out Blake was her ex from the douche canoe himself. I don’t want that to happen to her.
“Here we are,” I say when we reach our row.
Ben continues along until he finds his seat, but Charlie hangs back. “I wish you could stay with us. We’re bound to not understand a thing and cheer at the wrong times.”
“I highly doubt that’s going to happen.”
I reach for a strand of her hair and tuck it behind her ear. Almost immediately, her cheeks become pinker. I love how Charlie blushes when she’s embarrassed or excited.
“Well, you’d better make sure your teammates don’t lose to those assholes.”
“They won’t. Andreas knows that if they mess up, they won’t hear the end of it from me.”
“Good.”
I swing my arm around Charlie’s shoulders, pulling her to me for another scorching kiss.
I swear I try to do sweet and easy, but I can’t when it comes to her.
She’s a spark that always ignites me. I’m aware that we’re putting on quite a show for all the cameras surrounding us.
In less than a minute, our kiss will be all over social media.
It’s for that reason alone that I pull away faster than I want.
“Okay, I really have to go before I kidnap you,” I say.
“Oh, we wouldn’t want that,” she says with a smirk, but then it turns into a frown. “I’m sorry you can’t play today.”
“It’s okay. I needed a break. Besides, Danny is kicking ass. It’ll be good for the team next year to know their new quarterback can handle the pressure.”
“Tell them to break some bones.”
“What?” I laugh.
“Not the right thing to say? In performing arts, we say break a leg, but I didn’t think it would apply here, and ‘good luck’ felt lame.”
I shake my head, fighting the urge to kiss her again. “I love how your mind works.”
Immediately, I realize that was the wrong thing to say. Charlie is now staring at me like a deer caught in headlights, and her lips are making a little O.
To downplay my slip of the tongue, I continue on like nothing is amiss. “I’ll see you later, babe. Have fun.”
My head is whirling as I dissect why I said that.
I didn’t say I loved her, but it was pretty close.
Regardless, I used the damn L-word in a sentence, and that always gets girls in a tizzy.
I hope it doesn’t change anything between us.
I like Charlie, but we’re just beginning to get to know each other.
There’s no way in hell I’ve fallen in love with her already.
I’m not one to get swept up by feelings.
I force those worries to the corner of my mind, and when I enter the locker room and hear the ruckus my teammates are making, my relationship doubts are so far back, they might as well not exist anymore.
“My, my. Look what we got here. Troy fucking Alexander is in the house,” Puck, our giant linebacker, announces.
He walks over and pats me on my back so hard that it jostles my shoulder, making me wince.
“Gee, careful there. I do want to come back sooner rather than later.”
Puck cringes. “Oops. Sorry.”
Andreas comes over, watching me with a thousand questions in his eyes. He wants to know how my date went, and knowing the perv, he’ll ask for all the details.
“So?” he starts.
“I have nothing to report.”
“Come on, man. Maybe if you paint me a good picture, I’ll consider sticking to one girl for a while.”
Puck scoffs. “Yeah, right. When hell freezes over.” He turns to me. “Is your girl watching the game?”
“Yeah. She brought her brother too.”
“Cool, man. Nice to see Andy’s heathen ways haven’t rubbed off on you.”
Puck comes from a super religious family and has been with the same girl since high school. He loves to pick on Andreas’s amoral ways.
“Shut your piehole, altar boy,” he rebuffs.
“Make me.” Puck seems to grow in size, towering over Andreas.
Their banter is harmless, so I just head to my locker to put my uniform on.
A few minutes later, Coach Clarkson’s booming voice cuts through the room, commanding everyone’s attention.
His determined gaze finds mine, but all he does to acknowledge my presence is nod slightly.
He proceeds to give the team a pep talk, and I usually hang on his every word, but I’m having a hard time getting focused since I’m not playing.
I spot Danny next to Andreas, and a pang hits my chest that he’s going in my place.
I told Charlie I was fine with not playing, but being here with my teammates makes it harder to pretend that’s true.
I hear my phone’s text tone inside my duffel bag. Since I’m not invested in the coach’s speech, I fish the device out. It’s a message from Brooke.
When were you going to tell me you had a new girlfriend?
What the hell? Is she mad at me? It sure as shit sounds like it. Damn it. She picked the wrong time to annoy me with her bullshit.
I didn’t think I had to.
I click Send, even knowing my reply is harsh. Her reply comes through a few seconds later.
Wow. Just wow.
It’s pointless to continue the convo, so I just shove my phone back in the duffel bag and try to forget my ex is acting like we just broke up yesterday and not two years ago.