43. Leo
Leo
Iwalk with my arm around Lucy as we head in the direction of the house.
The ladies just finished up at the third bar of the night, and now we’re headed to the Halloween party.
We make our way through the crowded street along the edge of Hollis U. Poppy, Anna, and Briar are walking in front of us. They’ve all had a few drinks, but they’re alert and able to walk on their own.
Lucy is a different story though. She had the most drinks out of everyone tonight, and she’s definitely drunk.
“This bar crawl was freaking awesome.” She giggles and stumbles a little. I wrap my arm around her waist, holding her steady. “You know what else was freaking awesome? That jungle juice at that last place.”
She hiccups, and I can’t help but chuckle.
I quirk my eyebrow at her. “Was it? Because if I remember correctly, you made a grossed-out face when you took your first sip.”
She tilts her face up and rolls her eyes at me. She flashes an adorable drunk smile. “The taste grew on me.” She hiccups again.
My face splits into a grin. She’s really fucking cute when she’s drunk.
I think about how she’s never gotten to do this—to cut loose and get wild with her friends. She’s spent so much of her life just trying to survive and working her ass off. She doesn’t get to relax or have fun. I’m glad she’s finally able to now.
And I’m glad I can be here with her.
We stop at a traffic light and wait for the light to change before we can cross the street. I notice a couple of guys checking her out. I glare at them, and they quickly look away.
That’s another reason I’m glad I’m with her tonight. The thought of her out here alone when she’s drunk makes me uneasy. Some guys would follow her and try to take advantage. That sharp, protective feeling swoops through me. There’s no way I’m letting that happen. I’m getting her home safely.
Poppy, Anna, and Briar stop in front of a falafel place and turn to Lucy and me.
“We have to pee,” Anna says, then looks at Lucy. “Do you have to go?”
She shakes her head. The three of them walk inside while Lucy and I stand at the side of the entrance and wait for them.
Lucy leans against the wall. I let go of her, but I stay standing next to her. I pull my phone out of my pocket and check my texts.
When I glance back up, she’s smiling like she’s hiding a secret
“What’s up?” I ask.
She lifts an eyebrow, a knowing grin playing across her lips. “How big is it?”
I frown, confused. “How big is what?”
She turns so she’s facing me. “Your dick.” She glances down at my lap.
My brow lifts, surprised at her question. Wait, is she serious?
She looks back up at me. “How. Big. Is. It?”
“Uh…” I clear my throat and rub the back of my neck, my face heating. I wasn’t expecting drunk Lucy to be so bold.
“Why do you wanna know?” I ask.
She hiccups again. “Because apparently there’s a rumor going around Hollis that you’re packing.” She giggles and bites her lip, her big blue eyes hazy as she gazes up at me. “I’m curious to know if the rumors are true.”
I can’t help but laugh. This is insane. If anyone else asked me this question, I’d tell them off. But I like that Lucy is asking me this. I like that she’s curious about my dick size. It turns me on…even though I know it shouldn’t.
“What exactly does ‘packing’ mean to you?” I ask.
She bites her lip. “Anna’s friend Danielle said she heard that you were nine inches and that you need to use a Magnum condom.”
Heat climbs up my neck and cheeks. I let out an embarrassed chuckle and look off to the side, shaking my head.
Lucy steps closer to me. “There’s no way, right? I refuse to believe it.”
“Why?”
“Because no human being should be that lucky. You’re handsome and rich and athletically gifted, and you have a huge dick. It’s too much good stuff for one person.”
I can’t help but crack a smile. “You’re right. I’m not nine inches. I’m eight-and-a-half.”
Her jaw falls to the ground. Her eyes turn big and glittery, like she’s in disbelief. “Seriously?”
I nod, a smug feeling swelling through my chest. Yeah, it’s cliché to feel so flattered at her reaction to my dick size, but I can’t help it. I’m a simple guy, and the girl I like is impressed by how big my cock is. I feel like a fucking champion.
She stands there, her mouth hanging open, and makes a noise like she’s in disbelief.
“Wait, do you have to use a Magnum condom?”
Before I can answer, Anna, Poppy, and Briar come walking back out of the falafel place, and we start walking again.
Lucy looks at me expectantly, but I just shrug. “I guess you’ll never find out,” I tease.
A pouty look flashes across her face. Fuck. How does she get cuter and sexier by the minute?
When we make it to the house, music is blasting, and the place is packed. I slide my arm around Lucy’s waist and keep her close to me so she doesn’t fall or lose her balance. She’s still drunk, and I don’t want her to get lost in the crowd.
“Wow! Nice decorations,” Lucy says while gazing around. The guys and I spent the afternoon putting up tons of decorations around the house.
There are fake cobwebs all over the ceiling with huge fake spiders hanging off of them. We propped up a dozen skeletons against the walls. Black and orange streamers hang from the ceiling.
“I love the orange lights.” Lucy smiles and points up at the doorway, which is draped in string lights.
“We thought it helped set the mood,” I say. I grin when I see Wally sitting next to the guys, who are playing beer pong in the dining room. “Wait till you see what we dressed Wally up as.”
Lucy’s eyes light up. “You got him a costume?”
I lead her over there. When she sees Wally, she squeals.
“Oh my god! This is so cute!”
She crouches down and hugs him, then kisses his head. She touches the fuzzy, fake lion’s mane that’s hanging around his neck.
His tail wags like crazy as he licks her face.
“You’re a ferocious lion, Wally.” She laughs and gives him more pets.
The guys smile and chuckle as they watch Lucy.
“Best costume in the whole house, hands down,” Nick says.
“I can’t believe you guys did this,” Lucy says. “This is so awesome.”
“It was all Leo’s idea,” Blake says.
Lucy looks at me. “You did this?”
I nod. “I didn’t want him to feel left out.”
She gazes at me, her smile warm.
Poppy, Briar, and Anna walk over, squealing over Wally’s costume. They all give him pets and kisses and take selfies with him.
“You guys have the cutest couples’ costumes,” Lucy says when the guys greet the ladies.
She offers to take photos of each couple, and I offer to also.
“You look like a real doctor,” I say to Travis, who’s dressed in blue scrubs.
He rolls his eyes. “Yeah, right.”
He slides his arm around Anna, and I take some photos.
“I’m gonna call you Dr. Sexy,” Anna says, smiling up at him. The serious straight line of his mouth softens, and he kisses her.
“You guys really committed to the costume with your wigs,” Lucy says to Briar and Blake.
Blake grins and touches the dark-haired wig he’s wearing. He tugs on the lapel of his leather jacket and glances down at the fake police badge hanging around his neck. “I look incredible, don’t I?”
“I was surprised you didn’t just go shirtless and wear a scary mask,” I joke.
Blake shakes his head, still smiling. “I can’t give away my secret identity.”
Blake has a secret social media account called @ThatShirtlessGuy where he posts photos and videos of himself shirtless and wearing a mask.
He’s apparently a pretty popular thirst trap.
Briar is in the videos with him too, sometimes.
They’ll role-play dark romance tropes and scenes.
They have a ton of followers and get loads of views.
It’s kind of an open secret that @ThatShirtlessGuy account belongs to him. He’s never shown his face on his social media account or publicly acknowledged that it’s his account, but enough people have figured out it’s him. Especially after what happened earlier this season.
He got into a tunnel brawl with Briar’s ex, who played for an opposing team.
In the photos and video clips of the scuffle, his jersey got ripped, revealing a scar on his collarbone.
Some online sleuths noticed That Shirtless Guy had the same scar and figured out it was him.
It was all over college sports news and online too.
Our coach was so pissed off about it that he threatened to bench Blake, but we all rallied around him, and Blake stayed on the team.
He still has his secret account though because I guess it’s pretty lucrative from all the views and brand deals he and Briar get.
Nick hooks his arm over my shoulders. “I think the award for most epic couples costume goes to us. Right, Luigi?”
He grins behind the massive fake mustache he’s wearing. He’s wearing blue overalls, a bright red shirt, white gloves, and a big red hat with the letter “M” on it.
I laugh and roll my eyes. “Whatever you say, Mario.”
We take a bunch of pictures together, then Poppy poses with us.
“Aww, look at Princess Peach and her plumbers.” Lucy giggles.
“Your costume is awesome, Lucy,” Nick says. “Misty rocks.”
The guys all nod along. She blushes. “Thanks. I threw it together at the last minute. I was worried it wouldn’t look very good.”
“No, it looks great,” Nick says.
“Come on, you have to take a big group photo with all of us,” Blake says to her.
He hands his phone to someone, and we all crowd together. Lucy’s smile is shy as she poses with us, but I don’t miss the warm look in her eyes. Like she’s happy to be part of this—part of us.
Something in my chest tightens. I hope she feels like she belongs here. I hope this feels like home to her.