6. Day Old Sushi
Day Old Sushi
MACKLIN
Summer training was easy.
Coach Harrison’s grueling schedule didn’t feel too bad when we didn’t have to juggle two practices a day with classes.
Case in point, after skating until every muscle in my body was screaming in pain, if this was training camp, I could go back to my room and take a nap.
Instead, all I have time for is a shower and a quick breakfast before running to my first class of the day.
Roman History through Art is my elective this year, and my academic advisor was surprised by my choice. He thought I could choose something easier and maybe more relevant to my business major.
I justified my choice by pointing out that electives should allow students to try out new subjects. Stuff that isn’t necessarily included in your major. And thankfully, my advisor agreed.
The truth is a little different.
Originally, I had no intention of signing up for an Art History class.
But while I was browsing the available electives, I overheard Colsen and Tucker talking about Professor Cantucci’s class.
Apparently Tucker has to retake that class if he wants to graduate, but that wasn’t what caught my attention.
Our goalie said that he was hopeful that he would pass it without any issues this year because his sister was taking it too and she would help him if he got stuck.
Talia is a history major, so it made perfect sense for her to take an art history class as an elective.
I signed up before I could talk myself out of it.
Now that I have to be in that class at eight a.m. twice a week, I’m starting to rethink my life choices.
The trade off for getting to look at Talia for a whole hour twice a week is that I need to rush after practice and a nap is out of the question.
And it’s not like I can ever have anything more than looking at her from afar like a total creep.
First off Tucker made it clear with all of us on the team that if we ever dared look at Talia with less than pure, brotherly intentions, he would rip our balls off, flatten them, cover them in rubber and use them as novelty pucks.
But Tucker’s overprotective attitude is the least of my problems when it comes to Talia.
She barely knows that I exist. I mean, obviously she knows that I exist, and we’ve been in each other’s orbits since my freshman year because her brother is my teammate and frat brother.
But she’s never said more than a couple of words to me. At first, that didn’t bother me that much because I was dating Gen.
While I don’t think I’ve ever really been in love with my ex, she was the only girl I’d ever been with.
Our families had been pushing us together since we were kids, and Gen seemed really into me, so I kinda went along with dating my childhood friend.
By the end of high school, a big part of me was questioning whether Gen and I were right for each other, but I’m not a cheater.
I would have never seriously thought about stepping out on her.
Even the few times we broke up or took breaks during the years, I never even looked at other girls.
Things changed last spring when I went to Gen’s house to surprise her with tickets to her favorite band, and I overheard her speaking to her girlfriends.
“So, is it true?” Gen asks. “Does Tucker have the biggest cock you’ve ever seen?”
My girlfriend is lounging by the pool of the mansion Brett rented for her while she attends college.
She’s sunbathing with her two best friends in the tiniest bikini I’ve ever seen, and she’s sipping from a pink plastic goblet.
By the slight slur in her voice, I’m willing to bet that the girls aren’t drinking juice.
“Seriously, Gen, it’s unreal. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like it,” Madison continues. “Not even in porn. He’s like one of those tall boy cans of beer.”
They haven’t seen me yet, and I stop in my tracks and hide behind a tall potted plant when I hear Gen’s next words.
“I’m not gonna believe it until I see it with my own eyes.
It’s decided, I’m gonna fuck Tucker at the next party.
The Cove Knights are playing Yale in the playoffs at home, and it’s the perfect opportunity.
If they win, it’ll be a celebratory hookup.
If they lose, he can drown his sorrows in my pussy.
I’ve heard that aside from his huge assets, Tucker is very talented in making his partner come over and over and over.
Studying for finals is kicking my ass and I could do with some stress relief of the ‘O’ kind. ”
My fists clench at my sides, crumpling the envelope with the tickets I was gonna give Gen. I even went through the trouble of getting actual tickets so I would have something to give her.
“Good luck with that.” Madison sighs. “I hooked up with Tucker at the beginning of the fall semester. I tried to invite him to my room a few times recently, but he turned me down.”
Gen’s giggle is laced with cruelty. “Were you such a lousy lay that he doesn’t want to fuck you again?”
I shake my head. Genevieve can be extremely sweet, but she has a catty side that can come out when you least expect it. I’ve never been on the receiving end of it, but I caught her a couple of times with her Zeta sisters, and I don’t like what I see when she gets this way.
“No,” Madison sounds offended. “It wasn’t something I did or didn’t do. I’m not the only one Tucker sent packing lately. Several sisters have had the same luck when they offered.”
“Maybe you’re all bad in bed.” Gen cackles.
Her other friend, Olivia, intervenes. “No, silly. Mads is right. Remember, a while ago when Tucker got shit faced at the new Art Center on opening night? Rumor has it that he has a crush on Bex, Luke Harper’s sister. That’s why he’s been living like a monk lately.”
Olivia is actually right. Tucker confided in me and Colsen a while back. He can’t stop thinking about Bex and he hasn’t been interested in anyone, no matter how hot and how tempting the offer. He even turned down a threesome with two Zetas.
“Well,” Gen sounds confident. “His dry spell is about to come to an end. I want that cock. And I always get what I want.”
What the actual fuck? I’m about to come out of my hiding spot to discuss her plans to fuck my teammate, but her friends object before I can.
“But what about Mack? Aren’t you two together?” Olivia asks.
Madison chimes in too. “Yeah, what’s up with that? You’ve been together all year. You haven’t broken up since you got back together at the end of last summer. I thought this time you guys were locked in for good.”
I thought so too. Gen and I have had a rocky relationship.
We’ve been on and off since we got together my junior year of high school when she was a senior.
It isn’t like we can’t get along. When we’re together, things are mostly good.
But from time to time, one of us will do something to royally piss off the other.
More often than not, the problem is my schedule. Gen would like me to have more free time for her, but I’m committed to hockey first and to her second. I made that clear from the beginning.
“We are locked in for good.” I can see Gen curling a lock of her long, dark hair around her index finger. “It’s just that…”
Her tone becomes distant, almost wistful.
I think I get it. We started dating so young. And we never got to do casual because our parents practically started choosing our future children’s names the second I took Gen to her senior prom.
I guess I’m not the only one who sometimes wonders how it would be to be with someone else.
During all our breakups, I’ve never acted on that curiosity. Somehow it felt wrong, even if technically I was single. But if Gen wanted to take a break for the purpose of exploring that curiosity, of getting it out of our systems, I wouldn’t be against it.
There would have to be rules, but as long as we agreed on them, we could get what we want without cheating.
Gen’s friends must sense the same angst I feel. “You’re curious.” Madison says. “You two started dating so young, it’s normal to wonder what else is out there when you’ve been just with Mack.”
“Just with Mack?” Gen giggles, but it comes out more like a snort. “Oh, please. Of course I haven’t been just with Mack.”
What the hell? My fists tighten to the point that my nails dig into my palms. The envelope with the concert tickets by now is destroyed, but I don’t give a fuck.
Madison and Olivia look at each other. “Who else have you been with?”
Yeah, who else have you been with, Gen? I would like to know, too.
My girlfriend of almost four years—minus the breaks, but still—flicks the lock of hair she’s been playing with behind her back. “Let’s see, where do I start? I lost my virginity to the personal trainer my daddy hired me in high school to help me make the cheerleading team. He was older and so hot.”
What? I thought Gen and I were each other’s firsts.
“Then remember when I hurt my hamstring during a dance class freshman year? Well, Daddy hired me a masseuse to help loosen it, and let’s just say he was more than happy to offer me a happy ending.”
His two girlfriends giggle. “Wait a second. Mack was still in high school in San Francisco back then, right?”
“Yeah. Long distance already sucks, and with his schedule, we didn’t see each other that much.
A girl has to find some entertainment. We aren’t going to stay this hot forever.
Why would I waste all the effort I put in looking like this on a guy who prefers playing with a stick and a rubber disc rather than playing with me? ”
Jesus.
I knew Gen wanted more attention from me, but I wasn’t aware she was feeling so lonely that she would go look for it elsewhere. I can seriously count the number of times we’ve had sex in the four years we’ve been together on my fingers. I wanted more too, but I never cheated.
“You’re right.” Gen’s friends are on her side, and that doesn’t surprise me.