by Hazel Kelly
“What position do you play, Luke?” the girl asked again, undeterred by the fact that I was drunk enough to completely forget she’d sat down beside me.
“Cleaner,” I said.
“Cleaner?” She crinkled her nose. “I’ve never heard of that one before.”
“Really?” I asked. “I’m surprised. It’s a really important position.”
They each tilted an ear towards me, filling my personal space with the smell of cheap perfume.
“Basically, it’s my job to clean the footballs after practice so they’re easier to throw and catch.”
Their faces dropped.
“I also wash the guys’ uniforms so they sparkle on game day,” I said. “I’m sort of a wizard when it comes to OxiClean.”
They looked at each other.
“What about you guys?” I asked. “What are you studying?”
They made an excuse to leave before they’d even answered the question.
“Dude.” Jordan collapsed on the empty seat beside me a minute later. “What happened?” he asked. “I teed those twins right up for you.”
“I thought they looked alike. I feel like less of an asshole now for not being able to tell them apart.”
“They wanted the tour,” he said, elbowing me.
“There’s a shock.”
“How did you blow it so fast?” he asked. “You couldn’t even keep them entertained for two whole minutes. I thought you were Mr. Never-Get-Rejected.”
“I told them I was the team cleaner.”
He furrowed his brow. “What?”
“I said I wash everyone’s jerseys and clean the mud off all the balls after practice.”
“Why the fuck would you do that?”
I shrugged. “Didn’t seem right to waste their time.”
“Weird, man.”
I tilted my empty cup towards him.
He dumped half his beer in it so fast it foamed up to the edge.
“You seemed to be hitting it off with blondie earlier,” I said. “Did that come to anything?”
“Not yet,” he said. “I figured I’d give her a few minutes to realize I’m the pick of the bunch and catch up with her later.”
“Looks like it’ll have to be much later,” I said, nodding across the room. “Isn’t that her going upstairs with Troy?”
“Fuck,” he said, rising from his seat.
I put my hand on his shoulder and pulled him back down. “Please tell me you weren’t about to chase after her.”
“I wasn’t,” he said. “I was just going for a top up.”
“You’re full of it. Let it go.”
He dropped his head back on the couch. “I thought I had her.”
“Next time, buddy.” I looked in my cup of foam. “Consider her a warm up.”
“You want a change of scene?” he asked.
“Yeah, I do.”
“Head to the backyard or—”
“No.” I handed him my cup and stood up. “I think I’m out of here.”
“What?”
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“I guess I know better than to argue with you,” he said, combining the beers again.
I was about to see myself out when a thought made me stop and turn around. “Please tell me you have a condom.”
He patted his pockets before shaking his head.
I exhaled my disappointment, slid one from my wallet, and handed it to him. “Don’t be an idiot.”
“Thanks,” he said, shoving it in his pocket.
“Good luck,” I said. Then I weaved my way past all the people grinding on each other’s bodies and shouting in each other’s faces before stepping over a clusterfuck of empty egg cartons scattered across the kitchen floor on my way out.
When the cool night air finally hit my face, it gave me a burst of energy, and I was sure I’d done the right thing by leaving.
Especially when I saw Rosie through the window at Grogan’s.
S E V E N
- Rosie -
I was mostly fine with the outfit Nikki gave me. It was ten times sluttier than anything I’d normally wear, of course, but I was getting ten times more attention.
And not only was that kind of fun—though I’d never admit that to her—I would’ve looked foolish rolling up with her cheerleading friends in my regular clothes.
Plus, I hadn’t paid for a drink all night. Oh wait—that’s not true. I blew twenty bucks on Jägerbombs for me and the other girls when we arrived, but that was no big deal.
The big deal was that I had no fucking clue how many drinks I’d actually consumed…though it was a wonder I could drink at all with Nikki’s tight black choker around my neck.
Still, I was having a killer time. Until the guy I was dancing with tried to slip his fingers up my skirt.
I swatted his hand away, took a step back, and shot him the most disgusted look I could manage before leaving the dance floor in a hurry. Then I weaved my way to the bar to catch a breather.
One flash of my wristband earned me a quick Bud Light, and when my pulse finally slowed in my chest, I started scanning the sea of flashing faces for Nikki.
“Happy birthday,” a familiar voice said in my ear.
I turned around and let my eyes climb the broad chest in front of me up to Luke’s smiling face. My whole body relaxed with a sigh of relief. “It’s not my birthday.”
“Happy belated, then,” he said, leaning an elbow on the bar.
“Did I miss something?”
“No,” he said. “But I obviously missed a few of your birthdays if you’ve got a wristband.”
I smiled. “You must be confusing me with someone else. My name is Caitlin Wilkes from Springfield, born November 1, 1992.”
He laughed, his lone dimple drawing my eyes to his left cheek. “That didn’t sound memorized at all, Caitlin.”
“Thanks,” I said, pulling the ID Nikki got me from my purse. “I’ve been practicing.”
His eyes bounced between me and the ID. “Not bad.”
I snatched it back. “Can I buy you a drink?”
“No thanks,” he said. “I’m taking a break.”
“I insist,” I said, flagging the bartender down. “You can’t walk around empty-handed in here.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said, his eyes falling down my body in a way that made every part of me contract.
“Here you go,” I said, sliding an ice bomb his way.
“You got me an ice bomb?” he asked. “I said I was taking a break.”
“I think you’ll like it,” I said. “It matches your eyes.”
He raised his brows.
“And there’s, like, six shots in it so—”
“Are you trying to get me drunk?” he asked, pulling the straw out and laying it on the bar.
“Only enough that you don’t notice how drunk I am,” I said, feeling unusually confident in my sexy costume.
“How long have you been here?” he asked, taking a sip of his drink.
I couldn’t help but notice how small the large blue concoction looked in his hands. “What time did it get dark?”
“Maybe seven.”
“Since before then.”
He smiled. “Who are you here with?”
“Nikki and some of her friends from the cheerleading team.” My heart fluttered when he didn’t take his eyes off me to look for her. I’d always been insecure about the fact that they dated for a few weeks back in high school, though neither of them ever brought it up. Even so, it bothered me that she’d kissed him and I hadn’t, that she’d gotten over him and I hadn’t. “Hence my costume,” I said, offering a little curtsy.
“I thought you were wearing that for me.”
A warm flush pricked my cheeks. “You like it?”
“I’d like you in a Hefty bag.”
My eyes widened.
“That didn’t come out the way I intended,” he said. “I meant you’d look good in anything.”
One corner of
my mouth curved up. “You say that shit to all the girls.”
“Maybe,” he said. “But when I say it to you, I actually mean it.”
Was he flirting with me? Or was I only feeling lightheaded because my choker was blocking the blood flow to my brain? “Who are you here with?” I asked. “I thought there was a party at the football house tonight?”
“Nikki tell you that?”
“Yeah.”
“There was,” he said. “I just left there.” His Adam’s apple bobbed as he took a large gulp of his ice bomb. “I only came in here because I saw you and you looked…”
“What?”
“Like you missed me,” he said, obviously pleased with himself.
I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned around.
The guy who’d gotten fresh was standing in front of me with his shirt halfway untucked. “I’m sorry,” he yelled. “I thought you were up for it.”
“I wasn’t,” I said, turning around and making a don’t-even-ask face at Luke.
A moment later, I felt a hand slide around my waist as a warm breath enveloped my ear. “Let’s dance again.”
I pushed his hand off me. “I’m talking to someone,” I said as I spun around. “And I don’t want to dance with you, okay? Leave me alone.”
The guy’s face twisted in disgust. “Fucking tease,” he hissed.
“She said leave her alone,” Luke said, stepping up behind me with all the presence of a bear.
The guy looked at Luke like he was weighing up his options. In the end, he just skulked off.
When I turned around again, Luke was so close to me my breath hitched in my throat. “You didn’t have to intervene,” I said. “I had everything under control.”
“I know you did,” he said. “I wasn’t helping you. I was helping him.”
“I’m not following.”
“He looked like he needed some help deciding to do the right thing.”
I took a swig of my beer. “In that case, he could’ve used your help twenty minutes ago.”
“Sorry?”
“Nothing,” I said, waving a hand between us. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Did he bother you earlier, too?”
“He tried.” Some girls crowded the bar behind me so I had to move closer to Luke for a second.
He fixed his eyes on me. “What did he do?”
“He tried to slip his hand up my skirt.”
Luke clenched his jaw.
“It’s fine,” I said, laying a hand on his chest for too long and liking it. “Nothing happened.”
“He’s really lucky I didn’t know that before.”
“Why?”
“Because I would’ve broken every bone in his hand,” he said, a frightening look in his eye.
“That won’t be necessary. He got the message just fine.”
“That’s not okay, Rosie.” He rolled his shoulders back and looked around.
“Please relax. Forget I said anything.”
He looked down at me. “You don’t get it, do you?”
I cocked my head. “Get what?”
“That’s our whole problem.”
“What is?”
He sighed. “I never forget anything you say.”
E I G H T
- Luke -
It pissed me off that Rosie wasn’t more upset. “He better not come around here again.”
“You need to relax,” she said. “I’m flattered and everything, but defending my honor is not your job.”
She was right, as much as it hurt to hear her say it. I needed to calm the fuck down.
“You want to get some fresh air?” she asked, knocking back the rest of her beer.
“I’m not a child. I don’t need a time out.”
“I know,” she said. “I’m just kind of sick of shouting over the music… It was just a suggestion.”
“You want to get a six-pack and go back to mine or something?”
She smiled. “Are you asking me to buy booze for you?”
“Isn’t that supposed to be one of the perks of hanging out with older women, Caitlin?”
“Good point. If I don’t scram now, I might have to give my ID back to Nikki’s friend.”
“Does that mean you don’t need to say goodbye?”
“I’ll text her,” she said, nodding at my drink. “It’ll be more efficient.”
I downed the rest of my blue hangover waiting to happen. “After you,” I said, gesturing for her to lead the way so I could keep an eye on her for both our sakes.
She pushed through the crowd towards the exit, her gorgeous curves shimmying past strangers who had no clue how rare it was to see her in something so revealing. And yet, part of me preferred the way she looked in her regular uniform of oversized sweaters and quirky glasses, both of which Nikki had obviously persuaded her to leave at home that night.
Maybe that was strange, but I always thought she made sense in layers. After all, why shouldn’t a person’s outside match their inside?
Besides, I got great mileage out of pondering how I might get her to reveal her layers to me…and how they might look on my floor.
“What did you mean in there?” she asked after shooting a text off to Nikki. “When you said our whole problem is that you remember everything I say?”
I shoved my hands in my pockets and turned towards the closest liquor store. “Nothing.”
“It didn’t seem like nothing when you said it.”
“I was just running my mouth,” I said. “Any sign of your roommate yet?”
She slung her small black purse across her body. “There was evidence that she stopped by twice this week, but I didn’t see her.”
“Evidence?”
“The first time, I came back to the room, and it smelled like cigarettes.”
“And the second?” I asked.
“There were muddy footprints between the door and her closet.”
“I wonder what she’s up to.”
“Nikki thinks she might be one of those weirdos who dresses up like a clown and scares the shit out of people.”
I raised my eyebrows.
“But I checked her makeup bag, and there’s nothing unusual in it.”
“Maybe you should follow her.”
She shrugged. “I have my own less exciting theory.”
“Oh?”
“I think she probably stays with her girlfriend.”
“What makes you think she’s gay?”
“Her music collection.”
I opened the door to the liquor store and followed Rosie inside.
“Plus, she gave me the condoms from her welcome pack and took my dental dam.”
“Sorry,” I said, squinting. “You lost me there.”
She sighed. “Our RA gave everyone a welcome pack with all this random stuff in it, and she put her condoms in my bag and took the other thing.”
“Which was what exactly?”
She blushed as she opened the cooler at the back of the store. “I guess it’s like a condom,” she said, not looking at me. “But it’s for covering a woman’s…private parts.”
“Wow.” I reached past her and grabbed a cheap six-pack.
“I know, right?” she said, closing the door. “I thought I was supposed to get my education during class hours.”
“How did you even know what it was?”
“Nikki told me.”
I blew some air out between my lips. “She’s really learned a lot since we went out.” I regretted it as soon as I said it, but Rosie had already grabbed the beer from me and headed to the register.
It’s not like we’d been serious. We only dated for a few weeks during the spring of sophomore year after meeting in Driver’s Ed, and the entire relationship never amounted to anything more than some stolen kisses and two trips to second base.
Unfortunately, it was just one more thing that made it hard to get something going with Rosie, and for that, I often regretted that it ever happened.
; “Let me take those,” I said when we walked out.
“Definitely keeping this ID,” she said, handing me the bag of beer. “The guy didn’t even do a double take.”
I pulled my wallet out and handed her a ten-dollar bill. “These are on me.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“No,” I insisted. “You got my drink at the bar.”
Her reticence to take my money annoyed me. I knew she was well off, but that didn’t mean I wanted her charity.
“Fine,” she said, clasping the bill and shoving it in her bag. “But I’m getting dinner on Friday.”
“What brought that up?”
“I picked the place,” she said. “And you’re doing me a favor by coming. It’s only fair.”
“We’ll see about that,” I said, pulling out my phone.
“Who are you texting?”
“My roommate,” I said, keeping my fingers crossed that he’d still be out.
A minute later, he texted back saying he’d brought some bustdown from the party back to ours, which meant I needed a new plan. There was no way Rosie would be comfortable hanging at mine while he grunted behind his bedroom door.
“Mind if we take the scenic route?” I asked.
“The scenic route?”
“There’s this place I want to show you,” I said, wracking my brain for ideas.
“What place?”
“It’s a surprise.”
“Does that mean your roommate’s getting busy and you haven’t thought of a place yet?”
“Am I that easy to read?”
She tucked a stray wisp of hair behind her ear and smiled.
The expression made my guts ache and brought to mind the question I’d been asking myself for years.
Why hadn’t I fought harder for her?
N I N E
- Rosie -
Luke popped open a beer and handed it to me.
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” I asked.
“Good is a stretch,” he said. “But it beats drinking in a park or on the quad or somewhere we’re likely to get arrested. Plus, I’m pretty sure your fake ID is a federal offense.”
