He grabs my hand and starts walking towards the small football field the team uses for training.
This one has just a few rows of bleachers and it isn't made for the big Friday night games.
It used to be the field we played our games on until a few years ago, when academy decided to pursue qualifications to the state championship and began to give football a prominent place among the school’s sanctioned activities.
That’s when they built a huge football stadium a few miles away and the rally girl tradition began.
But for every day training, the team uses the small field within campus grounds.
Teague places his latte and the paper bag with his breakfast on the dividing wall between the playing field and the first row of bleachers and turns his dark blue gaze on me.
“What would make me feel lucky and play at my best tonight would be if you kissed me.”
This comes as a surprise.
“Me?”
He chuckles softly.
“Yeah, you. I’ve been wanting to kiss you since the first day of school, in the girls’ bathroom.”
I don't say anything, considering that I wanna kiss him too.
I can't help but think about Knox for an instant but like he didn't mind me kissing Landon at the party while we’re only getting to know each other, I don't think he’d have a problem with this.
After all, I’m Teague's rally girl.
And then I think about Macy and Rachel’s plan to give their players a blowjob.
Please God, don't let them accept a blowjob!
If they do, I don't think I wanna get to know either of them better.
But this isn't the time to think about them, not when Teague is looking at me with obvious desire in his eyes.
“Ok. I’ll kiss you. But Teague ...”
“Yes, princess?”
“I’m not kissing you because I’m your rally girl.”
He tilts his head, interrogatively.
“No?”
“No. I’m kissing you because I want to.”
His smile disappears from his lips and he looks suddenly extremely serious.
“Good. I didn't ask you because you're my rally girl. That was just my cover story if you’d said no. I asked you because I like you.”
He whispers that with his eyes intent on mine and before I have any chance to say anything, his big, warm hand cups the side of my face and his lips touch mine.
It's a soft kiss at first: his lips move slowly against mine, as if he is trying to figure me out.
When I respond to his kiss by moving my lips against his too, he increases the pressure.
What makes me open my mouth to his kiss isn't his tongue demanding access but the way he uses his lips, nibbling softly at mine to get me to part for him.
And that's when I lose track of time and space and of anything else that isn't Teague and I, and our soft exploration of each other.
He strokes my tongue with his in a confident and gentle way but at the same time, the way he moves his lips against mine is so hot that I feel dizzy.
Each time his tongue touches mine, his lips almost nibble on mine, like you’d eat a soft serve ice cream.
I love the way I feel his lips and his tongue and when I hug his neck and our chests touch, he takes my bottom lip in his mouth sucking on it and grazing it softly with his teeth.
That makes me feel as if I could melt against him and we keep kissing until the first bell tells us that we need to run unless we wanna be late for class.
IT'S A STRANGE DAY at school today: I wonder if every game day will be the same.
There's a palpable excitement in the air, even the teachers mention the game more than once.
At lunch time, in the cafeteria there's an endless procession of students stopping at the football team table to wish the players good luck.
I feel a little nervous about our cheer routines: it’ll be the first time I perform them in front of a large audience and I can't help but wish that Abi were here to give me courage.
My nerves aren't eased by the heated glances I keep getting from Teague: obviously I’m not the only one that can't forget the kisses we shared this morning.
Ever since I had that dream about him, I’ve been imagining how it would feel to kiss him and I wasn't disappointed.
I’m picking at my pasta salad when Macy and Rachel sit next to me and they both keep throwing annoyed glares at the football team table.
This is when Margaux arrives and sits right by my side, picking at a rather sad looking salad.
I seem to be the only one eating and the other girls are staring at me, so I stop with the fork suspended in mid-air on the way to my mouth and ask them if they're all right.
“Not really! I suspected that Landon liked you after last week’s party but I’m still surprised that he refused a blowjob. I think I’ll either ask for a different player or I might borrow Knox. I know he normally doesn't sleep with a girl more than once but blowjobs don't count!”
I’m about to ask what's the point of blowing a guy who isn't into you when Margaux intervenes.
“Look, Mace, my brother is a lost cause. He really doesn't do relationships, so you and Rachel are wasting your time. See what Coach Benson can do, the third string players normally don't get their own rally girl, we’re all supposed to cheer them on. Maybe you’ll have more luck. The whole fucking point of hooking up with the players is to eventually get to date one. If one’s not interested and my brother’s a twunt (twat + cunt) when it comes to dating, then you need to cut your losses and find someone worthy of your time.”
Rachel complains.
“Yeah, I’ve always known that he doesn't date but when I offered to go down on him this morning after practice, he said ‘no thanks’. You say that he doesn't date but I saw him look at Aubrey all the fucking time. And he took her to the party ...”
Margaux shrugs.
“Just find someone else, for fuck’s sake! Desperation isn't attractive, ya know?”
Macy narrows her eyes at our cheer captain.
“Really? Does that fucking smug attitude mean that QB1 hasn't turned you down?”
She winks in my direction.
“Of course not! No one’s ever turned me down!”
Her words ring in my ears all afternoon, until it's time to get out on the field and cheer our team.
Most of the girls are already warming up on the field but I’m still in our locker room, trying to calm my jittery nerves and to stop thinking about Margaux blowing Devon.
I’m so jealous that I feel sick to my stomach but after the way Devon’s been acting, I’m not surprised that he’s hooking up with someone else.
All his problems, that he won't reveal, aren't an excuse for the way he's been acting towards me.
So I should do myself a favour and forget about him.
“Hey, Aubrey! I need your help!”
And speaking about the devil, Margaux’s head peeks into the locker room.
I follow her outside and she gives me a cooler full of ice and packed with sports drinks.
Macy and Rachel are each carrying identical ones and so is Margaux.
“The guys have already been warming up and it's still so hot outside that they’ll appreciate a drink. Aubrey, please make sure that you give Devon, Teague, and Landon the sugar free lemon ones. They all indicated that they're their favourites and there were only those three when we went shopping. Come on girls! Let's go win this game!”
The guys accept the drinks gratefully: Teague gives me one of his knee weakening winks, Landon kisses my cheek and Devon takes my hand and squeezes it briefly, with his eyes fixed onto mine.
The game is an absolute massacre: the other team is literally obliterated by BHPA and the crowd is especially crazy about Devon.
Our QB1 is unstoppable and throws with stunning precision.
But Teague and Landon are also amazing, fast and always in the right place at the right time.
I know the
guys haven't been playing with Devon for long but you’d never guess by looking at their dynamic on the field.
At the end of the game, the cheer team is first on the school bus that will take us to Principal McArthur’s house for the traditional first victory bonfire.
We’re all surprised that the football team has taken longer than us to shower and change, especially when we wait for almost an hour.
When they finally arrive on the bus, Mrs Stubbs asks Coach Benson what took them so long.
The coach shrugs.
“Both teams got drug tested. Apparently the league is tightening up on doping after some allegations that our opponents last year had used steroids to enhance their performance. But, nothing to worry about, we keep a close eye on our boys. Come on team! Let's go party!”
6.
Chances
Landon
THERE'S NOTHING LIKE having to pee in a cup to put a fucking dampener on a victory!
But whatever!
I’ve never as much as taken an aspirin on game day, because mostly I’ve got so much adrenaline coursing through my body, that it feels like nothing can touch me.
And tonight on the field I was feeling especially excited because I knew that she was there.
I felt Aubrey's eyes on me the whole time and I wanted to show her that I’m as good a player as Teague.
I know my friend likes her, we’ve talked about it after last week’s party.
If anything, I’d have expected to see Knox really pissed off about what I did at the party but he hasn't really said much to me other than that he thought that kissing Aubrey while she was on a date with him was disrespectful.
And I agree, it was a bit of a shitty move on my part.
But I couldn't resist: the moment I noticed Aubrey sitting in the auditorium on the first day of school, when she blurted out that ‘fuck me’, I liked her.
I liked her like I’ve never liked any girl before.
It obviously wasn’t in love, you can't ‘love’ someone you just see for the first time, but I thought she looked so beautiful and her voice had a warmth that made my heart beat faster.
Then I talked to her and have been hanging with her every day at lunch and during every break at school.
And the more I know about her, the more I like her.
Her sense of humour, her kindness and her tendency to swear when she's surprised or amused, made me want to know her better.
There's only one problem: Teague likes her too.
We’re not super tight or anything, but he's definitely my best friend at school and on the team and he told me what happened on that morning in the girls’ bathroom.
He said that he was gonna ask Aubrey out.
I didn't hide the fact that I wanted to ask her out too and my friend surprised me by not getting mad at me.
He said we could maybe both take her to Knox's party?
I liked the idea because it would take a lot of pressure off me.
One of the reasons why I liked Aubrey is that she didn't look as ‘boy crazy’ as the other girls at BHPA.
This is the thing at school: it's like a constant race for who's hooking up with whom.
Who sleeps with more people, who sleeps with the most popular people and ultimately who gets the best relationship on paper, the one that furthers your social standing.
And boys and girls both play this game: admittedly, boys are more interested in the hooking up side of things but girls are actually the worst.
They compete with one another ruthlessly and they’ll use sex as a weapon to belittle their rivals and to get the best and most popular boyfriend.
And obviously the football players are prime targets: the most desirable traits that BHPA girls want in a hookup and potential boyfriend are social status and family wealth.
So a rich football player is at the top of the social ranks at the academy.
This is why both Teague and Knox even tried out for the team to begin with.
They're both filthy rich and being on the team, would get them laid more than they could handle.
I joined the team because I genuinely like the game but obviously I never complained about the attention I got from the girls at school, especially the cheerleaders.
Because there's also the reverse aspect of the situation: for a girl to get to the top of the social and dating ranks, a guy would look at how hot she is, how popular she is and her family's standing.
So a hot, rich cheerleader would definitely be having the pick of any guys she wanted.
Teague and Knox fucked their way through their junior year: they weren't on the starting team but they were the most popular guys in our class.
The natural heirs to the A-Team that last year took our school to victory in the state championship: Max, Reece, Chaz and Pryce.
So they actually had a bit of a challenge going on between them about who’d fuck more girls.
They took it pretty damn seriously and I think that while the whole thing started as a friendly competition, by the end of the school year, they started to actively dislike each other.
I always was part of the pack and acted as their wingman at parties and I’ve gotta say, that while I wasn't interested in competing against them, I certainly reaped the benefits of hanging out with them.
The amount of hand jobs and blowjobs I got last year is something I don't know if I should be proud or ashamed of.
However I didn't join their race to see who fucked the most.
Don't get me wrong, like every hot blooded seventeen year old boy, I found it really hard to say no when a pretty girl offered to ‘entertain me’ but I always wanted sex to mean something.
Especially my first time, I wanted it to be with someone I cared about and who cared about me.
So I waited and up until now, I haven't found that special someone.
I just hope that Aubrey turns out to be her because I’ve never liked anyone as much as I like her so far.
I know that Teague will be ok if we both get to know her, at least at first.
Knox might be a completely different matter but I’m not bowing down.
I really want this girl.
Principal McArthur’s house is right on the beach and when we arrive there are several bonfires already lit, food being cooked and a makeshift dance floor lit by tiki torches.
It's a school sponsored event, so there's a strict no alcohol policy but because the only students taking part are mostly seniors, all the adults in charge mainly keep to the house, leaving us to our own devices.
Every now and then someone will come and check on us with the excuse to make sure that there's still ice in the coolers full of sodas and water that dot the beach.
This doesn't mean that people don’t hook up: it only means that they're careful to find a private spot if they decide to.
Obviously there's a group that immediately sheds their clothes with the intention to go skinny dipping.
I’m not surprised to see Margaux and Macy in it.
Margaux is trying to convince Devon to join and attempts to grab the buckle of his belt to undo it.
I’m standing next to Teague with Aubrey between us and I don't miss the way she’s looking at the scene Margaux and Devon are offering.
What surprises me is that while trying to resist the cheer captain’s advances, Devon turns to look at our group and his eyes settle on Aubrey.
The two silently stare at each other for a moment and I see Aubrey’s lips tighten in a displeased straight line.
When Aubrey begins turning away from them, Devon seems to decide to disrobe and follow Margaux and the others into the dark sea water.
I’m not sure what just happened here: Devon and Aubrey have maybe exchanged five words since school started and they don't seem to like each other much.
But I’ve been catching our QB1 looking at her when he thinks that no one else is watching.
I bet he wants her too but he seems stuck with his rally girl who's determined to
become more than his personal cheerleader.
Talking about rally girls, Teague lowers his head to whisper something in Aubrey’s ear, making her giggle and I feel a pang of jealousy that she's his rally girl.
I’m afraid that this will put Teague at an advantage compared to me and that she’ll choose him.
But tonight fate is on my side because a bunch of other players have decided to have an arm wrestling competition and come to drag Teague into their fold.
So all my dreams seem to come true when I find myself alone with Aubrey.
“Are you all right with your soda or do you need a refill?”
I ask with a smile and she says that she's fine.
I debate if I should ask her to dance but then I think that this is a really great opportunity to get to know her and the dance floor isn't the best place to talk, so I ask her if she’d like to go for a walk along the beach.
“Sure, that sounds nice.”
She has the most beautiful smile I’ve ever seen, it always reaches her eyes.
I’m not the bravest or most daring person, the way I kissed Aubrey last week taking advantage of that suck and blow card game is really out of character for me but I remember the way Knox was looking at Aubrey and the looks Teague gives her, so I summon all my courage and grab her hand while we walk.
She doesn't try to resist and we walk alongside each other for a few steps.
“So, how do you like BHPA compared to Aylesbury?”
Her smile widens and she says that ‘American high school’ is different than what she was used to.
“I did all my schooling up to sophomore year in Hong Kong. It was an international school for mostly expats and rich locals and the curriculum was as hard as it is here if not harder but the social aspect was much simpler. We were a much smaller school anyway, so we all knew each other.”
I think about it for a second and then ask her something that's quite important:
“So, did you leave behind anyone special at Aylesbury or in Hong Kong?”
She smiles softly and looks at me in that direct way that I like so much about her.
“Landon Campbell, are you as asking me if I have a boyfriend?”
Beverly Hills Prep Academy The Complete Boxset : A Light Bully Romance Page 70
