Chapter Six
Getting ice cream with my brother was a lot of fun. We talked about everything under the sky. I made sure not to bring up Gage, though, because I had a feeling that wouldn’t go over so well. Luke could be very protective over stupid things like that. Plus, I didn’t plan on talking to Gage again, especially after the way he treated me earlier. Being a jerk doesn’t get you anywhere.
Just being with Luke and doing something normal to us made me feel a lot better. To me it helped make my first day of college better. I hadn’t expected to feel this way or need my brother so much, but I did, and I was so glad I decided to go to Columbia instead of NYU.
Sadly, we couldn’t stay and eat ice cream forever. Luke had to get back so he could get ready for the football game tonight. I knew it was a big deal for him and Ethan. First game of the season, and they were hoping to take it all this year. I knew they could and probably would. When Luke set his eyes on something, he wouldn’t stop until he got it. That was what made him great at sports, and it would be great for when he took over the company from my father in the future.
The car ride back to campus was a quick one. Luke and I sang loudly along with a song on the radio. Both of us sounded like dying whales, but it didn’t stop us from screaming loudly to the words. We had only sung along to two songs before Luke pulled into a parking spot. A few cars over, I could see my own car sitting there.
My car was my baby. Instead of letting my parents pay for one, I made them a deal: I would get straight As for two semesters and pay half if they would pay for the other half, which they agreed to do. My 2010 Honda Accord wasn’t the prettiest car, but I worked hard to get it. It ran like a charm and I never had any problems with it. My dad did want to get me a new car for graduation, something more “dependable,” he said, but I refused. I earned this car and it worked perfect for me. I didn’t drive all the time but when I did, it did the job. Plus, it showed how independent I was. I wanted to work for things in life, not have them handed to me.
I couldn’t say the same about Luke, though. For graduation he accepted a 2014 Jeep Wrangler from our parents. Sure, he already had a car that he did pay for himself, but in his words, “Why turn down a free car?” Yup, that was my brother, ladies and gentlemen. Luke did, however, help my parents to kind of pay back something for the car. So it wasn’t a total handout. And I had to say it was a pretty damn nice car—a bright cherry-red color that you could see from a mile away. It had four doors and the top came off. To him, it definitely was a chick magnet. And it was fun to drive; he had only let me drive it a few times and maybe one other, without his permission.
“Thank you for the ice cream, Luke,” I said as we trekked back toward our dorm buildings.
“No problem. It is our thing; we can’t stop doing it.”
I smiled at that. Luke was definitely the best brother anyone could ever have. Even if he looked out for me too much, I was glad he did. Without him, I didn’t know what I would do. I always thanked my lucky stars that I got such a great family. A few minutes later we came to a stop in front of my dorm building.
“I’ll see you tonight at the game. Good luck and kick some ass,” I said, smiling over a him.
“Good, I will look for you and Mace in the front row. Make sure to wear my jersey.” He pulled me into a bear hug. I squeezed him back, breathing in his scent.
“Good luck and tell Ethan the same,” I said pulling away.
“I will. See you in a few hours.” With a quick peck on my forehead, Luke bounded away. Grinning at that, I turned and headed inside.
When I entered the apartment, I saw Macey sitting on the couch staring intently at the TV. She had changed out of her jeans to her PJ bottoms.
“Hey,” I greeted, going over and flopping down beside her.
“Hey. How was the date with your brother?” she asked.
“Wow, that didn’t sound disgusting or anything.”
Macy just waved me off, still staring at the TV.
“It was good. We went to this cute little ice cream shop a few minutes away from here, and it was great.” She of course didn’t reply.
“How was your final class?” I asked. That got her attention.
“The class was okay, but there is a total hottie who sits a few seats down from me.” As she said that, my mind flashed to my English class, when Gage sat only a few seats away from me as well. “I didn’t get his name, but Car, he is a cutie.”
I couldn’t help but shake my head at her. She was always like this. If there was a guy who was slightly cute, she would go on and on about him before a new one came along. Thankfully, though, she didn’t go out with any of them. She just liked to look, as she always told me. When it came to boyfriends, Macey was very loyal.
“So I was thinking that since the game isn’t until eight, that we would go grab something to eat in a few hours then head over. Sound good?”
“Yup, it does. You do have the passes, though, right?”
“They are on my dresser.” We lapsed into silence, Mace watching whatever was on TV and me texting my parents.
“Hey, Mace, have you heard from Amy?” I asked suddenly. I hadn’t heard a thing from her since the day of the frat party.
“Actually, I haven’t. She hasn’t replied to any of my texts.” She frowned. That was too unusual. It wasn’t a big deal if Amy didn’t reply to us for a day or two, but we both thought since we started school today, she would be wanting to tell us about how there were tons of hot guys in her classes, or how the professors were rude. Hell, she’d even tell us about cheering at tonight’s game.
“I bet she is just busy with classes and getting ready for the game tonight,” I supplied. Macey nodded, although obviously not entirely convinced.
We sat around watching TV and talking before going to go eat somewhere. I knew from past games that everywhere would be busy over the next few hours, as everyone went to eat before going to the game. Football here at Columbia University was a big deal. People got really into it, especially on the first game day. This year would be the worst, since everyone believed the team would go undefeated all year and win the championship.
Both of us were expecting tons of people tonight and were beyond grateful we already had passes for seats. I knew my parents would probably come tonight as well. They never missed Luke or Ethan’s first game. Of course they couldn’t come to each game, but as long as they came to this one and the last one, it was all good.
The next hour or so passed by quickly, and soon both of us headed to our rooms to get changed. It wouldn’t be too cold, thankfully, and being surrounded by tons of people, we wouldn’t have to worry about being cold. Deciding that my tan skinny jeans wouldn’t look good with Luke’s sky-blue jersey, I quickly stripped them off, grabbing another light blue pair. With Luke’s last year’s jersey on, I tied it with a hair band since it was too big for my frame.
I didn’t mind our school colors: a light sky blue, white, and dark blue. Once I had the jersey on, I slipped my black booties back on. Looking in my full-length mirror, I noticed my hair was still curled but looked more relaxed. Liking my outfit, I headed to the bathroom to quickly fix my makeup before we left.
Making sure I had everything in my purse and my newly charged cell phone, Macey, and my camera to take photos, we left the apartment. Macey was dressed in her clothes that she wore all day, unlike me. Luke had offered for her to wear one of his jerseys, but she always refused.
“I bet you are excited for the game tonight. Front row to seeing Ethan in tight football pants.” Macey winked at me.
“No, that isn’t why…” I trailed off.
“Yeah, right, I saw the way you looked at him the other day.”
“I was not!”
“Oh come on, yes you were. It was plain as day.” She shrugged. I knew she was right. I was actually surprised that Ethan or Luke hadn’t figured it out.
“I know,” I muttered.
“Maybe you should just tell him how you feel. Get
it off your chest,” Mace suggested, glancing over at me.
“You know I can’t do that.”
“Why not? You are both adults now, and you have been holding this in for years.”
“But, Mace, if I tell him, it will get all awkward because he won’t return the same feelings. And with him being Luke’s best friend, he is always around, so it would be even worse, and Luke would find out. It would just be a disaster.” I had been through all the options and there was no way it would work. Everyone would end up with the same result: me heartbroken and my brother hating me. Yup, I did not want to go down that road.
“Just think about it, okay? I hate seeing you pining after him so hard.” She sent me a sympathetic smile. You and me both. A few minutes later we walked up to 95 Degrees. We had literally only been here for three days and had been here every one. They would definitely start to know us here. But it kind of wasn’t our fault; the café was literally five minutes away.
“You know the people in this place are going to hate us soon,” I commented as we got in line to order.
“So? They have good food and delicious coffee. What more could we want?” I couldn’t argue against that.
Ordering the same hamburger I got a few days ago, with fries, I moved to the side for Mace. I grinned hearing her order the same thing. That was why we were such good friends; we both loved food. We lucked out by finding a small table near the back. The place was packed, and almost everyone was wearing the schools color for the game.
“So you didn’t tell me if there were any hot guys in your classes,” Mace said as we sat down. Instantly Gage’s face appeared in my mind. I didn’t know why, especially when he was nothing but a jerk to me. Since I didn’t answer right away, Macey took that to mean yes.
“What? There is! You better tell me who!” she practically yelled. I glanced around, not wanting everyone to stare at us.
“It’s no one,” I muttered, taking a sip of my water.
“Nuh-uh, you aren’t getting away with not telling me.” I let out a sigh. I should have known Macey would find out about Gage.
“Fine, but it’s nothing.”
“When it comes to guys, it isn’t nothing. Spill.”
Knowing I couldn’t keep anything from her, I told her everything from when she drunk dialed me and having Gage help me, to our encounter this morning after class. Once I started talking, I couldn’t stop myself from telling her practically everything. Because we were so close and had always told each other everything, I knew Macey would understand or at least help me in some way. I stopped a few times, once when our food arrived, and when Macey asked about Gage carrying her inside the apartment.
“Wow, he sounds hot,” she said a minute after I finished.
“Really? That is all you got out of that?” I munched on a fry.
“Basically, yeah.” She grinned at me. “But no really, that is all he has said to you?”
“Yeah, only like twenty words and all of them were rude. I was just trying to be nice.” I frowned.
“Cart, you may have thought you were being nice by thanking him again, but guys find it annoying when you keep bringing it up. And from the sounds of it, this Gage guy doesn’t have much patience.”
“No kidding,” I muttered softly.
“Do you know anything about him? Last name? Age? Has a brother or best friend that is hot perhaps?” At the last part I sent her a look, to which she just wiggled her eyebrows.
“I don’t know his last name or his age…” I trailed off thinking about him. He didn’t look much older than me or Luke. But there was something about him that screamed maturity, like he had seen more than he should at his age. I tried to remember if he said his last name or anyone else’s, but I came up blank. I didn’t know his last name. “Plus I don’t think he has any friends, with his attitude.”
“Well I’ll settle for a brother or maybe a cousin. If they are anything like you said, then I will be just fine.” Gage’s face popped into my mind. I had only seen his full face once, when I was cleaning his cuts, but it was like it was engraved in my mind—his strong jawline, pointed nose that looked like he had maybe broken it a few times, and his gorgeous hazel eyes. Yes, there was no doubt he was hot.
“If you are done thinking about him, we may want to go.” Macey’s voice jerked me out of my thoughts.
“Sorry. I’m ready.” I quickly drank the last of my water before standing up. Grabbing our dirty trays, we put them in the designated area before heading out the door. We definitely went at the right time because the line was already out the door.
“Hey Mace, can we maybe not tell my parents or Luke about this?” I asked, playing with my fingers as we headed toward the football stadium.
“Definitely not. Your father would have the poor guy followed and interrogated, and forget about Luke or Ethan. They would track him down and beat his ass. We will be keeping him to ourselves for now.” I nodded with her. She was right; my father would go insane until he found Gage and figured out everything about him, and let’s not get started on Luke or Ethan. They both would find him and tell him to leave me alone. This was why you don’t have brothers, people.
“Thanks, Mace.” I smiled over at her. She was the only one who really knew how protective the boys in my family were of me, hell, practically her too. They thought of Macey as their daughter/sister, so it was only reasonable they would just as protective of her as they were of me.
“You are eighteen. You can decide who you want to hang out with or what you want to do. College is where you make terrible decisions and then look back on them laughing about it.” My mom told me before I left.
They do say that college is one of the best experiences you will ever have. A time to do stupid/crazy things that you may regret in the future, but nothing too severe that could haunt you forever. A time to do things out of your comfort zone and experience new things.
By now it was nearing 7:15. We were a little early but having to go through the crowds, security, and finding our seats was going to be crazy. Macey and I stuck close to one another as we got closer to the stadium, not wanting to lose each other. All around us was a sea of blue shirts, bare chests, and jerseys. I could tell quite a few of the students around us were already hammered because they were yelling loudly, messing around, and had beer bottles in their hands.
More than a few guys were shirtless, covered in blue paint. We passed by a group of guys that were shirtless and had different letters painted on them. Let’s just say that only a few looked good shirtless; there were a few that probably should have worn a shirt. Thankfully it was dark out, or they would have been sunburned by the end of the game.
It was only a little chilly tonight. Definitely warmer than it was the other day when I went to get Macey from the frat party. But then again, it could be because we were surround by tons of people. As we continued to move forward to the tickets part, I could feel all the excitement from everyone melting into me. The feeling was addictive.
Macey and I almost got separated, but I quickly grabbed her hand steering us to a line. Glad I took out our passes earlier, I showed them to the lady. Checking the pass, she let us through. Walking in the direction we needed to go, I looked around grinning at people. I forgot how big the first game of the season was. Everywhere around us people were yelling or chanting the school’s name or mascot. Not even a second later we passed by someone wearing a Lions costume, going around high-fiving everyone. Yup, our school mascot was the lion.
Seeing as it took us about twenty minutes to get in, we made our way to the entrance we needed. Having front row seats was nice because we could skip all the crowds. After the steward made sure we had real tickets, we went down to our seats. The place was slowly starting to fill up, and you could really feel the excitement in the air. Our seats were directly in the middle of the stadium on the same side that the team would stand on. Pulling out my phone as we sat down, I wondered when my parents would show up.
We’d only been sittin
g for a few minutes when the cheerleaders came out, Amy being one of them. Standing up, Macey and I leaned over the railing yelling her name. She was close to the end of the line and when she saw and heard us, she waved. I thought it was great that she was able to get on the team and only be a freshman. She wanted us try out with her, but cheerleading was definitely not my forte, and neither was it Macey’s.
Macey and I talked back and forth for a few minutes before I heard my name being called. Turning, I saw my parents making their way toward us. The moment they were close enough, my mother launched herself at me. Her arms wrapped tight around my body, stopping air from reaching my lungs.
“Oh, how I missed you!” she said into my ear, squeezing me tighter. I hugged her back, breathing in her scent. Next to me, Macey hugged my father.
“I missed you too,” I said quietly.
“Can I hug my daughter now too?” my dad asked, a teasing tone to his voice. My mom reluctantly pulled away from me, letting my dad move past her.
“Hey sweetheart,” he said before pulling me into a bear hug. I had to stand on my toes to reach him. I loved my dad’s hugs; they always made you feel warm and loved. While I hugged him, my mom grabbed Macey pulling her into an equally tight hug.
“Hi Dad.” I took a minute to breathe in his scent too. The smell of his familiar cologne filled my nose, making me realize I missed him more than I thought. The way we acted, you would have thought we hadn’t seen each other for months, but it had only been three days. Once my dad let me go, we all took our seats, my mother beating my father to sit next to me.
“So how are you girls doing? Have you been eating right? Did you go to classes today?” My mother, Layla, spat out questions one after another.
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