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“What do you want?” She asked without a morsel of kindness.
“To say I’m sorry.”
She pulled on a machine’s handle so hard I thought it would pop off and fly into the air. The flat line of her lips turned into a scowl.
This was a terrible idea.
She slammed the cup under the spout.
“Hot chocolate?” She knew my order by heart? I fucked up… This was a game ending missed pass kind of catastrophe.
“Grey, look at me.” She turned her back to me, angrily pumping three squirts of some flavored syrup into a cup. “Please? I’m sorry.”
A machine roared to life with the sound of trickling liquid. Steam followed closely behind. When the sounds stopped, Grey grabbed the cup and forced the lid into place.
“I know you’re angry. I promise I never accepted the bet. Luke’s an asshole. I guess you think I am too.”
I guess? My brain fumbled around with the right words. Those weren’t the right ones to use.
Grey looked up. My heart skipped a beat. Is it working? Instead of meeting my eyes, she checked the time on the clock hanging on the wall behind me.
“Suzie. It’s nine O’clock. My shift is over.” Grey shouted over her shoulder. She yanked at the strings of her apron until she could jerk it off. She crumbled it up into a ball and threw it on the counter.
“You already won the bet. Congratulations. Don’t your friends know you already have a woman in your life? Stay the fuck away from me. You and me, this story doesn’t end well.” But, we do have a story to tell. She felt it, too.
She switched her hips and walked away.
When I stumbled out of my stupor and out of the coffee shop, I punched the air.
Why the fuck did I let her walk away?
Again.
***
Morning practice was brutal. I missed every pass Adam threw to me. Coach made me run three extra miles after everyone left for the day. I sprinted the last lap, afraid I’d miss my next class. It was my Monday, Wednesday class, the one I shared with Grey.
By the time I made it back into the locker room, there was no time for a shower. I already had my tennis shoes on, so I sprinted straight to class. I opened the door covered in sweat and eager for another chance to talk to Grey.
Sitting in the back row, she wore a long sleeve white blouse. I wished I had been there when she walked to her seat. It was hard to see her legs from under the desk. Still, a little skin peeked through.
I plopped into the chair beside her.
“You stink.” She scrunched up her nose.
I smiled.
“I had to run to make it to class on time. I didn’t want to lose any time sitting next to you.” I tucked a pen behind my ear.
Grey stared forward, ready to ignore me again.
“I’m sorry.” I leaned in to whisper. She couldn’t hide the prickles rising on her arms.
The professor walked up to the podium and opened his laptop. “What’s his name again?”
Silence.
I pulled my wallet out of my pocket and held it up to my forehead. Girls rarely got to me. Football was king. No woman could dig their way into my mind like this and leave me so distracted.
