I asked Vick to poke around. Find out who went down on my girl. Those weren’t my exact words. I told him I want the guys who’ve been alone with her.
How did the assholes get their hands on my woman? I realized fucking around with girls like Lorna distracted me. No guy was ever supposed to touch my fucking woman.
Lorna called my girlfriend fat. Serenity tried hiding the hurt and embarrassment she felt. I wanted to be alone with my woman. It was time to call up my cousin. She’d teach Lorna a lesson. She thought because I fucked her in the past, I’d ever fuck her again. She was wrong.
My girlfriend was built perfectly for me.
Uneasiness gnaws at my chest as I wait for Vick to approach his locker. The locker room buzzes with post-practice chatter, but all I can hear is the pounding in my ears.
“Nico, I’m working on it,” Vick says, already tugging open his locker and yanking his lacrosse gear out of the metal cave.
“That’s fine. I need to talk to you about something else.”
He pauses, side-eyeing me as he pulls out his practice gear. “What now?”
I lower myself onto the bench, elbows bracing my knees, palms pressed to my head. The words taste like betrayal coming out of my mouth, even if I was betraying the wrong people.
“Even though I’m winning the bet… I want out.”
Vick freezes, a slow turn of his head pinning me with a stare. “You know that’s not how this works. All you had to do was claim her before she was put on the board.”
My stomach twists. “I thought I wasn’t ready. That I didn’t care. But now…” I shake my head, raking a hand through my hair. “Now I can’t be without her.”
Vick leans against the locker, folding his arms, like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Shit, dude. You’re in love.”
The words land heavy, like a confession dragged into the open. I exhale hard, my chest tight. “Shit.”
I really fucked up.
Because the game had never been a game. And I knew when this blew up, it wouldn’t just be my reputation or some stupid points on the board. It would be her. Serenity.
For however long I had left, I’d do everything I could to make her happy. Maybe she’d hold on to those memories when she finally realized what I’d done. Maybe she’d still remember the way I looked at her, even if she could never forgive me.
Friday night, I planned a special dinner for two at my house. After dinner, we’d play video games and watch movies in the theater room.
She saunters into the kitchen, all smiles.
“I hope you’re hungry,” I say.
She steps next to me and peeks into the skillet. “Do you know what you’re doing?”
“Yeah,” I nod at the cookbook.
She places her purse on a chair at the marble countertop. “I’ll check the chicken.”
After washing her hands in the kitchen sink, she returns to my side and takes the fork from my hand and observes the bottom side of the chicken breast. I marvel at her beauty. I’ll never forget her smile. Especially the ones I put on her face.
“Looks good,” she says.
“The broccoli, Nico. Shit,” she curses under her breath. “You’re going to burn it.” Serenity rushes around me and stirs the vegetables.
“I’m supposed to cook dinner for you.”
She shrugs. “It doesn’t hurt if we cook together.”
I kiss her neck. “Sit down,”I order.
Serenity turns the burner off under the vegetables. “I’ll sit.”
