Page 30 of Josh’s Play

I muttered to my closest teammate that I was going to the bathroom, but when I was done, instead of rejoining the group, I slipped out a door of the restaurant further down the hall from the bathrooms and found myself near the dumpsters.

As I walked toward campus and before I could think the better of it, I pulled my phone out and texted Josh: Am I too late? It hadn’t even been an hour since he’d texted me, but I still felt like an asshole doing it. The need to see him, however, was stronger than my selfish stupidity.

His reply was immediate.

Shelley: Absolutely not. Turns out actual studying on a Friday night sucks ass. SAVE ME.

I’d lived in Parson Hall my freshman year but had moved into the Hockey House when I was a sophomore. Living directly off campus in a group house with a bunch of starting members of the hockey team meant that people generally sought out our company. It had been a long time since I’d been inside one of the HU dorms. Cortland Hall was Parson’s twin and Josh’s home his senior year.

Head down and hands in my pockets again, I raced there as quickly as I could, only realizing as I stopped in front of the building that I had been full-on running most of the way.

Looking up at the tall building, I felt guilty and embarrassed for having ditched Josh and so grateful that he’d let me come to him anyway. My other conflicting feelings almost, but not quite, buried the nervousness I felt about what might happen if I entered the doors in front of me.

I texted Josh again: I’m outside.

Shelley: Hang tight. I’ll come get u.

The Cortland Hall entry doors were glass, and I could see as Josh exited the elevator with the same sense of urgency I’d had running across the quad. He slowed down at the entrance, and I watched as he stopped, took a deep breath, and ran his fingers through his short hair. He was staring right at me.

I smiled at him like an idiot, but his expression was serious, and I realized it wasn’t me he was seeing but his own reflection in the glass. I wanted to tell him he looked great.

I wondered what his serious expression was about and why he was even bothering to fix his hair. I knew hooking up with me was no big deal for him, because hooking up in general was no big deal for him. I wondered what was wrong.

A really large and noisy crowd of people walked past me toward the entry doors, and Josh must have slipped out as they went inside because suddenly he was in front of me, wearing a pair of shorts, a tight T-shirt sporting the name of a beach I’d never heard of and a pair of neon-green shower shoes. I was a little taken aback, so used to seeing him impeccably dressed. The shirt was so small it barely met the waistband of his sports shorts, which were very short.

“Hi.”

“Hey,” I returned, dragging my own hair through my fingers. “You must be freezing,” I said, and I didn’t mean to, but my eyes went to his chest, and I swore I could see his nipples pebbling under the smooth, clingy material. That was something I hadn’t realized was sexy until that very moment, and it heightened my every sense.

The energy I was feeling was such a potent combination of anxiousness and excitement that I didn’t know what to do with it. I worried my hair and waited for Josh to say something.

“I’m glad you came. Come on upstairs, and we can talk.”

“Josh …” I felt like I owed him an apology.

The smile never left his face, but Josh’s tone was firm when he said, “Inside.” I nodded and followed him up the entrance steps.

The lobby was crowded as we entered, that large group waiting for the elevators.

“You okay with the stairs? I'm on the fourth floor,” Josh asked before turning down a quieter hall and opening the heavy door to the stairs.

I muttered, “No problem,” as I followed behind him and away from the crowd.

Josh bounded up the stairs, and I took my time following. He turned and watched me lumber up behind him.

“Shit, you must be exhausted. I just thought … I figured you wouldn’t want to be seen … I guess … I mean … We’re just working on our project, right?” His eyes continued to show deep concern, but his smile was apologetic and lopsided and absolutely fucking adorable. The urge to kiss him overwhelmed me, so I caught up to him and did just that.

He pulled back immediately in surprise and looked around the empty stairwell. It was clear we were alone because anyone using them would have made the same amount of noise we had, clomping our way up to the fourth floor.

“How’s your ankle?” Josh asked, pulling us apart anyway.

“Fine,” I assured him. He looked up and down the stairs once more before he entwined my fingers with his and dragged me up the remaining flight of stairs, stopping at the door to the hallway to first drop my hand, then slowly open it and peek out, looking both ways to make sure the coast was clear.

“Go,” he whispered and began running down the hall like a madman. He had his key in the door and was holding it open for me while I jogged at a reasonable pace behind him, laughing at his antics. I entered the room and took it in, actually turning in a circle to have my eyes land back on his face as he slowly pulled the door closed behind him.

“Effing door,” he muttered, or at least I think that’s what he said. I was about to ask, but as soon as the door snicked, Josh was in front of me, five fingertips pressed to my chest. He walked closer, and I stood still until we were face-to-face. He continued to push, causing me to back up into the room. We were standing in front of the long desk that ran the length of the far wall of the room before Josh closed the distance between us and kissed me gently.

We stood like that, in the middle of the room, wrapped up in each other’s arms as he explored my mouth, his arms tight around my neck as he stretched up on his toes. I pulled him in tight, and he tilted his head the other way, barely pulling back as if our lips couldn’t bear to be apart. With little flutters, his tongue peeked out, and I opened my mouth to him, wanting more.