Page 143 of On His Team

He keeps thinking.

“Come on,” I nudge him with my foot.

“I’m thinking.”

“That’s concerning.”

He says, “Okay. In high school, we were playing flag football in P.E.”

I turn toward him. “Already hate it.”

“My best friend was in the class. I scored, turned around, and grabbed him.”

“Okay.”

“To twist his nipples.”

I lower my fry. “What?”

“I don’t know. We were sixteen. It wasn’t him.”

I stop.

Rowan’s mouth moves.

“Oh no.”

“It was Vanessa.”

“Who the fuck is Vanessa?”

“A girl in our class.”

“You grabbed Vanessa’s boobs?”

“Yeah.”

“Both?”

He closes his eyes.

I sit straight up. “Both?”

“I thought she was him.”

“And you twisted them?”

Rowan starts laughing because I’m laughing now. “Yes.”

“How do you mistake breasts for your friend’s nipples?”

“I turned around fast. I realized immediately.”

“Oh my God.”

“I apologized probably fifteen times.”

I fall back against the couch laughing.