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“Pretty much. Where does that leave me?” Nico takes a moment to cheer for the goalie’s save. Not sure which side we’re supposed to be cheering for, so we’re keeping the enthusiasm equal.
“That depends on you, Wes. Where doyouwant this to go?” Talking in riddles is all fun and games until you’re the one in the hot seat. Then suddenly those answer-questions don’t seem so fun anymore.
Luke, my man, I am so sorry. Dealing with Yoda must have been a bitch.
Taking my silence as confusion, Nico does his best to clarify, “What I’m trying to ask here is: are you happy being friends with Trip or do you want more?”
“That’s the whole issue. We were solid buddies until the courtyard situation and now I’m feeling all these things I shouldn’t be feeling and noticing all these things I shouldn’t be noticing.”
“An example being…”
“The shampoo she uses.” Nico takes his eyes off the field to stare at me.
“Theshampooshe uses?”
I shake my head impatiently, “That’s what I just said. Every time I’m close to Trip all I can smell is this amazing coconut vanilla combo. It messes with my head.”
Nico’s lips start to twitch and I can tell he’s struggling to keep a straight face. “Right, of course. So, Trip buys nice shampoo. Anything else?”
“Well, when we were at the club the other night, I kind of… well, I wouldn’t say kind of, it was more of a fleeting feeling…” I trail off, suddenly nervous about voicing it out loud. Is it normal to be scared of an emotion?
“Come on, Wes. It can’t be worse than fangirling over hair product.”
He’s right yet so wrong. This one feels worse so much worse.
“IkindofgotjealouswhenHunterlookedatTrip.” In one breath, I push the terrifying truth past my lips as fast as humanly possible.
“I can’t tell if that was one long word or an entire paragraph thrown together. Let’s try that again, but this time slowly.”
Fuck, this is painful. Pretty sure I can feel emotional bruises forming.
“When Hunter checked out Trip at the club, before making a move on Stella, I felt uh… uncomfortable.”
Nico blinks, “By uncomfortable, do you mean jealous?”
The agony. Make it stop.
“Fine. Yes, I was jealous. But it didn’t last longer than this,” I snap my fingers in front of his face.
“But it was there?” Any sign of mirth disappears from his dark eyes as they intently scan mine. It feels like he’s cataloguing every micro expression crossing my face.
“It was there.” I hang my head in defeat as Nico slaps my back in glee.
“Your first adult crush. Congratulations my boy.”
“Very funny. Thank you for the therapy session.” The beaming smile across Nico’s face doesn’t waver as he gives my arm a supportive squeeze.
“Hey, you know I’m joking. Honestly, try not to overthink this thing with Trip. Put in the effort to hangout more, just the two of you, and see how things go. What’s the worst that can happen?” The man’s got a point. I’ve already turned into a babbling fool from one almost-kiss, so my pride and dignity are no longer a consideration.
“Yeah, thanks man.” Cody signals for Nico to switch out with the senior goalie, so he gives me one last pat on the back before running onto the field.
I shuffle down the bench, thinking over Nico’s advice.
As far as suggestions go, his hangout idea is a pretty good one. In theory, the more time I spend with Trip, the less power her coconut vanilla spell will have over me. Like alcohol or caffeine, I’m going to build my Trip tolerance, so soon those misty grey eyes and full bottom lip will be a decaffeinated, distant memory. Brilliant, right?
Shit. I need to get laid.
Chapter 9
