AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Wow! Exactly,” he said staring at me and once again turning me into a heaping pile of boy-crush.
“What?” I asked when his gaze became too much.
“How would you know that feeling so perfectly?”
What was I supposed to say to that? I liked Cage. I liked him a lot, maybe more than I should. So, I didn’t want to freak him out. At least not yet.
Besides, I chose a school in the middle of nowhere for a reason. Coming here was the best shot I had of fading into the background. I just wanted someone to see me as a normal guy for once. Was that wrong of me? I couldn’t tell.
“My uncles played in the NFL. They told me.”
“Oh. Yeah, they got it right,” Cage confirmed leaning back and relaxing his gaze.
Finishing our sandwiches, we got back to work. By midnight, we had covered everything.
“So, that’s all of it?” Cage asked.
“All that’s going to be covered in the quiz tomorrow. Do you think you have it?”
“You’re a very good tutor. If I’ve missed anything, it wouldn’t be your fault. By the way, I spoke to my coach. He told me you have to contact his office to get paid.”
“Oh. Don’t worry about it,” I told him.
“You put so much work into helping me. No one could have made everything clearer than you have. Not even the professor. You deserve to get paid for your hard work.”
“Okay,” I said relenting.
Cage looked at me strangely and I couldn’t figure out why.
“Since you’re not excited about getting paid, how about the other thing I promised you?”
“Oh right, ‘How Not to be so Awkward’ classes.”
Cage laughed. “I don’t know about all of that. I was just thinking that we could play some flag football at the park.”
“On your time off from football, you play more football? You must really love playing.”
Cage gave me a muted smile. “You would think.”
“So tell me, Mr. Expert, how is playing flag football in the park supposed to help me not feel like a freak at a party?”
Cage became pensive. “I’ve been thinking about this. The reason why I feel so comfortable in social situations is because I know that, no matter what happens, I’ll be able to handle it. Also, I know that if I do say something stupid, which I do… often, everything will be fine. The world’s not going to implode. I’m not going to be sent into the desert to live alone. My life will most likely go on unchanged.
“And, the only way I got to that realization is because I have been put in many comfortable and uncomfortable social situations and have worked my way through them. You need to be in those situations. You need your own opportunities to work your way through it.
“Then, when you’ve gotten familiar with all of the most common situations that come up, and you’ve figured out what to do and say when they do,” he held up his hands, “I’m done.”
I stared at Cage with my mind blown.
“That’s kind of genius. You’re absolutely right. Social comfort is experientially based. Familiarity breeds comfort. So, the answer is being willing to be uncomfortable. I’m not sure I could have thought of that.”
“I guess I’m good for something after all,” Cage said proudly.
“Although, I’m not exactly a football player. So, I’m not sure being stampeded by jocks will fill me with the confidence you think it will.”
“I guess you’ll have to trust me on that,” Cage said with a wink.
Why did he have to wink? Didn’t he realize I was doing my best to see him as a friend? Why did he have to remind me how sexy he was?
