Aiden
“You hesitated.” My head turns to the paused screen, pointing at it.
Ethan narrows his eyes at me. “Only for a second. I caught it, didn’t I?”
I nod, not giving him the satisfaction of telling him he’s right. He caught it, but that could have been luck. Next time he might not be so lucky. “That one second could have cost us.” I point at the screen where a player from the other team is surrounding him. “They were ready to attack, and Jordan was open.”
His brows lift. “So much talk from someone who lost two weeks ago.”
My jaw hardens, not liking how he’s undermining me in front of my team. “Just get your head in the game.”
He snorts. “Okay, Troy Bolton.”
The guys chuckle along with him. Fuck, I’m losing them. I know Ethan wants this position. He’s older than me, has been on this team longer than me, but ultimately Coach picked me. Freshman year, I was handed the captain position with the responsibility of bringing this team to a win. Some of the older guys weren’t too keen on having to listen to orders from a freshman, but they fell in line. Ethan, however, hasn’t.
“This isn’t a joke,” I grit out, hearing their laughter come to a halt. I don’t want them to hate me. I know what it’s like being on a team when everyone looks at you like you’re trash, like you don’t belong there. You start to believe it more and more, and I won’t ever go back there.
I don’t want to be an asshole captain, but I also need them to respect me, to listen to me. “That almost cost us a win.”
“Relax, Cap,” Jordan says, making my head snap to his. “It was one game. We were up against Crestview.” He lets out a laugh. “It wasn’t like they had it.”
“Do I need to remind you we won by five points? Five. It could have easily been them. Don’t get too comfortable.” I watch as Jordan settles into the couch. My shoulders slump, looking at the rest of my team. “Do you all feel like this?” I ask them. “Do you not care if we lose?”
“Of course not,” Carter replies. “We want to win, Pierce. You know we do.”
“Then listen up.” I turn off the tv, turning to face them. I was given captain for a reason. I take this shit seriously, and I will do whatever it takes for my team to win. It’s on me, the championship, the playoffs. It’s all on me.
“I’m your captain,” I tell them, pointing at my chest. “It’s on me to get you that win, to make sure you’ve all got your head straight. This is what’s going to get us there. But I’m not the only one on the team. You all need to pull your weight.” I raise my eyebrows. “You got that?”
“Yes, Captain.”
“Good.” I nod, waving my hand. “You can leave.”
I watch as they leave, murmurs going off as they exit the living room. I sit back down, tuning into last week’s gameplay. We won. That’s all that matters. But we almost lost. Almost is too close. After what happened at the last game, I can’t let the team down again. I pause the screen where I’m about to shoot, my feet are too far apart. I need to reel it in.
I take my stance, pause again. Shit, that was too low, I need to aim higher. I click again, unpausing the screen, watching as I sink the ball into the net. It went in, the winning shot. I blow out a breath watching as we celebrate on the court.
I tune into the rest of the team coming onto the court, celebrating around me. My eyes narrow, watching their faces. Could it be one of them? Could this be about revenge?
I take my cap off, running a hand over my hair. I have no idea what they want from me. I groan into my hands. I don’t know how I’m going to get what I need. It seems impossible at this point.
The door opens, and I lift my head to see Grayson walk through the door. I let out a breath as he walks in. “Have they left?” I ask.
He shakes his head, scoffing. “Hell no, they’re raiding the fridge.” He takes a seat beside me.
“Great.” I barely have enough to buy groceries as it is.
“It’s on me, don’t worry. I’ll replace everything they ate.”
I’m already shaking my head as the words leave him. “Hell no, you barely eat here, Grayson. It’s on me.”
He lets out a scoff, nudging me on the arm. “You know that’s not true; when you cook, you make extra for me, don’t try to act like you’re the only one using that damn kitchen.”
I snort. “Yeah, I use that kitchen to cook. You, on the other hand…” I shake my head. “The kitchen? Really? Your bedroom is right upstairs,” I point out.
He laughs, sinking back into the couch. “You heard that, huh?”
My brows lift. “This house is big, but the walls are thin. My room is above the kitchen. Please remember that now that Rosie’s moved in.”
“Yeah,” he says, sitting up. “About that. I know I should have run it by you first.” He glances at me. “But it won’t be that much different, right? I mean, she practically stays here all the time.”
I turn to my best friend. “You don’t need to run it by me, Grayson. It’s your house.”
“And yours,” he adds.
“Right.” I roll my eyes. Grayson wants me to believe this house is as much mine as it is his, but we both know it’s not. He’s the one with the rich parents to put him up in this big ass place. If it wasn’t for him, I’d either be slashing all my earnings for a dorm or giving up my morals for a place at the frat.
He saved me from making the biggest mistake of my life. One I never thought would cross my mind. If it wasn’t for him… fuck, I’m so grateful for this bastard next to me. He doesn’t know how much.
I nudge him with my shoulder. “So, Rosie’s moving in.” I flash him a grin. “You ready for that?”
He blows out a breath, a smile forming on his face as he nods. “I never thought I’d have a girlfriend,” he says, shaking his head. “I never thought I’d want to spend so much time with one person.” His face hardens. “I just don’t want to mess it up. I can’t lose her.”
There’s no way to stop the smile that forms on my face. “You really love her.”
The frown disappears as he lets out a laugh. “Yeah,” he says. “I really do.”
“That’s great, man,” I say. “You know, for someone who didn’t believe in love, you are a sappy shit.”
He snorts. “Fuck you.” He shakes his head. “What about you?”
My brows knit together. “What about me?”
He shrugs. “Haven’t seen any girls around lately. You seeing someone?” he asks me.
I shake my head. “I don’t have time for that.” For a while, actually. I think he’s been so caught up in Rosalie that he hasn’t noticed I haven’t had a girl around in a long ass time. Basketball is what I need to focus on. It’s the only thing that matters. The rest is a waste of my time. And I need to make sure it stays that way.
I swallow my fucking pride and turn to my best friend. “Do you have Leila’s number?”
His eyes narrow at me as he furrows his brows. “What are you doing?”
“What do you mean?”
He shakes his head, still scowling. “You know what I mean, Aiden. What the fuck are you doing?”
“What?” I say, giving him a shrug. “I can’t ask for a girl’s number now?”
He blows out a breath. “After you just said you’re not interested?”
“I didn’t say I wasn’t interested. I said I didn’t have time.”
“So you’re interested in Leila?” he asks me straight up.
“Maybe.”
“Aiden,” he warns, shaking his head. “I repeat, what are you doing? Don’t play with her, man.”
“Who said I was playing with her?” I don’t like how he assumes the worst of me. I would never play with a girl’s emotions. What’s the harm in asking for a phone number?
“She’s my girlfriend’s best friend. You hurt her, Rosie gets hurt. Which means I’m going to have to take sides,” he shakes his head. “I love you, bro, you know that. But I love her more.”
I grin. “You love me?” I let out a laugh. “Thanks, but you’re not exactly my type.”
He laughs. “You need your ass kicked.”
Like he could kick my ass. “Sure,” I scoff. “So, do you have it or not?”
His eyes hood before he sighs and shakes his head. “Even if I wanted to give it to you, I don’t. I kind of stole her number from Rosie’s phone once and Leila made me delete it.”
Fuck.
“Can’t you just get it again?”
“Hell no,” he says. “I’m not doing that shit again. Leila’s super private about who she gives her number to. Something I didn’t know before. Trust me, I’m not making the same mistake again.”
I pick up my cap and put it back on my head. If I can’t get it from him, I have to find another way.
“Fine,” I say, standing up from the couch. “I’ll get it myself.”
I start to walk to the door, but Grayson’s voice stops me. “I can’t tell you what to do, but don’t do something that you know will hurt her, Aiden.”
