He announced pizza was on him, which caused everyone to chant, “Pizza, pizza, pizza!”He let us gather our things while he called the restaurant to warn them that a team full of sweaty basketball players was about to flood their building.
But I didn’t want pizza; I wanted Alex. I tried to sneak away without raising suspicion, but my beanstalk of a friend was always watching.
Carson gripped my arm. “Where are you going?”
Yanking my arm from his grip, I told him, “Give me a minute. I’m coming.”
His lips pressed into a line, somehow understanding what I was doing. “Hurry up.”
I ran—yes, ran—through the stadium toward the student section. Most of the crowd had cleared out already, but there were still a few trickling out. Either he was among them, or I was too late.
Please still be there, please.
Was I seriously begging? Fuck, how desperate was I?
I wiped the sweat off my forehead as I stared at the spot he had been in during the game. The gaping hole that formed in the pit of my stomach, knowing he hadn’t waited for me, shouldn’t have been there. I shouldn’t have even asked him to come in the first place, let alone expect him to stay.
With a sigh, I set foot on the path to the locker room, but only made it halfway down the stairs when I heard my name.
“River,” his tone was calm.
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t light up at the sight of him. “You came.”
Alex came closer, his hands stuffed in his jacket pockets. “You asked me to.”
“I wasn’t sure you actually would,” I admitted.
“Why?” Alex’s voice rose innocently. “Because we’re strangers?”
My stomach twisted at his genuinely asked question. He made it seem meaningless, but the question held a lot of weight. He knew we weren’t strangers, I knew we weren’t strangers, and he knew I knew we were not strangers.
My grin morphed into a closed-lip smile as I ignored his comment. “Thanks for coming.”
“I’m glad I did. You were amazing.” He punched my shoulder in a light, playful way, but it came off awkwardly. Unnatural. He cleared his throat sheepishly. “How big is your ego now?”
“Not too big.” I took a step closer, now able to smell his light cologne. Who was he wearing cologne for? “And thanks, but it wasn’t just me. The entire team helped with that.”
Alex’s foot dragged back and forth across the ground, tilting his head down with a short, breathy laugh. “I wouldn’t know. I wasn’t watching them.”
I blinked. “Really?”
“No.” Our gazes met. “I came to watch you.”
Oh.
I was right.
I went for that natural bro-tap I did with everyone else, the way Alex just tried and failed to do with me. The back of my hand hit against his arm, but it didn’t fall the way it should’ve. Instead, my hand lingered, dragging down his forearm to his wrist, like I meant to be holding it. I had to make a conscious effort to let go.
I dusted the nonexistent fuzz off my clothes. “You were a real motivator.”
Alex blinked away his blank stare. “Glad I could be of help. See you in class tomorrow?”
“Bright and early.”
Just like I did every other Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Only this time, something felt different, and I couldn’t figure out what.
Chapter Nine
