“That’s a little bit of a stretch?—”
“Nah, that’s not quite right. His parents give moreFriday Night Lights. His dad always reminded me of Coach Taylor. Did you know he was in the NFL? Daddy Hayes was one of the best QB’s in his day. That dude’s arm was golden!” Nate relayed excitedly.
“Christ, please never call him Daddy Hayes again, I beg you,” I groaned. Nate just cackled and blew me a kiss.
“Oooh, Coach Taylor was hot. With how gorgeous Dawson is, I can see his dad being that way too. Is he a total silver fox?” Aly chirped gleefully.
“Well, he’s not so silver, but I’d say he’s a solid 8.5. Here, check it out!” Nate yanked out his phone, presumably to either Google my dad or stalk my Instagram for pictures of him.
“Great. Cool. So y’all freaks do that and I’m just gonna go vomit real fast and hit the road,” I grouched, grabbing my duffle up before trudging into our living room.
“Hot damn!” Aly shouted from my bedroom. “Dawson, on a scale of one to ten, how open is your dad to having a sugar baby? Please say ten!”
“If he does and your mom gets lonely, I’d be happy to step in and comfort her!” Nate yelled out. “Hey D, that means I’ll be your new daddy!”
“God, I need so much therapy,” I grumbled to myself as their laughter carried down the hall.
I grabbed my car keys and intended to hightail it out of there, but was intercepted before I made it to the door.
“Aw, were you seriously trying to leave without a goodbye? Not cool, bro,” Nate complained from the hallway. “I was just teasing you, D. I didn’t mean anything by it…”
Regret swamped me at seeing the worry on his face. “Don’t sweat it, man. We’re all good,” I reassured him. “I just promised my mom I’d be there before noon, is all.”
The little white lie didn’t make me feel great, but I couldn’t easily explain my desperate need for space when I was feeling overstimulated, and I didn’t want Nate to take it personally. I loved my close knit group of friends, but their personalities were so different from mine that I often needed alone time to regroup after hanging out with them. Even Bash, who was the closest to my temperament, was still subjected to me only being able to take him in small doses. That was pretty much everyone. I didn’tpeoplevery well. The only person who’d ever been an exception to that rule was?—
Fuck. No. We’re not thinking about him. Erase the hard drive and move the hell on, like he told you to.
If only life worked that way. I was slowly becoming convinced nothing would completely erase Theo from my memory.
Or my heart.
I shut the door on that thought fast and hard. I needed to get home, away from UT, away from wherehewas now. This last month, I had managed to avoid him after our run-in at the bar, only going from my apartment to the athletic facility and back as much as I could. I also avoided hanging out with Bash and Micah at their new place since we’d discovered Theo was evidently their neighbor now. Knowing he was on the same campus as me after all these years was screwing with my head. Thankfully it was summer and I hadn’t run into him around campus or, God forbid, one of my classes.
And then there was the kiss. One damn kiss that stole my sanity and haunted every hour of thought. It infuriated me as much as it consumed me. He kissed me, then in the same breath told me to forget him. What the hell was I supposed to do with that?
“Dawson? You alright?”
Aly’s voice snapped me out of it. I realized a beat too late that she had emerged from my room and been trying to get my attention.
“Yeah, sorry. What did you say?”
She bit her lip and cocked her head at me. I ignored the question I saw on her face. It was getting harder to keep everything I’d been struggling with bottled up and locked away from those closest to me. But I wasn’t ready to deal with it.
“She asked if you’re still throwing your big Fourth of July party. Your parents are out of town that weekend, yeah?” Nate supplied.
Truthfully, I had forgotten that I volunteered my parents’ place for the holiday a few months back. I couldn’t even tell you how Nate and Bash coerced me into it, but somehow those fuckers managed it.
“Yep. Dad gave us the green light as long as I promised him we wouldn’t trash the house and the pool.”
Nate whooped at the news and started brainstorming all the different types of fireworks he and our friends could buy for the occasion. All the while, Aly pinned me with her inquisitive gaze, making it feel like she could see straight through me to all the anxiety and unease that plagued me. About football, about Theo, about this unrelenting sense of dread that everything was about to change.
“Yeah, that sounds great,” I tried not to sigh. “I really need to get going. I’ll see you in a few days. Text me later, ok?”
I didn’t stick around to hear their response. I snatched my bag and fled out the door, wishing I could just as easily flee from my problems.
Chapter 3
Dawson
