while? I worked my shoulder pretty good Saturday, and I don’t think I am fully recovered yet.” My voice cracked as I spoke. I was afraid to make a fool of myself in front of him.
It was the truth. I had iced my shoulder most of the day on Sunday to keep the swelling and throbbing to a minimum. The sweatshirt today had more to do with hiding the swelling than the weather. It definitely didn’t have much to do with style. I was trying to blend in, not stand out. “Sure. I haven’t had much time to hit lately anyway, so this will be
a good workout for me too,” he replied with a smile, sounding sincere.
With that said, we volleyed for a while without saying a word. Before I knew it, my shoulder was killing me, and we had been there in utter silence for almost an hour. I had sweat dripping from my forehead, and I could feel it rolling down my back between my shoulder blades. I tossed my racket on top of my bag and ripped my sweatshirt off without giving any thought as to what I was wearing underneath—an incredibly see-through white tank that barely covered my midsection.
I rummaged around in my bag for the bottle of water I had left from lunch and finished it in just a few gulps. By the time I looked up to say thank you to Ethan, he was only inches from me, and his eyes were locked on mine. I backed up to get away from him, but he followed. Eventually, my back hit the fencing, and I had nowhere to go. His breathing was labored, and mine fell in stride with his. I was at a complete loss for words, and his eyes were doing all the communicating for him.
As he leaned down toward my mouth, I found myself leaning into him. When our lips met, it was like an electric charge. We both pulled back instantly, but just as quickly, our lips met again, hungrier this time. It only lasted a few minutes, but even after he pulled away, I could still feel his lips on mine. His hands were burning against the bare skin of my hips. I found myself wanting more, but he pulled away completely. He stepped back, and all I could do was stare. His eyes looked different. The green that I found myself getting lost in was not there anymore. His eyes had grown dark with need. It scared me just a little to think that I may be looking at him the same way. I had only known him, really known him, for a couple of hours, but it felt like longer. Those things that seem important—the little things people know about each other after years of friendship— were not important in that moment. The only thing I wanted from him right then was another kiss.
He turned slowly, gathered his things and began to walk out the gate. When he turned around to say something, his eyes now hidden behind his dark sunglasses, he noticed that I still hadn’t moved. I could feel his gaze slowly work its way first down then back up my body, and I shuddered. I could see that he wanted to say more, but all that came out was “See ya,” and then he was gone.
I took a moment to compose myself. Once the feeling returned to my legs, I gathered up my stuff and headed toward the parking lot. I got in my car and cranked up the air conditioning. It was only about sixty degrees outside, but my body was still on fire from his touch. Wow! That was the most amazing first day of school ever. That’s when my thoughts drifted back to my friends and to Brad and his text messages.
My heart began to ache instantly. Was I trying to jump into something that wasn’t right for me because I was missing the one thing that was right for me? Was I getting lost in Ethan’s eyes, in his touch, because I really wanted to be with Brad? I missed him. I tried to deny it to myself, but I knew the truth. I wanted to be with him. I had spent so many years succeeding at pushing these kinds of thoughts from my mind. Why now? Why was I able to torture myself with these thoughts now?
I pulled out my phone to see that I had missed a call from my mom and one from Brad. I called my mom first to let her know I
It was the truth. I had iced my shoulder most of the day on Sunday to keep the swelling and throbbing to a minimum. The sweatshirt today had more to do with hiding the swelling than the weather. It definitely didn’t have much to do with style. I was trying to blend in, not stand out. “Sure. I haven’t had much time to hit lately anyway, so this will be
a good workout for me too,” he replied with a smile, sounding sincere.
With that said, we volleyed for a while without saying a word. Before I knew it, my shoulder was killing me, and we had been there in utter silence for almost an hour. I had sweat dripping from my forehead, and I could feel it rolling down my back between my shoulder blades. I tossed my racket on top of my bag and ripped my sweatshirt off without giving any thought as to what I was wearing underneath—an incredibly see-through white tank that barely covered my midsection.
I rummaged around in my bag for the bottle of water I had left from lunch and finished it in just a few gulps. By the time I looked up to say thank you to Ethan, he was only inches from me, and his eyes were locked on mine. I backed up to get away from him, but he followed. Eventually, my back hit the fencing, and I had nowhere to go. His breathing was labored, and mine fell in stride with his. I was at a complete loss for words, and his eyes were doing all the communicating for him.
As he leaned down toward my mouth, I found myself leaning into him. When our lips met, it was like an electric charge. We both pulled back instantly, but just as quickly, our lips met again, hungrier this time. It only lasted a few minutes, but even after he pulled away, I could still feel his lips on mine. His hands were burning against the bare skin of my hips. I found myself wanting more, but he pulled away completely. He stepped back, and all I could do was stare. His eyes looked different. The green that I found myself getting lost in was not there anymore. His eyes had grown dark with need. It scared me just a little to think that I may be looking at him the same way. I had only known him, really known him, for a couple of hours, but it felt like longer. Those things that seem important—the little things people know about each other after years of friendship— were not important in that moment. The only thing I wanted from him right then was another kiss.
He turned slowly, gathered his things and began to walk out the gate. When he turned around to say something, his eyes now hidden behind his dark sunglasses, he noticed that I still hadn’t moved. I could feel his gaze slowly work its way first down then back up my body, and I shuddered. I could see that he wanted to say more, but all that came out was “See ya,” and then he was gone.
I took a moment to compose myself. Once the feeling returned to my legs, I gathered up my stuff and headed toward the parking lot. I got in my car and cranked up the air conditioning. It was only about sixty degrees outside, but my body was still on fire from his touch. Wow! That was the most amazing first day of school ever. That’s when my thoughts drifted back to my friends and to Brad and his text messages.
My heart began to ache instantly. Was I trying to jump into something that wasn’t right for me because I was missing the one thing that was right for me? Was I getting lost in Ethan’s eyes, in his touch, because I really wanted to be with Brad? I missed him. I tried to deny it to myself, but I knew the truth. I wanted to be with him. I had spent so many years succeeding at pushing these kinds of thoughts from my mind. Why now? Why was I able to torture myself with these thoughts now?
I pulled out my phone to see that I had missed a call from my mom and one from Brad. I called my mom first to let her know I
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