One of the Guys

One of the Guys -- *Chapter One: If Only*

Hey guys!(: this is my first wattpad story- i hope you like it! when you see "shayna--" or "brad--" or someone elses name that means that is them narrating! 

Shayna--

"Vickram! I'm home!" I yell to my 23 year old brother as I walk into my house.

"Shay? Is that you?" he yells back from upstairs.

"Yeah," I say back as I see him walking down the stairs with his girlfriend. "Hi Autumn,"

"Hey Shayna!" she smiles back to me. She's like an older sister to me because she and Vickram have been dating for almost two years.

"How was school?" Vickram asks me.

"If you'd actually like to know...I dropped my lunch in the commons, I splashed myself with the water from the water fountain and it got all over my shirt, but I got an A+ on my English essay and an A on my math test." He never usually expects a good day, but he always expects a good grade or two.

"I'm sorry, Shayna. But good job on the scores." he sympathizes for me.

"It's fine. I'm used to it by now. I just can't wait for when I graduate. Just two more years."

"You'd better study for those SAT's. You have to get into UPenn. It's and ivy league, it's where you belong. And Mom and Dad would be so proud of you." Our parents died in a car crash two years ago, when I was in eighth grade. Vickram was already twenty-one so he's been my guardian ever since. 

"I know, but football season is starting soon... I think in like two weeks. Anyway, I've really got to work on my kicks." I'm the kicker on the football team for my school. The only girl. 

"Ooh! Make sure you tell  make sure you tell me when your games are! I definitely want to come..." Autumn smiles at me. She's always been supportive of my football. Vickram is more obsessed with my grades.

"I will," I smile. "Well I already finished all of my homework in my free periods, so I'm going to work on my kicks in the backyard. Is that okay?"

"Of course, but do you have any tests this week?"

"I have an AP Bio test on Thursday and a AP Calculus test on Friday. But I know the material really well..." I'm kind of a genius, not to brag. My parents were geniuses too, and so is Vickram. My parents met at UPenn, go figure. If I tell you that we're half Indian(on my dad's side)...that would explain.

"Promise me that you'll come in after an hour? I want you to study for those tests. And maybe you can do a practice SAT test or something?"

"I promise," I run up to my room, change into a sweatsuit, and slide on my shoes. I grab my football and run outside to my backyard. 

It's a beautiful September afternoon. The air feels chilly, but warm at the same time. It makes my nose run, but I love that feeling. The football feeling. I set down my football and I kick the ball. It goes flying into the net attached to trees that Vickram put up. We live in front of a forest and this is my main practice spot. I run to pick up my ball and just as I grab it I hear a door open. I look over to my neighbor's house and see Brad walk out of his house.

Brad Spalding. Just saying his name makes my heart skip a beat. The way his green eyes sparkle when he smiles. The way his brunette hair spikes up and shines in the sunlight. I'm not a stalker or anything. I've just lived next door to him since we were started kindergarden. He moved here the summer before we started school. We used to be friends when we were little. Really good friends. He would come over and ask me if I wanted to play outside with him. He's the one who got me into soccer, which eventually led to football. Now he's a popular soccer star, who also happens the play the guitar and have a voice that makes you melt inside. I'm friends with the guys on the football team, who are popular, but I can't spend too much time around them. If I do I have a sudden urge to correct them in everything they do. Most of them play football because they have no hope in school. No joke. They've said this to me before. However, they are some of my best friends and they're like brothers to me. I'm a nerd in school, but they're still my best friends. They accept me as the only girl on the team, and they accept me as a nerd. They actually have huge hearts. 

Snap back into reality. Brad just came out to get his soccer ball from his back porch. He goes back inside. Why would he ever come outside and even say hi to me? Not a single reason. He's adorable. He's kind. He's caring. He's popular. He has a huge heart. He's fun to be around. If only he felt the same way about me.

Brad--

I'm such an idiot! Why didn't I say "hey" to Shayna? She was just standing there, as beautiful as ever, and I just walked back inside. She was so beautiful. Her light tan skin, and her long, wavy, black hair. The way her eyelashes laid on her gorgeous brown eyes perfectly. The way she cared about football so much. Compared to the majority of the girls at my Livingston High School, she was a sports goddess. Not only that, but she was a freaking genius. She's the only other sophomore in my AP Calculus class and my AP Chemistry class. I'm as smart at her, but still. She's like amazing at kicking, and she's a genius. We're so alike, but she's a thousand times better than me at everything she does. How she does it, beats me. She's is always so strong, even after her parents died. I haven't had a real conversation with her since then. The occasional casual talk at the bus stop. I say hey, she says hi, the bus comes, and then we meet up with our friends. Why can't I just get the courage to talk to her for real? Maybe it's that she probably thinks I'm some loser that's in a few of her classes. It was so easy for me to talk to her when we were younger in elementary school and even middle school. We were so close in elementary school, but we grew apart in middle school. I had a major crush on her for the better part of middle school. After all, I'm the one who really knew her. I'm the one who played soccer with her after school in elementary school, which led her into playing football. I'm the one who would rake leaves with her in the fall, make a big pile of them, and then leap into it. I'm the one who would build snowmen with her as we shoveled our driveways. I'm the one who would play basketball with her in the summer. I'm the one she used to make lemonade stands with. I'm the one who used to go on bike rides with her. I'm the one who used to have talks with her about life. Me. Not any other person in school. Me. If only she felt the same way about me.