Homeroom

4: I Wear Knee-Pads Not Cleats

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The rest of the day dragged by. All day, I was looking forward to volleyball practice, and now that it's over, I'm sweating buckets. My legs feel like jelly, and I can barely walk without feeling pain in my legs. And on top of that, the hot, late-August air does little to cool me down.

"Do you want to sit outside on the bleachers with me?" Shay asks, taking her her knee-pads off and slipping on her Adidas sandals. She throws all her stuff in her gym bag and heaves it onto her shoulder. "I have to drive Cameron home after he finishes soccer practice, anyway. It'd be nice to have someone to hang out with in the meantime."

Cameron is Shay's younger brother who's a freshman on the soccer team. Most 9th graders don't even make the JV team, but the kid has a strong leg and made it on the varsity team. The only reason I know all about this is because he never shuts up about it. Shay also has another brother named Hutch, but he graduated from high school already.

"Sure," I agree. I love watching sweaty boys run around without shirts on, and their practice only lasts for another half an hour, meaning that I can walk home with the both of them afterward.

Using the sleeve of my shirt, I wipe the sweat off my forehead and head out the gym doors, walking towards the soccer field with Shay. We tiredly walk around the perimeter of the field and climb up onto the metal bleachers, dropping our bags on the grass below us after we sit on the very edge of the highest metal bench.

It looks like the soccer players are playing a pick-up game. It's easy to spot Shay's brother because he's in the goalie box. He seems extremely skilled at the position; each time someone kicks the ball at the goal, he deflects it with ease.

"Wow, you're brother is really good," I comment. I watch as he dives  to save the ball again.

"Yeah, he is," she agrees, re-tying her ponytail.

We both watch the boys play for a bit, not really saying much.

"Hey, Callie, who's the guy with the bandanna? He's so hot; just look at those abs!" Shay suddenly exclaims, her hazel eyes widening.

I scan the field and spot a shirtless, tall guy with wispy, dirty-blonde hair spilling over a black bandanna. Right when I realize that Aaron is on the soccer team, his eyes lock with mine. I quickly look away, pretending that I didn't notice him.

"Why is Bandanna Man staring at you?" she asks, raising an eyebrow.

"I'll explain later, just keep your distance from him, okay? I have a feeling that he's going to become buddy-buddy with Luke."

"Really?" she asks excitedly. "That's perfect! That means you can have him, and I can have Luke!"

"Are you nuts?" I practically scream. "Luke bullies the both of us, and you want to date him?"

"Boys tease you when they like you, you know," she points out.

So as far as Shay knows, Luke just "teases" us. I never told her about the many times over the past three years that he shoved me into the lockers or kicked soccer balls at my head during gym class.

We hash it out for another ten minutes, failing to come to an agreement.

"Think what you want, but I'm staying away from Aaron and Luke," I conclude.  I watch the soccer players walk over to where we're sitting to collect their sports bags. I force myself to stop internally freaking out as I watch Aaron approach us.

"Did I hear my name?" he asks, looking right at me.

I watch the single player left on the field attempt a goal. He makes it with ease. "No, I was just telling Shay about my Grandmother's chicken-fried steak recipe," I say casually.

Aaron chuckles. "Those jokes truly never get old. Seriously, though, I heard my name come out of your mouth."

I glance playfully at Shay before looking down at the sweaty, half-naked boy. Okay, so I would be lying if I told you that he wasn't attractive. His abs are gorgeous when they are glistening in the afternoon sunshine... but that's about as far as it goes.

"Well, actually," I fake-confess, "we were just talking about your lousy passes."

Shay nudges me in the ribs so hard that I tip off the side of the bench. Two hands catch me by the hip and push me back onto the seat. I blush ever so slightly, and a sly smile forms on Aaron's lips.

He raises an eyebrow, cheeks red with exhaustion. "So what were you saying about my passes?" he asks playfully.

Shay interjects before I get the chance to sass him again. "They were fantastic."

"Ah, thank you," he modestly thanks, "I'm Aaron, by the way."

"I'm Shay," she giggles, waving slightly.

I roll my eyes at the both of them and jump off the bleachers, landing on the ground with a soft thud. Shay follows, and we both pick up our bags and sling them on our shoulders.

"Do you guys play soccer, too?" he asks, walking with us as we head across the field to the school parking lot.

"I wear knee-pads, not cleats," I retort. I've actually never played a game of soccer in my life.

"So you play..?"

"Volleyball," Shay proudly states.

He smiles warmly, his dimples pressing deeply into his cheeks, "Very cool. When do you guys have games? I might stop by and—"

I open my mouth, hoping to interrupt him and lie about when our games are, but again, Shay beats me to it to tell him the truth. "We have a game this Friday. You should really come."

"I will," he smiles, heading to his black, expensive-looking Audi. "See you guys later!"

He hops into his car and starts it up, beeping the horn at us when he pulls out of the lot. His sleek little car speeds out of the parking lot and heads down the street, making a left at the stop sign and vanishing from my view.

"I hate you so much, you know that right?" I announce, glaring at Shay, who's beaming triumphantly.

"What is it this time?" Shay's little brother suddenly interrupts from behind us. "Did she lose another one of your books again?"

I roll my eyes at both of them, groaning because they both just don't understand anything. I don't want to be bothered with Aaron in any capacity. "Never mind," I let out, walking the rest of the way home with a frown etched deeply into my face.

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[A/N] Hello, readers! I'm hoping that you're loving the story so far! :) I have a couple of questions for you guys to answer:

1. How did you find my story? (i.e. friend told you, suggested read, etc)

2. Who's your favorite character?

3. Are you prepared for plot twists? (Hehe I'm evil; you won't even see them coming)