Simulation

Chapter 3: Green and Gold

I see Jamie catch a loose ball and cheer juuust a little too loudly. A few heads turn, including his. My face immediately reddens and I raise my hand in an awkward wave. Surprised, Jamie slows his run across the court and falters a little in his step. In a flash of speed, the red-haired boy rushes at him and grabs the ball. Jamie is knocked back and the coach yells something about wasted opportunities.

Gosh, I feel like a jerk. Why did I have to distract him? They call for subs twice, and Jamie gets pulled out for a little bit. He waves at me from the sidelines, and I can tell he's happy but confused at my presence.

I watch the rest of the game joyfully (and silently.) Jamie makes five shots, though I still feel bad for costing him the first one.

Jamie's team wins anyway.

After meeting in the middle of the court one final time, Jamie walks over to me, smiling. He looks me up and down, taking in the dirt and disarray.

"Ezri...?" He questions, looking at me curiously.

"Hey..." I trail off. He plops down next to me and takes a huge swig from his water bottle. I recoil slightly as a waft of sweat infiltrates my nasal pathways.

"God Jamie, you stink," I gag.

"Hey to you too, Ez," he chuckles. "I was not expecting to see you here. What's up?" He stretches out on the bleachers, happily ignoring my odor comment.

"Long story." I mumble. "I missed the bus." Please don't ask why, I plead silently. Luckily for me, he's too exhausted to ask questions.

He laughs. "Figured you just got off early from your job as a gravedigger."

"Ha-ha." I scoff. "I'm not that dirty." Jamie shrugs.

A boy with dark curly hair and a green jersey walks over and grabs his water bottle, collapsing against the bleachers next to Jamie and I. Seeing me he chuckles, nearly choking on his water in the process.

"Hey, you're the girl that almost lost us the game!" He exclaims, punching Jamie in the arm. He winces and laughs at the same time, an odd combination for sure.

"Yeah..." I look down at the court, embarrassed. "I didn't me-"

"Eh, whatever. They were no match for us anyway," the boy extends his hand towards me. "I'm Markus."

"I'm Ezri." I reply, shaking it. I can hardly remember the last time someone shook my hand. My mom gave up trying to teach me manners when I was seven years old. All it took was one trial run "serving dinner for your guests," and all expensive tableware disappeared forever. I guess the private school environment really is different. I try to imagine Jamie shaking someone's hand, but the image cracks me up too much to really consider it.

"So... You gonna explain how you got here?" Jamie's voice is light, but he seems genuinely confused.

"I walked." I mumble, eyes still locked on the ground in front of me.

I'm surprised by the lack of vocal reaction from my questioners. Instead of howling laughter, I'm greeted by staring eyes and dropped jaws.

"You walked? You walked six miles uphill with your backpack?" Jamie's eyes are wide with surprise.

"It wasn't that bad," I dismiss.

"I'm sorry, let me rephrase that. You walked six miles uphill with your backpack?"

Okay, yes, my backpack is heavy, I admit it. When it comes to my luggage situation, I am a chronic overpacker.

"Sheesh." Markus exclaims. "Your girlfriend's got stamina, that's for sure."

"Not my girlfriend," Jamie amends, not even bothering to glare at him. Jamie and I are pretty used to this. We've been best friends forever, and we get the whole boyfriend-girlfriend comment a lot.

"Whatever you say, man." Markus replies.

At this point, people have started leaving the gym, so Jamie gets up and grabs his bag. He extends a hand to help me up, and I wrinkle my nose.

"Maybe take a shower first," I tease, pushing myself up from the bleachers. Jamie looks at Markus, mock-offended.

"Did you hear that? Did you hear what she said to me?" Markus laughs. I pretend not to notice.

Shadows dance their way across the rows of lockers as Jamie and I leave the gym. I watch as lines of light pounce upon the blank walls, spreading colors present only at sunset. The bright oranges and pinks make everything seem lighter somehow.

"Can I ride home with you?" I ask awkwardly once we're in the open air.

"Sure," Jamie replies, "But you have to promise to tell me the whole story once we get home."

After promising (reluctantly) to fill him in on all the details, Jamie and I speed up our pace.

"That," he declares, "was a good game."

"Yeah..." I muse. "except for the part where you totally got the ball stolen."

"Hey!" he retorts. "That was one-hundred percent not my fault. You distracted me."

"Can't help it," I joke. "I'm very distracting."

"Sure. Like you could do better." I shrug and pantomime taking a shot the way kids in the gym sometimes do to show off. It just makes Jamie laugh harder. We're both very aware that I'm probably the least athletic person ever to be born.

Halfway though his chuckle he stops, almost sending me sprawling for the second time today.

"Whaat?" I kid, raising my eyebrows. "Left your courage in the gym?" Sure, it's a stupid joke, but the night is full of stars and my bad mood has almost entirely evaporated.

"Not my courage, my ball!" He exclaims, turning abruptly. "I'll be back!"

I open my mouth to say something, but he's already sped his pace up to a run. Lost about what else to do, I follow.

When we get back, I wait outside the entrance while Jamie runs in to get his basketball. Almost everyone is gone by now, meaning only the coach and a few scattered boys remain. I hear Markus's voice rise to greet him and listen in.

"What's up Jamie? Where'd your girlfriend go?" I can practically see Jamie roll his eyes. I won't say my class of freshmen is particularly mature, but Markus definitely scores low on the charts.

"You're delusional." Jamie's voice echoes in the open space.

"You're in lo-ove." Markus jokes, sing-songy. Jamie scoffs.

"I forgot my ball." He explains.

"Aw man. Lost your ball and your heart in one day." Jamie laughs at his chides.

I blush from outside the door. Again, Jamie and I are used to this stuff. A part of me wants to go in and save him from the awkward situation though. Peeking around the corner, I see him pick up his ball and start walking back across the court. I decide I'd rather not have him know I heard the exchange between him and Markus.

Most of me is tired of the stereotype. The fact that I can't even talk to someone of the opposite gender without said person being my "boyfriend" is kind of exhausting. Most of me is glad that Jamie's so experienced at laughing off those kinds of comments. Most of me.

I say most because of some stupid little part of me, burried deep in my heart. It's not talkative or loud, but it's annoyingly there. It's that tiny little part that blushed when Markus made his stupid jokes. It's that tiny little part that won't leave me alone.

Because Jamie didn't deny any of it.

Hi! Here's the new chapter! I swear the interesting scifi stuff will come soon 😂 The fact that you read this means a lot to me, so thanks for the support.

~Andrea ❤️