Tea For Two

14

"Shit," I growl, not in a good mood. "Em, what the Hell?"

I look to my girlfriend for an answer to my question, and in turn, am handed more questions that I am in no disposition to be asking on a Saturday morning.

I blink once or twice to confirm that it isn't my imagination. No, it's real.

Emily, who has just unceremoniously pulled me from sleep, is standing next to my desk in a sports bra and a pair of athletic shorts, with her running shoes. Behind her sits most of the baseball team in a similar state of half-nakedness- on my bed, still left unmade from the night before last.

Grinning from his spot near my pillow, Dan is the first to speak.

"Morning, sunshine."

I ignore him, turning to Emily.

"Emily Amanda Turner," I say slowly, pointing to the boys who are, uninvited, inhabiting my bedroom- my private place. "Explain this shit."

"We're going for a run," she replies simply.

"Uh huh."

Rusty, for whom there was not enough space on my bed, is looking through my movie collection on the other side of the room.

"Ginger here thought it could be fun if you came with us."

I must still be mostly asleep, because I snort.

"No way in Hell am I running today," I say. "Especially not with people who are actually good at it." I add the last part as an afterthought; I am not athletic, to say the least, and being forced to do anything strenuous around athletes is akin to Hell itself.

"Aw, come on, Aug," Emily begs, stooping down to get on eye-level with me, her hands on her bent knees. "All the other girlfriends are coming."

I hope the pain I'm feeling right now is as visible for her in my face as I have it in my chest.

"Em," I say softly. "No."

I know that refusing to go is hurting her- if not much, just enough- so I try to ease the pain.

"Besides, I didn't get a real night of sleep, so I think I'll just stay here. You'll have to force me if you really want me to tag along."

I don't mean it as a challenge. Really.

"Fine. Guys, get out. I need to get her changed, and that's a sight for my eyes only."

They all chorus a light "ooh" and laugh as they file out of my small room, going to stand in the hallway.

She shuts the door behind them, and I narrow my eyes at her.

"You wouldn't dare."

"Uh huh?"

She jerks me to my feet and pulls me to the pile of clothes on the floor in the corner that I have recently been calling my closet, too lazy to put anything away.

"Arms up," she says shortly.

I cross them in front of my chest defiantly.

She sighs.

"Come on, Aug," she lowers her voice. "Everyone else gets to run with their girlfriends- and their best friends. So just because not everyone knows about us, you're saying that I don't get to do either?"

I soften a bit at this. I hadn't thought of it like that, for sure. Of course the boys got to run with their best friends- they were all on the team, too. But not Emily- no, her best friend fell asleep on her desk on Friday nights and slept in on Saturday mornings, all thoughts of waking up early to work out non-existent.