Aaron Hendrix
"You are painfully bad at this, please just focus?" I watch as Addie scolds Owen after he hits the third ball in a row out of bounds.
They are playing pickleball against Mike and Tony, and I am just watching.
Owen begged Addie to be his partner after Mike made a comment about being the more athletic one, leaving me partnerless. I was not about to be with Mike or Tony, so I am happily just observing.
Adelina is fucking adorable.
Every time the ball is at her she hits it over, not very hard, but successfully—which is more than Owen can say.
When she scores a point she jumps with excitement and high fives Owen, who has contributed about nothing to their team.
He has hit nearly every ball out of bounds, trying way too hard to spike it that he just sails it to the surrounding courts.
"I am focused! Sorry I am too strong. You're barely even hitting the ball!" Owen argues back.
"At least my hits are in bounds!"
I can tell Adelina is getting frustrated, and I have to say it's cute seeing her competitive side.
"10-7" Tony says the score before he serves, hitting it to Owen who completely misses the ball.
Adelina puts her hand to her forehead, "Team meeting please?" She pauses the game as Mike and Tony laugh.
She drags Owen over to where I am sat on a bench right by the court. "Can you fix him?" She asks me, her hair tied in a high ponytail with little pieces astray. She wears shorts and a tight tank top, fitting her curves perfectly.
She snaps her finger in my face, "Come on dude snap out of it." I look up at her face to see her giving me a look.
"Addie, it's just pickleball." I remind her, although I secretly enjoy her being this worked up. Cute.
"Tony was talking mad trash before this, I am not about to lose!"
Owen groans, "And Mike will never let this go if he beats me."
"Then stop trying to hit the ball 100 miles an hour ever time." I say flatly, confused on how he doesn't see the issue with how he's playing.
"Then they will get it easily." He retorts.
"Better than them not having to do anything." Adelina points out, causing Owen to turn and lightly smack her with his paddle.
"Adelina has been hitting it softly and it has been working fine." I say.
She makes an offended face, "Softly?! I am killing the ball."
"They have time to look at one another, talk about who is getting it, then position to spike it down on me." Owen tells her.
"Y'know we are not gonna win if we don't get along, Owen, so let's just not blame one another?" She smiles to him and turns him to face her.
"Yeah, it's not us it's them." He agrees, nodding his head. With that, then interlock arms and head back to the court where Tony and Mike have been waiting for them.
These two are idiots.
The rest of their game goes by a little better, and they manage to catch up and tie it 20-20 with the game being to 21.
Minutes later they win, and I am surprised to see Adelina is not a humble winner whatsoever.
"Wait, Tony what was the score again?" She asks a grumpy Tony as we walk to the parking lot. He just gives her a nasty look, "Yeah and who's the un athletic one?" Owen piles onto the teasing for Mike.
"The ball was totally out of bounds." Mike huffs, which sends Adelina and Owen off onto a tangent about how in-bounds the ball was. They do this for a while.
Adelina walks in front of me next to Owen and the two recount their victory, and I can't help but admire her as she walks.
Those shorts are too fucking short.
"Where are we going?" Mike asks as everyone climbs into my car. Yes, my car. Adelina suggested we all carpool because 'it's cute,' and what am I going to do say no to her?
She gets into the passenger seat, looking to me like she wants me to decide. I had assumed we were going back to the house.
"I am craving some Darby's right now." Owen suggests, and is met with agreement amongst everyone else in the car.
Darby's is some shit restaurant with some failed 80s theme going on and the trashiest American food you will find, but apparently everyone else loves it.
"They have the best chocolate milkshakes ever." Tony fills Adelina in, since she had never heard of the place.
I look to her and she just shrugs with a smile on her face, not objecting to the plans.
Great.
I drive to the restaurant, feeling like I'm a dad to a bunch of toddlers as Mike, Tony, and Owen excitedly go inside and marvel at the shitty decorations.
"You don't like this place?" Addie says to me as we walk inside. I shrug, "Eh."
We sit down in a booth and wait to be served, until some stupid ass kid roller skates up to our table with a big grin on his face.
"Welcome! I'm Garret and I will be taking care of you guys today, can I get you started with anything to drink?" He asks, his gaze landing on Adelina for too long.
When Addie orders a water and a milkshake, Barrett or whatever his name is can't seem to keep his eyes off her chest.
"Of course, coming right up." He smiles to her then nods and skates off. Fucking prick.
"This is so cool," Adelina comments, "I would love to skate around all day. Maybe I could work here." She says, and I know she's just messing around but I get a little annoyed anyway.
Work here with him?
He looks about her age, but he's not me. I could snap him in half.
"I wouldn't mind you in one of those little outfits," Tony nods to a waitress across the restaurant who is in short shorts and a crop top as she serves people.
"Fuck off," I say sharply, annoyed at him and pretty much everyone besides Adelina.
I don't miss his gaze lingering on her every once and a while, and I remember when they first met her eye fucked her until I got her away from him. And in the club he asked me to 'pass her' to him when I'm done. He was drunk and it was right when I first met her, so I had brushed it off, but if he makes one more dumbass comment I am going to fuck him up.
The waiter comes back and gives us our drinks then takes our orders. I slide my arm over Adelina, just so he gets the message.
He stares for a second, clears his throat, then scurries off to the kitchen.
Good.
Adelina just gives me a look like I'm crazy. This girl is too oblivious to the effect she has on men.
Her tight white tank top hangs low enough to show the top of her cleavage, and when she leans forward on the table it just pushes her chest up and out for stupid ass waiter dude to see.
"When are you officially moving in together?" Owen asks. "Beginning of next week." Adelina responds, "I'm gonna miss your house, though." She says.
"Well you still gotta visit," Owen says, "I can't be stuck with all these imbeciles alone. Hey maybe you can give me a spare room at your place?"
Adelina perks up, and is about to answer when I say, "Absolutely fucking not."
"How rude." Owen feigns being offended and crosses his arms over his chest.
I just roll my eyes at him. I know he isn't actually wanting to move into the house with us, he just wants me to look like an ass so that Adelina babies him and feels bad.
Asshole.
Even if he wanted to move in, no way in hell that would be happening.
I had this house built to escape all the people. No more movie nights with Addie interrupted by Owen watching TV on his iPad at full volume since his headphones were dead, and he felt lonely so he couldn't just watch in his room.
Actual privacy.
I was so happy when she liked the house.
I remember her saying little things she liked about my old place, and about hers, so I somewhat...combined all of it.
She loved the layout of my kitchen, she loved the movie room in her house, she loved the infinity pool, and I ensured the backyard faces away from the sunset.
And she liked it. She loved it.
And I fucking love her.
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