Weak Side (Bexley U)

by S.J. Sylvis

I was on the athletic floor, and if the giant gloves that were airing out on top of his desk that had a distinctive scent to them had anything to say about him, I’d say my new roomie was a hockey player. Great. A big ol’ jock.

“Then, who are you? And why are you in my room?” He looked back at Barbie and nearly growled, “Get dressed.” My stern voice grew soft as I tried to lessen the blow that had nearly knocked me down an hour prior when I realized the situation I was in. “I’m Claire. Your new roommate.”

“You obviously have your signals crossed if you think you’re my new roommate, babe.” I pulled my sweaty shirt over my head and tossed it in the hamper in the corner of my room, putting my back to her. I bent down and pulled out a fresh black tee from my bag and spun around, holding the cotton in my hand. “You’re far too tiny to be a male.” I slid my attention away from her heartbreaker eyes and landed on her small waist. Definitely not a penis in those tight jeans.

I wouldn’t deny it—she was pretty in the way that most girls weren’t. Subtle, delicate features but eyes that made your chest tight. Not my type, though. She was the type of girl that hated guys like me. It was obvious in the way she was glaring.

Aasher,

Wtf? Aaaasher

“Or…I don’t know. Maybe these girls need to have more self-respect.” He laughed, beginning to remove his pads in the locker room along with the rest of the team. “Can’t blame them. You’re the Wolf.” “Ow oww.” Landon took his towel and slapped my padded ass, and I grabbed it out of his hand and threw it in his face.

“Who was that, anyway? The other girl? The one who walked down the hall and didn’t look a single one of us in the eye?” I glanced up to Dax, who stayed a few rooms down from mine. “She didn’t seem like a puck bunny. I’ve never seen her before.” “Was she hot?” Aasher asked. Dax answered, “She wasn’t just hot. She was the type you took home to Ma and Pops.” I interrupted Dax and Aasher’s conversation. “She isn’t a puck bunny. She said she’s my new roommate, which is exactly why I have to go talk to Coach. I guess admissions fucked up and switched her last and first name.” Nearly every one of my teammates laughed. Landon blew a breath out of his mouth before smirking. “I would room with her. Wanna switch roommates? I’m down.” “Down to fuck,” Aasher grunted. “If you saw her, you’d say the same.”

Then, he called his wife and made me explain the situation so she wouldn’t yell at him for being late to dinner.

Not a jerk coach gets a bonus point

“Absolutely,” I lied. “We all are. If you ever need anything, I’m Claire. I’m here most weekends, okay?” I winked at her, and the softness in her mother’s eyes sent a gust of warmth through me. She mouthed the words, ‘Thank you,’

I love nice fmc.

“Oh, really?” Theo’s smile caught my eye, and I’ll admit, it was a nice one. “If I see you in the stands, I’ll try to skate over and give him a puck. Do you think he’d like that?”

See he's nice, like actually nice and not moody or mean for no reason. Kind of why I started reading this.

Placing my hands in the pockets of my jeans, I shrugged, holding back a cheeky grin. “That depends.” Her glare narrowed. “On...?” “On if you snore.” Her small nose wrinkled, and I winked at her. “See ya at home, Bryant.” An exasperated breath caused a cloud of mist to float from her parted lips, and I smiled deviously as I walked back to my car.

When Theo and I reached the top of the stairs and began walking down the hall, he tried grabbing the box from my hands again, but I quickly pulled it back. A chuckle rumbled from his chest. “I’m not trying to steal your box, Bryant. I’m just trying to help you.”

I snapped my fingers, and she looked at me like she was seconds from ripping my head off. “Volleyball?” I took my finger and spun it in the air. “Turn around. Let me see.” A bubble of excitement started to creep up my throat when the apples of her cheeks turned pink. “Excuse me?” I furrowed my brow. “Volleyball players have a pretty decent ass. Let me see.” Her jaw dropped, and I threw my head back and laughed. “I’m kidding, Bryant. Will you lighten up?” I snapped my fingers again, the relaxation halting for a second. “I’ve got it. You’re a dancer, I bet. And not the cheerleading type of dancer. You’re in…ballet?”

And admittedly, I enjoyed picking on her. It fed me like I was a starving animal.

he’d come tromping back in the room, huffing and puffing from his run.

He tipped his sharp jaw in my direction. “Hi, Bryant. Nice of you to finally make your way over here. I don’t need a refill. Thanks for asking, though.”

He squinted as he studied me, and his sigh was so strong I felt his warm breath brush against my skin. “And you’re stubborn. Noted.”

“No,” I snapped. Fuck. I pulled out my phone, really not wanting to call campus security on this girl, but then the door opened, and Claire’s face came in between us. An idea popped in my head, and before I could stop myself, my phone slipped back into my pocket, and a grin spread across my face. “What is goi—” “Hey, babe.” My sly greeting made Claire pull back in confusion and maybe a little disgust. My arm went around her waist, and I tugged her in close. A swallow got lodged in my throat when I felt her bare skin against my hand, knowing I had accidentally slipped my grip underneath her shirt. She had on a pair of black-rimmed glasses perched on the end of her nose, and a blush spread across her face as quickly as I regained my composure. “Thanks for waiting up for me.”

“What the hell, Theo!” Her hands went to her hips, and the blush on her cheeks grew redder with what I had assumed was anger. “Why did you do that? If that gets around campus, everyone is going to think we’re a thing!” I threw my hands up. Shit, that’s brilliant. “Yes! That’s perfect. Maybe they’ll stop showing up here unannounced.” “I have a boyfriend!” Claire’s tiny foot stomped against the floor, and that was when I ran my gaze down her body. How does she look so cute when she looks like a mess? Her brown hair was in a wild bun on the top of her head with a bunch of loose strands framing her face. She had on glasses that made her look a little nerdy, and she wore baggy, light-pink sweats with a BU Dance logo on the upper thigh and a loose shirt that was sporting her braless chest. “Stop looking at me like that.” I snapped back to reality and met her eye. “Like what?” Surely she had no idea what I was just thinking, because I couldn’t even believe what I was thinking.

Claire left a moment later with her shower stuff, and I smiled to myself as the door slammed behind her. There was something about irritating her that entertained me. It was invigorating, and I couldn’t help but laugh to myself as I lay in bed, waiting for her to come back to the room. Sure, there was still an air of friction between us, but it was innocently placed and a little bit comical. At least now she was angry because I had used her to make a puck bunny go away and not angry because I pointed out the obvious with her loser boyfriend who left her alone on yet another Friday night. He couldn’t make it any clearer than that, right? When Claire came back into the room with her damp hair and body wash that made my blood warm, I forced myself not to smile at her, even though the mischievous boy that still lived inside of me was clawing to come back out to play with her. What am I, twelve? The lights were out a moment later, and we both lay in silence, and for the first time after a game, I actually felt tired. My breathing was beginning to slow, and my muscles were exhausted. The sound of her smooth breathing was kind of…comforting? Before I fully fell asleep, I turned toward her and tried to make amends. “Hey, Bryant?” Her voice was raspy, but I still heard an edge to it as she snapped out, “What?” “Thanks.” A breathy sigh was all I got, but for some reason, the next morning, when I woke up to run and caught a glimpse of her relaxed face and closed eyes, I turned of...

“She’s at dance practice. Or rehearsals? I don’t know what to call it. She’s doing her ballet stuff.” I questioned myself, not fully understanding what Bexley U dancers did. I knew, for a fact, that she wasn’t a part of the dance team that performed during basketball games, though, because I’d seen up most of their skirts and I’d remember looking up hers.

Ford quickly stood up, his theater seat screeching in the process, and he began clapping. “Well done, Bryant! Woo hoo!” I pinched the bridge of my nose and wanted to knock the stupid right out of him, but I couldn’t force myself to remove my eyes from Claire and her wildly shocked expression from across the auditorium. Her jaw fell open as her chest continued to heave up and down from the exertion of her dancing. Everyone turned to stare, and the looks of confusion on their faces only propelled Ford to clap harder. Some would say that Ford loved attention, and they were absolutely correct.

I opened my mouth, but Ford quickly stepped beside me and threw up a closed fist in her direction. “Knucks, Bryant. That was amazing.” Claire’s lip twitched, and she gave him a tiny smile before pounding her small knuckles against his. “Thank you…” “I’m Ford, and this is Aasher.” His gaze switched over to Claire’s friend immediately. “Hey, T. Haven’t seen you for a while.” Claire’s friend, who was also sporting full dance gear, stared at him in disbelief. He turned to Aasher, grinning. “This is Emory’s little sister, Taytum.”

The voice inside my head was telling me to retreat, but there was a game waiting to be played as I stared at my roommate. I prodded her just a little bit more because I couldn’t back down from a challenge as enticing as her. “And she definitely doesn’t party, right? She’d rather sit in her room on a Friday night and wait for her boyfriend to step out of his science lab to call her.” Science lab or out from between other girls’ legs. I swear it was him at the party last weekend.

I kept my attention on my roommate, ignoring the rising tension between her best friend and Ford. The little muscles along her cheeks ground back and forth as she shot me a dirty look. Then, she looked over at Ford and smiled, making me do a double-take. “We will be there.”

Ignoring her, I pushed my hands in the pockets of my skinny jeans and turned to look at my butt. Nonchalantly, Taytum asked, “Where have you been hiding that outfit?” I paused. “Huh?” “Claire.” Taytum came up behind me, and we looked into the dirty mirror. “You look hot.” Her blonde hair fell over my shoulder as she bent forward and ran her hand over the straps of my tight crop top. It was long-sleeved, but that was really the only modest thing about it. It was slightly low cut, dipping in the center between my boobs, and had two thin straps that ran crisscross underneath the hem that just so happened to hit right above my belly button. There was only an inch or so showing off my toned belly (thank you, conditioning) but my jeans were high-waisted so, truly, it wasn’t that revealing.

“You can cry in front of me, Claire. It’s alright.” His voice was soft and comforting, and those were two words I had never expected to use while describing someone like him. Damn it. My shoulders shook, and if Theo wasn’t holding me against his chest, my entire body would have shuddered. His fingers around my wrist had lessened when he pulled me in tighter, and I swore I heard him shush me at one point. My tears went on for entirely too long—much longer than I had wanted them to—but being trapped in Theo’s arms came with a security that I hadn’t expected. My emotions were all over the place. I hurt in places that I hadn’t hurt before but was comforted in ways that I’d never felt before, either. It was like being pulled in two different directions.

A shaky breath shuddered from my mouth as I turned onto my side, facing Theo. My quiet voice, with a hint of hoarseness from the inescapable emotions, floated out in front of us. “This isn’t me,” I admitted, feeling unsure but so incredibly angry and hurt at the same time that I didn’t really care. “What isn’t?” Theo asked, turning his head in my direction. I couldn’t see his face, but I felt his breath land on my lips, and there was a mysterious push against my back that made me hook my leg over his body. His hand slapped over my thigh, spreading his fingers out wide. “Claire.” His breath was heavy. “Don’t do this to me.”

Ah, shit. I pulled back, and my traitor of a tongue licked her taste off my lips, and I knew that I would never be able to unlive the moment now that it had happened.

Aasher shot me a look, but I interrupted him as I caught movement at the end of the hall. I spotted several of my teammates lingering. “What the hell are they doing?” Aasher turned around and put his hands in his pockets, sighing. “They’re keeping watch.” “Keeping watch?” “Yeah, they were at the party. They saw you throw a punch. They’re here to shoo him away if he comes to make amends to your roomie.” He laughed in between his explanation. “Plus, Taytum threatened them all if they didn’t keep guard. She has some pull because almost everyone is afraid of Emory.” I was in disbelief. “I’m not that unhinged. I can control myself when need be.” “They know that. I honestly think they are here for her more than you.”

“She guesses?” Ford scoffed, and we all fell into easy conversation again. Dax and I were chatting about grabbing some breakfast and then hitting the gym, and Taytum and Claire were mumbling under their breath, likely about Chad.

She was still just my roommate…who kissed very well.

I stepped forward without even meaning to, but Aasher’s hand gripped a bundle of my shirt, and I stopped at the last second. Anger split down my spine, but I snapped out of it a moment later when I realized I had actually growled like a caveman. Well, that’s new.

“Tay.” I snapped my head over to Claire so quickly I felt a pop in my neck. Claire moved in front of Taytum, and although I wanted to push her behind me to protect her from him, I didn’t. It wasn’t my place, and I knew it. That wasn’t to say I didn’t want to knock him on his ass again or, better yet, stick my tongue down her throat—farther than I did last night—just to see how he liked watching her kiss someone else. Fuck, why am I so mad?

“Not busy on Thursdays, I see.” Claire began stacking cups off to the side. “Not really, but tomorrow night we will be. Everyone seems to come here after the game, before they hit the parties.” “You work tomorrow night?” I asked. Claire shook her head, and I watched her closely. She looked both relieved and deterred by that. “So…” I leaned in close so she was forced to peer up at me. Her cheeks turned pink when I smirked. “That means you’re coming to the game, then?” Her laugh was abrupt. “No.” I slapped the top of the bar and pulled myself away from her space. “Come on, Bryant. What else are you gonna be doing if you’re not working? You’ve been nonexistent this week. I live with you and haven’t seen you.” Was this my attempt to dig and figure out what was going on with her and Chad? Yes. Was it a poor attempt? Also, yes. Claire’s shoulders fell. “I’ll be catching up on homework, and I’ll probably head to the auditorium and practice.” I felt the skepticism in my expression before I allowed it to come out in my voice. “How often do you need to practice? You’re already there by the time I wake up to run.” I thought I was obsessed with being the best, but damn. Claire paused as she tucked a stray hair behind her ear. “How do you know that?” I stilled but recovered quickly. “Because I run past and see your car there every morning.” She didn’t need to know that running past the auditorium was not my usual route, but deep down, I knew it. So what? I wanted to check on her. T...

My smirk was the cherry on top of my triumphant mood. I was a natural-born winner, and even winning this little spar with Claire seemed to feed into that.

crisp and refreshing.

“Don’t,” he whispered, letting his lips brush over my cheek. My entire body grew warm, and I raised an eyebrow at the girls staring at us in disbelief, hoping they’d turn around and take off before I orgasmed from my roommate’s raspy voice. Shit. Shit. Shit.

Who is Tom Gardini? Taytum’s elbow made contact with my ribs, and I quickly snapped my head up and made eye contact with Theo. “It’s not like you turn them all down,” I blurted, seemingly more irritated than I actually was. Theo’s eyebrows climbed upward, and one of his lips disappeared behind his white teeth. “I would if you were my girl.”

I wasn’t complaining. She deserved it. She worked harder than I did, and that was impressive.

“Whatcha lookin’ at?” Emory’s voice hit the back of my neck, and I nearly elbowed him in the jaw for catching me. “Go away,” I snarled. “You smell like a whore house.” He sniggered under his breath and came to stand beside me. “Jealous?” I glared over at him. “Of you fucking a puck bunny? No.” I could have had my pick. I just didn’t want to. His lip curled upward as he ran a free hand through his dark hair. The hair on his face had fully grown in, and he already had the look of a pro NHL player. “Nah, I’m talkin’ about her.” I didn’t follow his gaze across the party because I knew he was referring to Claire. “Jealous of what?” “Being so close to her but not being able to have her.”

“I’m gonna kiss the hell out of you, Bryant, and don’t you dare pull away.” For the second time, our mouths sealed, but this time, the kiss was undeniably soul-wrecking, and that was when I knew that Claire Bryant was about to become my weak side.

“You make the rules,” Theo said. I inhaled quietly and let the air out before I tugged on his hand, noticing the calluses on his palm rubbing against the softness of mine. Aasher coughed under his breath from behind us as I continued to watch Chad prowl through the party with one of his toys trailing behind him, and he said, “Does this mean she’s rethought his earlier proposition?”

His eyes narrowed, and his breath hit me in the face as he leaned backward and shot Chad a look that would make anyone shiver. “You think she’s going to go back to you when I’m through with her?” My stomach dipped at the thought of Theo touching me. Remember, this isn’t real, Claire. “She won’t even remember your name after I touch her.” I was too busy trying to put out the fire in my body to even care that Chad’s jaw tightened. Theo pulled me the rest of the way down the hall, opened the door on the right, and pushed me inside with a look on his face that I’d never seen before. His cheeks had hollowed out, and his tongue had darted out to lick his bottom lip, making it glisten in the barely lit room. He pushed me to the side, and the locking of the door cut through the thumping inside my ears.

“Four stitches. And you’ve been to my games. You know I fall.”

She seemed exasperated, and it was kind of cute how stressed out she was, but before I caused any more unnecessary stress for her, I leaned down and kissed her forehead before whispering, “It’s important, but I’m beginning to realize it may not be the most important thing anymore.” Because after all, what was a future without her in it?

“How is she?” Wait, what? “Uh…” I was more confused at this moment than I was when I had woken up drunk on top of the Zamboni the morning after our high school championship game. “You mean—”

Professor Petit