Page 35 of Out of Bounds

“Are all dorms this nice?”

“Nope. They finished building this one last year. I was going to live off-campus, but then I got a great number for the housing lottery.”

It seemed right that Alex would hit it big in the housing lottery. Things came easily to him, whether it was making friends, homework, or winning student council elections. Cliff worked his ass off to get good at basketball and pull down high grades. He didn’t have charisma to coast on. Even as a top athlete, he never had the power to command a room like Alex did.

Cliff sat down at the kitchen table while Alex washed dishes in the sink.

“The one downside to living here is that it doesn’t come with a meal plan. We get a kitchen instead, and making all your meals suuuuucks.”

The sounds of dishes plopping in and out of the water filled the silence. Cliff tried to think of something to talk about. Their conversations frequently came to dead ends.

“How’s Rosie?”

“She loves France. We haven’t gotten a chance to talk, but her Insta is blowing up with tons of great pics.”

It sounded like he was talking to himself as much as to Cliff.

“Do you think you’ll try to fly out there to visit her?”

“I don’t have plans. She’s coming back in two months.”

“It’d be a nice surprise. And it’s Paris, so it’d be like romantic squared.” That this idea came to him was a nice surprise of his own. He didn’t peg himself as a romantic, but his brain was officially scrambled after his amazing rendezvous with Brennan. Rubbing his nose against Brennan’s hard dick was the closest he’d ever come to romance in his life.

Was Cliff blushing?

Alex spun around and wiped his hands on a dishcloth. “A surprise visit.” His thick eyebrows wiggled in thought. They were always his biggest tell. He sat next to Cliff and pulled up flights on his computer. “I don’t have class on Fridays. Theoretically, I could take a red eye Thursday night, get there Friday morning, and spend a long weekend with her.”

Alex had the personality that knew how to make things happen. He had the idea to run as student council president as a sophomore, and the next day, he was collecting signatures. No overanalyzing or overthinking for him. Only on the court did Cliff’s mind get as clear. Maybe it was because Alex never had to second-guess anything he said or did to make sure it was in line with how a boy should act.

Cliff’s tossed off suggestion crystallized into a plan before his eyes.

“It looks like Thanksgiving would be a good time to go. Flights are cheap.”

“Do you have the money?”

“I have a credit card for emergencies.”

“Isthis an emergency?” Cliff waited for his brother to respond. His eyes stayed on travel listings.

Alex and Rosie met the first week of college in their political science class. She had the whip-smart, unabashedly opinionated personality that could not only keep up with Alex, but challenge him on his shit. Cliff appreciated how she talked with him about basketball, even though she knew next to nothing about sports. Leave it to Alex to find the perfect girl for him less than a week into college.

The Zoom screen popped up on Alex’s computer with a loud ring.

“Shit,” he said under his breath before instantly shifting to a big smile. “Hey guys!”

“How are my boys?” their mom said. Their parents each had a tan, a rarity for Wisconsinites, and a relaxed vibe. Empty nest life appeared to be good.

She squinted at the screen. “Scrunch together. You’re both partially out of frame. We want to see both of you.”

Cliff pushed his chair flush against his brother’s and scooched in.

“Better?” Alex pushed the Zoom window with their faces to half the screen. On the other half, he continued a stealth search of flights.

Cliff and his dad hijacked the family call with shop talk about basketball, as it usually happened. They fell into tangents on strategy and the skills of Cliff’s teammates, and his dad’s face would light up. Cliff loved basketball, but Arthur Warner LOVED it, and being around someone that passionate was infectious.

“Enough basketball talk.” Their mom was no stranger to the rabbit holes of these conversations. “Alex, how are your voter registration efforts going?”

Alex’s focus lay with the list of flights on the other half of the screen. “Good.”