Page 3 of Overdue Feelings

You gotta be kidding me.

“Ares.” I stared across the room, mouth tight, arms crossed.

He looked different. Older, but he still had that same crooked smile and low cut.

And apparently, the same habit of walking into a space like he owned it.

This was my space though. My school. My woman. He didn’t have any business being here.

“Wait… Y’all know each other?” Principal Voss turned to look at us, making Creek stiffen beside me.

“Old friends,” Creek said too quickly.

Voss blinked at us, then at him. It wasn’t new for people to know someone in Harvest Hills. Everybody knew somebody here.

“Well... that’s even better. You two can help him adjust. Shoot me an email if you need me.” She smiled at the three of us before she dipped out, like she hadn’t just dropped a whole damn bomb in my lap.

“What are you doin’ here, Ares?” I asked.

“It’s good to see you, Zae.” He ignored the question. Is this nigga trying to gaslight me? I took a few steps forward, invading his space. “Can’t say the same.”

“Zae.” Creek slid her hand over my arm, calming me the way only she could, and that was barely enough.

“What the hell are you doing here, Ares? I didn’t know you even knew Harvest Hills still exi?—”

The sound of the second bell ringing interrupted my sentence. Ares was lucky I had an early morning gym class to teach.

“I gotta go,” I muttered to Creek before turning to look back at him. “Don’t think you popping up here is going to change anything.”

“I’ll see you later, baby.”

I pulled Creek into my arms and kissed her temple, hard and quick. Was I marking my territory? Hell yeah. I hurried out of the library and headed down the hallway to the gymnasium. My jaw clenched and my heart thudded.

Ares better had understood that Creek Delaney was mine.

She always had been. From the minute she sat next to me in Miss Rucker’s third grade class humming Brandy under her breath while doodling flowers on her spelling test, I knew.

I was the one who pulled her into our circle.

I made her the third piece in our trio. Not Ares. Me.

She was mine when she broke down in my arms after Gigi’s second stroke. I stayed the night, rubbing circles on her back till she finally stopped crying and fell asleep. Mine before the first time we’d kissed, before we’d made it official.

Yeah, I knew she loved him. I knew she had a teenage love for him back when we were just kids.

She’d given him the one thing I wish I could claim I had, but I also knew the way he shattered her when he left without a word.

I watched her fall apart. I stayed and helped her pick up every broken piece of her heart.

I coached her through relationships, through life.

Not because I was hoping she’d choose me one day, but because loving her was never optional. Staying was never optional for me.

I stepped into the gym and started pulling out cones and jerseys, trying to shake off the storm brewing in my damn chest. Being in the gym usually calmed me, but not today.

Not with my ex-best friend back. My hands moved on autopilot.

My students would be here in less than five minutes, but my mind?

My mind couldn’t help but to drift back to the last day I saw Ares Knight.

“ Aye, Zae!” Ares called out, jogging toward me, breathless. I’d just snapped a picture with the squad. We were all hyped after the ceremony and the bonfire. So hyped, I’d almost forgotten how long it’d been since Ares and C left to change her clothes.

“Zae!” he called again. I turned in his direction, expecting to see him and Creek coming toward me, ready to tell me some crazy story about what took so long, but it was just Ares. The look on his face made my stomach drop. Something wasn’t right.

“Where’s C?” I asked, already pushing out the sand. “Y’all been gone forever.”

“Um... Come talk to me for a second.” He motioned toward the edge of the dock, away from the music, the smoke, and the crowd. My heart pounded as we made our way over there.

“A, what’s going on? Where’s C?”

“She’s... she’s good. Sleeping.” He hesitated. His jaw was tight.

“Sleeping?” I repeated, frowning. “The hell you mean sleeping?”

“ We uh... we uh... We hooked up.” He rubbed a hand over his face, like he could wipe the guilt off it while I stared on. His words hit me like a punch to the gut.

“You fucked C?” I asked flatly. I needed to make sure I’d heard him correctly.

He opened and closed his mouth, but no words came out.

“We made a pact, remember that? Freshman year. When we both started catchin’ feelings.

We said we wouldn’t act on it. We said we would leave her alone.

We said she meant more to us than a quick fuck. ”

“You think I don’t feel like shit? I love her, man. You think I don’t ? —”

“Then why the hell you leaving?” My voice broke. “Why you taking her love and running off like what she just gave you ain’t supposed to mean something? You know Creek got abandonment issues. You know how hard she gon’ take this?”

He didn’t say anything. He just stood there looking like a deer caught in headlights.

“She at the clubhouse.” He finally spoke, voice low. “Take care of her.”

“That’s it? You not even gon’ say goodbye?”

“I can’t…”

“You can’t, or you won’t?”

He opened his mouth again, but I’d already turned my back on him and was walking away from the dock. I didn’t look back, either . Didn’t care where he went or how he got there. Ares was dead to me.

“Coach?” The sound of one of my eighth grade students snapped me back to reality. “You good?” he asked.

“Yeah.” I cleared my throat and straightened my shoulders as I turned my attention to the class standing at the door. Their teacher gave me a head nod as she took off down the hall.

“Come on in. Line up on the baseline,” I called out as my first-period kids came piling into the gym. It wasn’t even eight in the morning and these kids were hyped to see me, loud and grinning. And normally, I’d eat that up, but my head wasn’t here.

Nah. I was still back in that damn library, watching Ares walk into Creek’s life like he had a damn right to.

He didn’t. Not after he’d left me to fix his mess.

I’d been the one holding her down. The one wiping her tears, making her laugh when she couldn’t even smile.

I’d been standing beside her all these years, not just loving her, but choosing her, and now that she’d finally chosen me back, here he was.

I didn’t know what Ares thought he was doing, but he had me fucked up if he thought he could just show up and rewrite history like I ain’t exist.

Nah.

The final bell had rung, and the first day at Sweet Pea was officially in the books.

I’d just wrapped up parking lot duty. I was responsible for waving off buses, keeping parents from blocking the fire lane, basically making sure nobody got run over in all the back to school excitement.

Kids were pouring out the doors, already talking a mile a minute about who sat where and what they ate for lunch.

I offered a few smiles and nods to a few lingering parents as I made my way back toward the building.

Sixth grade basketball tryouts were in fifteen minutes, and I should’ve been on my way to the gym.

But fuck that, I had a stop to make first. I needed to see my girl.

With all the first-day chaos, I hadn’t had a second to check in on her, and I knew damn well Ares showing up had her mind spinning.

I reached for the library door, but before I could step inside, I spotted Creek by the shelves, putting up a book.

She was quiet, focused. I knew that meant she was trying to work out some shit in her head.

My eyes searched the room for a lingering student or something, but they found Ares. He was making his way to the exit, backpack slung over his shoulder, and his eyes were fixed on Creek.

“Creek.” He called her name, and she paused before turning to look at him.

I watched as their eyes locked, and all of their history, hell our history, passed between them in a second.

I couldn’t lie, I felt that shit in my chest from outside the door.

I wanted to bust in there and shut any chance of her going down memory lane down, but before I could she did what I needed her to do.

She turned and dipped into her office like she wanted no parts of him.

He turned right as I pushed open the door and we both stopped. His eyes landed on me, full of regret.

“Wassup, Zae,” he said casually like we were best buds or some shit. I tilted my head as I stepped inside and let the door close behind me.

“You here to reap the benefits of the girl you left me to heal?”

“That’s not fair, Zae. I didn’t know y’all worked here. Hell, I didn’t even know y’all were together.”

I heard him, but I didn’t care about anything he had to say. It wasn’t fair when he broke our pact and left Creek to wake up naked and alone. It wasn’t fair when he didn’t so much as call to check in.

“Well, now you know. Keep yo’ distance. We not interested.”

He looked like he wanted to say something else, but I was done talking.

I wasn’t trying to argue over some shit that happened over a decade ago.

I’d made my peace with it already. That’s why he shouldn’t have shown up here.

I walked past him without another word and headed straight to Creek’s office.

“You good?” I asked, stepping inside and locking the door behind me. Creek was by her desk, arms crossed, pacing.

“Yeah. He stayed in his little office, and I stayed in mine.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” She bit her lip and nodded again, just as I stepped in, hand brushing her waist like I needed to feel her. Feel that she was still mine. I could feel her body melt into mine. Her shoulders and face relaxed.

“I don’t know what to feel, Zae,” she admitted, shaking her head. “I really thought I was over it. Over him. But today… I wasn’t prepared for this. What is he doing back here?”

“I don’t know.” I shook my head.

“Why would he show up back here? Like he didn’t take my first time and vanish without so much as an in person goodbye. He was my best friend one day and then he was gone the next.” Her voice cracked, but she caught herself before any tears fell from her eyes.

“Say the word, Creek. You want me to make him leave? I will.”

“Nah. You don’t need to fight the ghosts of friendship past. I’ll be fine.” She looked up at me and laughed before showing her concern for me. “What about you? Are you okay? Ares was your best friend at one point in time too.”

“Yeah, I’m not gonna lie… it’s fucking with me a little bit. That was my brother once. The three of us had some good times together. I don’t know why he’s back here, but we been good without him, and we’ll be good with him here.”

“I know.”

“You know you mine, right?” I asked into her neck as I pulled her into me and kissed her slowly.

“Mmhm.”

“Do I need to remind you?”

She didn’t answer, but the way her hips tilted toward me and that moan escaped her lips told me everything I needed to know. Without hesitation, I backed her up against the desk.

“Did you lock the door?” She was already breathing heavily.

“Damn right I did.” I slid her cardigan down her arms and tossed it on the chair behind her desk. “You’ve been in here looking at that nigga all day.”

“Don’t start. I’m not checking for Ares.”

“I ain’t starting, baby. I’m finishing.” I kissed her again. This time harder, and realer. I lifted her onto the edge of her desk like I’d done a hundred times.

“I love you, Zae,” she whispered into my ear. “I’m yours. I don’t need a reminder.”

“That’s what I like to hear.” I pushed up her dress and pulled her panties to the side. Sliding two fingers in her, I dropped to my knees. Her body arched off the edge of that little library desk, ready for me.

“Pretty ass,” I grunted. My eyes locked on hers as I spread her thighs.

Hooking one of her legs on my shoulder, I kissed the inside of it before latching on to her swollen clit with my mouth.

My tongue moved slow and deliberate, circling her center like I had all the time in the world.

As far as I was concerned, those kids could wait.

I’m sure my assistant coach already had it covered.

Zee knew what type of time I was on whenever I was late to tryouts.

That was the perk of working with family.

“Zae—”

I felt her tremble as she gripped the back of my head and buried my face deep into her middle. Her body was talking back with every kiss, every suck. That juicy slurp sound told me everything I needed to know.

“Let it go. Give it to me.” I latched my tongue onto her clit, holding it there until she was shaking and gasping for air.

“I got you.” I stood to my feet and released my dick from my pants. “Forget him. Forget all that shit. You with me now, and we good.” She gasped as I entered her. “That’s it. You feel that?” I filled her slow and deep. “That’s me, Creek. Not some ghost. Me, baby.”

“Ooh!” Her nails dug into my back, and her mouth dropped open. I stayed my pace, delivering firm, deep strokes into her.

“Say it,” I growled. “Who this pussy belong to?”

“You.” She panted. “You, Zae. Always you.”

Her legs trembled, and her head fell into the crook of my neck. She was cumming. I tightened my grip on her and continued my strokes until I released inside her.

“Damn!” I grunted, and we stayed like that for a few seconds. Our foreheads pressed together. Her arms wrapped around my neck like she didn’t want to let go. I kissed her lips once, then her temple. I hoped she understood how much she meant to me.

“You good?” I asked as I brushed her hair back into place.

“Better than good.”

“That’s what I like to hear.” I helped her off the desk and grabbed one of those wipes she kept in her drawer to wipe her clean.

“Go ahead and pack up.” I tucked myself back in my pants and zipped up as she smoothed down her skirt. “I’ll walk you out.”

“Okay.” She nodded as she moved around her office on wobbly legs, gathering her things and making sure she didn’t look like she’d just gotten fucked on the clock.

I unlocked the door and peeked out into the library.

It was quiet. Then I did the same for the hallway.

The building was damn near empty at this point.

We slipped out. I carried her bag with one hand and found her waist with the other. We didn’t talk. Didn’t need to.

We made our way through the half empty parking lot, and I helped her into her car.

“Go home and get some rest. Check on GiGi.” I leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Don’t worry about dinner. I got it.”

“Okay. Have a good practice.” She waved as she pulled off, and I stood there for a second just watching her.

“Damn, I love that woman,” I whispered to myself before turning to head back into the school. Practice wasn’t gonna run itself.