Page 56 of Running Play (Gods of Campus #1)

Christian

The following week, I head back to the house and sink into the sofa, flipping through a Cosmopolitan magazine and wondering where the hell it came from.

I shake my head at the articles and toss it onto the floor.

Things with Shelby are going great; she’s incredible.

I hate that she’s been through so much, and that it still affects her.

But I love that she felt safe enough to call me when she needed help, to let me be there for her.

There’s something about that kind of trust, about being someone’s first thought when the world tilts sideways. And I love being that person for her.

I turn my head as I hear Randy walking downstairs, dressed in nothing but his underwear. I sit up. “Is she okay in there, or did you knock her unconscious with your headboard?”

“Shit, man.” He spins to look at me. “Are we late?”

“Leaving in ten minutes… Are you going to be ready?”

He heads into the kitchen and yells, “Yeah, she knows I have to go to practice.”

Walsh jogs downstairs, his expression already exasperated.

“You know I might have to rethink the whole roommate situation. I can’t go a whole two years without sleep,” Walsh says, teasingly at a half-naked Randy in the kitchen.

“Geez, man, put some clothes on. I see enough of you in the locker room,” he adds, throwing his bag into the foyer.

Randy struts back out of the kitchen, but not before flipping us off as he jogs up the stairs.

“Eight minutes,” I yell behind him.

“Yeah, yeah,” he yells back.

“Well, living with Randy is never going to be dull, is it?” Walsh says as he sits down on the other end of the couch.

“Oh, please, it’s not like you don’t have women over, you just have a bit more modesty.”

“Yeah, I guess,” he mumbles as he stares off into space.

“You all right, man?” I question. I met Walsh our freshman year; he was introduced to me and Randy through Seth, and we both instantly liked him.

“Yeah,” is all he gives me in reply. I watch him with concern for a few moments until Randy and a pretty girl I have never met enter the foyer.

“We just have to drop Julia off,” Randy says. “Julia, the boys…boys, this is Julia.”

Julia looks so fit she could probably outrun me.

“Hi,” I say, standing and grabbing my keys and gym bag. “Let’s get going.”

***

Walking to my truck, Seth leans against the passenger door smoking a cigarette. He takes a long drag as he watches us approach, standing to full height he exhales, straightens his shoulders, and flicks his cigarette to the ground.

“Hi, Seth,” Julia says in a sweet sing-song voice, catching us all by surprise.

“Julia,” he replies as they stare at each other for a moment. Randy and I exchange confused looks. They know each other . My eyes flick between the two of them as I round the front of my truck.

“Shotgun,” Walsh says, ending the stare-off as he jumps into the car. We all pile into the vehicle, and I catch Randy’s glance. Yeah, he’s wondering the same thing I am—how the fuck does Seth know her? I flick him a look in the rearview.

He shrugs.

“Where am I taking you, Julia?”

“Café, please,” she says to me, squished in between Seth and Randy. My truck is big, but seated between two grown ass athletes, she only just fits.

“Meeting someone?” Seth asks as I pull out of the driveway and onto the main road.

“Yeah. Abigail,” she says, waiting to see his reaction. Seth is an intimidating guy, but she doesn’t seem one bit fazed by his presence. If anything, I would say he seems uncomfortable around her.

I watch the interaction in my mirror.

“She’s here?” Seth drawls with a blank stare.

“Yeah, Seth, she’s here like she always planned. You didn’t think she would change her plans because of you and what you did to her, did you? ”

I watch as Seth turns his head and stares out the window, his haunted expression is hard as his jaw tics, and everyone remains silent.

Pulling up at the café, Randy jumps out and helps Julia down, and with a quick peck to the lips, she says goodbye and heads inside.

As Randy climbs back in, he looks at Seth. “What was all that about? How do you know her?”

Seth doesn’t turn his face from the window. “Julia and Abigail were Heather’s best friends.”

Running his hand through his hair, Randy lets out a breath. “Fuck, man, I had no idea.” Seth continues to stare out the window as I pull back onto the road. “I’m sorry…if I had known I would never have gone there.”

“It’s fine…it’s not you, it’s…them. They remind me of Heather. They were inseparable…she should be here at college with them.” His voice is rigid.

Not being able to save his sister that night changed him. It damaged who he was and made him harder, both physically and emotionally.

Seth faces Randy, and even in the mirror I can see the hard look in his eyes, the look that says if you only listen to one thing I tell you, it’s this!

“But if you ever so much as touch Abigail,” his words are slow and deliberate as he leans forward so there is no misunderstanding. “I’ll rip your fucking dick off!”

Randy throws his hand up in compliance. “No Abigail! Ever. Done, man!”