Page 25 of Sam & Justin

I didn’t need to go into all the thoughts in my head. What good would it do?

A whistle blew and suddenly, Theo was out on the court with a microphone. People began hooting and hollering as he announced the alumni that were playing and the current basketball team. Music started playing over the speakers, and it became too loud to think. Not that I was bitching about it, because I didn’t want to keep thinking. I didn’t want to travel down the path my thoughts were taking.

The game started after that, and I was reminded of the fact that I didn’t really like basketball. Everyone else seemed really into it. Even Justin was starting to stomp his feet and act like an idiot. I found myself watching him more than I was watching the game.It was why I noticed little things, like the way he kept looking down at the man on the court. The one who had announced the start of the game. I didn’t know what he was thinking, watching him. Maybe they had some kind of history and he was one of the guys he’d seen since he’d come out during college, or maybe they were just friends.

Didn’t really matter, because when the clock was ticking down to halftime and one of our alumnus was dribbling down to tie up the game, my hand was the one Justin reached for. He pulled me out of my seat, and suddenly, I was being drawn into the game. I cheered just as loud as Justin did as the ball went through the hoop and tied the game up.

If anyone asked, I was just glad it was halftime, and I could get another pretzel.

The second half of the game didn’t have any other moments that had my heart racing. At least none that had it racing as much as the fact that Justin’s hand kept finding mine did. Every time he sat back down from shouting and hollering, he reached over and grabbed my hand. Sometimes, he’d give it a little squeeze. No matter how many times he did it, my heart gave a little flutter.

The noise wasn’t enough to drown out the truth.

I had a thing for Justin. It wasn’t in the past the way I thought it was. No, it had reared its ugly head right here in the present day, and I was in it deep. Knowing it meant I probably shouldn’t be sitting there, letting it grow. I shouldn’t be feeding it with holding his hands or watching the way he looked a bit flushedwhen the alumni scored. There was a lot of shit I shouldn’t be doing, but I didn’t care.

Not when the fourth quarter started and he leaned in close. “Are you having fun?” I could barely make out his words over the sounds around us, but the warmth of his breath sent shivers down my spine and reminded me of the night before.

“More than I expected,” I answered, leaning in a bit too close.

Our lips were inches apart. I had half a mind to close the distance between us, but I didn’t know if that was a good idea. He didn’t seem to have the same qualms, because he leaned right in. I didn’t know what was happening in the game. The noise around us quieted, and the whole world narrowed down to his lips on mine. The kiss only lasted a moment, but it proved what I already knew.

To no one’s surprise, I didn’t know who won the game. If I’d barely been paying attention before the kiss, I wasn’t paying a lick of it after. I only tuned back into reality when Justin popped the bubble we were existing in as the final buzzer went off and people began shouting and cheering.

“I need to go check on something,” he shouted over the noise. “I’ll meet you in the parking lot, okay?”

I didn’t even get a chance to respond before he hopped up and started weaving through the crowd.

And I was just sitting there, watching him go.

10

Reunion - Saturday Afternoon

My attention had been split three ways during the alumni game.

First, there’d been the game itself. I’d always enjoyed watching basketball, though I lacked the ability to play it with any real skill. Watching the current team go against my former classmates had been exciting, and I acted like a maniac throughout the game. There was something about the energy of the crowd that was infectious, and I was always willing to let it drag me along with it.

Second was Sam. I was so aware of him sitting next to me that it was almost distracting. I noticed him watching my reactions. By the middle of the game, I found myself seeking out his hand, and at one point, I was so caught up in the energy of the crowd and his presence that I couldn’t resist kissing him. I was obsessed with every single one of his little reactions. They were differentthan they’d been the night before in his motel room. Of course, that may have been due to the size of the crowd around us.

Finally, Theo. There was something off about him. He looked like he was a million miles away, except when he was staring at Caden North. I only knew some of their history, some from watching them in the hallways, but mostly secondhand. The gossip mill had been hot after Caden’s disappearance, and I never really knew what to believe. I knew too well that Gomillion mouths didn’t always speak the truth. Whatever it was, I felt compelled to check on Theo. The moment the game ended, I went after him.

Our conversation was short, and he said that he was okay. I didn’t know if I believed him, but I also didn’t think I had the right to pry beyond checking on him. We might have worked together on the reunion, but we’d never been close friends. He’d been in my sister’s year; I wondered if she knew anything and made a mental note to ask.

By the time our conversation ended, people were leaving the gym and coming toward the parking lot. Food trucks were parked along the edges, and while I was famished from skipping breakfast, I was more concerned about finding Sam in the throng. In the end, he found me while I was looking in the wrong direction.

“Everything sorted?” he asked. I could hear the concern in his voice, and it tugged at something in my chest.

It also confused the hell out of me. It took me a few moments to realize that, rushing out the way I did, he must have thoughtthat I had to get things organized for the next activity or fix something that had gone wrong. After all, we’d managed to go the entire game, including half time, without any crises occurring. That was almost a full two hours where he hadn’t had to share my attention with anyone, only for me to practically leave clouds of smoke when I ran off.

I offered him a weak smile. “I needed to check on someone.” I didn’t want to bring attention to whatever was going on between Theo and Caden. While I didn’t think Sam would go around reigniting old gossip, I couldn’t say the same for anyone around us who might overhear our conversation.

“But is everything sorted?”

My smile grew more genuine as I nodded. “Yeah. Everything’s great.” I wrapped my arm around his waist and pulled him closer to me. “Everything will be even better once we get something to eat. I’m starving.”

He raised an eyebrow at me. “Skip breakfast?”

“As it happens, yes,” I answered, grinning ear to ear. “It turns out that waking up across town and still needing a shower really cuts into breakfast time.” His face started to fall right before my eyes. I hated that. I didn’t want him thinking that I regretted a single thing that happened last night, because I didn’t. What was missing breakfast compared to one of the best nights of my life? “Small price to pay.”