Page 2 of Tailored for Them

Like always.

Nicole Young was stunning, even just wearing khaki shorts and sneakers, a plain t-shirt that would barely be able to keep her warm from the ocean breeze dancing across the field.

It showed off the tattoos on her arms. Inky butterflies were scattered on her bicep. The raccoon with the bouquet of flowers. I tossed my water bottle back in the bag, my head still turned so I didn’t miss a moment of her. I blindly reached for my sweat rag and wrapped it around my shoulders, dabbing at my neck and chest as I watched Nicole toss her head back and laugh again. The sound echoed across the grass.

The group over there turned, headed in my direction. Probably to discuss how great the game went with me, but I couldn’t pretend I wasn’t staring ather.

I didn’t even try to hide it, I never did.

Because half the time she caught me staring at her, I was gifted with the sight of her cheeks darkening with a blush. Ilivedfor that moment.

“…and then Court stuck her thirty-two-ounce Hydro flask up my ass.” Josh’s words made me blink and startle back into the moment.

“What the fuck?” I asked him.

“Oh, are you listening to me now?” He raised an eyebrow, lined with two piercings as he smirked, and his eyes danced across the field to the group heading toward us, “Which one are you staring at, T?”

I shook my head, “No one.”

“Is it the Englishman? I get it,” Josh raised his eyebrows as he admired Leo with a low whistle, “Accents.”

“Nope.” I shook my head once, glancing up to see them getting closer.

“The brunette?”

I froze, glaring at him. He widened his eyes as a shit-eating grin spread across his cheeks, “Which one? Long hair, or short?”

I glanced back at the sound of her laugh again, making direct eye contact this time. As soon as our eyes met, her smile lost a little bit of its boldness.

I wondered why.

She glanced to the side where Jacqueline was talking with her, but her dark eyes landed on me again, and it felt like a gust of wind was about to knock me off my feet. And then there it was, the pink that stained her cheeks whenever we made eye contact. I hoped, deep down, that meant she liked what she saw.

My friends often called me a flirt, and I couldn’t argue with them. There is casual flirting, which I’d argue wasn’t true flirting, but was more messing around with my close friends. And then there was flirting-flirting, when I tried to make it obvious that I was sexually interested in a person.

Being pansexual meant that I didn’t care what someone’s gender was; I’d dated men, women, and other enbies. I was mostly attracted to people’s vibes.

Nicole Young’s vibes made something swoop in my lower belly, and my heart picked up its pace.

I just hoped she might reciprocate.

I felt safe using dating apps. The app made it clear where everyone stood. They could read my bio, see they/them pronouns under my name, see some pictures of myself to ensure I was their type, and everyone could get together with proper expectations.

Meeting someone in the wild like this? Through happenstance? A friend of a friend? It required some sleuthing on my part. I didn’t know a lot about her—yet—and I hadn’t confirmed if she was queer or not. Perhaps her bob and her raccoon tattoo were giveaways, but I generally didn’t ramp up my charm unless I knew for sure. There was no queer coded keychain or carabiner that I could see on her person, just a fanny pack looped across her torso. I needed to take time to figure this out, because the closer she approached, the more I felt my attraction toward her heart-shaped face and dark eyes, and soft smile rise.

God, hersmile.

My favorite was when she smiled widely, creating soft smile lines on her cheeks.

I always gravitated toward people shorter than me. I also loved a feminine, curvy body. And Nicole had plenty of that.

“We’re going out for celebratory drinks,” Leo said, tucking Jacqueline closer to his side. I nodded a silent hello to his girlfriend as they finally reached where Josh and I stood. I didn’t bother with formal introductions between Josh and the others, in an attempt to conceal Josh’s identity as much as I could.However, people usually figured out who he was after talking with him.

“Where at?” I asked, sliding my towel off my neck and dabbing it on my forehead. I always sweated a ton after a game of rugby.

I glanced over at Nicole, who stood on Jacqueline’s other side and watched me dab my skin with a focused expression. Good focus? Bad focus? Who the hell knew? I could practically feel her eyes on me, though.

“Two blocks away,” Leo pointed in the general direction behind me, and I nodded.

---