Page 35 of The Assist
I bite my bottom lip and try my best to look sweet and innocent. “No.”
“Never?” Wes drops his sandwich and stares at me.
“Well, I watched last year’s tournament on television.”
He shakes his head. “The exhibition game is like a scrimmage or practice game where we split into two teams and play each other.”
“When is it again?”
“Friday night at seven,” Wes answers.
Joel steals another chip, and I pretend not to notice. “And there’s a party at the house after.”
“Cool. I’ll see if I can round up some of the girls.”
“You’re a sorority girl?” It’s more of a reminder than a question. “Yeah, bring some friends.”
I pull my plate back as he reaches for another chip. “My friends are too good for you.”
* * *
Turns out a lot of the girls from the house already made plans to see the exhibition game.
“I had no idea people came to these,” I whisper to Vanessa.
“They didn’t until they started making it to the Final Four.”
The cheerleaders and Ray Roadrunner, our lovable mascot, dance in the center of the floor to Magenta Riddim, but I’m too nervous to follow any of it with any real focus.
“You’re gonna have to stop bouncing your leg like that you’re shaking the whole row.”
“I’m sorry. I’m just so nervous.”
“Why are you nervous?” Vanessa asks with a smirk.
“I don’t know.”
“You like him.”
I shoot her a look as the crowd around us erupts. Turning my attention to the floor, I watch as the team runs onto the court. I spot Wes right away even in their matching warm ups and shoes.
But it’s Joel who steals the show by joining in with the cheerleaders and doing the ridiculous dance perfectly in step with them. If Wes is cocky, Joel is an attention whore. He eats up the female screams and shouts as he shows off his dance moves.
Vanessa and I stand and cheer with the rest of the student section.
“I can see why you like him. The man is seriously fine. He really knows how to rock the whole hot athlete thing.”
“That he does.” I motion with my head toward Mario, who is standing on the other side of Vanessa and talking to one of his buddies from the baseball team. “So, does Mario. He’s hot and nice—the total package.”
She checks to see if he heard our conversation and then hushes me. “Don’t say that shit where he can hear you.”
“You’re spending every night with him, I think he knows you’re into him. Give it up, V. You aren’t playing this cool.”
She scoffs but smiles. Turning my attention back to the team, more specifically to Wes, I’m completely transfixed by the way he moves—quick, confident. He oozes athleticism, and—crap, I’m totally into a ball player. No, not just a ball player.Theball player. Do they even date?
Obviously, they kiss girls in their bedrooms.
After a short warm up, the guys split up into two teams: white and blue. Wes and Zeke don the home team jerseys while Joel and Nathan are on the blue team.
