Page 33 of The Sky Between Us

“I was heading to the cafeteria to pick up a smoothie and study a bit,” she shrugged, tugging a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Her ponytail that was all slick and steady in the morning looked quite wobbly. I wished I caused her to look so messy, instead of a workout.

Humming, I tugged at her hand which I still kept captivated between my fingers and aimed for the cafeteria. It wasn’t a place where I usually showed my face, but if she wanted that she would get it. Anything to stay on her good side and keep her walls low before my questioning.

“How was practice?” she chatted me up out of the blue, causing me to grin.

“Good, your dad was a bit on the edge, but whatever,” I shrugged, studying her face. A shadow fell over it from the nearby tree, making her face lose the softness that I’ve previously seen.

“He does that a lot,” she replied.

“Mostly whenever we have a game against Harvard coming up or if they had a good game. It feels like that team in particular is pissing him off. Last week Harvard won their game. Kellerman, their forward, has a sick footwork. Incredible. I mean, the whole team is outstanding, but we’ve beaten them many times, we will do it again. It doesn’t matter how good their forward or goalkeeper is. We are better.”

Talking about soccer always loosens my tongue, but Hazel looked interested in the topic. Her face wasn’t morphed into a grimace, instead real understanding reflected on it.

“You can carry the team, but it’s not your job to win. It should be a team effort,” she muttered, dropping her gaze to the dirty ground, examining her Nike shoes.

Mulling over her words, I found myself agreeing. But at the same time, I was all about winning, even if it meant killing myself during those 90 minutes. That wasn’t the ideal approach for a captain, and I knew it, but as I had plans to move into the professional world, I needed to prove myself to scouters, otherwise goodbye dreams.

“Ugh, it smells like fish.” Hazel stopped in her tracks making me almost knock her over. I was lost in my thoughts and I didn’t even realize she opened the door of the cafeteria.

Several heads snapped in our direction as we stood in the doorway, looking at the plain wooden tables and benches scattered around the big room. Chatter and clutter filled my ears making them ring. Suddenly, I was transported back to freshman year when I had to eat here. Bile rose in my stomach just as my eyes moved to the self-serving buffet in the end, locating the fish Hazel was complaining about.

“I lost my appetite, maybe we should take a raincheck,” she turned towards me before quickly walking around me to escape.

“Hey.” I caught her wrist and let the door of the cafeteria shut behind me, the noise echoing as I stepped closer to her. “Let’s go to the diner.”

“I’m wearing workout clothes,” she motioned to herself as if I was blind and I couldn’t see how hot she looked in them. “I can’t walk in like that in a diner… people will think….”

“Who gives a shit what others think?” I rolled my eyes and pulled my hoodie out of my duffle, I handed it to her. “Wear this.”

Hazel looked at the hoodie with my number and name printed on it, before glancing back at me. Unease, doubt and insecurity filled her eyes. I loved how expressive her deep brown-green eyes were, a contrast to her face and words. They were an open book.

“We haven’t even hooked up and this is the second time I’m wearing your clothes,” she joked after an eternity of inner battle and slipped into my hoodie.

The baby blue Dolphins hoodie looked amazing on her. It hit just under her butt and contrasted her burgundy leggings. Despite her curves being hidden, my mouth watered even more. She was wearing my clothes, again.

“Seems like you and I like to do things a bit out of order,” I winked at her, causing her to laugh.

It was a short laughter, one that rarely left her lips, but it warmed my heart. This girl never ceased to amaze me.

“My car is just around the corner.” I motioned towards the direction and reached my hand out to her.

Hazel hesitated for a split second, her face calmer than before and she ended up wrapping her fingers around my hand. “Show me the way.”

That, I fully intended to do.

By the time I pulled into the parking lot of the diner I was starving. But in my mind, there weren’t any burgers and fries spread across the table in the usual booth I occupied. It was Hazel. My mouth watered and every secret glance I threw her way, my desire multiplied. The sweatpants felt tight as I stopped the car.

Hazel immediately reached for the door and even before I could get a word out, she was already on the other side of the car. Guess she decided there was nothing for us to talk about, as she spent the entire drive staring out the window, biting her pink lips and not saying a single word to me. My chances were looking great.

Following her lead, I walked towards the diner and she fell in steps with me. The parking lot was crowded with cars as it was rush hour for the diner. I tended to avoid eating here this time of the day and I preferred to order in after a long practice when the coach bleeds us dry on the field. But I couldn’t say no when I had such amazing company. My eyes landed on my date, because this was a date, and my cock hardened. Seeing my last name across her back just did something to me. It wasn’t even her peachy butt, as my hoodie covered it. Only my name and her swinging ponytail, that I couldn’t wait to wrap around my fist and pull onto it as I kissed her deeply and fiercely.

As if she was reading my mind, Hazel shot me a questioning look over her shoulder, one eyebrow arched.

“Are you this slow when you are chasing a ball too?” she teased proving to me the old Hazel was very much present, but with lowered guards.

“Just enjoying the view,” I winked casually and took my time catching up to her. “Here, let me get this.” Reaching over, I pulled the door open and held it while she walked in.

“Such a gentleman.” I was confident she rolled her eyes.

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