“The kids, huh?” Trevor waggled his eyebrows teasing me.
I leaned back, elbows on the grassy hill. “Did you win?”
Trevor scoffed, wiping sweat from his brow. “It’s halftime, idiot.”
Fauna slurped from the empty soda cup, and I was surprised she stayed next to me instead of joining her boyfriend. Surprised, but pleased. Maybe, just maybe, I had a shot with her. Trevor barely noticed her; they hardly even looked at each other. Had they gotten into a fight? Now that I thought about it, I hadn’t noticed them ever be affectionate with each other. This little dastardly scheme of mine may have been easier to pull off than I thought. Hope sprang within my morally grey soul—that is, until Chet and his group of idiots descended upon us.
His arm was around a girl I didn’t recognize. She had short, washed out purple hair, face pressed into a permanent scowl as she loudly chewed gum. Chet shoved Trevor. “Got to tighten it up in the second half.”
“Working on it,” Trevor replied. “How sick would it be to go to finals?”
Fauna stood, leaving me looking like an idiot laying in the grass, and tucked herself under Trevor’s arm. The small gesture was like a punch in the gut.
“Such a cute outfit, Fauna,” the purple haired girl with Chet complimented, though it didn’t sound like one. Ah, so she was one of those bitches who could say nice words but make them sound terrible? Cool, I hated her already.
Fauna looked down at her shoes. “Thanks, Prue.”
Chet flicked the cat ears of Fauna’s headphones. “See? I love that. Women supporting women.”
I sat up, feeling the overwhelming urge for violence. Trevor straightened, holding Fauna closer, and my heart sank further into the ground as she leaned into his touch. Fuck. This sucked.
Two little voices piped up, “Coach Monroe!”
My brother smiled and knelt. “Hey, Chloe and Max. You guys enjoying the game?”
“So much,” Chloe said. “Also,” she whispered, “Remy told us your secret. We won’t tell anybody.”
Trevor shot me an accusatory stare that warmed my broken heart ever so slightly.
“Alright, well, I’m going to get something to drink before I have to head back out onto the field.” Trevor held Fauna’s hand, pulling her away with him.
Max called after him. “Blue gatorade?”
“That’s right. It’s the only good flavor.” Trevor answered. The kids cackled, and so did Mary Jane, leaving my twin with a baffled expression as he and the girl of my dreams walked away.
Purple Hair spoke when they were out of earshot. “I really admire Fauna’s bravery. She dresses like she fell into a kids’ costume bin.”
Chet laughed, and Mary Jane busied herself with the kids, unaware of my growing irritation.
“You’re Remy, right? Trevor’s twin?” Purple Hair clicked her gum and looked me up and down.
I stood, dusting the dirt off my pants and answered with a curt nod. Mary Jane and kids left to get back to their seats, and Chet yelled after another friend group and bounced away. But Purple Hair stayed put, assessing me. “I would be careful,” she said with mock sweetness.
“Excuse me?”
“Fauna acts sweet and innocent, but you should look after your brother and tell him to be careful. I just don’t want him to get hurt.”
A scoff of irritation left my throat. “I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks.”
The rest of the night was a blur. I didn’t see Fauna again, as I obligatorily sat next to MJ in the stands. My brother won,woo hoo. Now, his ego would be even bigger. No, that wasn’t fair. I loved my brother and wanted him to succeed. I also wanted his girlfriend, but still, that didn’t mean I wished him any harm. Trevor and Fauna’s lack of affection, the fact that she was never over, never slept over, and he never spoke about her, had me living in an alternate reality where they didn’t like each other much.
If they didn’t really like each other, then it was easier to entertain the idea that I could make her mine. Maybe Trevor wouldn’t mind if I dated her after they didn’t work out.
But seeing her jump up and hug him, snuggling into his embrace, watching him pull at her tiny hand… Yeah, it was a knife to the fucking heart.
Maybe I’d just been a creep who’d majorly crossed lines with her. The cyber sex she believed to have with my brother was just that: an encounter with him, not me.
The incident in the movie theater where I licked her thighs clean… She did seem to enjoy that. I’d gotten consent, I’d checked on her after, and she said it was fine. Could it have just been fine? Did masc lesbians lick her thighs every day?