Page 28 of False Start

I watched the first game on television last week—yes, my best friend is on television every weekend during football season now. So weird. But I was definitely proud and pointed him out to my friends when they caught me watching a State football game. “Yeah, but not until the evening. It’s not like I play anyway.”

“Hey, you warmed that bench last week so well.” It’s not unusual for a freshman to sit out in college football, but I know, without a doubt, it’s driving him insane. Vaughn is a hands-on sort of guy.

He shoves me, and I nearly knock into the wall from the full force of his big body. He immediately feels bad and grabs for me, but I only laugh. Having missed his misjudgment of me being able to take a hit.

“Let’s go eat.”

I show him around campus, pointing out the buildings where I have class and of course, the library. He’s a good sport as he oohs and ahhs at each place before we go to the dining hall, and I grab him a guest pass.

We eat and then go for another walk back to the dorm just as the sun is setting. He doesn’t talk too much about college, so I try not to push. We get back to my dorm and hang out. He texts with Vanessa a little before I decide it’s time to go to bed.

I’m going to take him to the coffee shop on campus tomorrow and introduce him to a couple of friends, hoping maybe that will put him at ease.

I strip down to my boxer briefs, and he does the same. “You can take Evan’s bed. I know for a fact he changed his sheets yesterday at my insistence.”

He wrinkles his nose, and I laugh. “Trust me. It has to be cleaner than your bed.”

“Hey, ever since you shamed me sophomore year for taking too long to wash my sheets, I’ve kept up with it.”

I give him a knowing look. “Even in college?”

He snorts, but he looks really sad as he walks over to Evan’s bed and pulls back the covers enough to climb into it. I know he probably wanted to share a bed, but I’m trying to have healthy boundaries here.

He gets settled under the covers, propping his head up on his folded hands on Evan’s pillow, his puppy dog eyes looking nearly distraught as I climb into my own bed and mirror his position.

“These beds are too small,” I say, trying like hell to remind myself why he can’t sleep in the same bed as me. My body hasmissed his way too much, and just him being across the room from me, nearly naked, is doing all sorts of things to my dick. It wants to say hello, and that’s just not going to work.

Vaughn is straight, dick. Why can’t it understand that?

“They aren’t too bad,” he says sadly, his eyes still zeroed in on me, hitting me right in the heart. “Mine is bigger though.”

I snort. “Jocks.”

He doesn’t say anything, but I can’t take it anymore. He looks so lonely and lost, even being in the same room.

I huff and scoot over toward the wall, lifting my blanket in invitation for him to join me. “Come here.”

He doesn’t hesitate, nearly tripping over the blanket that got wrapped around his feet and falling into bed with me. I laugh and pull the blanket over his bigass shoulder. He’s hanging nearly off the edge of the bed but totally unbothered as he snuggles into me. His bare skin is warm, and I can smell the toothpaste on his breath.

I try like hell to will my body to not react to his closeness, but it’s a lost cause—my dick is fully hard, and I can only hope he’s oblivious.

“Are you okay?”

His head rests on my shoulder, and I feel him nod his head against it. “It’s just all so weird, you know?”

“College?” I wrap my arm around him, trying to provide comfort while I keep my lower half as far away from him as I can.

“Yeah. I don’t know anyone except Vanessa. Everywhere I go, it’s just total strangers.”

That’s... odd for him. I always thought Vaughn never really met a stranger in his life. He always made friends so fast. Always the life of the party—maybe it’s because in a way he kind of knew everyone in town—or knew of them. Or knew someone they were related to. I guess that would be a big adjustment for someone like Vaughn.

“And that’s a bad thing?” I try to joke because it’s no secret, I’m not a huge fan of where we grew up.

“Yes.” He tickles my side, and I laugh, struggling to keep him from doing that anymore. “It’s weird. I go to something on campus, and it’s nothing like back home. No one knows me, and I don’t know anyone.”

“It takes time, Vaughn. You’ll make friends. What about the guys on the team?”

He shrugs. “They’re fine. Most of them can’t be bothered with freshmen though.”

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