Page 85 of Worthy

Bryce is still passed out, and I slap his ass hard on my way past him. He jerks awake with a yell and rubs at the spot while I change into workout clothes.

“What the fuck, man?” he yells at me through his pillow.

“Time for the gym, let’s go.”

He rolls over and looks at me like I’ve grown a second head.

“You’re fucking with me, right?”

I pull a hoodie on over my t-shirt and look at him. “Do I look like I’m fucking with you?” I grab some socks and my gym shoes, then sit on my bed to pull them on. “Just because we don’t have practice doesn’t mean you can skip the gym. It’s better to keep the routine up.”

I finish tying my shoes and stand up, looking expectantly at my roommate. He grumbles but gets up and gets changed.

I pat him on the shoulder as I go to fill my water bottle. “Good man.”

“Fuck off, Carp.”

I stop in the doorway and point at him, “That’s fuck off,Captain.”

He throws a half-full water bottle at me, but I duck with a chuckle, so it slams into the door.

Once we find our earbuds and phones, we head to the elevator, then down to the gym. When we get inside, I’m surprised Preston Carmichael isn’t on a treadmill already. He’s normally finishing up as I get in, the crazy bastard. Dude is intense. There’s something going on with him, Oiler, and Albrooke, but I can’t figure out what. Oiler and Albrooke were hooking up for a while, but I think that’s ended. They were not at all subtle about it, though I think they thought they were. Everyone knew.

I don’t know, maybe Carmichael threw a wrench in the hookups? I can’t see him being a homophobe, but I’ve been wrong before. It’s weird. Carmichael is a dick to everyone, no one is given a pass, but most of the team ignores him. Albrooke fights back, and every once in a while, Oiler and Carmichael come to blows too.

I shake off the thought as I pull my hoodie off and stretch. The pull of my muscles forces a groan from me. My ass is a bit tender this morning, which makes my face flush. I’m hoping the workout will quiet my head enough that I can take a decent nap. I’m tired.

Starting slow on the treadmill to warm up with music blasting in my ears, I’m about a mile into my run when the gym door opens again, letting a blast of cold air sweep through the space. Bryce is on the treadmill next to me, going slower than a fucking snail this morning. In the mirror that the treadmills face, my gaze is pulled to one of the guys that’s just come in. The way he moves pulls at my memory, and an icy fear trickles down my back.

It can’t be.

There’s no way the universe is so fucked up that my random hookup from a bar is a jock on this campus.

As he gets closer, going to the locker room to get changed out of his grey sweats, our eyes lock for a second in the mirror, and I stumble. I lose my footing, hitting the belt and shooting off the end onto the floor in the blink of an eye. My forehead hits the floor with a thud, my knees sting, and my face burns with embarrassment. What. The. Fuck? I lie face down on the floor, trying to figure out what the actual fuck just happened and hoping the guys who just came in will just keep walking.

Bryce jumps down next to me, concern on his face as he asks me if I’m alright. I’m breathing too hard, wishing the earth would open up and swallow me whole, adrenaline coursing through my body like I’m fighting for my life. Fucking hell.

“Carp, you alright, man?” Bryce drops down to kneel next to me and puts a hand on my back.

“Kill me now,” I groan as I force my body to move and roll over, then hiss when my knees smart from the burn the belt gave me.

“Carp?” the voice from last night questions. “Like the fish?”

No no no no no.

Why?

What did I do to deserve this?

“It’s short for Carpenter,” Bryce says, offering me a hand so I can sit up, which I take.

A hand comes down on my shoulder on the opposite side of Bryce, and I don’t have to look to know it’shim.

“Carpenter...” There’s a smile in his voice, and I really wish I could disappear right now. “I’m Nick.” He puts his hand out for me to shake. “It’s nice to meet you.”

I glance up at him, so fucking close I could lean in and kiss him.

And I want to.

---