Hookup List (19 page)

“Well, I need to go cool down,” Trinity said. “Do, um, either of you guys want to come with me?”

“No, no, you two go ahead,” I said. “I, uh, I’ll catch up with you later.”

“Okay, thanks again for coming, Nate!” Trinity said. “See you around school?”

“Nice to meet you, man,” Jamal said.

The two of them left and I finally found the strength to move my feet. I slowly plodded back to
school, feeling like my heart had just been torn to pieces.

I just wanted to get in my car and drive home without having to talk to anyone. Unfortunately, as I was leaving the finish area, I ran into the Reagans.

David was putting on a pair of wind pants while his dad, sister, and a woman who appeared to be his mother talked to him. The other three's backs were turned to me but David looked up and caught my eye. “Nate!” he said immediately.

The rest of his family turned to look at me. I carefully avoided meeting his mother’s eyes. That would have been too awkward to take. I nodded in David’s direction and kept walking, hoping that they would not stop me and try to start up a conversation.

No such luck. Faith called out, “Nate, come talk to us! David and I just finished our races.”

“Sorry, I need to get back home,” I replied loudly. I picked up my pace.

I heard footsteps behind me and a moment later Faith appeared at my side. “How are you?” she asked. “I haven’t had a chance to talk to you since… since… well, you know.”

“Yeah. I’m fine,” I said.

We walked on in silence for a moment. Then Faith said, “This isn’t easy for any of us either, you know.”

“What?”

“I said this isn’t easy for any of us,” Faith repeated. “My mom and my dad have been fighting almost every night since he told her about you. How do you think David and I feel knowing that our father cheated on our mother?”

“I’m sorry, that must be very difficult,” I said. “I’m not sure what I can do about it, though.”

Faith suddenly stopped walking. I turned to face her. She looked upset.

“I’m not asking you to do anything about it,” Faith said. “My dad’s an adult; he can deal with his own issues. I just wanted to tell you because you’re my friend and friends tell each other things. I was hoping… you know, that maybe you’d understand where I was coming from and know that it’s okay to talk to me too.”

Maybe it was the fact that I had just witnessed a girl I really liked making out with another guy or maybe it was the awkwardness of the dad situation, but I wasn’t up to having the conversation Faith wanted to have at that moment.

“Faith, you
are
my friend,” I said. “But Matt Reagan is not my dad in anything but blood and that’s the way I want it to stay. There, is that what you wanted me to share with you?”

I instantly regretted speaking so harshly to her. I knew she honestly wanted to help me. It was like there was a part of me that wanted to punish the rest of the world by shutting it out. I realized that it was a destructive desire but I didn’t how to get rid of it.

Faith looked hurt. All she said, however, was, “I know that you’re hurting. I think that you really need to go talk to someone about it. If you can’t talk to me, find someone else. Your brother Aaron, a friend from your old school – anyone. Okay, I’ll go now.”

And then she left. I opened my mouth to apologize but the words just wouldn’t come out.

If I couldn’t find it in me to apologize, perhaps I could make it up to her in another way. “Faith,” I called out to her. She turned back to look at me. “Do you want to hang out this weekend? Maybe go for a walk and get some ice cream or something?”

Faith’s face immediately brightened. “Sure, that’d be great!” she said excitedly. “I’ll
Facebook you my number.”

I nodded. Good, at least there was one thing I hadn’t made a total mess of.

I resumed my walk back up the hill to the parking lot. As I did, I couldn’t help but notice a group of five girls wearing purple warm ups. The girls were obviously cross-country runners from a neighboring school – Churchill, by the looks of it. They were sitting on the side of the hill and watching the cross-country meet from a distance. What caught my attention, however, was that they kept glancing in my direction and talking and giggling to themselves.

What the hell? A girl had already broken my heart today. Why not go out in a blaze of glory and flirt with these girls a bit? I didn’t have anything to lose. They went to a different school so if I made a fool of myself at least I wouldn’t have to see them around too often.

I changed course and headed for the girls. Their eyes widened when they saw me coming and they began whispering furiously to each other.

“Hey girls,” I said when I got close. “What are you up to?”

The girls fell silent and looked at each other. Finally, a brunette replied. “Not much. Just watching the meet. What are you doing here?”

“Just cheering on…” who? I couldn’t say a girl I liked, “a friend,” I said. I nodded down at my shirt. “I was already here for soccer practice so I figured I’d just hang and cheer him on,” I added. It was a good idea to bring up soccer. When meeting new girls, it’s always smart to provide a potential topic of conversation. I liked to pick something like soccer that I enjoyed talking about so I could convey my energetic and enthusiastic side. Plus, it never hurt to point out that I was a varsity soccer team stud.

“Are you Nate Caldwell?” the brunette asked.

“Yeah,” I said in surprise. How did she know my name?

Little smiles appeared on the girls’ faces. “We’ve heard about you,” she said. “We’ve seen your school’s Hottie List. Is it true the JV soccer girls created a Facebook fan page for you last year?”

I liked where this was headed. “Yeah,” I said. “The JV soccer girls and I got to know each other a bit last year. It seems like they liked what they got to know.”

There was a moment of silence as the girls looked at me. Then a redhead said, “Are you busy right now? Do you maybe want to go for a walk or something?”

The other girls stared at the redhead. “Naomi, you can’t just go off with a strange boy,” one of them hissed.

“He’s not a strange boy,” the redhead – Naomi – responded. “We know his name and where he goes to school. Plus, he’s way hotter than any of the boys at Churchill.”

I smiled. Naomi was pretty cute. “There’s a quiet little path in the woods just right there behind the soccer fields and running course,” I said, pointing. “It’s a great place for a walk.” I emphasized the word “walk” to make it sound like we were talking about something more than just a stroll through the woods.

“That sounds perfect,” Naomi said quickly. “I’m in.”

“The rest of you are welcome,” I said. “The more the merrier.” Oh yes.

The girls looked at each other. A few appeared terrified by the idea but the brunette suddenly stood up. “I’m coming too,” she announced.

Naomi glared at her but I said, “Great! Let’s go, ladies.” I offered them my arms. Each girl took an arm and let me lead them away.

We made small talk about our two schools and the cross-country running team as we walked. The moment we got onto the path, however, the girls grew quieter, as if nervous.

I maintained my happy demeanor to make up for their nervousness. Then, after expressing my admiration for how fit and hard-working female cross-country runners were, I said, “Of course, you’re not nearly in as good a shape as soccer players.”

The girls took the bait. “What?” they both exclaimed incredulously at the same time.

I had learned something about cross-country runners. Whereas other athletes took pride in how big they became or how many fans they acquired or how hard they could hit another living being, cross-country runners took pride in how hard they could work. Tell the kindest, sweetest, most timid runner that she was lazy and she would go to war with you. That’s exactly what I needed these girls to do. A battle would make them forget their nervousness and, if I was lucky, their inhibitions.

“You think soccer players are in better shape than runners?” the brunette, whose name I had learned was Andrea, exclaimed. “Are you kidding? Nobody can beat runners in terms of physical fitness. Sure, soccer players might get some interval training benefits, but they don’t…”

“I could kick any soccer player’s ass in a race,” Naomi said, talking over her friend. “I could even beat you. Let’s go for a run.
Right now!”

“I’ve got a better idea,” I said smoothly. Here came the pitch. “If you girls are so confident in your athleticism, let’s see the evidence. Take off your clothes.”

“What?” Andrea cried. “OMG Naomi, let’s get out of here.”

Naomi, however, was looking at me with narrowed, suspicious eyes. “We’re out in public,” she said hesitantly.

“Public?” I said. I looked around. The trees were packed densely around us and they were so tall that they touched over the tops of our heads. Sure, someone could come walking along the path, but one look at it suggested that it wasn’t used all that often. The path was washed out in places and the gravel clearly hadn’t been replaced in years. “No one’s going to interrupt us, and if they do they can just join in, can’t they?” I said. “Come on. You girls aren’t afraid to show a little skin, are you? I thought you were super fit cross country runners.”

“If you’re so cocky about how fit soccer players are then why don’t you go first?” Andrea asked.

“Gladly,” I said. “I’ve got nothing to hide. My body is in great shape from my sport.” I peeled off my shirt and tossed it aside.

This was perfect. The girls couldn’t help themselves. They closely studied my chiseled abs and chest. There was no way they could walk away now. I knew I had them.

“C’mon Andrea,” Naomi said suddenly. “Let’s show this boy what real athletes look like.”

Andrea had a horror-stricken look on her face but Naomi quickly pulled off her jacket and then her running singlet top. She was wearing a green sports bra that actually matched her eyes. The redhead didn’t have a bad chest for a runner.

The peer pressure finally got to Andrea. She nervously followed Naomi’s example, revealing even more ample assets tucked into a baby-blue sports bra.

I was getting more and more excited as my eyes feasted on all that beautiful skin. Apparently, the feeling was mutual.

“Now the shorts,” Naomi said. “Lose them.”

I grinned. “Of course,” I said. “After all, we’ve got to lose everything to figure out who’s in the best shape, don’t we?” I pushed my shorts to the ground. They landed around my ankles. I kicked them up, snatched them, and tossed them to the side with my shirt.

I allowed the girls to stare at my black spandex shorts for a while. Andrea’s eyes were as wide as saucers. I wanted to laugh but I knew that would ruin the moment. “Eyes up here, girls,” I said, pointing to my own eyes.

The girls’ eyes snapped up guiltily.

“Now it’s your turn,” I said eagerly.

The girls slowly slid their warm-up pants and shorts off, revealing beautiful athletic legs and smooth skin. Unfortunately, each girl wore spandex shorts as well.
Stupid sports. I was hoping for something a little more exotic.

“I’ve started first on all the other rounds,” I said. “Why don’t you ladies go first this time?”

Naomi laughed. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” she said. “Just give us a moment, alright?”

Naomi pulled Andrea to the side and started whispering in her ear. I strained to hear what she was saying while maintaining my cool, calm attitude but it was no use. She was speaking far too quietly. Whatever she said made Andrea smile, however. That was a good sign. They must have come up with something good.

Finally, Naomi turned back to look at me. “I’ll make you a deal,” she said. “We’ll go first if you agree to wear a blindfold.”

“No way,” I said in disappointment. That was their idea? These girls had no imagination. “That defeats the whole purpose.”

Naomi picked up her singlet top and folded it lengthwise so that it sort of made a rectangular piece of fabric. She walked up to me and laid it across my eyes. As she tied it behind my head she leaned into me and I felt her breasts pressing against my chest. “Trust me,” she whispered. “You’ll enjoy this.”

The blindfold was now in place. I was about to reiterate my protest when Naomi suddenly pressed her lips against mine. I calmed down and returned the kiss. Things were back on track and it appeared that we had even skipped a couple steps. I had been wondering how to initiate the physical contact phase. This was far simpler than anything I had imagined.

A moment later I felt another pair of lips kiss the back of my neck. So, Andrea was getting in the action as well. This was getting better and better. Andrea’s hands wandered to my hips and then slide into my spandex shorts. She wrapped her hand around my manhood and started to caress. Meanwhile, Naomi’s hands were feeling me up as well.

I returned the favor, stroking Naomi’s arms and then caressing her hard buttocks. It gave me an excuse to give them a squeeze and pull her in tighter to me. Naomi grabbed the waistband of my spandex shorts and in one smooth move pulled them down.

I was naked now and two beautiful girls were making out with me. Andrea still had my private parts in her hands. Would they let me have sex with Naomi, I wondered? That could be interesting. The girls had almost positioned themselves as if they wanted to guide the process. That was fine with me. I was more than happy to sit back and let them do the work as long as they used my toys...

Suddenly, everything happened at once. The girls’ hands left my body and there was a quick scuffle of feet. Someone yanked the blindfold off my head. I winced as light shot through my pupils, which had dilated while in the darkness of the blindfold. Then my eyes focused in time to see the girls sprinting through the woods with all their clothes in their hands.