Love and Skate (6 page)

             
“Are we going to study standing up?”

             
“No smartass.  I hate these tables.  I never, ever sit at these tables.”

             
“Why?”

             
“Because they are always sticky and I don’t know what made them sticky and it freaks me out.”

             
“Ok, so where do you sit?”

             
“On the floor in between rows.”

             
“Well, lead the way.”

             
I went to the very back row and as stealthily as I could bent my legs sideways and sat down.  He sat diagonal from me and
I stretched my legs out so that my
feet were next to him.  I took off my flops an
d let my toes play with the cold
law books.

             
I pulled out my reading for History and he pulled out his Biology book. 
He read and made notes and I read more and more about the Civil War than I ever wanted to.  My toes started to get cold so without thinking I nudged them behind his back and he huffed out a laugh.

             
“Come on.” He whispered while patting his thigh.  He put his book off to the side and propped it up on his backpack.

             
“What?”

             
He
,
soft as a feather
,
grabbed my feet and put them both in his lap and started to lazily rub my toes and the bottoms of my feet while reading his book.  I was only skimming my book at this point.  Rubbing my feet was stirring all kinds of thoughts and none of them were about history.  Not even close.

             
He stopped rubbing my feet sometime later and then he did the most heart melting thing I had experienced since being put in my bed.  He pulled his shirt up and pulled it on top of my feet so that my soles were up against his abs and put his hand on top of them to keep it in place.  I hope he knew that he was warming up a lot more than my feet. 

             
I kept turning the pages in my book like a moron even though I had no idea what the hell was on those pages.  My hands were now on the tops of her feet and her feet were under my shirt.  So then I started rubbing the tops of her feet.  I just couldn’t help myself.  Those feet were connected to her legs.  And her legs were just begging to be touched. 
And after watching her last night from the sidelines I kn
ew why.  The girl was a wicked
skater.  There was one time when she flew past me and I could feel the wind move my hair.  And even when she screwed up her face and contortioned her body to block another player, she just took my breath away.  She was putting off this bad girl vibe, but I caught on quick.  Because it was just that, an act.  She was sweet and caring and she sucked in a breath every time I touched her.  Complete innocence.

             
And I am a jaded jackass. 

             
As much as I needed to stop touching her, I couldn’t.  And as much as I needed to leave her alone and
let her
find someone good enough for her, I wouldn’t.  She deserved so much more, but the thought of some other guy’s hands on her was crippling.

             
I looked over to her and smiled.  She smiled back at me and then both of our smiles faded and I nearly expected the books around us to catch fire.  I needed to stop what was happening, but I couldn’t. 
I lacked the sheer strength.

             
I put her feet back on the floor next to me
and scooted closer.  My hands moved of their own accord.  My left hand combed through the softest hair I’d ever felt. My right hand started at her knee and splayed against her thigh and moved upwards until it met its nemesis in the form of a blue-jean skirt.
God help me, her l
egs were like silk underneath my fingers
.
Her icy blue eyes stayed frozen with mine as I moved even closer but widened nonetheless. 

             
I moved in slower because I wanted to make sure I remembered this moment in case she ever figured out who I had been.  I needed to keep this moment.  My eyes had moved to her lips, which were opened the tiniest bit like a door opened to let me in.  They flickered up to see her eyes on my lips.  They met for just a second, just enough to make my entire body come to life.  I pulled away, only an inch or two, and she cocked her head to the side and smiled.   And then my innocent girl grabbed me by the front of my shirt and went for it.

             
And just when our mouths had found where they melted just right into each other I heard a deliberate clearing of a throat.

             
“Damn” I whispered and Nellie giggled.

             
We both turned our heads
to see an older man shaking his
finger at us but smiling at the same time.  He was probably remembering when he got some library love.

             
She took a look at her watch and then started packing up as he finally left us alone. 

             
“Am I that bad of a kisser?” I laughed at her.

             
“I have to go to work.  I didn’t realize how late it had gotten.  You were distracting me.”

             
“But it was a good distraction.” 
Way
to fish for compliments dill weed.

             
She rolled her eyes at me but didn’t answer.  She bent her legs and gracefully got up and pulled her skirt down a little making sure she was all covered.

             
I stood up with her to at least walk her out.

             
She leaned up against one of the shelves opposite me and groaned.
             

             
“Ugh, I’m never going to be able to study here again.”

             
She smiled as she said it.

             
“So when can I see you again?” I sounded desperate, but the truth was, I was already
jonesing
for our next encounter.

             
“I have work on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays and I have practice on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  But we only have two more weeks of the season.”

             
“Hmmm—what time is practice on Tuesdays and Thursdays?”

             
“From six to eight.”

             
“Well, I don’t work. If I’m a good boy, which I usually am, my parents give me money to live on.  So if you want to see me, just text me.  And I’m going to think up some creative ways to see you in between your busy schedule.”

             
“Explain creative.”

             
“Nope.”

             
I worked my regular shift and went home to rest.  When I got there Amber wasn’t home again.  Poor Owen.
I wondered how girly it would be to text him and see where he was.

             
N: U ok?

             
O:
Y,u
?

             
N: Y, where r u?

             
O: Sleeping

             
N:
Where?

             
O: Bronco

             
N: I got a couch with
ur
name on it.

             
O: U sure?

             
N: Def.

             
O: On my way.

             
I hurried to take a shower and put some other clothes on before he got here.  I was starving so I ordered Chinese and lots of it.  I also took out some sheets and blankets and pillows and stacked them on the edge of the couch.  The Chinese food got to the apartment before he did and I did a little ‘Ha Ha’ in my head
since I got to pay for the food this time. 

             
I got plates and forks out and some bottles of water.  I hadn’t had time to do anything to my hair except to comb
it out.  I was only wearing purple
sweat pants and a white fitted t shirt and zero make-up so I hoped I didn’t scare him to death.

             
He knocked on the door and every time I saw him I was amazed at how huge he was.  Now I wasn’t sure if he would fit on my couch. 

             
He smiled and stepped in with a bag. I closed the door and was going to ask him if he was hungry as if I didn’
t
know he was.  Before I could he grabbed me under my arms
, lifting me up,
and held me to him. After a few seconds of shock I threw my arms around his neck and held on to him as tight as he was holding me.  He kissed the side of my neck and whispered “Thank you” into my ear.  I whispered “You’re welcome” back into his ear and made sure that my lips grazed his earlobe as I did. It amazed me that this little gesture could make this big guy shudder but it did.  He was still holding me and I pulled back and held his face in my hands.

             
“Hungry?” I asked.

             
“
Yeah, I will go get something.  What do you want?”

             
“I want you to sit down and eat.  I already got food.”

             
“Thanks, you didn’t have to.
”

             
He slowly put me down and we sat at the table together to eat. 

             
“I hope I got something you like.”

             
“I like anything.  Don’t ever worry about that.” He laughed.

             
“Good.”

             
“You look different tonight.”

             
My heart sunk down in my chest.
Oh, he thinks I look like crap.

             
“You’re not wearing makeup.” He was looking at me, scrutinizing me.

             
“Yeah, sorry, I just didn’t have time.”

             
He grabbed my hand across the table and squeezed my fingers to get my attention.

             
“Tonight is the most beautiful I have ever seen you.  And I’ve bee
n blown away by your beauty a couple of
times
already
.”

             
He went back to eating as if he hadn’t said the most amazing thing I had ever heard.

             
I cleared my throat i
n an attempt to reel myself in and continued to eat.  He didn’t say anything else and neither did I.  I finished way before him and rested my face in my hands and truly enjoyed watching him eat. 

             
He ate every last bite and I almost felt like clapping.
  He looked sheepish about the whole thing.

             
“So, if you want to get a shower, you can.  I’ve got an early class tomorrow, so I have to get to bed.  It’s ten already.”

             
“Ok, I’ll be quick.” He rushed to the living room to grab his bag and I heard the shower running soon after.  I cleaned up the mess and readied the couch for him to sleep on.

             
He came out of my room wearing some gray p
ajama pants and a white t shirt
.  I tried not to stare, but I could see most of his tattoos and I could almost swear that there were some piercings under that shirt.  One day I would either ask him about them or maybe if I was lucky, I would get to see them. 

             
I trembled under the cold mist of the shower.  I turned on the hot water at first but when I stepped in and remembered that this is where she showered, where she was naked, I turned the water to cold as quickly as possible.  I hurried through it, not knowing how much longer I could stand there where she stood and smelling coconut all around me. 

             
I got out and toweled off, even the towels smelled like her.  I put on some pajamas that I went into the dorm to grab.  Thankfully everyone was still dressed when I went to get them. 

             
I walked out to the living room and she was laying out blankets for me to sleep on, as if she hadn’t done enough for me tonight already.

             
“You didn’t have to do that.  You’ve done enough. Thanks again.”