AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Booth and I glanced at each other and I decided to take the first hit. “Vaughn, shit happened and-”
“Are you trying to excuse Booth for doing it?” Vaughn’s face turned an even darker shade of red as he realized the truth. “You’re not making an excuse for Booth. You’re making an excuse for yourself.”
I winced. “Alright, Vaughn. Let’s just take a deep breath, man. You look like your blood pressure is pretty high.”
“You both fucked her.” He let out a dangerous sounding laugh and spun in a tight circle. “She didn’t mention that.”
“Vaughn,-” Booth tried to say something but Vaughn didn’t want to hear from us. He just wanted to rage.
“Fuck you both. You’re my best friends. I asked you for one thing. Don’t touch her. One fucking thing and you both could’ve have cared less about what I wanted. We don’t do that to each other. Or maybe we do. I don’t know what the fuck is happening around here anymore, apparently.” He’d shifted into something worse than rage in the middle of his rant, disappointment. “Fuck it.”
I watched him turn to walk away and couldn’t just let him go. “Vaughn, wait. I’m sorry.”
“I’m done talking to both of you tonight. If I keep looking at you, I’m going to lose my shit. I don’t want to do anything to hurt either of you, even if the feeling isn’t returned.” He jogged into the house and slammed the door shut behind him.
I looked over at Booth and his look of regret matched what I felt. “Shit. I thought he’d hit us and that would be enough.”
“Yeah, this feels a lot worse.” Booth shook his head. “I think I have to be done. I don’t want to hurt Vaughn. Pissed off Vaughn, I can handle. Disappointed Vaughn? That sucked.”
I nodded and let out a deep sigh. “Yeah, same. That felt fucking horrible.”
We both just stood there for a while, giving Vaughn ample time to do whatever he needed to do before going to his room. Neither of us said much else. We were both trapped in our own guilt, feeling like shit for hurting Vaughn. Even if I didn’t understand why he was upset, I could see that he was. That didn’t feel okay.
“Well.”
Booth grunted. “Well.”
33
***Booth***
“How’s it going with Ella?” I tried to sound casual as I asked, despite feeling anything but. “With being the boyfriend, I mean.”
Fisher glanced around to make sure no one could hear us and shook his head. “It’s brutal. I’m doing my best to keep things as friendly as possible but it’s not easy.”
I sat forward and rested my elbows on my knees. “I’ve just tried to avoid her to make it easier. Somehow, it doesn’t make it easier, though. It’s been two weeks and I just want her more. Vaughn’s just now starting to talk to me like normal again, though.”
“He’s still pissy with me. Every time he sees us doing the whole couple thing, that vein in his forehead starts throbbing.” Sighing, he stared out across campus. “I miss cookies after our wins.”
I couldn’t help grinning. “We got spoiled really fucking fast.”
“How could we not? She baked for us. She put our names on those little cookies, man. She mentioned that she’s been going to her friend’s apartment after the games.” Standing up to pace, he looked so unfamiliar in that moment. The Fisher I’d become best friends with Freshman year didn’t do stressed. “I think she’s baking for other people. I swear I can smell fresh cookies every time I come home.”
“What’s Vaughn’s issue? Why’s it matter so much if we sleep with her?” I ran my hands through my hair and tugged at it. “I feel like I’m losing my mind. I can smell the cookies all the time, too, but I can also still smell her in my bed.”
“I think-” Fisher froze. “There she is. I’m not sure I can pretend to be the boyfriend without copping a feel right now, man.”
I followed his gaze and spotted Ella walking from the cafeteria to the English building. She was in another sundress, her thighs exposed a little more with each long step she took. Since it was starting to cool off outside, she had a cardigan wrapped tight around her. Her hair bounced in her high ponytail and I watched her smile at someone in passing. My fists clenched with desire as I watched her and I felt the same struggle I did every time I thought about her. I wanted her. I didn’t want to hurt Vaughn. I wanted her. But Vaughn.
“Is that…?” Fisher’s voice changed as Billy Novak appeared behind Ella and covered her eyes with his hands.
I was up and off the bench before I could even process what I was seeing. Billy was trying to play with Ella. I watched her stiffen and struggle to push his hands away, watched him try to hug her after she pushed him away. Seeing red, I charged towards the pair, not sure what I was going to do once I got there. Beyond murdering Billy.
As we got a little closer, I could hear Ella’s raised voice. “Don’t touch me, Billy!”
“Hey!” I shouted, drawing half the campus’ eyes, but one look in our direction had Billy backing away. “What the fuck is your problem?”
He held up his hands and put a fake smile on his slimy face as I came chest to chest with him. Only I towered over him so it wasn’t really chest to chest. He laughed a little too loudly, doing his best to save face. “What’s wrong, bro? I’m just talking to Ella.”
