The Hardest Fall

“So that’s it? That’s all of it?”

“What else do you want me to say?”

My friend gave me a cold stare. “How about an apology for making me worry about your stupid ass like a mother hen?”

“You being serious?”

“Yeah. Let’s hear it. I had better things to do than follow you around to find out what the hell you were up to, not to mention I didn’t know which apartment you disappeared into and had to knock on a shit ton of doors before I found it.”

I laughed. “Fine. Sorry. We good?”

“Yeah. It’ll do for now.”

I pushed off the wall and we did a one-armed hug, thumping each other’s back.

“Awww, you guys love each other. Either my eyes are watering or there’s a dust storm happening where I’m sitting. I would’ve never guessed that football players would be this emotional,” Zoe said as she popped the last bit of a crust into her mouth, her fingers immediately reaching for another slice.

Amused, I shook my head and sighed. “JP, this is Zoe, my roommate and my new buddy. Zoe, this is JP, my surprisingly emotional teammate.”

“Fuck off.” After elbowing me in the stomach, JP made his way toward her.

Giving my friend a shy smile, Zoe wiggled her fingers at him. “Hi.”

“Do I know you from somewhere?”

Zoe’s eyes slid to me then back to JP. “I don’t know how you would.”

I walked around the couch to sit down. There went my plan of watching a movie with my so-called buddy and spending a quiet night in.

“Do we have a class together or something?”

“Nope.”

He turned to me. “Do I know her from somewhere?”

“No, you don’t,” Zoe repeated, answering for me. I wasn’t planning on embarrassing her in front of JP, especially if he didn’t remember meeting her two years back, so I didn’t correct her.

“Where did you find her, again?”

Zoe narrowed her green eyes at JP’s back.

“I told you, I found her online. She was looking for a roommate. Be nice.”

JP’s eyebrows rose up toward his hairline, but other than giving me a shrug, he didn’t say anything. I’d hear about it later; he’d say whatever was on his mind when we were alone.

“Apparently, I need to be nice to you,” he said. Leaning down, he lifted the top of the cardboard box, which was still on Zoe’s lap. “And it works both ways. I be nice to you, you be nice to me.” Zoe looked at JP then back at the four slices of pizza left. How the fuck had she eaten half of it that fast?

Before my friend could lift one of the remaining slices, she slapped the box closed and held it away from him.

“What the fuck?”

Zoe leaned to her left to look around JP and met my eyes—another one of those rare occasions where she forgot she was too shy and avoided them. “I’m sorry, Dylan, I know he is your friend and all, but I really don’t want to share. I’m not at all a good sharer.”

I laughed. “It’s okay, I got it for you. He can buy his own pizza if he’s hungry.”

She tilted her head back to look up at JP, who was almost as tall as me. “Look, I haven’t had anything to eat since noon and I had a shitty night. Even though I’d be willing to give you one slice, I’ve seen how Dylan eats, and I can guess you’re no different. One slice won’t be enough for you, and I’m not willing to give you the rest…though, to be fair, if I only had one slice, it probably wouldn’t do anything for me either. So, why bother having a slice if it’s not gonna do anything for you? If I don’t have that one extra slice it’ll mean I’ll go to bed hungry, which would mean two people going to bed hungry. But, if I get all of these slices, at least one of us will be full.”

“You’ll go to bed hungry,” JP repeated, not as a question, but more like a statement. Zoe hugged the pizza box closer. “What’s going on with this one?” he asked, looking at me in confusion.

I smiled, relaxing into my seat for the first time since JP started banging on the door. “Nothing. She just loves pizza, maybe a little more than you and I do.”

“You can have his,” Zoe added when JP continued to stand over her. I didn’t think JP had ever been refused food by any girl.

He opened my nearly empty pizza box, which was still on the coffee table, and frowned down at it. “There’s only one slice here.”

“See!” Zoe told him. “I said the same thing when I saw it, and just like I told you, one slice means nothing.”

Again, JP met my eyes, waiting for an explanation. “What did you say was wrong with her again?”

“Nothing is wrong with her.” I had trouble looking away from Zoe as I spoke, and JP obviously picked up on it because his next question made me wanna cause him serious injury, even risking his spot in the next game.

“You’re definitely playing house here. Is that why Vicky is in such a tizzy? Does she know about her?”

“If you mention Vicky one more time, I’m gonna kick you out.”

Sitting down on the arm of the couch, he started to look around.

“Are you his sugar mama or something?” he asked Zoe when he was done taking in his surroundings. “I’m not judging, girl. To each their own, but how did you afford this place again, D? Even half the rent must cost an arm and a leg.”

Zoe’s eyes jumped from JP to me. Before I had to come up with a bullshit answer, there was another knock on the door.

JP jumped up. “You kids stay put. I’ll get it.”

I scrambled up after him. “JP, no.” If Coach was at the door, I was screwed.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Zoe doing the same, finally putting the pizza box down. Was she thinking the same thing I was?

JP opened the door, and thank God it was only Chris who walked in. “Come in, come in. Look who I found here.” JP gestured toward me.

I groaned and dropped back on the couch, this time taking the seat closer to Zoe instead of going back to the other end. “For your sake, man, I hope he’s the only one you told.” I tried to meet Zoe’s eyes to assure her that they would leave soon—if not, I would kick them out—but she only had eyes for our quarterback.

My brows furrowed and I looked over my shoulder.

“What’s going on here?” Chris asked, looking between Zoe and me.

JP slung his arm over Chris’s shoulder and made a show of introducing Zoe.

“This young thing over here has been—”

I interrupted him by getting to my feet. “Just finish that sentence, man. Please do it.”

Zoe cleared her throat and all eyes turned to her. Her cheeks were flushed, eyes sparkling. For some reason, that image of her didn’t sit well with me. Was she getting all worked up over Chris? She certainly hadn’t reacted that way to JP. It also looked like she had no trouble meeting Chris’s eyes whatsoever.

I furrowed my brows and watched her wipe her hands on her dress. “Hi. I, uh…I’m Zoe. Uh, Zoe Clarke.” She threw a quick glance at me, but I didn’t think she actually saw me. “I’m Dylan’s roommate.”

And just like that, I was demoted from friend to roommate.

“Nice to meet you,” Chris said, sounding a little unsure.

After a long moment of silence where no one said anything, I sighed and gestured to my left. “Since you two don’t look like you’re planning to leave any time soon, you might as well sit your asses down.”