They nodded, and Claire grinned with trouble in her eyes. “They either give all of us detention, or none of us. We don’t care. But, do you want to hang out with us instead of wandering the halls? You can sit in the bleachers while we play football, Coach Hauser won’t mind. And, while Kyler is in this class, so is Riff.” Claire smiled winningly when I hesitated, putting her arm through mine and flouncing out the door. This girl will be the death of me.
Riff grinned and gave a loud wolf whistle when he noticed us walking into the gym. “Coach, Angel will watch us because she has nothing better to do,” Claire announced cheerfully, and I groaned.
“Yeah, because who doesn’t want to watch a bunch of sweaty boys assuming the position?” I drawled sarcastically. To the amusement of the girls and our teacher, the boys blushed while looking at the ground. “At least football is better than wrestling, that is dry sex on a mat,” I sighed, and a few blushes darkened. Whoops. Ruined a favorite sport for a few boys. Ah, well, I was stating my honest opinion. Although this was why I refrained.
“Have I told you lately that I love you?” Riff asked with a laugh, moving to throw his arm over my shoulders. “I bet you could kick all our asses, eh Kyler?” His tone was innocent, as was his expression, but Riff’s eyes were shards of ice.
Kyler stiffened, a soft growl escaping from his chest, and I kept my eyes on the ground. Oh boy. I’ll pay for that later, I’m sure. Coach laughed and told them to save it for the field, making them opposing captains. Well, that’s just asking for it.
Once the rival teenagers chose their teams, they headed to the field, and I sighed while sitting at the top of the bleachers. Shrugging to myself, I worked on my homework while catcalling and grunts filled the air. Seriously, has anyone ever watched football or listened to it? It’s like watching a bunch of idiots in some weird mating ritual, at least until someone breaks away to run down the field. Then it’s a sport, but otherwise, yeah, some sort of mating ritual between horny boys.
I glanced up in time to see Riff tackle Kyler and shook my head. “Keep it in your pants,” I called when they struggled against each other. I laughed under my breath when the frozen students burst into laughter, and the pair of testosterone-filled males broke apart, looking mortified. After a moment, Riff looked my way because I felt his eyes. I rolled mine, catching the football he threw my way without looking. Scoffing, I set it beside me and continued my homework with a slight smirk when loud clangs heralded Riff coming to retrieve the ball. Chuckling, I placed one hand on it to keep Riff from stealing it.
“Angel,” Riff breathed, his breath blowing across my ear, “can I have the ball?”
“What, don’t like me having a hand on your balls?” I asked innocently without looking at him, my lips curling into a smile when Riff laughed. The warmth that wrapped around me lightened my heart and filled my soul with peace.
“God, I love you, Angel,” Riff chuckled, and I raised my eyes with a laugh. “I love that fire you hide from the world. You should let it out more, I’ll kick anyone’s ass who tries to douse it. Promise.” Shaking my head, I looked back at my homework with a snort, and he laughed while kissing my forehead. “Ugh, what the hell do you smell like?”
Laughing at Riff’s expression of disgust, I offered, “I forgot how to use a toilet and needed a shower. Two of our classmates were kind enough to loan me soap and shampoo, so I didn’t use the crappy school stuff. Their words, not mine.”
Laughter rang out across the field, and I chuckled while Riff did as well, although his eyes were akin to ice. “I’m using that,” he warned in a light tone, his expression revealing his fury.
“Me too!” Several of his classmates laughed, and I chuckled. Steeling myself, I let my gaze meet Kyler’s. His jaw was slack, and his eyes were full of awe. However, once he focused, his jaw clenched, and he glared at me. Shaking my head, I finished my homework, grinning when Riff stared at the ball I transferred to my lap.
“You know, I like my balls in your lap,” Riff stated with a playful expression.
Fluttering my eyelashes, I breathily replied, “oh, so do I. You cannot imagine the joy I experience palming your balls in my lap.” Throwing his head back, Riff laughed so hard, he stumbled and sat on the bleacher behind him. Chuckling, I glanced at our shocked classmates who got over themselves and lost it. Closing my eyes, I enjoyed their laughter since I prompted it.
I glanced at Kyler again after a moment, the only one not laughing since even Coach chuckled, and he glared at Riff and I. Me, I understood. I took away every bit of power he had by making fun of myself for having my head in the toilet. I didn’t hide it, nor did I deny it. Instead, I turned it into a story our peers found hilarious. Thus, Kyler lost whatever power he would have gained from my humiliation. Not that I would have cared. Pfft. Who gives a crap what a building full of horny teenagers thinks? Although I admit I liked having friends. I enjoyed not always being the butt of the joke.
What I didn’t understand is why Kyler glared at Riff. Although, I supposed he was angry that Riff took me under his wing and allowed me to strip
