More than Friends
Thirty minutes later, Kat is in the middle of a heated air hockey tournament with Theo. With the score tied at 6-6, the next person to score wins the game. One thing I learned about the Baldwins over the years is their competitive nature. None of them can handle losing, but at least Kat is a little more graceful about it than her brothers.
When Theo smacks the puck to the right of Kat’s hand and into her goal, he throws his striker onto the table, drawing the attention of everyone around us. The Baldwins are also show-offs. Just like their father, all of them are extremely talented. And they don’t mind rubbing it in your face.
Theo throws his hands in the air and makes a silly face at Kat. “And that is how it’s done, Kit-Kat.”
She rolls her eyes at Theo. “I let you win. I felt bad after I sunk three in a row on your goal.”
“Yeah, right. I beat you fair and square.”
Knowing Kat, she probably let him win. Of all the guys surrounding us, Kat is one of the best at air hockey. She grew up playing it with Austin and Duke, long before she learned how to play ice hockey. There’s nothing Kat isn’t good at, especially when it comes to sports.
I hold out my hand to Kat, and she takes it without a fight. Getting her to the SAC was a chore. I never thought she would let go of whatever had her so upset. It’s not like I did something wrong. I would never hurt her, at least not on purpose.
“I need a drink. Let’s take a walk to the cafeteria.”
She glances up at the clock on the walk to check the time.
“We have thirty more minutes,” I say, dragging her out of the room. “I even set the alarm on my phone so that I can take you back on time.”
“You’re taking this hang serious, huh?”
“I’m a man of my word.”
“That you are,” she mutters.
“I still need to talk to you, Kitten.”
“Can we do that later? I’m having a good time. Let’s not spoil this.”
Confused, I shake my head. “Spoil what? I just want to talk to you.”
“I know what you’re going to say.”
“Unless you developed the ability to read minds in the two weeks you’ve been ignoring me, then I doubt you know what I want to say.”
“Two weeks ago. That was a mistake. I shouldn’t have asked you to…” Her voice trails off, the words dying in her throat.
“I wanted to be with you, Kat. I don’t regret anything we did.”
She narrows her eyes at me. “You don’t?”
“No, not at all. What I regret is losing you over sex. You know me better than anyone. I don’t go around the campus and fuck any girl who talks to me.”
“Just don’t let anyone hear you say that. It might ruin your street cred.” She laughs.
“Let people think what they want. I don’t care what they say about me behind my back. The only opinion I care about is yours.”
Once we reach the cafeteria, I grab a few cups from their holders and hand one to Kat. “I’m not sure what to say, Dean. I feel different about you, and I have no idea how to process everything.”
She fills her cup with every kind of fountain soda they have on tap.
“Gross,” I tell her, taking turns filling three Coke’s for the twins and me. “Why can’t you choose one brand of soda like a normal person?”
“Because I can never make up my mind.” She turns around, with the cup in her hand, and takes a sip from the straw. “Maybe you would like it. You don’t know until you give it a try.”
“I didn’t know how much I would like you until we gave it a try.”
A blush creeps up her neck and to her cheeks. “Dean,” she whispers, as I brush my fingertips along hers and move closer. “We graduate in two weeks. It’s too late.”