Page 8 of Rookie Moves

And I don’t know what to make of any of it.

CHAPTER THREE

COLBY

“He’s really pretty,” Stassie says from where she’s lying beside me.

Technically, her room is across the hall, but I’m grateful she’s decided to stay with me for a while.

I shouldn’t have drunk as much as I did. It was irresponsible, especially with having class at 8:00 a.m. followed by practice tomorrow, but luckily, the walk home sobered me up slightly. The brisk, cold air leaving nothing except my embarrassment and regret firmly in place.

And the pizza Stassie ordered the second we got back helped with the rest.

“He is,” I murmur into my pillow. “It’s kinda annoying how good-looking he is.”

She makes a sound of agreement, and then her hand lands in my hair. I close my eyes, relaxing as she cards her fingers through the strands.

Stassie has become my closest friend here at Whilton U. We moved in on the same day, and the first thing she told me was, “I don’t like jocks, so you better not annoy me, or I’ll use your toothbrush to clean the toilet and not tell you.”

I’m lucky I haven’t annoyed her yet, but the threat still lingers in my mind, so I keep my toothbrush hidden in my room. Just in case.

Our unlikely friendship started after we bonded over our love of dark animated fantasy TV shows, and when she opened up to me about feeling pressured to lose her virginity now she’s at college, I confided in her too. She vowed to take my secret to the vault, and it helps that she couldn’t care less about the hype that seems to follow me around.

Stassie only cares about me and my mental well-being. Though it’s kind of sad that this is the first time in nineteen years I’m experiencing this type of friendship. One that doesn’t come with a side of jealousy or opportunistic behavior.

“He seems to care about you too,” she says quietly.

I hum in response. Because I don’t doubt it.

Tyler Beckmann has always been good to me. From the first time we met on campus, he’s been the one person who has remained consistent. I’ve never once doubted his intentions or questioned whether his kindness was a guise for an ulterior motive.

Then there’s the fact that he seems to be there every single time I need him, saving me from lurking reporters or interrupting students who try to push their luck and cross boundaries.

He’s always there when I need a safety net.

Someone to fall back on when the pressure gets too much.

It’s probably why my crush on him is as strong as it is.

Tyler is safe, and I don’t have many safe people in my life.

“Would you…” she begins, then huffs out a breath, seemingly stopping herself from whatever she was going to say.

I lift my head from where I’d buried it in my pillow, peering over at her with one eye.

“What?”

I mourn the loss of her soothing hand in my hair as she shifts to lie on her side, propping her head on her fist, and gives me an inquisitive look.

“Would you consider asking him to help you with your predicament?”

I let out a snort and roll over to mirror her position. “My predicament?”

“Yes. Your virginity predicament.”

I chuckle. “I don’t know if that’s the right word for it.”

“Humor me, m’kay?” She pokes me in the ribs, then holds her other hand up between us and counts on her fingers. “He’s openly bi, he’s hot as hell, and he seems to really care about you. I bet if you asked him to help you pop your cherry, he’d roll out the red carpet and dish up some top-shelf lube.”