The Hookup Pact

13| Atlas

I watched Evelyn almost sprint to the entrance of her building. And the fact that she was doing that in those high heels of hers was both commendable and frightening.

Did she hate being with me that much?

I waited until she was safely in and then started the car. Since I was close to the campus anyway, I decided to go back to our sharehouse instead of the hotel. I could always drop by tomorrow to grab my clothes and tidy up a bit before letting the cleaners in.

The sharehouse was on the outskirts of the campus, closer to the gates than the college buildings. Originally it was owned by an older couple who then donated it, along with their land, to the university since they didn't have a child of their own. Extremely sweet and selfless of them. We still had some of their stuff and photo frames inside. The guys who lived there before me believed that the couple haunted the place and didn't dare to sell or throw any of it away.

Now, I didn't believe in ghosts but it didn't hurt to be a little respectful and keep their things as they were. I just moved it from my room to the store room. At least it was still in the house, right?

When I pulled into the driveway around 3:30 a.m., the entire street was silent as a graveyard. Not a single soul in sight. If there was a party going on, this same street would have been packed with students going and coming till dawn. I parked my car and jogged up to the porch where all the lights were turned off. Opening the door with my key, I stepped inside, quietly shutting it behind me.

The house was silent as well with all the guys sleeping soundly like babies. They wouldn't stir even if the house was set on fire and the fire trucks were blowing their sirens outside. Sometimes I wondered what they would do when I moved away at the end of the year.

Taking the stairs, I went to the second floor where my room was, all the while listening to them snore. Dylan was the worst of all. He always sounded like someone had turned on the blender and forgotten about it. Thankfully, he was far, far away from my room.

When I reached my door, I took out the keys again and opened the door. As soon as I saw my bed, I fell face-first on it, groaning with exhaustion. The party, Evelyn, and driving back and forth had done a number on me. And the moment my head hit the pillow, I was out like lights.

Except it wasn't a peaceful sleep. Throughout the night, I kept dreaming about Evelyn and all the sweet, sweet sounds she made as she fell apart in my arms.

***

Dylan's loud wolf whistle echoed through the locker room. After our defeat in the last game with Maple Park, Coach doubled down on us with the most grueling drills. Each and every muscle in my body was screaming with pain. All I wanted to do was take a warm shower and pass out for a few hours.

"Which wild cat did you bring home last night?" he asked, coming closer to inspect the marks on my back. Just the thought of her making the said marks had a shiver running down my spine.

"The wildest," I replied, trying to stop the amused grin that threatened to break out on my face.

"How did I not know? It doesn't look like they could be made without accompanied sound," he said and reached out to touch my back.

I swatted his hand away, whirling around to face him. "Who said I brought her home? I came home late last night while you were snoring like a trash-crushing machine."

He gasped and took a few dramatic steps back. "You wound me."

"But seriously as painful as that looks, it must have been hot," Ethan commented from behind me, gesturing to my back with his water bottle.