Something Gained (USC Series Book #1)

chapter eight

SOMETHING GAINED
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AIDAN

The god awful sound of a horn blaring into my room woke me up this morning. I throw my pillow over my head instantly, muffling the sound slightly.

"Wakey, wakey!" Tyson's sing-song voice cheers. "We have practice in exactly"—he lifts his wrist and checks his imaginary watch—"one hour."

"Dude, I'm the fucking captain. Don't you think I know that?" I grumble out, tiredness still washed over me.

The awful sound starts again, this time ten times louder, even underneath my pillow. I toss the pillow across the room towards Tyson and kick the blanket off my legs. I swing myself off of my bed and drowsily walk towards my ensuite.

Lucky me, I managed to convince my roommates I was most worthy of the room and snagged myself the master bedroom when we moved in here. Malachi didn't even try to defend his honour, giving up the moment we moved in. Tyson and Holden, however, being the competitive assholes they are, tried their best to convince us but finally managed to give up, allowing me to take it.

Holden stuck his head into the bathroom where I was standing. From the reflection of the mirror, his face was sleepy and droopy, his chestnut brown hair tousled and knotted. "Be thankful he woke you last. Our lives would've been living hell if you got woken up first," he said matter-of-factly, his voice deeper than usual.

He walked off, and I could hear a couple of other sets of steps. The rest of my roommates are doing the same as me and getting ready for our morning practice.

After about half an hour, my roommates and I are all out of the house. Fitting four massive soccer players into a car is a mission, but somehow we got there.

The sun was just rising. The sky was painted in a mix of orange and pink hues. I love sunrises so much. They bring me peace and a place to get away from life for just a couple of minutes.

We reached the locker room where most of our teammates were. Coach isn't here yet, per usual. There is about ten minutes until practice starts and Coach Warner is a very punctual man who will not arrive a minute early or a minute late. Right on the dot was his life motto.

Rubbing my eyes, I wandered over to my locker, sleepily. I threw open the locker door and grabbed my cleats, socks, and shin pads.

"Yo! Brown!" one of my teammates yelled, his voice echoing through the locker room. "Have you heard the newest news flash about you?"

Suddenly, my tiredness dissipated and my head shot up, following the sound of my teammates' voices. "Not yet, what's the newest rumour?"

Floyd peeks his head around the lockers and looks at me. "Supposedly... you were caught on a date with a mystery chick last Friday night."

To that, I burst out laughing. "That was my sister," I said as I caught my breath back.

Floyd started laughing along with me, some of my other teammates chuckling lightly.

From beside me, Holden slaps Tyson on the back of the head. "I told you, you fucking idiot," Holden says teasingly.

Tyson rubs the back of his head dramatically, glaring daggers at Holden. "I'd never seen her!" Tyson spits out defensively.

"Alright! Let's do this thing." Coach's voice is loud and authoritative, reverberating throughout the locker room.

Coach motions for everyone to hustle out of the locker room and out onto the soccer field. I leave out as do the rest of my teammates.

Underneath my cleats, the dewy grass crunches. I absolutely love this time of day. The crack of dawn. It's peaceful, and it feels like the calm before the storm. The storm being the day ahead.