SUGAR | ALL AMERICAN: HOMECOMING

Sugar | THREE

A/N: Hi hehe

The next week chugged along filled with plenty of homework assignments and athletic practices. All this time, Thea had been counting down the days until her mom and aunt Frankie touched down in Atlanta. There was the excitement at getting to see them again for the first time in almost two months. And then, there was the apprehension of the dozens of interrogation-style questions that would be thrown her way ranging from school, tennis, and her social life. With a current 4.0 and a guaranteed spot in the Top 12, her stomach was mostly in knots about the ongoings of her social life being under a microscope.

JR hadn't brought it up all that much over the past week. They'd been hanging out more, sure, a definite departure from their usual "hi" and "byes." But the sophomore baseball player didn't shine a light on the fact that they were preparing a ruse for her family. During their pre-class coffee chats and lunch breaks, it was almost as if there was no ruse, that they were two people in the early stages of getting to know one another without any strings attached.

Simone, Keisha, and Nate took no shame in seeking play by play accounts of JR and Thea's interactions so far.

"So, how committed are you two supposed to be with this whole 'fake dating scheme? Seems like y'all are already acting in character..."

Thea felt her cheeks burn at the conversation's attention being suddenly pulled to her. The quartet were lounging in the common area of the dorm hall, taking a break from their daily responsibilities.

Keisha playfully fluttered her eyelashes while awaiting a response.

"W-we're just getting to know each other, that's all. It has to be believable, you know." Thea responded. Her voice pursued a nonchalant flavor, not wanting to make this a bigger deal than it was.

Nate gave a playful hum, "Mmm hmm." She took a sip of her coffee before continuing, "The big day's tomorrow. You nervous?"

"It's not a wedding, jeez," Thea rolled her eyes.

"That wasn't the question," Nate threw back. It didn't take long for Simone to jump in on the jeering.

"That would actually be a dope story to tell during your vows. 'It all started with hiring him as a fake boyfriend...'" Simone dramatically flared her hands while raising up from her seat as she teased her teammate.

Keisha and Nate laughed at her antics while Thea hid her face in the sleeve of her crewneck, "You guys suck," she muttered while hiding her flusteredness.

Nate gave a playful pat on Simone's behind before giving her a light push back on the couch. Then, she turned to Thea and grabbed her attention, "But seriously, JR say anything about tomorrow to you? Is he nervous?"

"Why didn't one of you volunteer to be my fake girlfriend if you guys were gonna be so nosy this whole time?" Thea grumbled at their antics.

Keisha smirked, "Well, I didn't know you swung that way, but unlike JR, you would have had to pay me or sumthin' to put up with Thea Sr. and Auntie Thea."

The trio were once again laughing at Thea's expense and she herself couldn't help but let out a chuckle or two at her current predicament. She also supposed that it was expected that her friends would have questions about this current set up with JR. With a sigh, she finally relented, "We talked a few times this week. Mostly before class or during lunch. Just making sure we're on the same page with everything. He actually offered to come with me to pick them up tomorrow from the airport."

"Ooh, not an airport run!"

"He tryna win them brownie points, for real.."

Thea shook her head, once again, at them. Once they asked her about what she was going to wear and what time the flight landed, it seemed they were more than satisfied with moving onto another topic. Before long, the four had split up to carry out the rest of their day. Thea needed to go to the library to get a head start on a paper so that she could have as much time as possible to spend with her mom and aunt.