Training the Team (Dougie Hamilton)

The Marchand 4th of July

Saturday, July 4

Bright light streams through my bedroom window as I wake up. I glance around my room to see Matt and Lucy sound asleep on the air mattress. I look at the clock. 9:02. I've got to leave for Boston by 11, otherwise I'll have hit some major traffic. I grab clean clothes from my drawers and pad into the bathroom to change.

After I brush my hair back into a plain ponytail, I pull on a pair of running shorts and grab a Nike t-shirt just to wear back to my apartment and then go downstairs. I make myself a cup of iced tea and sit out on the porch, watching the ocean. Lucy comes downstairs next, her curly red hair in a ponytail as well. She's got shorts on like me, but instead of a t-shirt, she's got a cute Lululemon tank top on.

"Do you want anything? Coffee? Tea? Real food?" I ask her.

"Iced coffee, if you don't mind."

I start her with our coffee maker and then hand her a glass of ice. After she's done, we sit on the porch together.

"I had fun last night, how about you?" She asks.

"Me too. I wish I could spend more time with you guys, but I can't with work."

"It's probably a good thing we haven't," Lucy laughs.

I laugh with her, remembering times when the three of us would sneak around campus. We snuck up on the roof of one of the halls one night and watched the stars, we went out after curfew dozens of times, and we even snuck into Agganis one night. We never got caught, but nonetheless, it's probably not a good habit to get into.

"Morning, ladies," Matt says from behind us.

"Morning," I smile.

Matt literally just rolled out of bed and came downstairs from the look of him. He's wearing the same clothes he wore to bed last night and his hair is rumpled and wild from it being wet when he went to sleep. Lucy and I exchange a smile at him as he slumps in a chair opposite us.

"Babe, you look a little...disheveled," Lucy says, biting her lip to keep from laughing.

Matt sits up and looks at her, something sly coiling in his eyes. "It couldn't be from what you did last night, could it?" He asks cheekily.

Lucy rolls her eyes, a blush creeping up her cheeks as I laugh. "No, you often forget to brush your hair and look presentable- regardless of what I did or didn't do." 

Matt grins again. "Then come over here and prove it."

Lucy glares at him with dark eyes but stomps over to him and kisses him. Both of us know Matt, and I'm glad she kissed him when she did, otherwise he wouldn't have shut up. Matt and Lucy are still kissing, so I loudly clear my throat, and Lucy pulls away from Matt.

"You two are hurting my self-esteem," I frown.

"How does me kissing Matt to prevent him from throwing an innuendo tantrum hurt your self-esteem?" Lucy asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Because I don't have anyone to kiss to make them shut up. It really takes a toll on one's self-esteem."

Lucy snorts. "Again, the only reason I did that was to get him to stop talking."

"But still," I groan.

Lucy puts an arm over my shoulders and hugs me. "Hey, don't feel bad about not having a boyfriend. It doesn't mean you're any less awesome. It just means that you're searching for a guy who has the right amount of awesome for you."

I smile at that. "Thanks, Lucy."

"What are friends for?" She smiles, squeezing my shoulders.

The three of us leave the house a little before 11 to head back to Boston, and I take the time to enjoy the long drive back.