Roommate Roulette

16 | Without trees

[-Grayson-]

"Hey, Seffy!" Noah called out and Yousef scowled at him from across the locker room.

"I told you not to call me that." He took off his shirt and threw it in Noah's face, slipping on his practice jersey.

Everyone laughed and slowly started to disperse and file out into the gym. My phone dinged with a message and I frowned. It was from an Unknown number. "Hey. This is Evelyn." Three more dots appeared, disappeared, reappeared. "If you're wondering how I got your number, it's from Ezra."

"I'm wondering more about why." I texted back and I smiled at her reply.

"And I'm wondering how your ego got so big." 

"Maybe because of my good looks and personality." I wrote back and I tossed my phone back into my locker. I took a look at me in the mirrors above the sinks and wiped the smile off my face.

"Hey, Noah. Time to go." I spot him sitting on the bench, thumbs flying across the screen.

"Yeah?" He still wasn't looking at me.

I clapped him on his back until his attention was on me. "Let's go. It's practice." I spoke slowly like he was a kindergartener. 

He shut his phone off and stood abruptly. "Shit. Sorry, man." He snapped out of his daze and jogged out of the change room. 

"What's up with you? You've been like that since last practice too." I asked, walking onto the court.

"Heads!" Wyatt shouted. Noah and I both ducked as a ball flew over our heads.

Noah shook his head, dismissing any of my previous assumptions. "Nothing. That's all." He continued as if we weren't almost killed.

I looked at him skeptically, unconvinced. "Alright, whatever you say."

We joined the warm-up game just in between our team, making two teams of four, along with other teammates. Forrest serves first, Coach sitting on the side, watching.

The ball shot over the net and Wyatt passed it to Thiago, who set it to Yousef and he spiked it over the net. Noah dived and saved it in time for me to volley it over to the other side. 

"Get under the ball or else they might consider it as a lift." Coach advised and I nodded in understanding. 

Thiago bumped it over and I watched as Forrest went to get it. "Out!" Noah shouted and Forrest backed off when the ball hit right out of bounds.

"Good call, Martinez. Hansley, get control over the ball. I don't care if it's flying at you fifty miles per hour, get control." I think everyone knew that Coach also disliked Thiago more than all of us. 

I exchanged a look with Noah and Forrest and it took everything in us to not laugh. Noah covered his snort with a coughing fit. 

"Yeah, sure. My bad." Thiago grumbled under his breath.

After an hour of drills, we were all sweaty and in desperate need of a shower. In the change room, we took turns having quick showers. 

"Get your head out of the gutter, Noah." I shouted over my shoulder when he zoned out again.

"Oh, shut up, Delgado."

{~Evelyn~}

"You're coming with me." Josie tugged me out of my chair in her room.

I groaned into her shoulder. "Why do you do this to me?"

"So you can get some fresh air." She answered and added after I glared at her suspiciously. "And to see your man."