The Cheerleader // Rob Gronkowski

s e v e n t e e n

"I'm so proud of you!" I squealed as I jumped on the massive tight end's back as he walked out of the team locker room after the game.

He stumbled under the unexpected weight, but managed to catch my legs and hold me in a piggyback position, "For any particular reason?"

I leaned my head over his shoulder to make eye contact, "Do you really have to ask?  You caught 3 touchdowns and had 200 receiving yards."

Rob smirked, "I know. I just wanted to hear you talk about how great I am."

"You're such a jerk," I laughed, smacking his shoulder.

"But a lovable jerk?" he asked, batting his eyes at me.

I pretended to contemplate it, "Hmmm haven't quite decided on that yet."

~

A few hours later, we were plopped on Rob's couch, completely tired out from the game. I had showered, and was now wearing Nike Pro shorts and one of Rob's T-shirts, which was practically a dress on me. My long brown hair was pulled into a sloppy ponytail, and Rob was slowly running his fingers through the ends of it.

"So what's that girl's deal, the one on your team?" he suddenly asked me.

I groaned, and looked up to meet his eyes, "Your guess is as good as mine. She can't take a hint."

He smirked, "That's for sure. But honestly, she makes me feel very uncomfortable."

I nodded, "I get that. She makes me uncomfortable too, but I can't exactly do more than yell at her."

"You're the captain. If she's infringing on your personal life, you have the right to kick her off the squad."

I sat up, "Rob, you know it's not that simple. I can't fire someone for a little harmless flirting."

He looked at me, "I'd hardly say it's harmless."

I rolled my eyes, "It's not, but that's how it would seem. I could get sued for kicking someone off for flirting with my boyfriend.  This is a real profession, not high school."

He slumped, "I guess you're right."

"Look, I hate it just as much as you do, and I'm going to do whatever I can to keep Monica in check, but we're just gonna have to make do for now, ok?" I grabbed his hand from where it rested on his lap.

Rob looked down at our hands and remained silent for a moment before looking back up into my eyes, "Ok."

"I love you."

"I love you too."