Never The One Noelle

An Idiot, Idiot, Idiot.

Bryce's skin was alight with adrenaline. The Marlins had won the first football game of the year and the team was stronger than it had ever been before. Even his idiot brother, Jake, had played well. The field was empty and Bryce was waiting for said brother so they could head home and get drunk with the other players in their basement. It was a tradition to have a party after every game to keep up the team's spirit, but Bryce had scaled it down a little since becoming the quarterback. It was initially for the team, but it had gotten too out of hand when the entire school was attending their team bonding parties.

Bryce stumbled forward when a tiny body rammed into him at full speed. He whirled around to see Jake's best friend, Noelle. She had a wide grin spread across her heart-shaped face, and she was brimming with excited energy, he could see it in her flushed pink cheeks. She shook her pompoms excitedly and gave Bryce another playful shove. "You guys did it! That last touchdown- Holy shit! Congrats!"

He was momentarily taken aback by her enthusiasm, she'd been nothing short of polite but cold to him since his selfish confession in the 7-Eleven a few weeks before.

Bryce grinned back, "Yeah, I guess I was pretty amazing. Are you coming to the afterparty at ours with the other girls?"

"Yep. I was going to get a ride with a friend, but I can't seem to find her."

"I can give you a ride if you want. It is at our house, anyway." Noelle nodded in response and pulled out her phone to text said friend, or so Bryce assumed. He glanced at the change room doors again and caught sight of Jake exiting. "Yo, jackass! Parking lot."

Jake rolled his eyes and waved to his friends, then jogged over to join Noelle and Bryce. "Hey, Noelle. Did you see that final-" Jake spread his arms wide and made a 'whoosh' noise as he mimed the final touchdown of the game. "That was fucking batshit!"

Noelle grinned in response, "It was pretty amazing." She knocked shoulders with Bryce accidentally when she dodged Jake's wild hand motion and Bryce felt his entire body burn red for a second at the contact. He fumbled with the keys in his pocket, and he unlocked the doors for his brother and Noelle.

There was a pleasant conversation held between Jake and Noelle about the game, but Bryce could barely concentrate on the road. He was torn between guilt and anger. Both directed at himself.

He was guilty for feeling the way he did about his brother's little friend and angry for feeling like he did because he was entitled to his own feelings. And he was also angry at Jake on top of it all for being a blind idiot and not scooping up Noelle sooner.

But Bryce was the idiot. An idiot, idiot, idiot, to be completely honest. Three times the idiot.

Noelle was at least three years younger than him and she just wanted Jake. So why did he meddle?

It had hit him that day when he'd watched the way Noelle looked at him and it had all hit him like a truck at once. He wanted her to look at him that way.

He'd lied when he'd introduced himself to her at the end of summer. When he'd pretended to not know her. Of course, he'd seen her hanging with his brother for years, but he wanted to destroy any chances of her having a schoolgirl crush on him.

By being a massive dick.

But he'd forgotten that she was sweet and funny, and she could keep up with him and Jake athletically.

That's why she'd caught Bryce's eye. She reminded him of a guy with all the attributes needed to make her female. She was kind of perfect for him.

"The light's green, dumbass," Jake commented.

Bryce blinked and accelerated. Then, he flipped Jake off. It'd been green for one full second before he'd felt the need to open his fat mouth.