Double Star

7 : Childhood Friend.

PoV Sarah:

Standing half-dressed in the freezing locker room was not how I envisioned my day. The uniform situation? A joke. PE? My least favorite subject. To top it off, Ashley—my usual partner-in-commiseration—was out sick. Lucky her.

I sighed, crossing my arms over my sports bra. The room was dead silent except for the faint echoes of sneakers squeaking on the gym floor outside. 

"Still no luck in finding a t-shirt, huh?" Noelle peeked her head back in, looking mildly guilty.

"None," I replied flatly, hugging myself tighter.

She hesitated, then said, "I'll keep looking. Maybe there's a spare in the storage room. Hang tight."

I watched her leave and dropped onto the bench. Adding to my struggles in sports, the school introduced mandatory uniforms to distinguish the groups. However, being new, my set was incomplete—they couldn't even provide me with a t-shirt to match the rest.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't notice someone at the doorway until they cleared their throat.

"Wow, nice outfit," came a familiar voice, laced with sarcasm.

My head snapped up, and there he was—Luke, Mr. I-Own-This-School, leaning casually against the doorframe as if he belonged here.

"Excuse me?" I blurted, instantly defensive.

He leaned casually against a locker, smirking. "Relax. Just passing through... Didn't expect the bonus entertainment though."

My face went nuclear. "Are you serious right now? Get out!"

"You're going to score plenty of goals like that," Luke teased, a smug grin spreading across his face. Then, with a deliberate wink, he added, "And not just in sports, I promise."

My face instantly caught fire, the heat crawling to my ears. I wanted to come up with some biting comeback, but I managed only a mortified glare.

"Luke, I swear—"

Before I could finish, he pulled off his shirt in one swift motion.

"What the hell are you doing?! Are you going to rape me? You better not come any closer"

Luke tossed the shirt at me. "Relax, drama queen. Wear it. You can thank me later." It hit me square in the face. Confused, I held the shirt in my hands. It was soft, slightly oversized, and smelled faintly of him—clean and woodsy. I glanced up to say something, but he was already gone.

I slipped it on quickly, grateful for the cover. The shirt hung loosely, almost reaching my thighs. 

When I finally made it to the court, I found Noelle waiting, her eyes wide as she spotted me.

"Is that..." she trailed off, leaning closer. "Luke's shirt?"

I shrugged, trying to play it cool. "He was just being... helpful, I guess."

She looked at me like I'd grown another head. "Helpful? Luke? Are we talking about the same guy?"

"Don't make it weird, Noelle," I warned.

Her smirk said otherwise. "Oh, it's already weird."

"So, Mr. Hammer, I send you to fetch a simple ball, and you come back shirtless? Care to explain what's going on in that brain of yours?"

"Sorry, I tore it off by accident," Luke replied casually, scratching the back of his neck.

"You what? Are you trying to test my patience, Luke?" The teacher's voice rose in disbelief.