One likes to fight. One hides the truth. One keeps them all in line.
Nadia, Jax, and Angelo are triplets from the imaginary city of New Canton. Their parents have been selling drugs for years, absent from their lives. As a result, the teenagers hav...
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Jax and I don't really hang out often. He's got Dani who is utterly in love with him and she occupies about 70% of his time.
But, this morning, we're shooting hoops together and talking about life like we used to as kids. As the only boys, we had a special bond that faded with age like most things. Sometimes it's nice to bring that back.
"Kasey Hemlock," Jax shouts out from across the court, kicking the basketball to me on the other side.
I shake my head. "She's too skinny."
That's a lie.
"Leah Fisher!" I smirk and fire the ball back, knowing Leah was Jax's crush since third grade.
He starts laughing, "Ahh, fuck you! Great tits and ass. Soft hair. Smells good — " he pauses, "And for the record I'm talking about Dani."
The ball comes rolling back to me and I stop it with my foot.
"For real, you haven't shown any interest in any of these girls. You have never dated anyone, or kissed anyone, or had sex, or... what the hell is going on?" Jax's voice is loud in the quiet mid-morning air, nothing else but birds chirping in the distance.
I keep my head down, rolling my foot along the top of the basketball before kicking it towards center court.
"You gay or something?" Jax asks while walking to meet me in the middle.
The question stabs me in the stomach so hard I feel like I've got appendicitis. "Of course not," my mouth spits out without hesitation.
Jax picks up the ball and rests it against his side, eyeing me up and down once. "Then what gives?"
My brain scrambles to come up with a good reason. Jax is staring at me with his eyes squinted from the sun, a few beads of sweat concentrated in the center of his forehead from our game.
Nervously, I run my fingers through my thick brown hair. "I just like being single. No need to make things more complicated, you know?"
Jax puts the ball down and gives me a big nudge on the shoulder. The force of his hand, which is the one bandaged just a few days ago, sends me back half of a step. He's got the biggest smile.
"My man, you know how to live! That's good. Don't get caught up with females. But, you know who to talk to if you ever want to get rid of that v-card."
I feel a little embarrassed. Not because Jax knows I'm a virgin, but simply by the fact that I am one. Nadia has had sex, Jax has had sex, everyone has except me. Sex is probably #2 on the list of things to do in this city besides drugs.
But it doesn't matter.
I was the last and smallest triplet, a whole two pounds lighter than the rest. I don't even think my parents could hold me for the first 48 hours. I'm here now, though, so that's just proof my time will come for love and romance and all of that shit. It needs to grow.
