Fraternizing with the Enemy (Rewritten)

Chapter Forty-Four

Fraternizing with the Enemy
Chapter Forty-Four
Reed Archer
Four days later, Wednesday (15th Week)

Get your ass outside, I'm here. Was on my home screen, sent by Micah.

Why are you here?

I had just gotten out of the shower and was looking forward to being alone for the rest of the night. Justice was still clearly upset with the whole marriage situation. I don't really know how I feel about marriage. Sometimes I think about marrying him and then other times I think about what my parents' marriage has been like and I don't want to go through that.

To take you out.

Where are we going?

The mall. I'm starving and there's no food in my house.

Ugh, I hate you sometimes.

Dropping the towel from around my waist, I pull on a pair of boxers and then grab a pair of pants. I pull them on along with Justice's Polo sweatshirt. Not going to lie, it had quickly been becoming my favorite sweatshirt and one I wear all the time. It was however, losing Justice's smell. I was going to have to give it back long enough for him to make it smell again. What a shame.

Once finished, I head outside and hop into Micah's car. I had spent the last two hours or so working out, as per usual of my dad's crazy schedule. When I hop into his car, he doesn't say anything as he quickly peels out of the driveway. The mall was about twenty minutes away from our neighborhood as it was in the middle of the rich side of town.

"I'm so pumped for the game. We're so gonna win. S'long as your ass can play." Micah finally says as he pulls into the parking lot of the mall. "You're our last hope. The boys can't get their shit together and you know McCall can't play for shit."

"I've seen worse." I shrug.

"He can't catch the damn ball. Coach tossed a ball at him--from right beside him--and he still dropped. He has the worst case of butterfingers I've ever seen." Micah continues. "What a tweeb."

I look at him, bewildered.

"What?" He asks me, eyeing me confused.

"Did you really just call him a tweeb?"

"Yeah why?" Micah rolls his eyes at me.

"I haven't heard someone call someone else that since elementary school. You've resorted."

"Dick, I never left." He coyly smirks.

"True. It's like you went elementary school straight to sex. Like no transition. One day your this nasty ass and the next day--"

"A sex god?"

"Nah, more like someone who just has sex all the time. I don't know why, your ass is ugly as shit." I smirk at him.

"Fuck, I forgot how much of an asshole you are. Damn, bro, I missed you." He pretends to wipe away a fake tear.

"Shut it, douchebag." I say and shove the door open. I hop out and slam it closed. In true bad side of the neighborhood fasion, the fucking shit hole pops back open. I slam it again and it still doesn't close. I slam it hard and finally the shit hole closes. Fuck, he needs new doors and I needed a new heater, we're a work in progress.

"Alright, lets go get some food." Micah says, shoving me in the direction of the food court. Out of the corner of my eye, a sparkle in the sun catches my eye, a small smile lifts at my cheeks. Yeah, I was going in there before we left. I listen, aimlessly, as Micah blabs on and on about what food he was going to get. By the time we'd gotten in and gotten our food, I was ready to slam the door with my head in the way.

"Micah, so help me god if you do not shut the fuck up, I'm going to hit you with your car." I growl at him, eyeing him darkly.

"Ah, ah, ah, I have the keys dipshit."

"I've hotwired a car before, stupid." I say. "Hell, I've hotwired your car before."

He scowls at me.

"Well I don't see you jumping to make any conversation."

"That's because you won't shut up."

"Ugh," He rolls his eyes. "Then what do you wanna talk about?"

"How's the arm?"

"Awful. How's the ankle?"

"Hurts, like usual. But that's not important." I take a sip of my drink. "How's it feel to be out of the cast?"

"Better than anything I've ever felt." He smiles.

"Even sex?"

"Even sex." He chuckles. "Fuck I'm so happy to have mobility in it agian."

"So, since you're out of the cast sooner than expected, does that mean you're coming back?"

"I dunno." He shrugs, finishing off his food. "I knew I wasn't going to be in this game, but I don't know when I'll be able to play again. I have another doctors appointment sometime in the coming weeks. To keep up and make sure I haven't fucked anything up."

"You just got it off today. Do you really need to go back so soon?" I ask, finishing off my food.

"Fuck, I don't know. I don't even know if I'll have the insurance to pay for it. Pa, lost his job a couple of days ago and Ma's doesn't come with insurance."

"Shit, dude," I say, lifting up my hat to run a hand through my hair. "That sucks. Is your dad looking?"

"Yeah, why? You know somewhere?" He looks at me hopefully. No doubt that now that his dad is home, all he's been doing is drinking, smoking and snorting. Micah's dad was addicted to cocaine. Extremely addicted. His mom had gotten clean for the most part after Micah had been born addicted to cocaine. It was hard to stay clean where we lived. Micah and I dabbled a little in weed but it wasn't my thing. I don't really know about Micah. I think he only smokes it when he's stressed.

"Nah, sorry man. I gotta start looking for a job, though, if I want to be able to afford anything." I sigh, looking around. The food joints were usually always hiring but I'd never been one for working with food.

"Me too, man. Hopefully one with benefits." He also sighs, but then his eyes wander to something behind me and brighten. A smile made its way onto his face and he waved his hand for the person he was looking at to make their way over. "Brett, come join us!"

Brett Crawford. He was openly gay and had been avoiding Micah's advances for months. From my understanding they'd become friends while Micah was trying to get inside his pants. Brett and I had never really spoken, we'd definitely never spoken outside of school. In fact, this was the first time I had run into him outside of school. It was also the first time I'd seen Micah around him.

"Hey Micah, hey Reed. What are you guys doing here?" Brett smiles, not sitting down but standing at the end of our table.

"Eating, what are you doing here?" Micah beams.

"Grocery shopping." He answers, holding up what looked like a list.

"Oh, we'll tag along." Micah says, already standing up and looking at me expectantly.

"Nah, you guys go along. I gotta pick something up. Micah text me when you're done and we can head out." Before I could even finish, the two of them were off--smiling, laughing and looking like a couple. Fuck, Justice.

It's okay, I was going to make everything okay with him. Standing up, I throw both of our trash away and leave the trays in the return spot. Heading, leisurely, to the one store in the mall I'd never dared to venture into, I smile. Everything was going to be alright. Finally, I make it to the brightly lit shop. One that held things more expensive than my life. Walking in, I knew I'd be leaving with the one thing I could give Justice to help soothe over this issue, something I wasn't afraid to give him, something I wanted to give him. Something I knew he'd want and like no matter the price tag. I was going to get the boy I loved a ring.