euphoria. [ rini au ]

chapter eighteen.

Ricky was beginning to dislike the locker room atmosphere that every male regarded as essential to their manhood. Indeed the more time he spent slipping into his practice jersey and tying his sneakers as the soccer team readied alongside the basketball team, he began to think that the guys were as prone to gossip as the cheerleaders in the adjacent room. The loud conversations had stopped upon his arrival and the not-so-sly looks followed his as he talked quietly with his team.

Grateful to leave the whispers behind, as he had been doing all day, he entered the gym and searched for the one person hating the school's rumour mill as much as him. He had heard every possible explanation for his and Nini's makeup since his arrival. Some thought they faked the whole fight for the sake of excitement and the heavy make-up sex. Someone else had loudly wondered if Nini was pregnant. Numerous others blamed Brett Anderson's pursuit of the brunette and Ricky's known jealousy. He neglected to point out that he had been too drunk to know that Brett was flirting to the max while Nini blatantly ignored him. The makeup sex had been the most amusing and Ricky caught himself from letting his secret thoughts on the matter slip from his tongue.

Locating her slender back, loosely outlined by the white practice jersey with number twenty-six on the back, Ricky kept his steps steady as he approached her. Her feet left the polished floor as her arm arched perfectly to follow the shot sailing through the net. She chased after the ball, turning to see him watching and sending him a cocky smirk before taking three steps and performing a perfect layup. Catching the ball, she bounced it twice and brought it to her chest, arms bent to launch it in his direction.

"Game on," she told him in a haughty voice. He caught the ball easily and raised an eyebrow.

"Really now?" he asked, "You're going down, Sal-Robs. I'm not the one who just spent an hour racing on a track. I am fresh and ready to beat you into the ground. You will fold under my awesomeness."

"You're right," she said. "So I get E.J. to compensate."

"What? No, that's not fair," Ricky protested, mouth dropping at how easily she had caught him.

"What's not fair?" E.J. asked, approaching the couple.

"Neens, here is misunderstanding the idea of one-on-one," Ricky explained sending her a wink while she pouted.

"Who said it was one-on-one?" she asked cheekily. "I merely implied that since you think I need help to win, it would only be fair to give me another person."

"Do you really think that pout will work?" he asked incredulously, convincing himself the liquid feeling of his conviction melting had nothing to do with the look she was sending him.

"It worked yesterday," she reminded him. "And this morning. And we all know it's working right now."

"She's got you there, Man," E.J. replied, smirking at his friend. "You're turning into a puddle of goo and don't even deny it."

"I am not goo," Ricky said crankily, trying to avert his eyes from the puffy lower lip what shimmered with lip-balm he knew would taste like brown sugar if he - Groaning to himself, he eyed her warily. "If you keep doing that, one of these days it won't work," he told her and she grinned.

"I'm sure if it happens, I'll be able to discover something else to use." Her eyes skimmed over his face ad trailed down his chest to linger slightly lower than his belly button and then returned to his eyes and offered him a smirk.

"Did she just-" E.J. stopped when Ricky brought his hand up with a pink tinge in his cheeks.

"Don't even finish that sentence if you want to walk tomorrow," he growled as Nini spun and walked towards the girls who were doing warm-up.