“What the fuuuuuuuck?!?!?!!?” I shout. “What the fuckity fuck?!”
Carl and Karly both turn to look at me, their eyes wide. There’s confusion on Karly’s face, but Carl just sneers, his handsome face going ugly.
“What are you doing here, Pepper?” he snarls. “Get the fuck out! Can’t you see we’re having a private moment?”
The blood drains from my face and my fists clutch on air.
“So this is what you’ve been doing,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Yeah, Pepper,” he says sarcastically while rolling his eyes. “You need to get a life.”
Then he unceremoniously pushes Karly off his dick, his member still wet and sticky with her fluids.
Me, get a life? Behind him, the cheerleader picks herself up off the floor. She scrambles to grab her clothes, but she can’t seem to find them and settles for Carl’s shoulder pads instead, hiding herself behind the white cotton.
“Couldn’t you have just ended things with me like a fucking man?” I ask, my voice getting louder with each word.
“Pepper, I –”
“Fuck you, Carl Stenson!” I scream, my temples now throbbing with rage. “You and you,” I jab a finger at Karly, “can go straight to hell!”
He calls after me as I turn from him, but I don’t listen. Instead, I storm from the locker room and throw the Subway bag into the trash with all of my might. Fuck you, yellow banana peppers! Fuck you, spicy salami! So much playing nice did for me!
But nothing can ease this pain. Hot tears rush down my skin as I storm back to my car, but then something grabs my arm, forcing me to a stop. It’s Carl, of course. He’s got his jeans on, and his shirt is on inside out. His shoelaces are untied. I have an image of him tripping over them and face-planting into the asphalt, breaking his perfect nose. Thinking of that actually gives me some satisfaction.
“Pepper, hold on,” Carl says apologetically, holding his hands up. “Listen, I didn’t want things to end like that. Me and Karly, that was the only time we ever—”
“Don’t. Fucking. Lie to me, Carl!” I hiss before yanking my arm free of his and stepping away. “We’re done, do you hear me? You got what you wanted. I never want to see your face again.”
He doesn’t stop me this time as I get into my car. Once inside, I emphatically lock the doors before peeling out of the college parking lot, tires screeching. I drive for fifteen minutes, going nowhere in particular. My vision is red and my hands are shaking on the wheel.
But then inspiration hits and with newfound determination, I grit my teeth and pull up before a local bar. The Salty Lagoon isn’t exactly a nice place, but a dank, divey hole in the wall is exactly what I need right now. Still angry, I get out, slam the door, and storm inside.
2
Pepper
* * *
After one beer, the nightmare still hasn’t gone away. Fuck. I can still see Karly’s eyes roll back in her head as Carl dicks her hard. I’m going to need more alcohol if I want to forget what I saw.
Luckily for me, Jessa is the bartender tonight. Her curly red hair is piled high in a bun at the top of her head, and she’s got a cute sprinkling of freckles on her nose. She can tell something is wrong with me, but then of course, I’m not exactly hiding it. The bartender doesn’t pry, but she does wait for a few patrons to leave before she leans forward.
Her eyelids are covered in shimmery blue makeup that contrasts prettily against her hair. Her faux lashes stick out almost an inch from her face, and glimmer with silver glitter. Her tits are pushed up toward her neck and press against her top. It’s not her usual look, I know, but it’s how her boss likes his bartenders to look: like a wench. If I weren’t totally down right now, I’d commiserate with her. No one could be comfortable in that tight corset.
“Hey, Pep,” she says. “What’s wrong?”
I shake my head and push my fingers through my hair. My hat lies against the bar next to me soaking up some kind of alcoholic substance that someone spilled, but I can’t bring myself to care.
“I’m a fucking idiot, Jessa,” I say. “I can’t believe I thought he loved me.”
She’s confused for a second, but then it clicks in her brain. Her pretty face gets serious as she leans even closer. “What did Carl do?”
I sigh, and to my horror, a tear trickles down my cheek.
“I went to surprise him after practice. I waited for, like, an hour for him, but he wouldn’t come out. I actually went into the locker room to find out what was going on, and you know what I see?”