I shuffled into my bathroom. I needed a long, hot-ass shower. I had no idea what drew me to this girl so much. Her innocence? I mean, sure. I guess. Those doe eyes. The fact that she didn’t know shit about the world was kind of entertaining. Was it the way she looked at me with those beautiful eyes of hers? Like I was a good man or something?
The way her nose wrinkled when she laughed?
The way her giggle made me smile?
The way she called me Buckaroo?
You’re an idiot, Max.
I peeled my boxers off and tossed them to the floor. After fiddling with the water for a hot shower, I stepped into the stream. I hissed as it battered against my back and shoulders. But damn, it felt good. I leaned my forehead against the tile wall and sighed. I still heard her voice whispering my name in the recesses of my mind. Calling out to me. Asking me to go back to sleep. Telling me she’d meet me there if I simply lay back down.
“You’re losing it,” I grumbled.
Yep. I had finally cracked.
I washed myself down while I pissed in the shower. It hurt like hell, but it needed to be done. I groaned as the bubbles popped against my skin. The smell of coffee trickled into the bathroom. That meant my brother was already up. But, when I heard another voice in my house, I bristled.
Benji.
I quickly got out of the shower and dried myself off. I slipped into my slippers and pulled on some pajama pants, ready to figure out why the hell this boy had come by so damn early in the morning. I checked my phone to see if I had missed a phone call. Was there something I needed to know? But the only thing I’d missed was a text from John an hour ago. Stating that Benji had stopped by to talk.
“Knock knock.”
His voice emanated from my doorway, making me toss my phone to the bed.
“Don’t you have classes or some shit?”
Benji snickered. “That how you greet someone who brings you coffee?”
I turned around. “Yeah, when the person bringing me coffee is probably doing it for information. What do you want?”
He handed me the mug. “Damn. Can’t family get together just because?”
“We never get together just because.”
“Fine, whatever.”
“What do you want, Benj?”
He grinned. “Saw you riding off with that uptight chick from my dorm last night.”
“And?”
He crossed his arms. “What did you two get into?”
I sipped my coffee. “None of your business.”
He barked with laughter. “She’s a brat, you know. And a goody-good. Sits in the front rows in all her lectures and shit. It’s annoying.”
“I said it’s none of your business, Benji.”
John chuckled. “Oh shit. Better back off, Benji. This sounds personal.”
My brother limped from around the corner and took up residence in my doorway, too, so that the two of them were preventing me from going anywhere.
“You know, it’s not every day you have a girl on your bike, but wake up alone the next morning.”
Benji smiled. “No, it isn’t.”