Chapter Two

Rock

What the hell, Water Girl stole the show? I should be the one leaving right now, not her. “Amy, say your goodnights to my mom and Jim. We're leaving too.”

“What no Rock? You should stay and let me treat you to a steak and a glass of wine. Besides, don't ruin this for your mom and the other kids like River just did.” I glance at my mom and see the sadness in her eyes, so I decide to stay. I mean, come on, Jim is offering steak and wine. Who can pass that up?

“James, tell me how school is going, son. I feel like I never get to see you anymore since football season started.”

“It's fine, Mom. We're kicking ass in football as usual.” I don't know why my mom thinks making small talk at the table is still a thing. Because it's definitely not. I endure the boring dinner with my mom and Jim. Once it's over, Amy and I head to a party at a friend's house.

“Rock, my man, you made it.” Speedy says.

“Of course, Speedy. It wouldn't be a party without me,” I tell my buddy.

"Wow, such a big head head, buddy." I chuckle and walk over to greet the rest of my teammates.

"Hey, Brody! How's it going?"

"It's going, bro. Where have you been tonight? You're usually the first guy with a beer in hand."

"Family stuff," I reply, taking the beer he offers. "It was fun... we got to witness water girl getting embarrassed by her own dad in front of everyone." Amy says, laughing at her own joke.

Brody looks at me, clearly confused. I just shake my head. "Amy, why don't you go hang out with your friends? I'm sure they'd love to hear about your day."

"Aww, thanks, honey. I didn't even see them over there."

"Why do you tolerate that girl, man? She's as dumb as a deer."

"Because she is very skilled and understanding when I need a quick fuck, without expecting anything in return."

"Wow, I thought I was rude. So, speaking of rude people, what's the deal with the girl everyone picks on?"

Brody is new to this school, so he doesn't know my soon-to-be stepsister. "You mean the girl they call 'water girl'?"

"That's what everyone calls her, but yeah. I find her attractive and I don't understand why people are mean to her like that."

I just look at Brody in disbelief. "How on earth do you find her attractive?"

"She's not strange to me. She may be quiet and distant, but with the right person by her side, she could be just like any other girl in our school."

"If you say so, man. Let me know how that works out for you... okay, Brody?"

"Sure, I will. But for now, let's start this party."

"Hell yeah!"

It's about 30 minutes into the party when Amy approaches me and starts rubbing her self all over me. Feeling in the mood, I take her to a private room and we engage in sexual activity. Afterward, we get dressed and I decide to call it a night since it's only Wednesday and we have school tomorrow.

When I arrive home at 2 am, I'm relieved to find that my mom is already in bed or at Jim's place tonight. I head upstairs to my room but then I hear my sister's voice.

"Hey, little one, why are you still awake?"

"Stop calling me little one. I'm 15 now. I was just wondering if we'll be moving to Jim's house since he and mom are getting married now?"

I hadn't thought about that before. Hopefully, we will move because mom seems happier over there without the memories of our father. He passed away in a car accident on the way to the hospital when my baby brother was born. This house brings sadness to my mother, but she can't afford to move. Plus, I can't wait to tease my soon-to-be stepsister.

"We'll have to ask mom tomorrow about her and Jim's plans, but for now, let's go to bed. We have school tomorrow."

🏈🏈🏈

After school, my sister and I find our mom and Jim in the kitchen, engaged in conversation over a cup of coffee. As we walk through the room, I greet them, "Hey mom, Jim, what's up?"

Mom smiles and replies, "Hey kids, could you sit down? Jim and I would like to talk to you about something." We laugh at her request, finding it amusing.

Curious, mom asks, "What's so funny?"

"Well, mom, we already know what you want to talk to us about, and we have no problem with it," I confidently respond.

Jim joins in, asking, "And what exactly do you think we want to talk to you about?"

My sister chimes in, "About us moving in with you." Mom and Jim both visibly relax upon hearing this.

Mom seeks clarification, "So, you guys have no issues with this?"

My sister reassures her, saying, "Not if it's what you want and it makes you happy, mom."

Mom suggests, "Should we go talk to River about this?"

Jim quickly responds, "Just leave my daughter to me."

Sometimes I empathize with River because her dad treats her poorly, but it also gives me the opportunity to be mean to the oddball.

"So, when are we going to do this?" I ask the adults.

"This weekend if you guys are on board," my mom tells me.

"That's great," I say, grabbing an apple on my way to my room to call Speedy and share the news.

"So, you're going to have access to Mr. Jim Darby's house?" Speedy says in awe. Jim is a legend at Scotts High. He was the star quarterback in the late 90s and early 2000s, and he went on to have a successful career in the NFL before retiring and becoming a sportscaster.

"Calm down. Yes, I get to live with Jim and have some fun teasing the water girl while I'm at it," I say, rubbing my hands together.

"I'm all for teasing the water girl, but honestly, man, we've been doing it for so long that I don't even know why anymore. She's actually kind of attractive, man."

Because she has what should have been mine all this time.

"Seriously, dude? Did you just say that the water girl is attractive? You're the second person this week to say that... you guys are really weird."

Speedy chuckles and says, "No, you just can't see it because you have this strange grudge against her."

"Well, this was a fun conversation, but I need to call my incredibly attractive girlfriend and talk to her for a bit before she gets pissed again," Speedy remarks.

"Yeah, I need to call Amy too."

After ending the call with Speedy, I take a shower and then play some football on the PS5 with my younger brother Abe. A little while later, my phone buzzes with an incoming call from Amy. I roll my eyes and pause the game to answer the call.

"Hey babe."

"Well hello, yourself. You never called me when you got home from school. I thought maybe you were at practice, but then I remembered that you don't have practice today because I don't have practice. So, I asked myself what could be more important than calling me."

"I had homework to finish, and then I started playing a game with my brother. I haven't spent much time with him lately."

"Well, isn't that sweet," Amy says sarcastically. I'm with Brody. Why the hell am I still with this girl? It's simple. Amy and I started dating in 8th grade and have been together ever since. "I have to go now. I'll talk to you tomorrow," I tell her.

"But!" I hear her whine as I hang up the phone.

That will probably start a fight tomorrow at school, but honestly, I don't care.

The next morning, as expected, Amy meets me at my Jeep Wrangler with her hands on her hips, glaring at me. I debate whether I should get out of my Jeep or not when I see Speedy, Brody, and Damion approaching my vehicle. So, I decide to jump out and greet them. Amy won't start anything with me while they're around.

As we're walking to the school building, River walks in front of us and Damion shouts at her, "Hey water girl, where's my damn water?"

Her friend Sydney turns around and tells Damion to go fuck himself. I can't help but burst out laughing at my best friend and teammate.

"Only if you'll let me fuck your tight cunt with your tuba."

"I playing the electric keyboard, you imbecile." We all burst into laughter at the expense of our friends.

"Fuck off guys," Damion sulks.

"Are you really going to let a nerd talk to you like that?" Amy nags Damion on.

Of course, Damion is always trying to one-up Sydney. So, he quickly catches up to her as she walks away, lifts her up, and tosses her over his shoulders, dumping her into the trash.

"What the hell, man? I may be a jerk, but I'm not that bad," I punch Damion on the arm and rush over to where River is helping Sydney out of the trashcan. "Are you alright?" I ask Sydney as I assist her out of the mess.

"Yes, I'm fine," she says, "but I swear I'm going to kill your damn friend."

I can't help but laugh because Sydney and River are complete opposites.

"Hey, are you coming, Rock?" Amy yells at me impatiently, clearly annoyed that I'm talking to another girl.

"Yeah, I'm coming," I reply, then turn back to the girls in front of me. "Sorry about that, Sydney. Damion is a jerk, but if it's any consolation, I think he likes you."

Sydney laughs at me and then takes the water girls' hand and they leave. Damion slaps me on the back of the head and says, "You really told that girl that I like her?" I warn him, "Watch it, brother." We get through the day without any problems, but during practice, the coach is being tough on us. He yells, "You better pass that ball better than that! That's the third interception. If this was a real game, we would have lost." I respond, "Yes, coach!" Then I go to the sidelines and ask one of the water people to give me some water, and of course, it's her who brings it over. I yell at River, "Why do you always have to give me water? Can't one of the other water people do it? Do you think you'll get some kind of bonus for bringing me water?" She looks at me like I'm crazy and walks away. Damion asks, "What's wrong with you? Didn't you just yell at me for being mean to her friend?" I reply, "Yeah, well, her friend is normal."

"Well, Brody seems to think the water girl is normal," Damion says, arching his brows.

"Hell, if I know, but if he wants a try at the water girl, who are we to stop him... right?"

"I can't wait to move into her house and make her life an even bigger hell storm," I tell Damion as I'm running back out on the field. Practice lasts a couple more hours, and then we head into the locker room.

"So, Brody, how did your talk with the water girl go?" I ask him.

"She gave me a look like I was an alien while I talked."

Laughter bursts out of me. "I told you, brother, she's a freak."

"Well, you have your opinion, and I have mine. I will not give up so easily."

"Alright boys, go get yourself some sleep. We have a big game tomorrow." Coach yells at us.

🏈🏈🏈

It's Friday night game time, and we are in the locker room getting ready for our game. Coach is giving us his speech about how we need to go out there on that field and play our hearts out, but also, we need to have fun. Once he is done with his speech, we bow our heads in a word of prayer. It's something we have done since we started playing football.

"Dear Heavenly Father, we ask for your guidance and protection for our boys on the field tonight. Please show them the right plays and decisions to make in order to win this game. Help them to make good choices and control their temper. Guide them to be good sports, regardless of how the other team behaves. We trust in your name, Amen."

After our prayer, we all gather in a huddle, put our hands together, and count to three. Then we shout, "Win, fight, win! GO DOGS!"

When our names are called, we run onto the field and head to the sidelines. As captains, my two teammates and I meet the other team's captains in the middle of the field for the coin toss.

The other team, who are the guests, call tails and the coin lands on heads. We decide to defer the ball, as we want to have possession in the second half.

As the defense prepares to take the field, the water people go over to provide them with their first drink of water. I notice the water girl approaching one of the guys who doesn't treat her well, but she steps back and waits until she needs to give water again.

Feeling a bit arrogant, I walk past her and demand that she give me some water, even though I don't actually need it.

Reluctantly, the water girl, throws the bottle into my hands and allows me to take a drink.

"Come on, water girl, don't be like that. We're practically family," I say, displaying my insensitive behavior.

  "It will never happen," she retorts. However, this time, I refuse to let her response affect me. It's time for me to put on my game face and focus.

I make my way onto the field to present the play to the team. As soon as they hike the ball to me, I locate my target while standing in my pocket. With lightning speed, I release the ball. It hits my target perfectly, and off down the field, Speedy goes.

He manages to make it to the one-yard line. "That's how you do it, boys!"

We rush down to the one-yard line to get in position for a quarterback sneak. And yes, we successfully get it in... now it's up to the kicker to secure the extra point.

The game continues in a similar fashion for the rest of the first half. Once we reach the locker rooms for halftime, we pump ourselves up. "Alright, boys, let's go out there and finish what we started," the coach yells.

And that's exactly what we do. We sprint back onto the field and dominate the game.