The PreGame Ritual (Lynstone University Book 1) (5 page)

miles.

I really didn’t know it was possible for Ava to make herself even more attractive to me, but watching her go to work on the court had me ready to snatch her up during halftime. Of course I knew she was good, but seeing her play for real, in a real game, was damn near hypnotizing. She glided up and down the court with ease, literally making the other girls scared to guard her, too afraid that she would embarrass them with a crossover. And she was something like a pest on defense, causing the other team to turn the ball over left and right.

When she finally did get a break from game action during a timeout, I worked my hardest to send her some vibes so that she would look my way. She took a long sip from her water bottle, keeping her eyes locked in on her coach before she flashed them at me for a split second. I didn’t even get a chance to do something silly but I could see the hint of a smile in the corner of her lips now that she knew I was there.

They returned to game action and I couldn’t ignore the swell in my chest as I watched Ava go in for a lay-up, get fouled, and still make the shot.

“And one! Let’s go, Ava!”

Even though I was trying to be low-key, not wanting to distract other people from the game with my presence, I couldn’t help but be excited for her. When she got up, she received shoulder bumps and high fives from her teammates then she headed to the free throw line. She did her little ritual, taking a couple dribbles, before lifting the ball in a shooting position. She paused for a moment, pulled her elbow in, and then sank the shot with ease. Once it went in, she flashed her eyes at me again with a little smirk and I mouthed,
“I told you so.”

As soon as the game was over, I rushed down to the court, hoping to catch up with her. After sifting through the quickly forming crowd, I found her signing autographs and taking pictures with a group of little girl ballers. I knew exactly how this part of the game went and though I was usually one that liked to get off the court before the crowd even formed, she was making time for the ones that aspired to be just like her.

Fuckin’ perfect.

I waited in the background until the group eventually dwindled down.

“Yo, can I get an autograph or somethin’, superstar?”

She gave me a little laugh before she wiped the sweat from her face with the inside of her jersey, “I should be asking you the same thing.”

“Nah, todays about you, beautiful. You balled out, ma.” I was just sure her stat line looked all-star worthy.

“I did what I can; that’s all. Thanks for coming though.”

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world, Ava. But how about you go shower up and I’ll take you to grab a little celebratory bite to eat at the dining hall. My treat.” She laughed me off, unconsciously signing another autograph before leaning in to smile for a picture.

“Miles, the dining hall doesn’t exactly count as treating. I get those meals for free just like you.”

“Ain’t nothin’ wrong with being a little frugal. But I mean I guess if you’re tryna go five star, we could go to like...McDonald’s or somethin’.” She immediately swatted me on the shoulder, causing those around us to laugh though they weren’t exactly sure what was going on.

“Miles!”

“Alright, I’m messin’ with you. How about we go to that new Mexican joint? I heard its bomb.” Though Mexican food was known to give me a run for my money on the toilet, I was willing to take that risk for her.

“I’m cool with that. Give me ten minutes and I’ll be right out.” I gave her the nod to get her ass on and she jogged towards the locker room but not before stopping to give a few more autographs.

←&→

“I would let you have a sip of my margarita or somethin’ but... you’re too young,” Ava said teasingly, as she snacked on chips and salsa
.

She was making her lime and tequila flavored icee look hella good but I proudly took a long swig of my water before I replied, “Go ahead and tear up your liver if you want to, ma. I’m good on that.”

She sank back in the booth across from me, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Ohhh so now you’re gonna guilt trip me cause you can’t drink in public? Jealous much?” I wasn’t jealous by any means, but I couldn’t help picking up on her little note about our age difference. I wasn’t quite to the annoyed point with Ava thinking of me as her junior but I knew I had to make things clear sooner than later. Even though she was giving us a chance, she steadily dropped hints like that minor detail was still on her mind.

“Nah, you can do what you want. Just know all that
too young
shit will be coming to a stop real soon.”

She seemed amused as she challenged me with, “And how are you possibly gonna get that
too young
shit to stop? I mean, you’ll always be younger than me, Miles.” Though it was a fact that she’d always reign supreme age-wise, I could pretty much guarantee she hadn’t been with someone who knew how to take care of a woman in the bedroom like I did; age be damned.

“I can show you better than I can tell you, ma. But you’re not ready for all that just yet.” Since Ava and I were just beginning the ‘get to know each other’ stage, I really didn’t wanna subject her to that side of me just yet, no matter how tempting it was.

“
I’m
not ready? What do you mean
I’m
not ready?”

“Don’t make it even harder for me to keep my hands to myself by acting like you wanna go there. Let’s just play the game how it’s suppose to be played.” She observed me for a long time forcing me to ask, “What’s that look about, ma?”

“I guess I just never expected you to be such a... rule follower.”

“Trust me, I’m only going by protocol cause I wanna do right by you. If you were any other girl, we would’ve been there done that.” It wasn’t like I was out here boning chicks left and right, but it also didn’t take much for me to convince them that I deserved it.

She took a long sip of her margarita, licking the excess off her lips before she said, “Well, although I appreciate your politeness, sometimes it’s alright to just...go for it.”

ava.

I couldn’t believe what was happening but I knew it was real.

In no time at all, the bill was paid with our entrees in to-go boxes and we were dashing through the streets, trying to get to my apartment as soon as possible. Miles kept his hand on my leg the whole drive, using stoplights to tease me by skimming it up and down my thigh. Even that little gesture was enough to get me fired up, ready for whatever our night would turn into.

When we finally did make it to my apartment, Miles parked his car in the lot reserved for guests before we both hopped out and started running towards my apartment. He chased me all the way to the door with tickles and made me fumble my keys when he held me from behind and started kissing me on my neck.

“We’ll never make it in if you don’t quit.”

He didn’t stop his pursuit as he responded, “Hallway it is then.”

“Miles!”

“Alright, alright. Hurry up though, ma. My hands have a mind of their own,” he said, smacking my ass as I bent over to pick up my keys. I giggled, dropping them again on purpose. “Ava... quit playin’.”

“Anxious much?”

“Anxious is an understatement. Now open this damn door before I ram through it like a SWAT team.” I laughed him off, turning the lock over and opening the door. Since it was the weekend, I expected it to be empty. But low and behold, Avery was sitting right on the couch with the lamp on reading a magazine.

Buzz kill.

“Sissyyy, you didn’t tell me we were expecting company. I would’ve at least put a bra on. Or maybe not,” Avery said with a ridiculously high-pitched laugh. “Hey Miles.”

I was a little happy when he responded with an unenthusiastic, “Sup, Avery?”

All eyes were on me as they both waited for an explanation of what was going on. And what was I really supposed to say?

Miles is here to blow my back out. See ya!

“Miles was just coming by to... help me analyze my game film. Isn’t that right, Miles?” I could only hope he would go along with my lie.

“Nah, I was gonna analyze that...” I elbowed him before he could finish, “I mean, yeah. Yeah the film. Right.”

“Anything for the love of the game I suppose.” Avery went back to reading her magazine and I dragged Miles to my bedroom, shutting and locking the door behind us. The sexual energy I came into the house with was long gone so when he tried to reignite the flame by kissing me on my neck the way he did at the door, I pushed him away.

“What’s wrong, ma?”

“I can’t have sex with you with my sister sitting right there in the living room.” Though there was a hallway of distance and the door was locked, it still just didn’t feel right.

“Why not? You’re grown as hell. You think she doesn’t know you have sex?” He was speaking of it so simply but I knew things were a lot more complicated for me than they probably seemed to him. I plopped on the bed, hoping the cushiony feel would help me relax.

“Of course she knows, Miles. It’s just... I don’t really want her in my business like that.”

He made himself comfortable next to me before questioning, “In your business? Or in
our
business?” The fact that we even had business was plenty. To start sharing that business with someone like Avery was almost as bad as Cam knowing.

“Both. This is still very... new.”

“So what you’re saying is you don’t want your little sister to know we’re actually feelin’ each other? That I’m not actually here on a basketball call, but on a call to fuck you outta your mind like you claimed you wanted me to? I mean, you do realize she’ll find out eventually right?” I could hear a bit of angst in his voice so I had to reassure him that I was serious about what we were doing even though I still wasn’t all the way comfortable with it quite yet.

“Of course. Just... not right now, okay?”

He rose from the bed, heading straight for the door but not before tossing over his shoulder, “Whatever you say, ma.”

miles.

I was in a funk.

The whole shit with Ava was still weirding me out.

I was glad she was giving us a chance, but it seemed like we were doing a version with limited features. I could hang out with her, talk to her, even kiss her on occasion. But everything else was off-limits as if I had to upgrade my subscription.

After the time we almost had sex, it was as though she was tip-toeing around to ensure we wouldn’t get caught together. The problem was, we weren’t exactly doing anything wrong. I mean, I liked her. She liked me. We were both in college. What was the issue?

I was racking my brain on ways to normalize things when my phone vibrated against the coffee table. I quickly snatched it off to stop the annoying rumble and saw it was a FaceTime call from my big brother Bryson. He was in season just like me, but whenever he had free time, he made sure to get in touch.

“Little bro, what’s up man? You ready for the big day?” From his background, I could tell he was shopping at one of those private boutique-type stores that only exclusive celebrities could get into.

Ha, my brother’s a celebrity…

“What big day?” I knew nobody was getting married anytime soon, so I had no idea what he was talking about.

“What do you mean, what big day? The big game, foo!” The game was something I tried not to think about too much. Well, it wasn’t that I tried not to think about it, but my mind just seemed so occupied trying to keep up with Ava.

“Oh yeah. Yeah, I’m ready,” I replied, but apparently not convincingly enough.

He popped a squat on one of those plush, fancy ottomans so that he could take a good look at me. “Something wrong with you?”

I shrugged. “Nah, I’m straight.”

“Bro, don’t tell a story. I know you and you look…I don’t know;
down
.” Ever since our mom had passed away, Bryson had pretty much taken on that parental role while our father dealt with his heartbreak. He had watch me grow up from a different perspective and could often depict my emotions before I even had them figured out.
              “I’m good, Bryson. For real.”

“Is it a girl?” He asked it jokingly.

“No.”
              Again, I wasn’t convincing enough. “Yes it is. I can tell by the way you said it. What’s her name, Miles? Is she fine?” He was settling in for story time, so I knew I had to tell him the truth.

“Her name is Ava and she’s finer than fine, man. She’s a hooper too.” Those two traits alone made her the closest thing to perfect.

“A hooper? Wait a minute, you’re talking about Ava that plays for Lynstone? Red hair, big titties?” His excitement caught me off guard. Actually, the fact that he even knew who I was talking about caught me off guard. But I also knew Ava had made a name for herself in the college hoops scene. He had probably caught some highlights of her on ESPN.

“Aye, chill man. That’s my girl you’re talking about.” Though we weren’t exactly official, it still felt like she was mine already.

“My bad, my bad. She’s like my age though. How’d you pull that?” He had no idea how hard it had been to convince her to take a chance on us. He didn’t need to know either.

“What can I say? I got the juice.”
              He had the proudest look on his face as he said, “Ahh look at you, man. I mean, you’ve always had an old soul, but now you’re really growing up. She’s a good look for sure.” In my opinion, she was far more than a good look.

She was it.

“Yeah, I know. She’s just been buggin’ a little bit about our age difference.”

“Oh yeah? Not use to dating somebody younger than her, huh?” I shook my head yes. “Well, you’re just gonna have to show her how old you really are. Feel me?” He didn’t have to go into details for me to catch his drift.

“Just waiting for the opportunity, bro.” If it was up to me, she would’ve found out the day we ran into Avery. Now that she was taking her sweet little time with everything, I wasn’t sure when next time would actually present itself.

“Don’t wait for the opportunity, make the opportunity. If she wants you like you think she does, she’ll definitely be down.”