Griffin's POV
I wake up before my alarm goes off. The events of last night come rushing back. My mind first goes to Graham's warm kisses and touches, his arms around me. He was so kind and understanding when I told him about Ryan and my fear of disappointing my parents. I then made a mess of everything by asking about Jeremy. My worse fear had come to light. Graham was still in love with his ex-boyfriend.
There are so many questions running through my head. Why did Graham want to be my boyfriend if he still loved Jeremy? Why did he kiss me and touch me? Why did he get my hopes up that we would be more than friends? I didn't have time to think about all of this right now. I have class, homework and a big project in my music class to worry about.
I get ready quickly pulling on a pair of jeans and a hooded sweatshirt. I don't care how I look today. I usually take my time getting ready. This morning my main priority is to get out of the room before Graham wakes. I'm not ready to have the conversation that I know is inevitable. As I leave the room, I glance quickly at a sleeping Graham. He is lying on his stomach. His sheet and bedspread are bunched at the end of the bed leaving his body uncovered. He's only wearing a pair of blue boxer briefs that have shifted down exposing the upper half of his golden hairless butt.
I want to go over and give him a trail of kisses over his beautiful naked butt. I don't. Instead, I open the door and leave the room. As I quietly shut the door, the door across the hall opens and Carson, our neighbor emerges.
Carson is a nice guy. Graham and I have hung out with him and his roommate, Ben, a few times. He's my height, but a little bigger. He was a wrestler in high school, but wasn't good enough to receive a scholarship. He's hoping to win a walk on position on the college wrestling team when the season starts. I can tell he's headed to the gym because he's wearing a pair of nylon shorts, t-shirt and running shoes. He's not really my type, but I can't help checking him out as he locks his door.
He turns and sees me standing there. He gives me a big smile, his blue eyes twinkling.
"Hey, Griffin, you headed to class this early?"
I smile back at him a little embarrassed that he caught me checking him out. He doesn't seem to mind.
"Yeah. I don't know why I signed up for a 8am class."
He laughs.
"I hear ya. Mornings are the only time I can get to the gym. You wanna walk with me?"
I nod and we head to the elevator.
"How are things? Do you like your classes?"
I shrug. "They're okay. I'm just ready to get done with all my requirements so I can focus on my major."
"What's your major?"
"English Education. How about you?"
"Oh, cool, a teacher. I'm thinking sports medicine. I wanna be a trainer for a professional sports team. It's not realistic, but I can't think of anything else I wanna do."
"That sounds awesome, " I say. "You can get your friends free tickets to whichever team you work for."
"Totally," he says.
We step into the elevator. He pushes the 1st floor button.
On the way down we don't say anything to each other. When the elevator stops at our floor, we step off.
"Hey, dude, I have to go this way." He points to the left. "Which way are you going?"
I point in the opposite direction.
"Kay, I guess I'll see you around," he says.
"Sure. See you." I head off to class.
Suddenly, a hand is on my shoulder. I turn around. Carson is in front of me. He looks a little nervous.
"Um...I'm going to check out the movie that's playing in the student union tonight. Do you wanna come with me?"
I hesitate for a minute. Is he asking me out on a date? Probably not. He's a jock. He's just being friendly.
I smile at him and say, "Sure. Sounds fun."
"Righteous, " he says. "The movie starts at 7. I'll come by at 6:30. Is that okay?"
"Sounds great. See you then."
He turns and walks away.
I can't help but watch him as he strides out the door.
Graham's POV
I wake up in the morning and Griffin is gone. I'm not surprised. I know that he has an early class on Thursdays. In the back of my mind, I was hoping he would blow if off so that we could have a talk about what happened last night.
I can't believe I was such an idiot. I want to rewind time and do everything right. I want to tell him that, yes, I love Jeremy, as a friend, but I'm not in love with Jeremy. Yes, I was sad we broke up, but I'm not anymore.
I get out bed and head to the shower. As I'm entering my room, back from the shower, I see Carson walking towards me. He's a cool guy.
I decide to stop and be friendly. Besides Griffin, I haven't made too many friends and Carson seems like a good prospect.
"Hey, Carson. What's going on?"
He stops in front of his door. "Not much, dude. Just coming back from the gym."
"Good for you, man. I wish I had time to hit up the gym." I'm putting on my best macho guy persona. I don't know why, but I feel like Carson will be more open to me if I engage in some "jock talk" with him.
"Hell ya. You should join me sometime."