Page 22 of Shane
“Calm your balls. It’s nothing bad. Some freshman on the baseball team, maybe the only half-decent player on the whole damn team, has mentioned her name in passing. He thinks she’s hot or some such shit.”
“You mean Lorenzo.”
“You know about him?”
“Yeah, I know him. He’s in my freshman seminar class, and so is she. He was all over her the first day of class and now the little fucker has inserted himself into our semester-long group project. It’s pissing me off because I won’t be able to make all the meet-ups for the project because of practice and I know he’s in there talking shit, getting into her head. ”
“Was he one of the ones talking shit at Decision Day?”
“No, he wasn’t there.”
“Too bad.”
“Are you gonna tell me exactly what he said about her or keep me in suspense?” I demand to know.
“You know how there’s always one girl that spins a few heads without even trying? Well, I guess that’s who she is for him. I think the way he described her was having big brains, a perfect ass, and major potential.”
“I knew it!” I seethe. “That motherfucker.”
“Hey, I thought it was a compliment.”
“There are so many other girls on this campus he could go after. Why is he fucking with her?”
“Uh, maybe for the same reasons she’s got your head spinning. Pass the shampoo.”
It suddenly hits me like a ton of bricks.
Am I an idiot?
Of course, other guys are plotting on Kennedy. They’ve probably even got contests going. Who can kiss her first. I’m the winner, by the way. Who can fuck her first. Just the thought makes me want to hurt somebody.
“Kennedy is off limits,” I blurt out loud enough for the room to hear.
“Who?” A teammate questions from another stall.
“Kennedy Bing,” I say loudly enough for the room. “She’s a freshman from Philly. She’s off limits.”
“The hot petite chick?”
“Yeah.”
“Since when?” someone scoffs.
“Since now.”
“Okay, Shane, she may be off limits to us, now that you’ve put it out there, but the baseball team ain’t got shit to do with any of our team rules. You know those dudes don’t have any honor. Half of them take steroids just so they can hit a ball with a bat while we’re out here waging war on the ice.”
“Who is she, Shane?” Bass asks from a few stalls down.
“She’s a friend of mine, which means she’s now a friend to the team,” I say with a ferocity that almost surprises me.
“Damn, okay.”
“Are you catching real feelings for this girl?” Neo asks lowly so the others don’t hear.
"I didn't say that," I respond defensively, aware that my strong reactions have probably given my burgeoning feelings completely away already.
"You didn't have to,” Neo chuckles before adding, "But if you ask me, you must stay focused on the task at hand. That’s why you’ll never see me going around falling in love and shit. There’s a lot of pressure on us to win this year, and I need you to stand strong with me. If we’re going to build a dynasty, we’re going to need everyone to give a hundred percent.”