Will

Weeks have passed since Thea's birthday and they have been some of my happiest times. I would've loved to formally ask Thea to be my girlfriend in a big and extravagant way but she's not the type to like big fancy things.

Instead, I asked her one day while we were painting pumpkins for Halloween. I'm a shitty painter but we were having a little pumpkin painting date and at the end when we both revealed what we were working on, I showed her a "Will you be my girlfriend?" with other girly things she liked.

When she saw what I had done, she gasped and threw her arms around me and gave me a soft kiss on the lips before saying yes.

My girl brings me so much joy, just the sight of her makes my day.

Being a student athlete, I've been so wrapped up in basketball and focusing on keeping my grades up that I've lost out on all the extra fun stuff I should be allowed to experience. I hate to say it, but Alana was right.

It's been a little tough maintaining everything with fall and winter training but sometimes I'll come home to Thea doing homework in my bed or making dinner for us if we have a late practice and it's all worth it.

She is so incredibly caring and thoughtful I constantly wonder why Zach wanted to fuck things up between them. At the same time, I'm happy she ended up here with me.

Since Thea and I have made ourselves very publicly known that we're together, Ashley has thankfully stopped bothering me and things have been good.

I've learned to set boundaries in my own head. When I'm training and practicing, I only focus on that. However, when I'm with Thea I do my best to focus all my attention on her.

I use to struggle with giving myself some relaxing time away from basketball. I couldn't help obsessing over my stats, improving my workouts and thinking about the next steps. It's the only way for me to become independent from my shit Father who only talks to me about the company.

I talk to him maybe once every few months and it's the same shit over and over again.

Basketball is a waste of time, I should be grateful to be born into a family who owns a great business, and any other bullshit that he says to guilt trip me into a different career.

I'm counting the days and I only have 2 more full seasons left before getting invited into the combine. Apart of me knows that I'll be fine and that everything will work out but I still need to keep this drive and work hard. I won't have anyone to blame but myself if i fail.

"Snap out of it Jameson. You're up!" I hear coach yell from the other side of the court

We're in the midst of doing drills, some of them are what I've been doing my entire life and I'm familiar with the way my hands mold to the ball.

Quinn stands in front of me with 2 basketballs in his hands, waiting for me to step up in this ball handling drill.

He tosses them back and forth to me while I get myself into the motion of dribbling them back and forth, replicating what it would be like for someone on my team to pass me a ball from either side of me on the court.

Sweat drips down my face and I begin to lose my breath as we move quicker.

"Let's go Jameo, quick hands or what?" Quinn taunts me

I do my best to maintain my breathing as we continue and as soon as Coach blows the whistle, I immediately stop to catch my breath.

"Nice job, Jameson. Your left hand has gotten more fluid and faster, continue with your training and you'll be quicker this season." Coach says while tapping me on the shoulder

Pride fills my chest. We were so close to getting to championships last year but lost against to one of the midwest schools. I've been dying to win since we lost freshmen year and nothing is going to stop us this season.

I need a win on my belt before I graduate.

When practice ends, we all wash up in the showers and head back to our respective homes.

Today was an evening practice and we're all starving. I'm not sure if Thea will be at my place today, she mentioned that she had a group project meeting on campus during the middle of our practice so I'm not sure how long she'll be there for and if she'll prefer to go back to her own place. I don't like pressuring her to come to my place if she's too busy herself.

My thoughts are answered when Devon, Quinn and I walk in and smell stir fry wafting throughout the house. I almost groan out loud at the smells of garlic and pepper that permeates the air and I cannot wait to steal some of her food.

"You lucky bastard. Pretty girl and good food to come home to." Devon says shoving me to the side while making his way to the kitchen

I smirk in return even though he can't see it, knowing damn well that he's right.

Inside the kitchen, Thea and Danielle are both standing over a computer and laughing at some video that's playing while Maddox is grabbing plates and utensils.

By the looks of it, Thea must've made enough for the whole house. If anyone is cooking in the house it's usually her or Maddox but stir fry is one of Thea's specialties.

Thea and Danielle's backs are to us and they're too busy giggling on whatever's on the screen to hear us approach. At the last minute, I creep up to them and tap both of their backs at the same time I yell "boo!"

They both flinch at my unexpected scare and Danielle screeches, caught completely off guard.

"Asshole!"

"What the hell, Will?"

They both yell at the same time then smack me.

The guys burst into laughter at their responses. These 2 are so easy to scare and no matter how many times we unexpectedly get them, they both scream or jump.

One time Danielle punched Quinn in the face when she was walking into the house and he was hiding behind the door. He complained for a whole week. Can't say he didn't deserve it but its amusing that no matter how many times we do it, they never get use to it.

"Sorry Chan, I couldn't resist." I say, hoping that my cheeky smile lets me get away with it

She stands on her tippy toes and gives me an affectionate pat on the cheek, slightly harder than what is normal.

"You're lucky I'm not the type to knee you in the nuts the way Dannie punched Quinn." She responds through a clenched smile

"You would never harm the family jewels."

"Sure, babe. You keep telling yourself that."

I scoop her into my arms giving her a bear hug that she loves and kiss the top of her head.

"Thanks for cooking again, Chan. You're my favorite chef."

She tilts her head up to look at me, eyes warming up and my heart clenches at the look in her eyes. Is this what it feels like to be falling in love with someone?

Of course, our moment is ruined when Quinn cuts in.

"I'm gonna throw up. Can you guys get a room?"

"You're just jealous, Michaels." Thea sing songs

Quinn rolls his eyes and strolls into the dining room to help Maddox set up the table.

We all gather into our seats, Quinn and Devon giving Thea a squeeze in thanks for making food for all of them. She's so kind that when she cooks meals for us, she ensures that they're healthy for our diet restrictions.

It's why we've never let her pay for groceries or do any cleaning afterwards even though she tries to argue with us about it.

"What about me? I helped her chop up the veggies. Wheres my hug at?" Maddox asks batting his eyelashes

"We can't do that in front of Danielle, she'll get jealous." Dev ribs back

"You can even give him a kiss if you'd like, I wouldn't be jealous." She says while wagging her eyebrows

The three guys look at each other with distaste.

"No thanks, he doesn't deserve my lips." Quinn says and we all bust into laughter

Moments like these make me wonder if all of us will have dinners like these in the future very often. If we all get drafted, there's no telling that we'll all be in the same state let alone the same coast.

I do my best to sit back and enjoy every moment of this while the guys and girls bicker back and forth.

xxx

Hello friends! Sorry for such a late update, as always, I've been busy. I really enjoyed writing this chapter because whenever I'm with my friends I always feel this same level of peace that Will felt. Please leave your thoughts and don't forget to upvote if you enjoyed. Have a wonderful rest of your week