Mason Maloney

"Why is everyone being so weird?" I asked Ross as the two of us walked down the hallway.

I had noticed as soon as we walked in the school that students were being uncharacteristically excited and jumpy. Ross and I weren't the only ones left out of the buzz as other students looked just as confused as we did.

"I have no idea," Ross responded as we passed a group of cheerleaders who were all looking at a picture on one girl's phone.

Bella and Pete were already at my locker when Ross and I arrived. When Bella saw us, she smiled widely and motioned for us to come closer.

"Did you see what the football team did?" she asked excitedly.

I groaned and threw my head back. "What did they do?"

Bella practically shoved her phone in my face, forcing me to look at a picture. I took the phone from her hand and held it the appropriate distance from my face so I could get a good look.

The picture was taken of the Knight statue in front of Sam's school. The Knight usually stood proud for the school with its armor and confident stance. The statue in the picture was covered head to toe in red Warriors gear. The football team had somehow gotten our school apparel on the statue. It wore a Warrior's football shirt, along with a zip-up sweatshirt, and our red and black school sweatpants. The statue was topped off with a Warrior's winter hat and a sign that said, "Go Warriors," was stuck onto the plaque at the base of the statue.

I handed Bella back her phone, shaking my head. "At least they didn't damage anything."

"So they started the prank war," Ross said. "Great."

"Come on, dude," Pete started. "Admit it, it's a little funny."

Bella nodded in agreement. "And it's completely harmless. No harm in a little fun, right?"

Ross and I gave each other knowing looks before turning back to Bella. I was just glad Nathan and the team hadn't done anything completely stupid and risk a just as stupid retaliation. The pranks had gotten out of hand before and I hoped that both teams had learned from that and would keep the pranks harmless this time around.

"Well, I guess we can expect something from the Knights by the end of the week," Ross said, leaning against the locker next to mine. I nodded with a slight laugh.

"You guys aren't even a little bit excited?" Bella asked in a disappointed tone. "This is basically what this school lives for! Get hyped!"

I shook my head at her to which she scoffed and turned her attention back to Pete, talking animatedly about how excited she was for the rivalry Thanksgiving game.

***

"She's a killer queen–" Sam's phone sang as he played his Spotify playlist that he had made a while back.

The two of us were cleaning up the bakery, getting ready to close. We had decided that we would switch off every day with each other's playlist while we closed up. Tonight, Sam played his music which consisted of a lot of Queen to which he sang terribly off-key to.

"I never noticed that I know so many Queen songs," I commented as "Killer Queen" ended and "Under Pressure" began.

"Of course you do, they're iconic," Sam replied, not looking up from the floor where he was sweeping.

"Have you seen the new Freddie Mercury movie?" I asked, putting a chair up on a table.

Sam shook his head. "No, not yet."

"Maybe we could go this weekend," I suggested, causing Sam to look up at me.

"Are you asking me out on a date?" he asked with a smirk.

I just playfully rolled my eyes. "Sure."

Sam looked as if he was pondering on my suggestion for a moment before he spoke up again.

"What if we see people we know?" he asked thoughtfully.

"We'll just have to go a bit out of town," I said with a shrug.

"Will you take me to dinner too?" Sam asked, a playful smile on his face.

"Oh my God, just say yes," I complained, moving onto the next table and smacking my rag down to wipe it.

"Fine, pushy," Sam said before returning to sweeping the floor.

We worked in a comfortable silence for a few moments, a song I didn't know playing from Sam's phone. Sam walked up behind me when he finished sweeping, causing me to jump slightly.

"Way to give me a heart attack," I said, clutching my chest with my hand.

"Stop being dramatic," he said with an eye roll. "Come over tomorrow after school."

"You're bad at asking me out," I pointed out, leaning back against the table.

Sam stood directly in front of me, towering over me as I sat on the table top. He smirked down at me and looked as if he was going to say something before I grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him down to catch his lips with mine. Sam smiled into the kiss and eagerly responded before pulling away, a smirk prevalent on his face.

"I guess I don't need to ask since you can't resist me," he teased, placing his hand on my cheek and twirling his finger in my hair.

"It's your fault that you're hot," I muttered, hopping down from the table.

"Actually it's not," Sam laughed. "You can blame my parents for that."

"I don't even know your parents," I argued, walking over to the counter to wipe it down. "So I guess that means I have to blame you."

"That sounds a little unfair," Sam replied, walking by me to put the broom back in the kitchen.

I shrugged and smirked at him when he walked back out of the kitchen, coming to stand beside me as I finished wiping down the counter.

"Do you need a ride home?" Sam asked, nudging my arm.

I looked out the window at the front of the store just as Nathan pulled into the parking lot. I put a few feet of distance between Sam and me, noticing just how close we were standing, when Nathan parked the car right up front.

"I don't think Nathan will ever forget about me here again," I said with a sigh, tossing the rag into the kitchen before making my way to the door with Sam following closely behind me.

"That's a good thing I guess," Sam replied blandly as I opened the bakery door. I held the door for him and locked it after he walked through.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow," I said, looking toward Nathan's scrutinizing stare.

Sam looked toward him with an unreadable expression before nodding and making his way toward his car at the other end of the parking lot. I watched as he walked away for a few moments before sliding into the passenger seat of mine and Nathan's shared car.

"You would tell me if he ever did anything to you, right?" Nathan asked as I buckled my seat belt, looking off toward Sam as he got in his car.

No, I wouldn't.

I rolled my eyes. "He won't do anything to me."

"I just don't trust him with the rivalry game coming up," Nathan said as he pulled out of the parking lot.

"You don't need to, I trust him," I admitted, looking at Nathan pointedly.

Nathan raised his eyebrows and looked at me briefly before turning his attention back to the road.

"We work together almost every day," I explained. "And he is nothing but nice to me so you need to just get over it."

I looked out the window and rested my head on it. The cold glass on my skin shocked me, but I didn't pull away.

"Whatever," Nathan mumbled. "Did you bring home any sweets?"

I turned to face him and gave him a look of disbelief. "No."

Nathan groaned. "I'm craving a chocolate chip muffin."

"Stop at Dunkin," I suggested.

"No, because I have to pay for it there," Nathan explained, continuing to drive toward our house.

I shook my head but didn't respond. Soon enough, we were home and greeted by our parents as we walked in the door.

"How was work?" Mom asked as she leaned into Dad's side on the couch, the two of them watching a movie.

"Fine," I said as Nathan walked by me to go into the kitchen.

"Glad to see Nathan picked you up," Dad commented, not taking his eyes off the screen.

I didn't respond, not wanting to get into it with my father while he seemed to be in a sour mood. Instead of saying anything to my parents, I walked by them and headed to my bedroom.

***

"Hey, do you want to go for a run?" Ross asked as he caught up to me in the hallway.

"Can't, I have to help Charlene with something at the bakery," I lied, continuing to walk toward the exit.

"What about tomorrow?" he asked.

"Have to work," I told him with an apologetic look.

Ross sighed and looked as if he wanted to say something, but stayed quiet. I motioned for him to go on and he let out another sigh.

"Do you not want to run with me anymore?" he asked. "Because I cancelled on you last time?"

No matter how many times I told Ross that what happened that night wasn't his fault, he would never stop feeling guilty for it. Never once had I blamed him for it, yet he constantly beat himself up about it.

"No," I answered instantly. "We can go some time this weekend."

Ross nodded, pressing his lips together tightly.

The two of us parted ways when Ross got to his car. I walked toward the back of the parking lot, away from everyone, and continued walking toward the street toward Sam's house, knowing he would pick me up on the way. I was only walking for a few minutes when he pulled up beside me and blared the horn with an annoyed look on his face. I smirked and slid into the passenger seat.

"I told you to wait for me at the school," Sam said sternly, pulling away from the curb.

"And I told you that was a stupid plan," I countered, looking toward him with my eyebrows raised.

"How is that a stupid plan?" he asked forcefully, sounding more annoyed.

"You think people wouldn't notice Sam Knight driving onto our campus?" I asked.

"Who cares?" Sam asked, nearly yelling. "It's better than you getting fucking jumped on the sidewalk." Sam shook his head, his jaw clenched tight.

I rolled my eyes and looked out the window. "First of all, that won't happen during the day and second, it was your team that did that."

Sam glared at me out of the corner of his eyes before his gaze softened.

"You're right," he said with a sigh.

"I know," I replied snidely.

Sam reached out and rested his right hand on my knee, rubbing his thumb over my jeans. I turned my head to hide my smile as I looked out the window at the passing trees.

Soon enough, we arrived at Sam's house. He led me inside and motioned for me to sit beside him on the couch. As soon as I sat down, Sam pushed me down so I was lying on the couch with him hovering over me. He smirked down at me while his necklace dangled in front of my face. I grabbed it and tugged, pulling his head down to meet mine. Sam wasted no time plunging into the kiss at a rough pace.

Sam brought his hand to cup my face as his lips continued to assault mine. Our tongues met as we both deepened the kiss. Sam pulled away slightly, his teeth tugging on my bottom lip. He looked at me briefly before bringing his lips back down onto mine. Our kiss grew more heated and sloppier by the minutes. Sam grazed his teeth on my bottom lip before biting down harder, causing me to pull away.

"Sam," I moaned. "Don't be so fucking rough."

Sam chuckled and kissed my cheek. "You like it."

I smirked up at him in agreement and put my hand on the back of his head, pulling him back down to me.

"You guys might want to cut that out," Jonah said, appearing suddenly and startling the both of us.

Sam jerked away from me, but still hovered over me with his necklace dangling in front of my face as he looked over at his brother.

"Your friends just pulled up," Jonah warned him with his eyebrows raised.

That caused Sam to stand up, pulling me by the arm into a sitting position. He threw his fingers through his hair, fixing what my fingers had done to it. A few moments later there was a knock on the door and Sam sighed, looking down at me, before going to answer the door.

I rested my head on the back of the couch and looked up at the ceiling, letting out a sigh. Jonah didn't say another word as he left the room, heading upstairs. Loud voices filled the house as Sam opened the door for his friends. They all seemed to be talking over each other and I couldn't decipher exactly what it was they were saying.

Sam, Christo, Jake, and Owen walked into the living room talking animatedly. As soon as Jake's eyes landed on me, his gaze hardened and he motioned for everyone to stop talking.

"Did you hear any of that?" Jake asked sternly, taking a step toward me.

I rolled my eyes. "No."

He still stared at me as if he didn't believe I was telling him the truth. His eyes narrowed as he tried to decide if I was lying or not.

"Lay off, Jake," Sam said, shoving his shoulder and walking toward the couch to sit beside me.

"What's he even doing here?" Owen asked as if I wasn't in the room.

"I'm right here," I said in annoyance as Christo came to sit on my other side.

"What's up?" Christo asked happily, punching me lightly on the shoulder.

Sam shrugged. "We were just hanging out."

He picked up the remote and turned on the TV, flipping through the channels. Jake and Owen each took a seat on the two-seat couch, staring over at me as they sat down. I stared back at them with a matching glare. I wasn't going to let them try and scare me out of here. They were the ones intruding on my time with my boyfriend, even if they didn't know it.

Sam settled on a sports channel to appease his friends and Jake and Owen turned their stares to the TV. I knew I must have looked like I wanted to die of boredom. My jaw was set tightly in annoyance and I tried to look anywhere but the TV. I was beginning to think that every moment I would get with Sam was going to be ruined.

After about half an hour, the front door open and footsteps pattered down the hall to the living room quickly. Lila came barreling into the living room and her face brightened when she saw me as she flung herself onto my lap.

"Hi, Mason!" she exclaimed, throwing her tiny arms around my neck in a hug.

"Hi, Lila," I chuckled, returning the hug.

Mae walked in and gave Lila a stern look. "Lila, give Mason personal space."

She immediately listened to her mother by throwing herself onto Sam, who let out a groan at the impact.

"Hi, Uncle Sammy," she said with a toothy grin.

"Hi, Lila," he replied, patting her on the head.

"I can't believe you didn't even say hi to me," Christo said to her, feigning offense.

While Lila went over to greet Christo, I stole a glance at Jake who was now eyeing me suspiciously. He looked between Sam and me with his eyes narrowed before looking back at the TV. Eventually, Mae took Lila out of the living room and Jake was quick to speak his mind.

"Just how often is he here?" Jake asked Sam angrily, pointing a finger at me.

Sam raised his eyebrows. "I don't see how or why that matters."

"You know why," Jake nearly growled.

"Jake, chill," Christo said, trying to defuse the situation. "It doesn't matter."

"Shut up, Christo," Jake spat. Sam looked as if he was going to say something, but I cut him off.

"Jake, listen," I started. "I don't know what your problem is with me, but it got old really fast so if you have something to say then just say it."

The four boys all looked stunned at my words, but Jake was quick to recover from his shock and sent me an angry glare.

"I don't trust you," Jake admitted in an icy, almost frightening tone. "You and Sam getting close is the last thing our team needs."

"Our friendship has nothing–"

"It does though," Jake cut me off in a significantly more casual tone. "Your friendship has everything to do with the team."

"Jake, shut up," Sam warned.

Jake nodded and pinched his lips tightly together.

"I trust you not to be stupid Sam," Jake said with his eyebrows raised.

"Great thanks, stop talking now," Sam responded with a glare, turning up the volume on the TV.

My glare didn't soften as I watch Jake turn his stare to the TV. I thought that the only thing I would have to worry about regarding my relationship to Sam would be telling Nathan about it when the season was over. But it seemed as though Jake's hatred for me was rooted as deep as Nathan's for Sam.

And I didn't know how we would get past that.

**

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