Chap. 7

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Sarah Campbell

"Why do you look like your favorite goldfish just got flushed down the toilet?" Joel asked me, leaning against the elliptical.

"Fucking Adam Watson," I answered, a bit breathlessly.

I hate working out. With a burning passion. But in order to avoid the Freshman Fifteen I hear so much about, I'd decided to start hitting the gym periodically with Joel.

"I hope you're not fucking Adam Watson."

I shot him a glare, which caused him to crack up as he walked away, onto his next workout adventure.

Joel was a sadist in the gym, torturing himself twice a day.

I felt rewarded just for showing up.

After completing a solid thirty minutes of cardio, I stepped down off of the elliptical, wiping my face as I went to shower off.

I knew that Joel wasn't going to be close to done, so I'd agreed to meet him later today for brunch or an early lunch, depending on what time he finished.

For now I had a situation to take care of.

I went back to my dorm and showered off before heading over to Adam's dorm, information that was included in his packet.

I'm not sure that he's aware of that. But he's in for quite the shock.

I flashed my peer mentor badge as I walked in, since technically I wasn't allowed access inside the boys' dormitories, especially the athletes.

After double-checking my status, they personally lead me upstairs to Adam's dorm, I guess to be sure I wasn't here to secretly meet up with another athlete.

I knocked twice, leaning against the wall outside.

No answer.

I knocked again, unwilling to leave until I talked to someone.

After a few minutes, a disgruntled African-American male came to the door, shooting me a glare. "Who the fuck are you and why are you knocking on my door? Do you realize that it's 9:30 and I already had conditioning this morning? Fuck off."

"The name's Sarah. I'm looking for Adam?"

He gave me a onceover, his glare softening a bit. "Sarah as in Adam's Sarah?"

"Never say that again."

He opened the door a little wider, indicating for me to come in. "He's asleep. He'll be pissed if you wake him up, but that's your business."

I let myself inside, my eyes glancing over Adam's dorm.

The lights were off, but the curtains were pulled back a bit, letting in some natural light, but not too much to where it looked like daytime.

I was surprised at how well-kept it was. There was a wet towel on the floor over by Adam's bed, where he was past out as his roommate informed me, but other than that it was neat and tidy, clothes hanging where they should be and the dresser drawers closed. There were papers scattered across his desk, but that was to be expected.

I was impressed. Hell, it was better kept than my own dorm.

He had a glass of mostly-drank orange juice resting on top of his mini-refrigerator, which I almost accidentally knocked over as I went to snatch a pillow to hit him with.

Luckily I caught it just in time, some of the contents spilling out onto my hand.

My nose wrinkled in disgust as I placed the glass back down, going to rinse my hand off in the sink.

But the stench of alcohol caught my attention first.

I turned to look at Terrence who was sitting criss-cross on his bed, a lamp on as he read.

He didn't seem to have any alcohol around him.

I glanced around me, not noticing any open bottles or empty cans.

And then I glanced down at the orange juice on my hand, slowly raising it and taking a whiff. It reeked of liquor.

"Jesus," I muttered, rinsing off my hand in their sink as I tried to understand what was happening.

"Did you touch his sweaty clothes and need to disinfect?" his roommate asked, with an amused smile.

"More like spill liquor-infused orange juice on me."

His roommate fell silent, the amusement dying from his eyes.

"No wonder he's knocked out cold."

"Is there a reason you're here this morning?" he asked me, quietly.

"Because he's cancelled on me twice, and I'm not putting up with his petty bullshit any longer."

"If you can get him out of bed, be my guest."

I have six older brothers, getting Adam Watson out of bed is the least of my worries.

As predicted, a simple heave out of bed was good enough to do the trick. I watched as Adam face-planted into the floor, waking up to obscenities as he rolled over, the bottom half of his body still up on the bed.

I'll admit to being strong, but I'm afraid I wasn't able to shove the entire body of the starting Quarterback out of bed.

"Terrence, what the actual fuck?" Adam groaned.

"Wasn't me bro. Good to know it works though."

He shielded his eyes in his dimmed room, glancing up at me. "Campbell?"

"Glad you at least remember my last name."

He let out another long groan, pulling his feet down from his bed and laying out on the ground. "Fucking Sarah Campbell, I should've known. The hell are you doing in my dorm?"

"Coming to find you. You missed our meeting this morning."

"I was clear that I couldn't make it."

"Because you had to drink yourself to sleep?"

"If you'll excuse me?" Adam's roommate, who was apparently named Terrence, asked. He stood up, grabbing his book.

"Leaving the situation before it gets too awkward for you?" Adam challenged.

"Already crossed that bridge. Leaving before I say something I might regret." And with that he let the door close behind him.

Adam closed his eyes, pulling his arm across his face. "Why are you such a persistent bitch?"

"Because I enjoy my job, unless I'm dealing with entitled assholes like you."

He just hummed in response, clearly tuned out of the conversation he'd started.

"We're going to have this meeting, even if we're doing it in your dorm."

"We met. Hello," he muttered, quietly. "I'm alive and well. Leave."

"You drank yourself to sleep at 9 AM. Clearly we have things to do talk about."

"Unless you're a licensed therapist and/or a cop, I don't think that we do."

"So I can add that to your profile then?"

He paused, his arm sliding off his face to glance at me. "My what?"

"The reports I turn in each week about our meetings."

"What reports?"

"Do you think I hunted you down out of the kindness of my heart Adam? I have status reports I have to fill out. And this? This seems like something I should note."

Now I had his attention, and definitely not in a good way.

He slowly sat up, and it was evident that something was clearly wrong. He didn't look like the Adam Watson I'd met with over a week ago. He had stress lines across his face, bags underneath his eyes. He looked paler, sicker.

"Write this in your report, and you will end my career."

"And if I don't? I'll end mine."

"As what exactly? A fucking mentor that's supposed to help me with my grades and basically babysit me?" Adam shot at me, rising up to his feet. "As opposed to mine? A Division One Quarterback with NFL prospects? That's a hug fucking difference."

He began to pace the floor, his breathing heavy and shoulders tensed.

"Sarah, you can't tell anyone about this."

His reaction was unsuited to the situation. It was just a little alcohol, everybody drank some. And writing it in my report wasn't going to end his career.

But for some reason it seemed like more to him. And if I was going to build any trust between us, it had to start here.

"Okay," I agreed, causing him to whip around to face me.

"What?"

"Okay. I won't mention this little episode in my status report."

"Fine."

"But you can't keep cancelling our meetings."

"I wasn't...."

And for just a moment I thought he was going to open up to me.

"Sounds like a deal," he finished, glancing away from me.

I let out a defeated sigh. "Sunday afternoon, 3 PM. I'll meet you at the Starbucks."

"Okay."

I wanted to know more about him for reasons I couldn't explain. But I couldn't do so until he was willing to open up for me, and for Adam that didn't look like it was happening any time soon.

Which meant I was going to have to start taking some unique approaches.

~*~

"I'm starving," I groaned, leaning against the wall that was next to the booth.

"That workout this morning rough for you?" Joel teased, as he squeezed his lemon into his water.

"Shut up."

He was freshly showered for once and dressed in something other than workout clothes, which all that it seems I've seen him in lately.

"I have the worst headache today," Joel stated, as he flipped through the menu. "I took some Aleve back at my dorm, but it doesn't seem to be helping much."

"What'd you eat for breakfast?"

"Protein shake."

"Maybe your sadist workout is causing your body to tell you that it needs food."

"Fuck off," Joel said, with a laugh. "But yeah, probably."

Our waitress came back, and I ordered the double pancake special, complete with eggs and bacon.

I earned that.

"Veggie delite egg white omelet."

Joel was always ridiculously healthy. He'd use wrestling as an excuse, which was the only reason he was getting away with two-a-day workouts right now, but he was driven to be that way.

He was always chubbier growing up, which was what got him started in wrestling in the first place. And when he started having success, he started working harder at it, which eventually led him to where he is now.

"So how did things go with Adam?" Joel asked me.

"How did you know I was doing anything about it?"

"Because I know you."

I couldn't help but laugh. "I took care of it."

"As I knew you would. You can bully anyone into anything."

"Hey! Watch it."

"It's true. You've got a mind of your own and you aren't afraid to speak it. Not a bad thing, but not always good either."

"Alright Fortune Cookie Campbell."

He chuckled, sipping on his lemon water.

"So when's the first meet of the season?" I asked Joel, propping my elbow on the table and resting my chin inside of my palm.

"Just a few more weeks. Hopefully I'm competitive."

"Shut up, of course you are."

He chuckled, just offering up a shrug. "Always have to keep on top of my game. Coming back from a State Championship has expectations."

I didn't like hearing that from him.

"You just have to do your personal best. You don't have to be who anyone expects you to be."

"Who's the fortune cookie now?" he teased.

I just rolled my eyes in response.

"I know that, it's basically written on every cheesy poster that you can pick up for your four-year old kid's bedroom."

I reached across the table and gave his shoulder a good shove, which caused him to crack up.

"If I don't get this omelet soon I think my head is going to explode," Joel mumbled.

"Your headache is that bad?"

"It's getting there."

He took another sip of his water, tilting his head back with a sigh. "Wrestling had better damn well be worth it."

~*~

By the time I got back to my dorm, Aubrey was already in full study-mode, her books surrounding her as she sat criss-cross on her bed with her laptop in her lap.

"Damn girl, get it," I said, flopping down on my side of the room.

"I'm determined to stay on top of my schoolwork this semester," she informed me, her eyes never leaving the computer screen. "And so far I'd say I'm doing a pretty bang-up job."

I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

After a few minutes she made eye contact with me, raising her eyebrows. "So are you ever going to take me to meet baby Jace?"

"Of course. You just have to be available."

"I need to kiss his chubby little cheeks and make him love me."

"Good luck beating out Joel."

"Tell me about it."

We laughed as she flopped back on her bed with a long sigh.

"Forget about the baby tonight though," Aubrey dismissed.

"See? This is why you never get to meet him. Every time you plan something else," I informed her, with another laugh.

"I've been studying all day," she groaned.

"It's barely lunchtime."

"We need to go out tonight."

"You'll find any excuse to go out," I dismissed.

"Don't pretend like you're not onboard."

"Well, I mean, if you're going out I can't let you go alone."

"There's the Sarah Campbell that I know and sometimes tolerate," Aubrey encouraged, as she stared up at the ceiling. "We should go clubbing."

"I know a few places."

"I figured."

We spent the rest of the afternoon half-working but mostly watching Netflix.

Netflix always wins.

I sent a text to Joel as Aubrey and I got ready to let him know we were going out.

Joel was an animal in the club and he always knew how to bring the party.

"Joel isn't going out!" I called out to Aubrey. "Because he's a loser."

"As he always is. That's fine, we'll party hardy together."

"Don't ever say that again and it's a deal."

I checked my outfit in the mirror, running my fingers through my hair one last time to fluff it.

I was wearing a two-piece royal blue dress and a pair of nude heels. I paired it with a silver chunky necklace, and I have to say that I was rather in love with it.

It was my first time actually wearing the dress out after I'd bought it, much to the displeasure of Ryan who'd been along on my shopping adventure at the time. But Meredith had approved, and that's all that really mattered.

"I love that dress," Aubrey gushed from behind me. "Yes girl, slay."

Aubrey was wearing a black dress with a plunge neckline. The bottom flared out at her mid-thigh, giving an innocent look. She'd also paired it with nude heels.

"Pictures for sure in our matching heels," Aubrey said, with a red lipstick smile.

I cracked open a Bud Light, handing her one. "Ready to get this party started?"

"You know it."

So what did you guys think about Joel & Sarah's workout session? Sarah is basically me in the gym, lol. What about Sarah & Adam? How do you think she handled the situation? What about Aubrey? Thoughts on her so far?

The cover up at the top was submitted by eveninglatte. What do you think?

Happy Fourth of July weekend to those who live in the US of A! I hope you're having a wonderful celebration. I saw Nick & Demi in the Future Now tour last night and now I'm headed out to the beach to celebrate the 4th with my family. Gotta set off those fireworks and have a fam cookout <3

Wattpad is being glitchy af right now, so I'm unsure as to whether this update is actually going to post. We'll see.

Teaser: Adam's POV. Adam has a poor showing at his game and he needs something to pull him out of his slump, and fast.

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