Surviving Elite High (16 page)

“Do you know what people will say about you? When they find out that their star quarterback is banging guys in the shower room? What will Princeton say about that? Bye-bye scholarship!”

“Don't do that Jessica, please!” I implored her.

“What do you want?” Nick asked.

A smile of satisfaction crept on her face. She struck the right chord to manipulate us. She closed the door and walked around the room, focusing her attention on the towel around Nick's waist.

“What are you willing to do for me so that I’ll keep my mouth shut?”

“What do you want, Jessica?” Nick asked her calmly.

Jessica smiled again.

“Drop the towel.”

“What?” Nick asked her in disbelief.

“Drop the fucking towel!”

Nick looked at her and dropped the towel on the floor. Jessica turned to me.

“You must have a lot of fun with him, don't you?”

I immediately scowled at her. She was one annoying little bitch.

“Tomorrow I want you to make a public apology to me at the end of the game and in front of the entire school. I want you to kneel down and beg me to come back to you.”

“What!?” Nick asked her, losing his cool.

“You heard me. I won't repeat myself twice. And, tomorrow night…” Jessica paused and turned to me. She continued talking to Nick, but it seemed like she was waiting for my reaction to what she was going to say next. “I want you to make love to me like a wild animal in heat. I want to know why they call you Nick Wild Fuck.”

As I closed my eyes, tears rolled down my cheeks. Nick quickly covered himself with the towel. He looked at her with anger and spoke.

“You're one crazy bitch, you know that?”

“Think whatever the fuck you want! The way I see it, we all win. I get to humiliate you in public and I get one night of pleasure while you get to keep your fag and Princeton. Take it or leave it.”

“We'll take it,” I told her as I wiped my tears away.

Nick and Jessica turned to me. She smiled.

“What!? Why do you want to do anything for this crazy bitch!?”

“Nick, what other choice do we have? We can't let people know about us. It will ruin your chance to attend Princeton. That is your dream university.”

“I guess we know now who has the brains in this relationship,” Jessica answered with a smile.

Nick scowled at her. She walked to the door and opened it.

“It was nice doing business with you boys. You can fuck the shit out of each other now,” Jessica said with a laugh as she closed the door.

Nick grabbed a nearby chair and launched it at the door while I curled up on the floor and sobbed inconsolably.

“Baby,” Nick cooed as he dropped to the floor to hug me. “Don't cry. I hate seeing you cry.”

“Nick, what are we going to do?”

“I'm going to hunt down and murder that fucking bitch!”

I cried even more.

“Please stop crying,” Nick told me as he kissed my forehead.

I continued crying anyway. The mere thought of Nick sleeping with someone else was like a knife stabbing straight into my heart. He scooped me into his arms and lay me on the bed. With tender love and care, he wrapped his arms around me, and I rested my head on his shoulder.

“What did we ever do to them? Why can't we just be happy?”

“You never did anything to anyone, Jaan. This is entirely my fault. My past is catching up with me, and I've got to pay my dues.”

“I don't want you to sleep with her, Nick, but what other choice do we have?”

“I don't want to sleep with her either, love! Remember the night I kicked Matthew's ass?”

I nodded.

“That night I promised that the next time I slept with someone else, it would be because I'm completely and madly in love with that person. I love you, Jaan. I'll find a way to get out of this mess. I promise.”

He held me the entire night while I cried. I spend most of the night thinking about this horrible situation, and, judging by the way Nick tossed and turned all night, he couldn’t get it out of his mind either. I fell asleep in his arms, but woke up the following day to the sound of his footsteps. Nick's birthday celebration had gone down the drain.

“I'm sorry, I didn't want to wake you up,” Nick told me as he knelt beside me.

“What time is it?” I asked him as I rubbed my eyes.

“Nine, I'm leaving in a short while. The game will start at five, but coach wants us to be there early.”

Nick kissed my forehead. I planted myself into his arms and sobbed. I was devastated. Just thinking that Nick was going to spend the night with Jessica made me depressed.

“Everything's going to be fine. I promise.”

He grabbed my head and kissed my forehead.

“Are you sure you're going to be fine?”

I nodded.

“Okay, Madison and Kitty will drop by around twelve. That was the original plan. Don't open the door to anyone before making sure who they are first, understood?”

I nodded. Nick kissed me again and left the room. I cried until Madison and Kitty arrived around 12:30. They were excited, but as soon as they saw my face, their laughter died. I recounted to them the events that took place the previous night. They were fuming with hatred. They wanted to beat Jessica up, but that would not solve our problems. The truth of the matter was that our future was in her hands. We had lunch at a small diner across the street and headed to the mall to kill some time. I tried to forget everything, but it was useless. No matter what I did, I could not forget Jessica.

“That bitch!” Madison shouted as we parked outside the Southeast Sparrow's stadium. “We should do something. That's blackmail!”

“Bribery!” Kitty shouted.

“Guys! There's nothing we could do!”

“We could beat that bitch up for once! That would make me feel better,” Madison maintained as she stepped out of her car. Kitty and I followed her. “She can't get away with this.”

“Let's cut that bitch open!” Kitty shouted.

We laughed. Kitty was not one to turn to physical confrontation to solve any problem. It only showed how angry she really was. After calming down, we made our way inside. The stadium was full, but we found three empty seats near the front. Both teams were on the field and warming up. I spotted Nick, but he was looking the other way. A man, dressed in an elegant suit, made his way to where he was. They shook hands and talked until the referee walked up to the field. The whistle was blown and the game began.

Overall, the game was a blood bath. Both teams proved that they hated each other's guts. Nick got tackled so many times that at some point in time I thought he was dead. Nick played a lousy game that night. He was present, but his heart and soul were not with him. The opposing team called a time-out thirty seconds before the end of the game. The teams immediately huddled on their respective sidelines. The Elite Hawks were down by one point. It was do or die.

As the teams made their way back to the field, they looked like savage animals on the verge of extinction. They were exhausted, but the passion of winning was driving them over the edge. I heard when Nick shouted “hut.” Instantly, the teams clashed against one another with loud thuds. Nick ran forward while his team members tried their best to get possession of the ball. Finally, one of our players stole it. He tossed it across the field to where Nick was running. Nick ran faster and leaped into the air. As he did that, the entire stadium rose to their feet. Nick caught the ball in midair! He ran forward and dodged the first opponent. Suddenly, another player appeared, but Nick ducked him as well. He dodged a third player as I glanced at the clock. Six seconds remained. Nick was a few feet away from the goal line when the biggest opponent on the team got in his way. The player threw himself at him, but Nick leaped into the air and stepped right on top of the three hundred pound beast. Suddenly, the player stood up and Nick was hurled forward. I could not believe my eyes! Nick flipped in the air and landed over the goal line. He scored the winning touchdown!

The stadium exploded with cheers and applause. While Madison, Kitty and I hugged one another, the team and the stadium crowd rushed to the field to pick up the Elite Hawk's captain and hero. They lifted him from the ground while they worshipped him. After a few minutes of praise, the team and Nick rushed to the podium while the organizers took out the medals and the regional trophy. One by one, each player received their gold medal from Mr. Lewis. Nick was the last one to receive his gold medal. I could not be more proud of my man. The team began to chant while the organizers handed Mr. Lewis the regional trophy. He took a few pictures with the trophy and then made his way to where the team was celebrating. Mr. Lewis was proud of Nick. His enormous smile said it all. Everyone was proud of him that night. Mr. Lewis grabbed the mic and addressed the crowd.

“It's with great honor that I give this trophy to the captain of the Elite Hawks! He's also the best quarterback we’ve ever had. Thank you, Nick! Thank you for leading us to victory in an undefeated season. We'll definitely see you next year, son!”

As he handed Nick the trophy, the entire stadium chanted his nickname. When Nick lifted the trophy into the air, thousands of fireworks illuminated the night sky and gave the people of Atlantic City an extraordinary show. I spotted Jessica making her way through the crowd and I signaled to the girls. We tried to make our way through the mob, but it was useless. Jessica reached the podium before us. A fellow team member helped her up. I wanted to smack him in the face! Why did he help her out? My heart sank as she pushed her way to where Nick was holding the trophy in the air. Nick spotted her and grinned. He quickly made his way to where Mr. Lewis was standing. He took the microphone from his hand and turned to the crowd.

“Good night, everyone!” he announced as everyone cheered him on. “I'm glad that my ex-girlfriend is here because I've got a few things to say in front of her.”

Jessica looked around with a triumphant smile. Madison and Kitty turned to me. They could not believe that Nick was doing exactly what she wanted.

“Everyone in my school knows that I was a huge womanizer, a ladies' man, a Casanova, a lady-killer and the world's number one seducer. The girls that I've been with even nicknamed me, Nick Wild Fuck!” Nick admitted as he ended his sentence with a laugh.

Everyone laughed including Mr. Lewis, but Nick continued.

“And you bet your ass that I live up to that nickname!”

Everyone laughed again, but he continued talking.

“I slept with so many girls and broke so many hearts that sometimes I can't even sleep at night. My past keeps catching up with me while I'm trying to move on with my future.”

My heart sank further after those two lines. I wanted to move, but I could not even twitch. I just listened to Nick like everyone else.

“I stand here in front of you to tell all those girls that I slept with and coldly broke their hearts that…I'm sorry. I'm sorry for being the world's biggest dick and using you for my own pleasure and amusement. Let's face it, I find women to be incredibly beautiful and sexy. I mean, who doesn't right?”

All of the guys nodded and the team cheered him proudly.

“But, a few months ago, I discovered a part of myself that I didn't know. I fell in love with the most wonderful person in the world!”

Everyone applauded him while Jessica smiled happily. The bitch thought he was talking about her.

“I stand here in front of Jessica to tell her and the entire world that…I'm bisexual.”

If my heart could have sunk to the bottom of my sole, I would have been standing on top of it. Instantly, many scattered conversations rushed through the entire stadium while a few people clapped for him. Jessica's face, on the other hand, was priceless! She looked amazed and shocked. She did not know what to do.

“Jessica found out my secret last night and threatened to tell everyone that I'm in love with another guy if I refused to sleep with her.”

This time, laughter mixed with boos, filled the stadium.

“Don't take it out on her! She's just another one of my victims. I've made terrible decisions in my past, but I want to move on with my future. Jessica, I'm sorry that I hurt you, but I can't sleep with you. It's not that I don't find you attractive, believe me, any guy would be lucky to be with you. If I'd have met you a few months ago, I'd have made your wildest fantasies come true and the following day I'd have moved on to another girl. I can't sleep with you, Jess. I'm not that asshole anymore. I truly love the person I'm dating and I'd never cheat on him or worse, hurt him.”

Half of the crowd started clapping. Madison and Kitty were freaking out by now.

“Jaan,” Nick declared as he turned to me. Everyone in the stadium placed their eyes on me, but I just kept looking at him. “You're always saying that I saved you, but in reality, it's you that saved me. You turned me into a better person. This medal and trophy are yours. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be standing here in the first place! Your words of encouragement and wisdom are my motivation and drive. I fucking love you!!”

The entire stadium started clapping as Nick jumped down from the podium. The crowd instantly made way for him. Nick stood in front of me with a huge smile from cheek to cheek. He took off his medal and gently placed it around my neck.

“This is in your honor,” Nick announced as he handed me the trophy.

The trophy was heavier than I expected, but I managed to hug him anyway. Nick kissed me passionately in front of the entire crowd. Nearly everyone clapped.

“I love you, Jaan!”

“I love you too, Nickelodeon!”

Nick kissed me again. That night, he showed me and everyone else how much he loved me.

Chapter Eleven

Waking up the following day inside of Nick's strong arms was ten times better than the first time. The previous night he’d told everyone how much he loved me. At first, I thought that it was all a dream or a product of my imagination, but it was real. My entire body ached since we celebrated all of Saturday night. Now, we had to face the world since everyone knew about our relationship. I truthfully did not care about what people in our town thought of us; however, I did care about Mr. and Mrs. Hawking's opinion. What would they say when they found out their son was in a committed relationship with another guy? Nick didn’t care since they already disowned him.