Junior Year Box Set

When we showed up at the steakhouse, they sent us to the banquet room. I think they were worried we would be a little too rowdy and wanted to separate a large group of teenage boys from their regular patrons. We all ordered the salad bar with our steak, and we demolished it. I didn’t know about the rest of them, but I had several days of not eating to make up for. Coach Kingwood was duly impressed.

“Dear lord! I thought college boys ate a lot,” he observed, and then offered some advice. “Don’t fill up on salad and bread.”

“Don’t worry, I’m sure I’ll figure out some way to choke my steak down,” I said, between shoveling bites of a variety of salad-bar foods into my mouth.

When the main course arrived, he just shook his head as we all ate our steaks and huge baked potatoes. I think we showed some restraint when we skipped dessert. We had to watch our figures, after all. Coach announced, after observing us, that he was sure we were all over the virus that had afflicted us. I was just glad it happened this week instead of when we were in the middle of international play.

After lunch, we were sent to a large metroplex theater where we watched an action movie. I was pleased to see Will Smith in it. It gave me hope that when I was his age, I could be made to look like I still had it.

◊◊◊

The afternoon was spent by the pool.

“Phil has a girlfriend,” Roc said in a singsong voice.

Next, he would be singing that they were kissing in a tree. Where was Zoe when we needed her? Then I grinned when my little brother flushed with embarrassment.

“Who are you dating?” I asked, playing dumb.

“No one,” Phil grumped.

“Everyone knows. You might as well admit it,” Yuri advised.

“Guys,” Phil whined.

Oh, my God! He was so not a Dawson. He’d just opened the door for them to torment him forever. I remembered my freshman year when the team had been taking showers after football practice. Magic had looked down at Luke.

“Is that a hickey on your dick?”

Luke had slapped his hand over his package as everyone pointed and laughed. I hadn’t been there when it happened, so two weeks later, Luke decided that I needed to be tormented. When he asked me the same question, I just looked down and grinned.

“It could be,” I’d said with a straight face.

Greg had taught me to own it if they made fun of me. Poor Luke had been made fun of for looking at my junk, and I was made out as a hero for getting a hickey on Mr. Happy. Clearly, Phil had much to learn, or he’d be the butt of their jokes. I guess it was up to me to teach him. He needed to learn to stand up for himself.

“What are you complaining about? She’s the hottest girl in the freshman class,” I said in his defense.

“But I’m not sure if we’re going out or not,” Phil explained.

“Give me your phone,” I ordered.

I’d seen him sneaking off to talk on it, and I suspected he was calling Jill. I scrolled through his call record, hit the number he called the most, and put it on speaker.

“Hey, Cutie,” Jill answered.

I gave him a look to keep him quiet.

“Hey,” I said, imitating Phil’s voice. “I have a question.”

“Okay. What’s that?”

“Are you my girlfriend?” I asked with a little whine in my voice.

Phil slugged my shoulder.

“You’ve never asked me,” she challenged.

I handed the phone to Phil. He took off so he could talk to her alone. When he came back, he was all smiles. I guess there was hope for him yet.

◊◊◊

Chapter 31 – Capitán Cojones Monday August 8

I finally had to take Phil’s phone away from him at midnight last night. I needed to get some sleep, and he’d yammered on with his new girlfriend for hours on end. When he came down for breakfast, Roc and Yuri tried to torment him about his new status.

“Have you updated your social media to ‘In a Relationship’?” Roc asked.

Phil suddenly looked panicked.

“It’s not real unless she does it too,” Yuri counseled.

I looked up Jill’s account.

“Single,” I announced, to Phil’s annoyance. “Are you sure she’s your girlfriend? I mean, let’s get serious for a moment. She’s way out of your league.”

“He is a Dawson,” Yuri said to defend his friend.

“He’s not horrible-looking, according to my sister,” Roc added.

“Nice save. We wouldn’t want you to be the one saying he’s good-looking,” I told Roc and then turned to my brother. “Dude, she’s taller than you are. She needs to be dating someone who’s at least six-two or six-four.”

They all gave me a funny look.

“For when she wants to wear heels. If she dates Phil, she’ll have to wear flats all the time,” I explained.

“You are such the model-boy sometimes,” Roc said, shaking his head.

I pulled out my phone, put it on speaker and dialed.

“Hey, I need your help,” I told Halle.

“Sure.”

“Hypothetically, would you date a guy shorter than you were?” I asked.

“No. He would have to wear lifts if we went anywhere and I wanted to wear heels. Then there’s the whole issue of small hands and feet,” she said, and became suspicious when we all started laughing. “What’s going on?”

“Phil wants to date Jill Lacier, April’s little sister,” I explained.