𝐑𝐞𝐝 𝐑𝐢𝐝𝐠𝐞

M A D D I S O N

After unwrapping my hands and shoving the black roll into my bag, I carry the whole thing into the showers with me and take out my towel to hang it on the hook next to the stall.

I quickly rinse off and dry my body, wrapping my dripping hair with the towel, and get changed. The air is still damp and hot, so I pull the black tank top over my head with a bit of difficulty when it snags and rolls itself up on my skin.

The tiny black sweatshorts are much easier to slip on and I tie the drawstring around my waist before pulling the strap of my bag over my shoulder and pulling open the door, nodding my head in the direction of a few people as I exit the gym. 

My good morning mood disappears at the sight of the familiar blonde halted outside the building, directly in front of me. I'm about to walk past her until she speaks up. "Wait! Maddison. This is actually really good timing." Charlotte says, her voice lacking any hint of malice or discontent. I narrow my eyes at her words but stop anyway.

"Why is that?"

"Well, I've been thinking that the team seems a little disjointed. I don't know if you've noticed, but it's super cliquey."

"And this is my problem because..." I trail off, unable to keep my sharp tongue in my mouth for once. She doesn't seem to notice or care.

"Because it's my responsibility to fix it. If I don't, I'm part of the problem. The only time the two of us even communicate is on the field, and we have less of a problem with that than the rest of the girls, which is saying something." She presses her lips together and pleads with her eyes to get me to listen. I continue walking in the direction of the school, but she doesn't follow.

Sighing, I look back. "C'mon. I don't have all day." I say to Charlotte, my expression bored, but she lights up, rushing over to catch up to me and the two of us walk side by side.

"Okay. I have an idea." She smiles.

After Charlotte spent the entire walk to the campus asking me questions and bouncing ideas off of me, with minimal input of my own, I find myself at her and Reed's dorm building where she lets me in without a word.

Reed is nowhere to be found once we get to their room, and I suddenly feel out of place. Charlotte is hardly ever in her own room, at least not when I'm here. "She's probably at Farris and Alexander's." Charlotte says and I nod. "Either that or the library in the science building." She adds and I turn to leave, gently closing the door behind me when I do.

Thankfully, the guys' dorm is right next door, so I take the stairs down to the ground level, walk over to the next building, and climb the five flights that it takes to get to their room.

I try the door first, but seeing as it's locked, I resort to knocking. By the time the door swings open, I'm leaning against the door frame with my arms crossed, an eyebrow raised. Instead of Reed, who almost always opens the door when she's here, Xander's face is the first one I see.

His dark hair is messy and he's rubbing his tired-looking eyes before he slips on his glasses. His torso is bare and I purse my lips as I check it out. The basketball shorts that ride low on his hips show off that line of muscle leading to his—"Can I help you?" He asks, mirroring my position. His voice is teasing, obviously having noticed my perusal of his body.

"No, I just woke you up for the view. Bye now." I smile cheekily and turn around, not at all surprised when a hand grabs my hand and spins me back around.

"Come on. Reed's not here but you can stay." He says, not giving me a choice as he drags me inside and towards the couch. Sighing, I drop my bag at the front door and let him pull me.

"Is she coming over at all?" I ask.

"Probably not." He says and I raise an eyebrow, taking a seat on the couch with my back against the armrest so that I can face him properly. He exhales deeply through his nose. "I think she's avoiding Farris. She was over here the other day, and it was just the two of them, but she won't talk about it, and Farris is just as confused as I am." He looks at me with the hope that I know something he doesn't. I shake my head. "It's worse than I thought if she hasn't told you. Maybe Charlotte?" He thinks out loud and I press my lips together.

"I just came from over there and she said Reed's been a little distant lately. She didn't seem concerned, just genuinely curious."

"We need an intervention."

"I don't think you know what that means."

"I mean we need to intervene, smartass. We need to tell her that we know how she feels about Farris in a way that she'll talk to us and not completely shut down."

"Wait a second, you know?" I ask, my eyes wide.

He scoffs. "I'm not blind. Or deaf. I'd bet you a hundred bucks that this is her putting space between them." He says matter-of-factly and my lips part.

"God, you know her well," I remark, slightly surprised.

"Yeah well, I like her. She's one of my best friends. If I could do so without hurting her, I'd hit Farris for being so dense. I'm still holding out hope that he's just a slow learner." Xander says and zones out, staring at a spot on the wall, lost in thought.

"I'm no expert, but she's not just a friend to him either. I know what guys look like when they want to fuck. He'd fuck the shit out of her if given the chance." I state and Xander zones back in, coughing as his wide eyes pan back to me.

"My god. True, but still. I don't need that image in my head. And of course he would, anyone would, but their problem lies in whether he could handle more."

"Would you?" I ask curiously. He looks at me with confusion. "Fuck Reed." I clarify with a smirk.

"No. But only because I respect her as a friend and wouldn't want to complicate things. There's literally no other reason." He smiles with his tongue pressing to the inside of his tan cheek. "Would you?" He tilts his head to the side as he narrows his eyes at me.

"No, but for the same reasons you said. She wouldn't fuck us either if it's any consolation." He presses his hand to his chest as if I'd wounded him and I roll my eyes. "Alright, put on a movie or something. Let's let Reed figure out her own life. She doesn't need us meddling."

"Preach." He says, pressing the power button on the tv remote and using his video game controller to control the screen, putting on a horror movie for us to kill time with. "So what does a guy look like when he wants to fuck?" I roll my eyes.