Bentley had been at it for a few hours now. He was exhausted, but it still felt like he wasn’t working hard enough. His family had created this legacy – a history – and he didn’t want to let them or the fans of the sport down. Grateful that he was all alone, Bentley took a moment to look around and enjoy the view. He remembered standing on top of the ramps with his father when he was younger, and the adrenaline he felt at the thought alone of being able to ride. As much as he hated being melodramatic, this meant so much to him.

His routine was currently two-minutes long. He figured that was the perfect length to display his talents as a freestyle rider. He’d be able to do all the technical jumps and lands without being criticized for taking it too easy. The preliminary competition was at the end of the week, and by then, he’d have his routine down pat.

The bike he bought was the perfect fit. It rode like Denver’s when he visited Tucson, and that’s what Bentley wanted. When the door opened, Bentley watched his two best friends walk into the indoor BMX park. He dropped from the ramp and rode the bike over to Noah and Jonah, slapping five with them both.

“How’s it going, champ?”

Bentley shrugged. “I’m doing okay now, but I’m concerned about my nerves on the day of preliminaries.”

Jonah gave his friend a heavy-handed pat on the shoulder. “What’s there to be nervous about?”

Noah spoke up before Bentley could answer. “How about we just go get something to eat and think happy thoughts? I promised my roommate that I’d pick him up from work in like an hour.”

Jonah shook his head no. “I’m just going to meet Bella at her dorm and eat with her. No offense. I love you two, but…”

“Reunion sex,” Bentley finished for him. “We know.”

Jonah gave his friend another reassuring pat on the shoulder, pinched his brother’s cheek, and then was on his way. Noah looked at Bentley leaning back on his bicycle. He couldn’t help but smile.

“As much as I think you’re a dumbass for your decision, I’m proud of you. You’re doing something that makes you feel good. You’ll kill it, man.”

Bentley took a deep breath. If only the other people in his life could see it that way. “My mom called and asked me to send her pics of my dorm. I really do feel like shit about lying. But on the other hand, if I’m honest, we all know that’ll only end one way.”

Noah nodded in response. “Like I said, let’s not think about it. We’re going to grab a bite to eat and then we’ll find you a place to stay.”

Bentley started to walk towards the exit. “We can try Zoey first.”

??

“What are you doing here?”

That was precisely the reaction Bentley expected. He looked his ex in the eyes and forced a smile. She could rarely resist his smile.

Zoey was already dressed for bed in a soft pink tank top and flowery lounge pants. She had her arms folded over her chest and Bentley couldn’t help but laugh when she scowled at him.

“It’s nice to see you too, Zoey.”

The girl noticed his bags in hand. She then looked back at Noah’s truck before shaking her head. Her roommate shouted from the back asking who it was, but she only ignored her to focus on Bentley. “You don’t respond to my texts, but you show up here thinking you’re staying with me? There’s no way in hell –”

“Listen,” Bentley dropped his bags in the doorway before continuing. “I know that we’re not exactly on the same page when it comes to the decisions I’ve been making, but –”

“No.”

Bentley looked at her. “Zoey. You know I’d do anything for you. I’ve proven that.”

The rain that they were promised was beginning to fall. Bentley felt a drop on his cheek as he continued. “I was always there when you needed me. No questions asked.”

She rolled her eyes, turning around and walking inside. Bentley watched her sway as she went. With a smile, he turned back to Noah and held a thumb in the air. Noah nodded and pulled off.

Bentley grabbed his bags and walked into her place. Zoey had off-campus housing and it was so much better than the shithole he got stuck with last year. She was already in her room when Bentley got to the living area. Zoey’s roommate, Crystal, didn’t even acknowledge his existence. He blocked her view of the TV for a few seconds before dodging the pillow she threw and heading back to the bedrooms.

Inside, Bentley dropped his things and smiled at Zoey. She wasn’t paying him any attention, though. “Thanks for this,” he spoke softly. “It’s starting to rain for the first time in forever.”

“You can sleep here.” She threw a blanket on the floor, followed by the flattest pillow Bentley had ever seen. “Don’t think that because I’m allowing you to stay here that you’re going to sleep with me.”

He nodded. “Alright. Thank you.”

They were quiet for the next few minutes as Bentley walked over to his spot on the floor and tried to make it look appealing. His back and ass were going to hate him for this in the morning.

Zoey sat down on the bed and picked up whatever book she’d been reading. Bentley wanted to make conversation, but she seemed upset. He instead put his hands in his pockets and walked towards his things.

“Do you mind if I use your shower? I won’t be but 10 minutes.”

“You know,” she began. “We should talk.”

Bentley sighed. Whatever this was about was going to give him a headache, he knew it already.

“I don’t like that you ignore me but show up here like I owe you something. If you want to throw your life away, that’s fine. You can leave me out of it.”

He stopped in his place and thought about what was said. It seemed a little harsh.

“I’m sorry that you’re upset. I don’t like when you’re upset, Zoey.”

“Sure doesn’t seem that way,” she said.

Bentley clasped his hands together in front of him. “Well it is that way. It’s just that if I didn’t ignore those messages – if I replied with how I felt, we would’ve argued over this for the umpteenth time.”

She was quiet.

“I get that you broke up with me because I decided to leave school, and in your opinion, become this loser.” He turned to face her, but refused to look her in the face. “It hurts that you feel that way. But I hoped above all that you’d understand that I’m passionate about riding. If you’re not interested in me anymore, then I’ll own that. I fucked it up, right? But I thought we could at least be friends.”

Zoey took a deep breath and stood up. “You were someone I could be proud of, Bentley. I told my family about you. My father adored you. Now?”

Bentley could feel his temperature rising. “I don’t make decisions for my happiness with your father in mind.”

“No,” she interrupted. “You make decisions with yourself in mind. Because screw what I think, right?”

“Can I use your shower?”

“Maybe you should just go.” Zoey turned around and grabbed everything off the floor. “If I let you stay here, it’s like me saying that I support this decision you’re making.”

“You’ve got to be joking.” Bentley watched his ex as she cleaned up the area and sat back down on her bed. Zoey had practically sat there like he wasn’t even in the room – like ignoring him would make him and their issues disappear. Bentley rubbed at his temple and pulled out his cell phone. “I’m starting to question why you were really with me, you know that?”

Zoey was smiling now. “Yeah. Me too. I’ll walk you to the door.”

Bentley looked away from her and, yeah. Now he was seriously starting to have second thoughts. He hadn’t even gotten into an official competition yet and he’d already thrown away everything. His one real relationship was now ruined – a relationship that had some serious potential. Zoey was a future lawyer with a great head on her shoulders. His family liked her, well, minus Ariel, apparently, and her family liked him.

Of course that was before he, according to Zoey, threw away his future.

This wasn’t going to be worth it. Eventually, he’d have his mom furious with him, and nothing to fall back on but a potential career in freestyle BMX. There was nothing stable about that career if one wasn’t successful.

Maybe Zoey was right to hate him like this.

Bentley picked up his things and headed to the door himself. Crystal still paid him no mind, not saying goodbye or anything. Bentley exited the home and sat down on the porch steps. He looked around the neighborhood as he realized just how stupid he was. Homeless? Check. Jobless? Check. Scholarship-less? Double check. Big fucking idiot getting kicked out by his ex? C-H-E-C-K.

And the rain was coming down harder now.

Bentley shook his head and tried to be void of all thought. This was exactly the type of thing that would affect his head before the competition.

“Relax,” he said to himself. He looked down at his phone and pulled up Noah’s contact. If his friend rejected him, he didn’t know what he’d do. Maybe Ariel would let him quietly stay in her room.

??

[Noah] Roomie! I’m outside!

Finally. Kit grabbed his things out of his locker and all but skipped to the door. Today’s shift was probably the best of all so far. It wasn’t crowded, there weren’t a group of people asking for his opinion on which brakes would work best or which bike got the best air, but still. It felt good to be off the clock and out of that building. He said goodbye to Steven and to Sam, and exited the shop with a bright smile.

It was nice of Noah to offer to drive him back to campus. Kit didn’t mind taking the shuttle back, but it was getting late. It was now starting to rain, too. This was the first rain Kit had seen since he and his father moved here. He hadn’t missed it. With all this being said, the idea of wandering around L.A. alone wasn’t very appealing. He walked over to the grey Grand Cherokee and smiled after hopping inside. Noah looked happy to see him, too. It was cool to think that he’d made his first friend at UCLA. There may’ve been two if the guy who’d bought a bike earlier counted at all. He was already beating his Junction friend count.

“Thanks for the ride!” Kit tossed his bag into the backseat and reached for his seatbelt. “You didn’t have to do this.”

“Don’t be silly,” Noah said with a smile. “We went from being complete strangers to living together this morning. We’ve gotta watch out for each other.”

Kit smiled. “You have a point.”

“My friend’s Uncle owns this place, you know. You work at a legendary Los Angeles hot spot.”

“Oh.” Kit shrugged. “Well. McDonald’s wasn’t hiring, so I didn’t have much of a choice.”

Noah laughed. “It can’t be that bad. Did you eat? I had Tacos with my friend, Bentley, but we can stop somewhere if you want.”

Kit had eaten during his break and to be honest, all he wanted right now was a shower and a bed. Maybe some Doritos. “I’m good on food. I’ll just hit up the vending machines when we’re back at the building.”

Noah put the car in drive just as his ringtone went off. He stopped to reach for his phone.

“Excuse me,” he said.

Kit nodded. “Go ahead.”

“What’s up?” he answered.

As they spoke, Kit turned to look out his passenger side window. He thought about what he might do when they get back to the building. Should he go out and explore campus? When his roommate put the vehicle in park, Kit turned to look at him.

“What did you do?” Noah asked.

Kit watched as he pinched the bridge of his nose as the person on the other line answered.

Noah sighed. “Do you want me to come get you?”

What’s going on? Kit thought.

“You’re not quitting before you even try. I won’t let you.”

Whatever it was, it didn’t sound good.

Noah began shaking his head. He told his friend to hold on and turned to face Kit.

“Hey. I don’t want you to think I’m going to be the type of roommate who always has people staying over, but my friend is in a bind. Is it okay if he stays for the night? I can make some space on my side of the room, and although he’s annoying, I promise we won’t bother you.”

Kit figured he should be annoyed at the fact that his roommate was already having people stay over and classes hadn’t even started yet, but he was oddly okay with it. Something was obviously going on.

“Is he a psychotic murderer?” he asked.

Noah smiled. “He is not a psychotic murderer. He talks in his sleep occasionally, but that’s about it.”

Kit shrugged. “I’m cool. Anything more than a night and we may have to charge rent. I don’t want our RA reporting us or anything.”

Noah nodded. Holding the phone to his face, he continued. “I’ll be there in 10. Just… sit tight.”

He ended the phone call and took a deep, deep breath. Kit was alarmed.

“This guy… he isn’t in any serious trouble, is he?” he asked.

Noah finally put the car in drive and checked the mirrors before pulling off. “Bentley is the smartest dumbass I know. He’ll be just fine. I know he will.”

??

Bentley wanted to be annoyed that he was outside getting wet, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. He didn’t want to think about what had happened with Zoey, or what could happen with his mom. He just wanted to sleep for like, a month. For the next ten minutes, he let himself sit on the porch and think about absolutely nothing.

It didn’t take long for Noah to pull up. Bentley stood and grabbed his bags for what felt like the hundredth time that day. He walked over the lawn to his friend’s vehicle, only stopping when he saw who was in the passenger side.

Wait a minute…

Noah rolled the window down and raised an eyebrow. “Are you going to get in?” He didn’t get an answer, and it was because his roommate and best friend were staring one another down. “Um…?”

“You’re Noah’s friend?” Kit asked, not able to hide the smile on his face. “You’re the one who needs a place to stay? No. No way.” He turned to Noah. “I change my mind. He’s going to try and teach me things about bicycles. He can’t stay with us.”

The back door was already opened and Bentley climbed in. He slammed it shut and grinned as he stuck his face between the two of them. “You’re Noah’s roommate? This is hilarious. I don’t even have to go back to my uncle’s shop to harass you.”

“Oh my goodness. You’re Donald’s nephew…” Kit shook his head. “It’s all coming together now.”

Noah was now smiling. Their laughter was contagious. “I take it you two met…”

“Yes, you idiot.” Bentley sat back, though he tried to catch a glimpse of Pretty Boy from where he sat. “Why didn’t you tell me your roommate worked at The Authority?”

“I didn’t know until I went to pick him up,” Noah said. “And I didn’t put two and two together, I guess.”

Kit looked up to get a peek of this guy through the rearview mirror, but quickly looked away when he saw grey eyes locked in on his.

“What’s your name?” Bentley asked.

Kit shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. What’s more important is me knowing that you won’t force me to learn anything about BMW while you crash with us.”

“BMX?” Bentley asked.

Kit shrugged. BMW, BMX. “Whatever.”

“What’s his name, Noah?”

“Don’t tell him.”

“His name’s Kit.”

Kit turned to him; hand sprawled over his chest dramatically. “Noah!”

“What?”

Bentley smiled. “Kit. Kitten. I’m calling you Kitten.”

Kit laughed. “The hell you are.”

“Only I get to call him Kitten,” Bentley announced.

Noah rolled his eyes as Kit tried to hide the fact that he was blushing “Do what the hell you want, man.”

“And you are…” Kit trailed off. He could feel his cheeks heating up and he knew it was because Bentley was still staring through the rearview. “Bentley, right?”

“Bentley Williams,” he confirmed. “I was named after my grandfather.”

Kit nodded. “Well it’s nice to formally meet you.”

“Yeah.” Bentley smiled for a moment before looking back down at his phone. It was nice to see Kit again – especially if people were treating him the way Olivia seemed to be. Bentley would try and change his California experience for the better.

Noah was practically speeding towards the highway entrance, and Bentley reached for his seatbelt. Couldn’t exactly start a BMX career if he was dead. 

“Take it easy, man. There’s no rush.”

“Sorry,” Noah said. “I’m just ready to get back to the room. It was a long day.”

That was true. Bentley knew he had his friends chauffeuring him all over the greater Los Angeles area, and he felt bad for stressing them out with his shit. He hoped he’d be able to make it up to them soon.

“I’m sorry to impose on you both,” he started. “But thanks for letting me crash with you. My ex was not in the mood to put up with me, I guess.”

Noah exhaled rather dramatically. “She shouldn’t have let you in if she was just going to tell you to leave after five minutes.”

Bentley shrugged. “I agree. That fucking sucked. But, I did hurt her. I guess I had it coming.”

??

Kit suddenly fell out of place. These two were close friends discussing old relationships and he felt like he was eavesdropping.

“You were never rude to Zoey, at least not to my knowledge. I know you never cheated on her, and you wouldn’t. You ditched Jonah and me to spend time with her on how many occasions?” Nick merged onto the highway as he continued. “I don’t know. She doesn’t have to like what you’re doing, but she doesn’t have to be mean about it.”

Bentley didn’t have much of a response to that.

Kit allowed himself to turn around and look at him. He seemed dejected – the usual corny grin he’d wear was nowhere to be found. Instead, he stared out the window, watching the other cars speed by.

Kit’s interest in the situation was beginning to get the best of him. He wanted to know why things went sour with Bentley and this Zoey girl. The boy still seemed pretty hurt by it.

“I don’t mean to intrude, but you told me you were a student at UCLA,” he began. “Why are you looking for places to crash?”

Noah shook his head. “Because he lied.”

“A white lie,” Bentley said, trying to defend himself.

“A blatant lie –”

“I made the decision to pursue a BMX career, and in order to do that, I had to drop out of school. The bad part about it all is that I’m doing so without telling my mom.”

Kit’s eyes widened in response.  This guy sounded like trouble. Sure, Kit had done some crazy things behind his father’s back, but dropping out of college while pretending to still be in school wasn’t even something he’d consider. “Is there no way you could go to school and do your BMX?”

“I wish,” he answered. “The terms of my scholarship depended on me playing football and running track. There was no way I’d be able to do that, study, and tour for competitions.”

Kit nodded.

“Anyway,” Bentley continued. “Thanks again. I promise I won’t be loud or anything. I’ll sleep with underwear on and everything.”

Noah sighed. “Thank god.”

Kit ignored the part of him that wanted to tell him underwear wasn’t necessary. Bentley may’ve been a nice enough looking guy – tall, dark, handsome – but Kit wanted to remain focused. “Well, as long as we don’t get in any trouble, I don’t mind. And who knows? You could have one of those stories of triumph. You’re throwing away a lot to try your hand at something new. That’s commendable.”

Bentley smiled to himself. “At least someone thinks so.”

“Maybe this Zoey will come around. She’s most likely hurting you because she’s hurting. Don’t stress it.”

“Eh.” Bentley stretched his legs out and shrugged. “I’ve apologized 100 times. It seems like she just wants to be angry.”

“Bingo,” Noah added.

“So, Kitten.” Bentley took a deep breath. “Please distract me from my thoughts. Are you single?”

“Very,” Kit answered. “Southern Cali has so many cute boys to choose from in comparison to my old town. I’m just playing the field.”

Noah smiled as Bentley continued, “Is that right?”

“It is,” Kit joked. “Seriously, though, I’m just looking to get used to life here. I like it so far. And I really want to do well.”

“You’ll love it here,” Noah told him. “Once you meet my older brother, you’ll have three of the best friends a guy could ask for.”

That was one of the nicest things anyone had ever said to Kit.