Chapter Six
Sebastian
“Why did I agree to this?” I had asked Mason the same question when we left the house and again as we sat in the car. But I had to ask him one more time as we sat on the plane. I was supposed to be resting before the next season, and so far my best friend had me doing everything but rest.
He whispered, as he looked around the plane as though someone might be interested in our conversation, “You know why. You were sitting there this morning, just staring at the doc’s card. And let’s not even get started what happened with the stripper.” He held his head down in shame. “A hot, sexy stripper and you were dead man. You think I didn’t know?” I shook my head. “You’re dead down there and if anything can wake you back up, it’s Vegas.”
He patted me on the leg as if it was as simple as that. I didn’t even want to go out of town for a day, let alone a weekend, because on Monday Mom would get the results of her biopsy and I wanted to know once and for all if the cancer was back or not.
“Even your mom said that you should go. She fucking begged me to take you away so that you would get off her back,” Mason said as he tried to convince me that I needed a fucking weekend in Vegas.
“I told her that I was coming round today. You know what she told me? That she was depressed enough and didn’t need to see my miserable face. She doesn’t want me to worry. But I can’t help it, dude. It’s just in my nature.”
Mason sighed as if he were explaining something to a small child. “That’s why you need to get laid. It solves everything.”
I wished it was that simple. “Really dude. Getting laid solves all your problems?”
I didn’t know what I’d been doing wrong for the last few years. I didn’t remember having a problem and a quick fuck getting rid of it. The release and the high passed within seconds; maybe because there was never a connection. I was with the chick for one reason and one reason alone. To get laid.
“Nah, you just see everything that’s associated with sex and think that it will be alright. It doesn’t work out that way.”
I said to him and so we stopped talking, while they announced that everyone should be seated because the plane was about to take off. All I could think about was getting my bag and going back home. I wanted to call Emma and find out what had made her come to the house. Did Coach Thomas tell her to come or something?
He had no right to do that without speaking to me first. Then again, I had my phone switched off most of the time and I never picked up my home line. So it was pretty hard for him to get hold of me. The only reason had Mason managed to was because I had made the mistake of giving him a key a long time ago.
He had never used it before, and now he seemed to be using it all the time. Like he had no place to stay or something. I had been so wrapped up in my problems that I never even asked if he was doing okay.
Before the plane took off and I had a chance to ask, “So, what’s the deal man? Why are you staying at mine so much?”
He stretched over and patted my hand. I kept glancing over at him as the plane took off. No matter what the problem was, I wanted to know what was on his mind. But my attention span was too damn short these days, because when I hit the recline button once they got rid of the seatbelt sign, I forgot what I wanted to speak to him about.
***
“Strippers, again!” I said as soon as we were in our suite of the Wynn Las Vegas Casino Hotel. Mason must have shares in strip joints or something ’cause he never seemed to have a problem booking one.
“What’s up with you?” I play-punched Mason to let him know that I was thinking more about the adrenaline of losing money and winning on the tables. About drinking too much and perhaps flirting with the odd girl. Seeing another stripper just brought Emma to mind. It had made me laugh when Mia accused Emma of having work done. When I used to visit Sophia in college, every guy wanted a piece of Emma. Even since she was nineteen, she had those same big boobs and ass to match. Shit, I knew it was all natural and as a teen, I was hot for her. I was young, and she was like this goddess that used to share a room with my sister. Back then she had glasses and whenever she used to sway her long dark hair back to get it out of her eyes, it only made my crush even worse.
Now I was all grown up, but she still looked at me like that spotty little kid that used to stutter in her presence. Sophia used to laugh at me and tell me that she was too old for me. Back then there was a big gap between fourteen and nineteen. Now, it was no big deal. She was back in my life as our sports doctor. Those professional boundaries should have made me want to stay away, but those teenage feelings came back the moment she showed up that day at the pool.
“I came here to have fun. If I get…”
“Wait, did he just say if?” Kent said as he pointed at me. I was surprised that he’d come on the trip without Mia. I thought those guys were joined at the hip.
Mason felt my forehead, “No, he’s hot. He’s not well. He’s losing his mind or something. ’Cause there’s no way he would say if, if he was feeling well!”
I pushed him to the side. “Guys, can we have fun for once without it involving pussy?”
Paul, Mason, and Kent looked at me as if I was crazy or something.
Paul blurted out, “Nah!”
And then they shook their heads and mumbled something. I ignored them as I hit the showers and left them alone to do whatever they had in mind for this weekend. I wanted to party, win, and maybe lose some money. As for pussy, the way I was feeling right now I didn’t see it happening.
But as my mom always said, “Never say never.”
And I locked the door behind me, in case any of my friends had ideas about making someone join me in the shower. Right now, I just wanted to be alone.