Chapter 4 THE BEGINNING OF AN ADVENTURE

My head was pounding before I even opened my eyes. It felt like someone had taken a basketball and slammed it against my skull a few dozen times. I groaned and rolled over, burying my face in the pillow that smelled like fresh laundry and something faintly like cedar. Not my pillow. Not my bed.

Last night.

The memory hit me in pieces—Carter’s voice in the doorway, low and rough.

“Don’t stop, Bubbles.” His hands on me. The way my body had betrayed me completely. Three times. I had come three times while he watched me, touched me, told me exactly what to do.

No. No way. That couldn’t have happened.

I squeezed my eyes shut tighter, trying to convince myself it was just a crazy dream from the stress and that weird cookie. I was tired. Betrayed. Hungry. My brain had mixed everything up. It was probably just me touching myself in my sleep or something. People have weird stress dreams all the time, right?

I shifted under the covers and froze.

I was still wet.

Not just a little. Slick and sensitive and aching between my legs in a way that made my face burn even though I was alone. My nipples felt tender too, like they’d been pinched and played with. I pressed my thighs together and a tiny, mortified sound slipped out of me. It had happened. All of it.

“Oh my god,” I whispered into the pillow.

I sat up slowly, the headache banging harder behind my eyes. The room was bright with morning light, the Powerpuff Girls poster still tucked safely behind the dresser where I’d hidden it last night. My clothes from yesterday were folded neatly on the chair—someone had done that. Probably me in my half-asleep state. I didn’t remember.

I had class this morning. Sports Management 101 at nine. I needed to get out of here before Carter woke up. I couldn’t face him. Not after what I let him do. Not after I begged.

I slipped out of bed on shaky legs and threw on the first cute but simple thing I could find—a soft white cropped tee that showed just a sliver of stomach and high-waisted light-wash jeans with my favorite white sneakers. Nothing flashy. Just me. Sports Management girl trying to look like she had her life together. I brushed my teeth quickly, splashed water on my face, and pulled my hair into a loose ponytail. My reflection in the mirror looked normal. No one would ever guess what happened last night.

Good. That was the plan. Pretend it never happened. Move forward. Be roommates. Forget.

I grabbed my backpack and crept down the hall, trying to keep my footsteps quiet. The apartment smelled like coffee and something buttery. My stomach growled before my brain could stop it.

Carter was already in the kitchen.

He stood at the stove in gray sweatpants and a black CFSU tank top that showed off the snake tattoo on his bicep and the script across his chest. His hair was still messy from sleep, and there was a faint red mark on his neck I didn’t remember putting there. He was flipping eggs in a pan like this was the most normal morning in the world.

He glanced over his shoulder when he heard me and that slow smirk tugged at his mouth. “Morning, Bubbles. Sleep okay?”

My face went hot. I stopped in the doorway, backpack slung over one shoulder. “I told you not to call me that.”

He turned around fully, leaning one hip against the counter. His eyes did that lazy sweep over me—jeans, crop top, ponytail—and the smirk deepened just a fraction. “You look cute. Ready for your first day?”

“I’m fine,” I said quickly, shifting my weight. “I have class. I’m just… gonna head out.”

“Breakfast first.” He nodded toward the table where two plates were already set. Scrambled eggs, toast with butter, and a small bowl of fruit. “I made enough for both of us. Figured you might be starving after last night.”

The way he said “last night” made my stomach flip. I stared at the plates instead of his face. “I’m not hungry.”

“Your stomach just growled loud enough for the neighbors to hear.” He raised an eyebrow, that teasing glint back in his eyes. “Sit. Eat. We can talk about how we’re gonna do this roommate thing.”

I hesitated, then dropped my backpack by the door and sat. The eggs smelled too good to pretend anymore. I took a small bite and tried not to moan at how perfect they were.

Carter sat across from me, long legs stretched out under the table so his foot almost brushed mine. “So. Sports Management, right? You excited?”

“Yeah,” I said, keeping my eyes on my plate. “It’s what I want. Working with teams, maybe one day managing a program or something. What about you? Still killing it on the court?”

He shrugged, but his expression stayed easy. “First game of the season tonight. Friendly against Riverside, but Coach is treating it like a real one. You should come.”

I looked up then. His face was calm, but there was something careful in his eyes, like he was testing the water. “I don’t know. I have a lot to catch up on with classes and—”

“Kelly’s coming too,” he said casually, spearing a piece of toast. “She texted me this morning asking if you were settled in okay. Said she feels bad about the car thing and wants to help you get your books after your morning class.”

My fork stopped halfway to my mouth. Kelly. Of course Carter had been the one helping her “help” me. Luke didn’t know about the fallout yet. Carter was playing middleman like always.

I forced a small smile that didn’t reach my eyes. “That’s… nice of her.”

Carter watched my face for a second, the smirk fading into something more neutral. “Look, Bubbles. Last night happened. We both know it. But we can just… move forward. Be normal. Roommates. No weirdness.”

“Normal,” I repeated, tasting the word. “Yeah. That’s what I want too. Forget it. Get along. For Luke’s sake.”

His jaw tightened just a little, but he nodded. “For Luke’s sake.”

We finished breakfast in silence that felt heavier than it should have. When I stood to rinse my plate, he was already grabbing his keys.

“I’ll drop you at the Sports Management building,” he said. “It’s on the way to the gym anyway.”

“I can walk—”

“It’s fifteen minutes across campus and you’re already running late.” He dangled the keys, expression unreadable. “Come on. We said normal, right?”

I sighed. “Fine. Normal.”

The drive was short but felt endless. Carter’s truck smelled like him—cedar and that faint gym scent that somehow wasn’t bad. We talked about nothing important—my first class schedule, how the team was looking this year, how the cafeteria food was still terrible.

But Every time our eyes met at a red light, the air in the car got a little thicker. His hand rested on the gear shift a little too close to my knee but I didn't say a word. I just kept my eyes on the window.

He pulled up in front of the big glass building with the CFSU basketball logo etched on the front. “Text me when you’re done. I’ll pick you up if you want.”

“I’ll be fine,” I said, grabbing my bag. “Thanks for breakfast.”

He didn’t answer right away. Just looked at me with that same careful expression. “See you later, Bubbles.”

I shut the door before he could say anything else rolling my eyes at his continuous use of the nickname.

Inside the building it was all shiny floors and glass walls and the faint echo of sneakers on courts somewhere down the hall. I found my classroom, grabbed a seat near the back, and tried to focus on the syllabus the professor was handing out.

Sports Marketing. Facility Management. Player Relations. It was everything I’d dreamed about.

After class I headed to the bookstore wing to grab my textbooks. The line was long, and the air smelled like new paper and coffee from the attached café. I was barely halfway through scrolling my phone when I heard the voice behind me.

“Viv?”

I turned to the familiar voice of Kelly. She stood there with two heavy textbooks in her arms, looking exactly like she always did—sharp eyeliner, messy blonde curls, that confident tilt to her chin. But her eyes were softer today.

Guilt. Pfft.. of course

“Hey,” she said quietly. “Carter texted me last night. Said you made it okay. I… I wanted to help you get settled with your books and stuff. Luke doesn’t know about the whole car thing yet and Carter thought it would be easier if I just showed you around the department.”

I stared at her. My stomach twisted. Carter had set this up. Of course he had.

“I’m good,” I said, turning back to the shelf. “I can handle my own books.”

“Viv, come on.” Her voice dropped. “I know I messed up. We both did. But we’re still friends. At least… we’re trying to be. Carter said you might need a ride later too and—”

“I don’t need anything from you right now,” I cut in, keeping my voice even. My fingers tightened on the textbook I was holding. “We have to be at Carter’s game tonight anyway. That’s it.”

She nodded, lips pressed together in that way she did when she was trying not to push. “Okay. I’ll see you there then.”

I didn’t answer. I just paid for my books and walked out.

The rest of the afternoon blurred—more orientation stuff, a quick text to Claudia that turned into a short, careful coffee meet-up in the student center where she apologized with teary eyes and I let her hug me because I had no one else right now. We weren’t fixed, but we were… something. Enough to go to the game together.

By evening the three of us were in the stands for the first game of the season—friendly against Riverside, but the gym was packed anyway. Carter was out there in his CFSU jersey, number 7, moving like the court belonged to him. He was a year ahead of us, already one of the cool guys everyone whispered about. Kelly sat on one side of me, Claudia on the other, the tension between us thick but silent.

Then I felt eyes on me from the Riverside bench.

A tall guy with a cocky grin and Riverside colors—Jamal, I think someone had called him during warm-ups—was staring straight at me. He winked when our eyes met. I looked away fast, but he kept glancing over during timeouts, smiling like he wanted something.

Carter noticed.

I saw it happen in real time—his head turned toward the Riverside bench, jaw tightening, the easy rhythm of his dribble faltering for half a second. He missed an easy assist two plays later. The crowd groaned. Coach yelled something from the sideline. They still won, but Carter’s face when he came off the court was stormy.

After the game we met up near the locker room exit. Kelly and Claudia were chatting about something light, but Carter walked straight up to me, sweat still glistening on his skin, eyes dark.

“You good?” he asked, voice low enough that only I could hear. His expression was tight, that muscle in his jaw jumping again.

“Yeah,” I said, trying to sound normal. “Nice game.”

He didn’t smile. “That guy from Riverside was staring at you the whole night and you were staring back.”

I shrugged, keeping my face neutral. “Hmm I Didn’t notice.”

His eyes narrowed just a fraction. “Sure you didn’t.”

Before I could answer, Kelly bounced over. “Party at the freshman house tonight! Everyone’s going. You in, Viv? We can all go together—dress up a little, have fun.”

Claudia nodded eagerly beside her. “Come on. It’ll be good for us.”

I glanced at Carter. His face was still tight, that same pissed-off energy rolling off him in waves.

I forced a small smile. “Yeah. Sure. Why not.”

Kelly grinned. “Perfect. We’ll pick you up in an hour. Wear something cute.”

As they walked off to grab drinks from the concession stand, Carter stepped closer, voice dropping. “You sure you wanna go to that party?”

I met his eyes, heart beating a little faster. “Why wouldn’t I?”

His jaw flexed. He looked like he wanted to say more, but instead he just gave a short nod and turned toward the locker room.

“See you there, Bubbles.”

The way he said it didn’t sound like a nickname anymore.

It sounded like a warning.

And as I watched him walk away, the tension from last night and this morning and the entire day coiled tighter in my stomach, I had the sinking feeling that tonight was going to be a lot more complicated than just a freshman party