Chapter 17

17

JASON

NOVEMBER

It was the Friday after Thanksgiving, and I was officially in a funk. I'd been denying my shitty mood all week. When I snapped at Mandy over a bowl of Cheerios, sending her fleeing to her bedroom in tears, it became evident I wasn't acting like myself. I'd gone after her and apologized, then retreated to the basement to brood in solitude.

I spent most of the afternoon watching football, and after watching the Huskers beat Iowa, I went to my room and spent some time studying. Despite having the house to myself while the rest of the family headed into the city for some Black Friday shopping, I struggled to focus on the material, so after about an hour, I gave up.

I decided to shower and maybe read a little before bed, so I crossed into the hall bathroom and turned on the water. As steam filled the bathroom, I stripped down, going through the mundane task of preparing to shower. Stepping under the spray, I let the hot water rain down on me, running in rivulets down my body. I began to lather up when I realized I hadn't heard from Zach that day. We rarely went a day without texting, though with it being a holiday week and him having another game tomorrow, I supposed he was likely just busy.

I wondered how things were going between him and his dad. Zach hadn't really mentioned him in any of his texts this week, though he spoke plenty about Drea, and I knew he was happy to see her. I hoped things were going well for all of their sakes.

I smiled as I recalled the photo he'd sent of him and Drea on the beach. They'd spent most of the week in California before heading out today to South Carolina. Zach had flown out with the team, while Drea and their father flew commercially and would meet the team there.

Wednesday, Zach sent a series of photos. Selfies of himself and Drea on the Santa Monica Pier. Shots of their feet in the water. And several in a row of a wave that had taken Drea by surprise. She'd rolled her jeans to her calves and had been standing with her back to the ocean when a wave had crested around her waist, soaking most of her torso and her hair. The look of surprise on her face, followed by laughter, had made me smile, but it was the last picture, another selfie of the two of them laughing, that I was thinking of now.

The smile on Zach's face was the most joyful and relaxed I'd ever seen him. His eyes had been alight with merriment, his smile wide and bright. It had sent a wave of warmth through me, and I'd found myself pulling up the picture several times over the last couple of days just to study that look on his face.

As I ran my soapy hands down my body, I realized with a shock that my dick was partially hard. Other than morning wood, I hadn't had an unassisted erection since middle school, when the lightest brush of my boxers would have me springing up and ready to salute in a fraction of a second. These days, I had to coax an erection into existence with my hand, and most days, I didn't bother. I liked an orgasm as much as the next guy, but honestly, most of the time, I didn't think about it. That urge, that need to get off, just simply wasn't there.

But now, standing in the shower with hot water running down my body, I took my cock in hand and gave it a stroke. A groan escaped, echoing around the shower walls, and at that moment, I was glad I was the only one home. I continued to stroke, my dick lengthening to a full erection as little jolts of pleasure coursed through me.

I paused, reaching for the bar of soap and slicking up my hands. Turning, I leaned against the wall for support and continued working myself over. I tilted my head back to rest against the wall while lowering my free hand to cup my balls. As I tugged and rolled them in one hand, I stroked my dick faster with the other.

My pulse spiked and my breaths came in pants until I felt the telltale tingle at the base of my spine, indicating an orgasm was imminent. With a few more vigorous strokes, I erupted, coming hot and thick all over my hand. I breathed through it, grunting with each pulse, until eventually, the waves subsided and my cock began to soften once again.

Holy hell . Where had that come from?

I finished my shower, drying off and wrapping a towel around my waist before heading across the hall to my bedroom. Not bothering with clothes, I climbed into bed, pulling the covers over me and thinking about what had just happened in the shower.

Tonight, I'd gotten hard, or at least partially so, out of nowhere. No. Not nowhere. I'd been thinking about Zach and that picture he'd sent me. The way his face had lit up with his smile. His absolute joy. Despite coming just twenty minutes prior, my cock gave a little twitch at the thought.

Oh shit .

Was this what attraction felt like?

Was I attracted to Zach?