Chapter 30

30

Faust

A Trip Back in Time

I've never met someone like Shelby before.

She's different. She's cool. She's…

Aw, fuck.

The puck whizzes right past me and into the net.

The whistle blows.

"Oakley! Hit the showers!"

Coach Bill is big, red faced, and pissed at me.

Today has not been a good practice for me. I'm not here mentally. I'm so far gone, thinking about Shelby, wanting to see her again so bad.

There's another event her mother is catering this weekend.

Near the lake where we met up and had a kiss or ten the other night.

She saved me from the boring business dinner where everyone wanted to meet me, shake hands, and wish me luck on a successful hockey career.

I'm not sure how bright my career looks at this exact second since I'm being kicked out of practice.

It's the first time I've ever been booted like this.

I skate off the ice without a care in the world.

Damn, it's like I'm floating.

All from this girl I met the other night?

I shower and go back to my apartment just off campus and instead of studying, I just chill out on top of my covers on my bed, listening to some music, staring at the ceiling, counting down the hours until I can see Shelby again.

I play a beautiful game. A masterful game.

A shutout game, making saves that would make a pro goalie jealous.

I'm on cloud nine and nothing short of a legend on campus.

Any party on campus I can easily show up to and be the king of that party. That means unlimited drinks. Unlimited girls, too.

What do I do?

I shower, get dressed, and get the hell off campus.

Tonight's the night to meet Shelby again.

I drive the thirty minutes it takes to the first place where we met.

The building tonight is dark and quiet. There are NO TRESPASSING signs posted all around.

I ignore them all and sneak onto the property, going down to the water.

I stand at the edge of the lake, feeling anxious.

Shelby makes me anxious. I can't stop thinking about her. And right now I have no idea if she's actually going to show up or not. I have no clue if…

She's here.

I hear the crunch of gravel under shoes, then I'm staring right at Shelby.

I don't even bother waiting.

I run toward her.

I can't help myself.

The closer I get, the bigger the smile I see on her face.

As soon as my hands touch her sides, I pick her right up.

She lets out a playful yell and puts her hands around the back of my neck.

"I've fucking missed you so much, Shelby," I confess right away.

"I haven't stopped thinking about you all week," she says.

Those are the words I've needed to hear so bad.

We kiss. We make out.

I hug her body tight to mine.

I can't believe how badly I want her.

I just…

"Hey! Who is that! Get the fuck off this property! I have a gun!"

Shelby lets out a yell, then I toss her over my shoulder and just start to run toward my car.

She gets into the passenger seat and I get into the driver's seat.

I start the car, cut the wheel and slam on the gas pedal. A cloud of dust shields us as I speed down the private road I'm not supposed to be on.

Shelby looks terrified for a few seconds. Then she starts to smile.

"Oops," I say to her.

"Did he really have a gun?"

"I have no clue, sweetie. I'll drive around the lake and take you to the other building."

My car smells like her. The smell of food. The subtle hint of a restaurant kitchen.

I know she doesn't like smelling like that. To me, it's just… it's us.

I get onto a main road which helps to ease the tension.

I drive fast.

The road curves with the shape of the lake.

We're about halfway around the lake when Shelby reaches out and touches the steering wheel.

"Pull over right here, Faust," she says.

I love hearing her say my name.

I pull over.

I fear she's feeling ill or something.

As soon as I put the car into park, she lunges across the seat at me, grabbing my shirt. Pulling at me. Her lips colliding with mine.

We kiss harder than before. Faster than before.

I put the seat back and pull her across the car so she can get on top of me.

This is fucking insane and fucking sexy.

And Shelby is just so beautiful.

The taste of her lips. Her flirty tongue.

Her body is heavenly too.

My hands move along her sides, down to her hips. Around to her ass.

She's gently grinding on me, finding and following the shape of my cock as I am rock-hard inside my jeans.

This connection between us is undeniable.

It's pure fire.

I want to fuck her right here in my car and then I want to take her out on a date.

I want to take her back to my apartment, shower with her, then hold her all night.

I want to wake up tomorrow morning and her face be the first thing I see.

I want to fuck her in the morning, then make coffee and attempt to make breakfast.

I want—

I feel a vibration against my right hand as I cup her ass.

"Fuck," she groans, breaking the kiss.

She looks at her phone and shuts her eyes.

"You have to go back, sweetie," I whisper.

"Fuck," she says. "Yes. My mom is pissed."

"I'll drive you back. It's fine. I swear."

"All that waiting for a few minutes of kissing…"

"Worth every second of waiting," I say.

"Oh, Faust," she whispers.

We kiss some more.

She groans and has to pull herself from me.

She gets back into her seat and I adjust my seat.

I drive her the rest of the way around the lake and promise to wait for her until later.

That's what I do.

I park close but not too close.

Every second Shelby gets a break, she runs out to my car so we can talk for five seconds and kiss for ten seconds.

This is insanity… but I can't get enough.

Can you fall in love with someone this quick?

The following week I show up and Shelby never does.

I text her. I call her.

Nothing.

I drive around the lake like a hopeless fool, wondering where the hell she is. Wondering if she's okay.

I drive around until after midnight.

I'm tired as hell and need sleep.

The next morning there's a text from Shelby.

Sorry.

That's it. One word.

I text and ask her if we can meet up. Like a legit meet up together. Me and her. A coffee shop. A restaurant. A walk in the park.

I have to see her.

She doesn't respond to my texts.

That weekend I show up to the lake once more, just in case.

She doesn't show. She doesn't respond to my texts.

There's a fine line between taking a hint and texting too much.

Somewhere in my heart I just know something is off . Something happened to her.

Shelby would not do this to me.

Then again, what do I know about her?

We met how many times…? Just to kiss and flirt and dry hump each other before she had to get back to work.

Yet I can't get her out of my head.

My stomach feels sick when I think about her…

I lose the next hockey game. I played like shit.

The game after that? I play even worse.

Coach Bill pulls me in the second period.

I feel lost in the game and maybe even lost in life a little.

For what? For some girl…?

I see the sports psychologist the team pays to keep around.

He's a bald guy with glasses and loves to chew on his pen and nod a lot.

After two weeks of talking to him, I finally decide to just get off campus for a night. To go out and just be… out.

I end up at a bar, wearing a baseball cap pulled down low.

I drink a beer and casually watch a hockey game.

When I feel a hand tap my shoulder, my body perks up and I have this intense vision that it's Shelby behind me. That she's back. She's here. And I can grab her, kiss her and hold her, then find out what the hell happened and make sure it never happens again.

I look back and it's not Shelby.

"Um, you're dressed kind of suspicious," the woman says. "Are you going to do something crazy or are you just lonely?"

This woman is the complete and total opposite of Shelby.

I curl my lip. "Don't bother me."

"Too late," she says. "Now answer my question."

I stand and turn, towering over the woman.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" I ask her.

She smiles. "If you're asking me my name, it's Amy…"