Chapter 4: Déjà Vu
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
The shrill sound of my phone alarm ripped through the silence of my room.
I groaned as I blindly reached across my nightstand, nearly knocking over my half-empty water bottle, and picked up my phone to turn the alarm off.
"Fucckkkk! I'm late for practice!"
I rushed out of bed and ran to the bathroom.
I quickly brushed my teeth and threw on a pair of gray sweatpants and a white T-shirt.
I rushed out of my apartment, closing the door behind me as I began running toward the football field.
I was already twenty minutes late.
"Fuck. Coach is going to kill me."
"Hey, guys! Sorry, I'm late!"
My teammates turned to look at me.
"YOU'RE LATE, ANDERSON!" Coach yelled, smacking the back of my head with his clipboard.
"OUCH!" I yelped in pain.
"Late again. I'm putting you on cleaning duty," Coach said.
"Eww. I'm not touching anybody's shitty, sweaty underwear," I said with a look of disgust.
"Be late again, and we'll see about that," he replied, giving me a serious look before walking away.
"Alright, boys! On the field! Give me five laps as a warm-up!" Coach shouted.
Groans immediately erupted from every direction.
"WTF? Five laps? It's barely even eight in the morning. I'm pretty sure this counts as torture."
"Shut up and run," Luke said from behind me. "Can't complain if you're late."
The team slowly shuffled onto the field, complaints filling the morning air. I fell in line with the others, clearly not happy.
Five exhausting laps, countless drills, and one lecture from Coach later...
Practice was finally over.
I collapsed onto the grass, chest heaving as sweat dripped down the side of my face.
"Hey," Scoot said. He was our wide receiver and a really cool guy.
"Yo. Samantha's having a party later. You guys gonna swing by?"
"Did someone say party?" Luke asked as he walked over to us.
"Yeah. You guys coming?" Scoot asked.
"Hell yeah, we'll be there," Luke said excitedly.
"Me too. Gotta get rid of some pent-up energy," I said with a smug smile.
"Alright. I'll send the addy. Party starts at eight."
Scoot walked off.
After a quick shower, clothes were scattered across my bed as I dug through my closet.
"No."
I tossed a shirt onto the floor.
"Definitely no."
Another one joined the pile.
Finally, I settled on a black button-up and a pair of jeans. Nothing fancy. I was well aware of how hot I was.
My phone buzzed.
Luke:Yoo, you ready?
Me:Yeah, man. Coming down right now.
TIME SKIP
We had just arrived at the party.
Colored lights flashed across the crowded room while loud music blasted through the speakers.
"Now this is a party!" Luke yelled with excitement before disappearing into the crowd.
Typical.
Luke just leaves me.
Oh well. As long as I don't get drunk like last time, I should be fine.
Everyone was dancing and having a good time as I scanned the room for my next target.
There she was.
Strawberry-blonde hair.
Light blue eyes.
She was smiling so beautifully it seemed to light up the entire room.
Who is that?
As if she could feel me staring, our eyes met.
She gave me a flirtatious smile.
I started walking toward her.
Then—
THUD.
"WTF?"
I felt something wet splash onto me.
Looking down, I realized my clothes were damp with alcohol.
"You've got to be kidding me."
I looked up.
There he was.
Braden.
What the fuck is he doing here?
I stared at him, clearly pissed, but he didn't say anything.
He just stared back.
"Yo—"
Before I could push him, a drunk guy beside us stumbled into me, causing me to lose my balance.
But before I could fall, I felt a firm hand wrap around my waist.
Holding me steady.
"You okay?" he whispered into my ear.
His deep voice pierced through me, sending shivers down my spine.
Wait.
Get the fuck off me.
I shoved him away.
"What was that?"
Why was I feeling this weird sensation?
And why was he here?
A strange sense of déjà vu washed over me.
Only this time...
I was sober.