For the next two days, I worked hard at every practice and conditioning session. Everyone else did as well. Not one person took the chance of possibly not getting Friday off. It just so happened though, that Wednesday and Thursday were the hottest days of the week. And unfortunately, Friday was suppose to be even hotter. Looks like we'll not be spending much time outside.

Unfortunately, even practicing in the morning didn't help that the sun was beating down on us and the humidity sat on your skin like a fur jacket. I could only imagine how the team, who practices in the afternoon feels.

Even though we were inside during the afternoon for conditioning, the summer heat found its way inside. The air conditioner in the weight room could not blow out enough cold air to satisfy us as we lifted weights. The hot air was just blown around. A couple fans were pulled in, but nothing helped the boiling temperature. Sweat trickled down our faces, backs, necks, and made our hands slick. A case of water was brought at all times to practices and conditioning because we were losing so much water from sweating. Luckily, no one has passed out or thrown up from heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

It had been silent for the last two days at dinner. No one had enough energy to crack a joke or even start a conversation for that matter. On Thursday night looking around the table, there was a sense of relief like a weight had been lifted off our shoulders. There wasn't really a plan for what we were going to do tomorrow, but I don't think anyone wanted a real structured plan for the day off.

Thursday night, Miles and I agreed on not putting an alarm. Although, no sleeping beyond noon. I went to bed feeling good about getting a few more hours of sleep that night.

...

My eyelids started opening to the sun coming through the blinds. I laid in bed, feeling refreshed about not having to rush to get ready for breakfast and practice. I clicked on my phone and found it to be 8:30. Not exactly the number of extra hours I wanted, but an extra hour and a half would work. I let my body slowly wake up before making any attempt of getting up. Stretching my arms over my head, I sat up and yawned.

The room was dim from the bit of light coming in from the blinds. The air conditioner rattled quietly in the corner. I blinked and waited for my eyes to adjust. The usual light puppy snoring came from the other side of the room like every morning. Miles was still sleeping away as usual.

Every morning, I had to wake him up, so he wouldn't be late. Sometimes it was a simple poke in the arm or shoulder, but other times he was stubborn about not getting up and it took several minutes to get him up. Most of the time, I would grow impatient pretty fast and just hit or yelled at him to get up. That would usually lead to an argument before I would storm out of the room because he was being such a jackass. Keep in mind I am an only child, so I don't have to deal with these things. My mom was the one who would have to deal with trying to get me up.

I tried putting my legs out to stand, but cramps stopped me from taking a step. The practices and conditionings were catching up to me. I probably needed to take a light jog/walk to loosen them up. Most people just want to lay around when they are sore because they don't want anything to hurt any more than it already does, but you actually are suppose to do some kind of light exercise to break up the build up of acids in your muscles. My mom being an ex-D1 soccer player has a lot of tricks for muscle cramps and soreness. I rarely have a day after a game or practice where I was allowed to sit around. Mom would always make me do something to not have muscle tenses or cramps. Not exactly what I want to do after having an exhausting day the day before, but I always knew it would help in the long run.

Grabbing a pair of running shorts, a tee-shirt, and a sports bra, I walked to the bathroom to change. I quickly slipped everything on. I did my best of running a brush through my hair, but bed head was the hardest to tame. I put it in a very wavy, messed up pony tail, before picking my pajamas up to put under my pillow to wear for when I go to bed tonight.

When I slipped back in the room trying to make as little noise as possible, I found Miles still to be passed out on his bed. He didn't look like he was moving anytime soon. I was curious how long he would stay asleep. My bet is that I'll have to wake him up in time for lunch.

Lacing up my running shoes, I put my key in to the small pocket that is sewn on the inside of my shorts and tiptoed out the door.

Making it all the way down without a hitch, I stretched out the muscles in my legs to ready them for a bit of physical activity. Since it was morning, the temperature was slightly cooler than usual and the humidity was not on full blast just yet. There was also a small breeze blowing in to help. I didn't know the way around the campus at all because we've stayed only in the sports complex the entire time we've been here. Might as well learn my way around a bit and see what's here.

I started out of the parking lot and turned right down the street parallel to it. Shrubs and flower beds lined the street as I ran along. My legs were tight, but slowly they loosened up and made it easier to run. Steadying my breaths, I stretched my stride out.

Running was a bit of outlet for me anyway. I could do it by myself and go at my own pace. There was room to think and enjoy my own company. As you can see all the outlets I've ever mentioned are usually isolated ones. Reading is something you do by yourself, and running is likewise. Being a loner for the Fat Years, just pushed me to do more activities that didn't require anyone else. The worst part was I decided I didn't want to play on a baseball team for about a year and half after Dad died. I lost my motivation to try. Sure I would hit off the tee and throw a ball at the wall for hours on end, but being with other people didn't interest me. I wanted to be as far away from others as possible.

When Mom finally got out of her small lapse of depression she pushed me back in to being on a team. I refused to even think about it, but she made it clear that I couldn't mop around anymore. It took a while for us to find a travel team that would let me come try out. It only made me more discouraged, but Mom pushed through until she found Coach Brent.

He was a younger coach that was open to the idea. He was coaching a 14u team at the time. I was really worried about trying out because I had just recently lost all the weight. My size was still a worry for me. The tryout was nerve-racking to say the least. There was 13 players on the team already, and they seemed a little wary with the idea of a girl. The tryout went pretty well, and I was offered a spot. My mom was ecstatic. It was the bit of the comeback I needed. My new teammates soon became like my brothers. We moved through 15u, 16u, 17u, and now 18u together. Any outside viewer watching our practice would think we all hated each other because of all the name calling and insults that flew around. That however, was our way to show our affection. Everyone on the team was in 10th, 11th, or 12th grade. I was going to be one of the oldest next year. It was going to be my last year with them this upcoming year. I'm going to miss them a lot when I go off to college.

I refocused on my run after I made another turn on a similar street. I was probably just going to make a large circle before going back.

The street I turned on looked to be a main street on the campus. Several buildings lined the road on either side. A huge library came up on my left, and a lecture hall was on my right. Beds of flowers were planted around the outside. The grass was trimmed and green. A summer yard crew must work when school is out.

I glanced at my watch to check the time. It was 9:30 already. I probably should head back to eat breakfast and shower. I took the next right turn and scanned the tops of the trees for the stadium lights. They were probably a mile or so down the street and a bit to the right. My stomach growled, complaining for some breakfast.

The street I had turned down was lined by sorority and frat houses. They had their names printed above the door and on the mailboxes placed by their sidewalks leading to the front door. Most of them were brick, two story houses. A few were marble or wood houses that stuck out from the usually reddish brown outside walls. A couple of lawns hadn't cleaned up from their end-of-parties. Alcohol bottles, red Solo cups, and streamers littered the grass. Those lawns probably belonged to frat houses. The sorority houses had welcome mats, flowers, and pretty curtains adorning their houses, while the fraternity houses were decorated with next to nothing. Sometimes their house flag or a sports flag hung from the flag pole out front, but it is usually pretty easy to pick out which ones are which.

A break in the houses came on my left, and a low lying building took its place. I slowed my pace to investigate a little more. There was a diving board that was visible from above the roof of the building.

I bet that's a community pool.

Taking a detour, I stopped and walked up the sidewalk to check to see if I was right.

Grass surrounded all sides, and a wooden fence went along the whole outside. I went around the side and stood on my tiptoes to sneak a peek over the top. A rather large pool was inside with three diving boards and a water slide. Lounge chairs and tables with big striped umbrellas were scattered across the pool deck. The pool was clean and free of leaves or sticks from the perimeter of pine trees lining the back and right fencing.

An idea suddenly popped in to my head for today. The team should swim here for the day. No one was around and we were a ways away from the dorms or fields for anyone to see us. This was not the first pool I've broken in to before. I know you're probably thinking that I'm a delinquent. I'm not that terrible of a person. However, we didn't have a pool at my house, but my retired, out of town neighbors had one. Alyssa and Ellie were over for a sleepover, and my mom was working late at the office. She had a huge case that she needed to work on. In the middle of our movie marathon, Alyssa suddenly wanted to go swimming. It was too late for the rec-center to be open. We suddenly had the brilliant plan to use the neighbors'. They were out of town a few times a month and rarely used their pool anyway. I had scanned around for any security cameras. Fortunately, I didn't find any. They were all inside the house. We hopped their fence, spending about two hours swimming. After that, every time my neighbors were out of town after that, Ellie and Alyssa would come sleep over, so we could swim.

It would be a slight challenge to scale this fence, but it shouldn't be too bad. My neighbors' fence was a decorative cast iron one, that had a lots of holes in it, making it easier to get over. This however, was a wooden one and would be much more difficult to climb up since it had no stepping places.

Pleased with my great plan, I picked up my pace to get back to the dorms quicker. I made the last turn and jogged a little ways down the street before finding the familiar buildings.

I bounded in to the dorm building and to the elevators. Not a soul from our team was down in the lobby, yet it was now 10:00. Riding up the elevator to the second floor, I hopped off and found my way to my room. The small key that I placed in my pocket earlier was pulled out to unlock the door.

I cautiously pushed it open, trying not to make a lot of noise. When I stepped inside, I found Miles in his bed still passed out. I rolled my eyes at how lazy he was. He was dead to the world, so there was no point in walking all the way down the hall to change my shirt. Pulling the sweaty shirt over my head, I tossed it in the to-be-washed-corner. I grabbed a T-shirt out of the drawer to put on.

"Do you like taking your shirt off in front of me?" a sleep-laced voice asked.

Startled, I whipped around to find Miles with his hands behind his head, and his eyes barely open, sitting up in his bed. He yawned and watched me from still-sleepy looking eyes. He still looked pretty damn smug though.

"No! I thought you were still sleeping," I hurriedly explained.

"I woke up when you opened the door," he said with a smirk.

"How was I suppose to know since you didn't say anything?" I grumbled.

He shrugged and continued to stare at me. "You going to put a shirt on?"

I glared at him and snatched the T-shirt off the floor where I had dropped when Miles started talking.

"Wait."

"What now?"

"Did it hurt when you got that?"

"Got what?" I said confused.

He pushed his blankets down and pointed to his belly button. I looked down at my stomach, and my turquoise belly ring caught my eye.

"My belly ring?" I asked a bit amused at his curiosity.

He nodded his head and waited patiently for me to answer.

"A little. It is a needle piercing your skin," I deadpanned.

I got my belly button pierced on my 16th birthday with Alyssa. My mom was a bit hesitant at first, but after looking it up, she found we could get it done at a doctor's office. We bought the piercings at a tattoo place, but the doctor did the actual piercing. Alyssa went first and held my hand tightly. She said I shouldn't be worried. It didn't hurt too bad. There was a slight pinch and burn. I had laid down on the table, and Alyssa held my hand and started talking to me as the doctor got ready. We were in a full conversation before I felt the poke of the needle. Then just like that, we were done. Alyssa had gotten a pink one, while I got the one I was wearing. It's my favorite one I have.

"Hm," Miles hummed in response.

I yanked the shirt over my head and pulled my hair out from the material.

"What are you going to do today?" Miles yawned.

"Well, I went for a run this morning-" I started saying.

"Over achiever," Miles coughed, cutting me off.

I shot him a look. Can he not keep his mouth shut for two seconds?

"Fine, you don't have to go," I said crossing my arms over my chest.

"Go where?" he questioned me, suddenly curious.

I shrugged my shoulders.

"Oh, come on."

"Nope," I said, popping the p.

Before I knew it, Miles got up and was towering over me. His green eyes looked down at me as he stood there. He stood so close, I could feel his body heat radiating off him. He raised his eyebrow in question.

"What?" I said, cocking my head to the side.

"What were you going to say?" he said leaning forward.

My eyes were level with his chest, so I had to crane back my head to stare back.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I replied acting confused.

With my response, he stepped towards me, so I in turn, stepped back. He kept coming towards me, and I responded by going backwards. Four steps later, my back hit the wall. Uh, oh.

"Cornered," Miles said taking the last step forward. "Now, would you like to tell me what you were going to say before?"

"No, thanks."

"You're not going anywhere until you tell me," Miles stated smirking down at me.

"Really?" I half asked, half calling his bluff.

He only raised his eyebrows in response.

I sighed and tried quickly ducking beside him. Miles moved to block me. I stopped short and moved the other way. He again shifted to not allow me out. The only other way out was to just straight forward. Sticking my hands out, I attempted to shove this human blockade out of my way. Unfortunately, Miles saw it coming and grabbed both of my wrists before they could reach his chest. He then promptly pulled them straight over me and pinned them on the wall with one hand.

I gasped in surprise at now being totally locked against the wall. Sexual tension much? I felt rather uncomfortable with such a provocative position.

"Spill," Miles chuckled at my discomfort.

I struggled with his hand that was latched on to my wrists. Turning my head away, I didn't even look at his face. With his free hand, Miles used his hand to pull my chin up to look up at him. His head was ducked down to be closer to mine and I could feel a blush starting to rise.

"Come on, Princess or else we're going to be here all day," Miles coaxed.

I stuck my tongue out at him and glared.

"Gloria," Miles whined, "please."

Did he just say please? I guess there're firsts for everything.

"Please?" I said acting surprised.

Miles rolled his eyes. "Pretty please," he said poking my side with his finger with each syllable.

I squirmed around with each poke to my ticklish sides. Trying to keep my laughter under control, I grimaced at him.

"Ticklish are we?" he interrogated.

I've always been super ticklish on my sides and on my stomach. It's my weak spot.

I shook my head vigorously, keeping my lips clamped together.

"Oh, yes we are," Miles teased, poking me in the side. I contained a squeal that was on the verge of escaping my mouth.

"If you don't start talking pretty soon, we'll see how ticklish you really are," he threatened.

"You wouldn't," I hissed, trying to call his bluff.

Suddenly, Miles started lowering his face towards mine even more. His cheek brushed the top part of my head as he put his lips right by my ear. His warm breath brushed against my ear and neck. I trembled slightly at how close he was to me. "Sweetheart, you have no idea what I would and wouldn't do to you," he said darkly.

Shit.

With that, the tickling began. His hand lowered to my side and tickled right above my hip. I squealed at the sudden attack. I jumped around as he brought his second hand from my hands to tickle my other side. I squealed and laughed harder as his fingers traveled up my sides.

Miles chuckled at my fidgeting around as he tried to get the answer he wanted. With my now free hands, I pushed him in the chest and caught him off guard. He stumbled a little backwards, and that was all I needed to slip under his arm and try to run away. He quickly recovered and stuck his arm out to catch me around the waist. I laughed harder as he pulled me towards him and wrapped me in a bear hug to his chest. He kept me trapped with one strong arm, and the other one came to tickle me yet again. I wiggled around and let out uncontrollable giggles.

Miles's chest rumbled against my back as he laughed harder with me. I balled up my hands and hit his arm with my fists. Nothing was working to fend him off. An idea slipped in to my mind right as I let out another high-pitched squeal.

"You're sweaty," he complained.

"I told you I just went for a run, Stupid," I got out between giggles.