*Steven's POV*

I'm infuriated with him. I know he knows that I am.

But of course I can't express that with him because he did just save both of our asses. Then again...he did just prevent me from going to soccer practice.

He's an asshole.

Although I can't help but smile at the thought that he's my asshole. That doesn't change the fact that I'm going to kick his ass for this.

I suddenly feel someone breathing down my neck, turning around to see Damien ogling me with curious hazy blue eyes. A scoff left my lips as I pinpointed the look in his eyes as lust.

When isn't he horny?

''What?'' I ask him, starting a slow walk in the direction of the detention he earned us. Of course he began to follow closely behind me. Extremely close.

''Nothing,'' He spoke, giving me my response, ''You just look sexy when you think.'' He whispers in my ear. I raise a brow at him, putting my hand over his face and pushing him away.

If he thinks we're about to be all buddy-buddy and discretely cozied up in detention he's dead wrong. I'm still pissed at him.

''You're not off the hook,'' I inform him. I hear a sigh leave his lips. I glance over my shoulder to see him shaking his head.

I don't care if he feels like I'm being inconsiderate right now. Soccer is important to me, and missing this practice means I can't play in the game tomorrow.

And it's not some big secret that if you miss a practice before an event you won't be allowed to participate. He knows this, he's on the football team. Then again missing practice doesn't affect his eligibility to perform at all since he's the quarterback.

Believe it or not, but I'm sure it's pretty damn believable, they allow him to play no matter what because they know they need him to win.

He can go to two practices a week if he wants and completely skip their weekend practices and you'll still see him in the game on Friday.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not talking bad about him. He's a really good football player, with or without the practice. It's so effortless for him. And I'm over here killing myself to be the best not only in the classroom but on the soccer field as well.

I mean, I barely even made it on the varsity soccer team because of my age, and now I have the honor of being the captain. Just so you know, I'm not really the stereotype Asian, if that wasn't already blatantly obvious, but I did skip a grade so that I could take more advanced classes.

But that didn't exactly help me in the sports area because a team full of seventeen and eighteen-year old's don't want a sixteen year old on the team, let alone as their team captain. So at least I know that they'll be more than happy to hear I'm out of the game tomorrow. They can thank Damien for that.

Ugh, asshole.

''If you were gonna be such a bitch about it Steven, you shouldn't have passed the note in the first place. I'm not afraid to admit that I screwed up, okay? I know that. But use that brain of yours for a minute, because so did you.'' He says, taking faster strides to walk ahead of me.

I roll my eyes. If that was his attempt at making me feel bad it wouldn't work. I have a high wall of protection around my emotions Damien Vitalé, and you my asshole of a friend, will not penetrate that wall.

''And in case you're too stuck in your own head to realize it, everything I did in that classroom, I did for you.'' He says over his shoulder before entering Mr. Richards class. I sigh, shaking my head.

Well, there goes my fucking wall.

I guess now it is my turn to pull my head out of my ass and apologize to him. Something a lot worse could've happened besides me missing a single game. Something like Mr. Richards seeing what I wrote on that paper.

Just thinking about it is making me blush.

Even though apologizing isn't my favorite thing in the world to do I know I have to stop being a dick and be grateful for Damien because the only reason Mr. Richards didn't see that note is because of what he did.

Now he's mad at me.

Great, we're mad at each other now.

I just have yet to understand why we act like this. So caring towards each others emotions. We aren't in a relationship, we're not, but it certainly does feel that way when someone crosses a line or gets emotionally hurt. It pulls us deeper into whatever this thing is that we've been secretly building for a while now.

And speaking of emotions, I can feel my emotions for this asshole growing. When Damien and I are together, when we're intimate, I swear he's a completely different person.

He scares the hell out of me with how rough he can be whenever we decide to take it down that road. He doesn't hold back at all, biting, scratching, sucking, breaking the thin layer of my skin to leave his mark for weeks.

But when he's gentle...damn I hate the gentle Damien Vitalé at times and how he can keep me on edge for hours with no end to the way his lips would gently caress my heated skin.

And damn, I must admit that I love it.

I love everything about him when he's with me.

I enter the classroom, heading to the back to take a seat. I like the back of the classroom, besides being peaceful the view is always better from this angle.

I quickly spot Damien on the opposite side of the classroom, looking extremely committed to tapping furiously at the screen of his phone. Right beside him some hopeless girl, -I think her name is Kayla, I recognize her from Civics-, tries desperately to get his attention to no avail.

Even though she's really attractive and resembles the exact type of girl Damien would sleep around with before him and I started...started what we have going on, I'm not worried. I know he won't give her the time of day, and while deep down that made me extremely happy, it also made outsiders view him as a massive jerk.

Their logic is that since the most popular jock and fuckboy of the school went from screwing every girl that walks these halls to not screwing anyone of them at all, clearly he's become conceited beyond reprimand.

I mean I can think of more logical reasons he's a jerk but I'll just keep that to myself.

''Okay, take your seats.'' Mr. Richards speaks, leisurely entering the room. He takes a seat behind his desk, taking test papers out and beginning to grade them.

A quiet laugh escapes my lips. I already know I have an A on that.

''I want thirty minutes of absolute silence, oh and Mr. Vitalé,'' Mr. Richards says, looking up from his work to stare intently at Damien.

Damien looks up into Mr. Richards eyes with a knowing smirk. ''Please try your best not to consume anything else that might affect your health in any way. As much as I live for the thought of suspending you, I really hate paperwork.''

I suppressed the laughter that attempted to leap from my lips. Although that didn't stop me from grinning ear to ear.

Of course I don't actually think Damien is stupid. Whether he chooses to admit it or not, he's really good at school yet he purposely refuses to put forth effort. It's seriously not even that hard.

I have to bribe him with blowjobs just to make him show up on occasion.

To my surprise the time flew by. Mr. Richards released us from detention with ten minutes to spare. I leave the classroom heading in the direction of the locker room.

I might as well go beg the coach to let me play tomorrow since clearly I have nothing better to do than avoid my problems.

I know I have to apologize to Damien...and I will.

Just as soon as I can find a way to shove my pride somewhere where it wont get in the way for a couple of minutes. Until then, I'll just keep my distance from him. That shouldn't be too hard, it's not like we're attached at the hip or something.

I walk into the locker room, the smell of sweat and musk evading my nostrils. Unfortunately I'm used to that smell, so it doesn't bother me so much. I walk towards the back of the room where the coaches office is.

''Well Yeiun, it's nice to see your face around here. Although I am sure I should've seen you ten minutes before practice even started Mr. Varsity Team Captain.'' Coach says, not even giving me the chance to step into his office before those words leave his lips.

I sigh, walking over to his desk. Before I can reply, he speaks again, not even glancing up from the playbook in his hands.

''Look Yeiun,'' He puts the playbook down on his desk, looking me in the eyes, ''When I made the decision to make you captain of the varsity team it wasn't to set a new trend or to prove that the underclassmen athletes have the same skill levels as the upperclassmen athletes.

I put you in this position because you showed me that you had ambition, drive, passion, talent and commitment. I told you that it was going to be hard getting your teammates to look to you as a leader because of the age gap, and you told me you could handle it.

Now I've been seeing you trying with them, but missing the final practice before the first game of the season isn't how you earn their respect, or mines. Do you get where I'm coming from?''

''Yes, sir.''

''Good, good. Now as far as playing in tomorrow's games, you're in. Vitalé was in here a couple of minutes ago explaining to me how Mr. Richards gave you both a detention for something that he did. So you're off the hook this time, but don't let detention become a regular thing.

You're a good kid Yeiun, don't let stupid shit hold you back. I understand you're trying to fit in, but maybe Vitalé and his crowd of friends aren't the right people for you.

Think about it, and close my door on your way out.'' Coach says, picking the playbook back up.

I nod my head, leaving his office, shutting the door as I go.

I'm happy as hell that I didn't just get his playbook thrown at my head. I can't stress enough on how much it means to me to be the captain of the varsity soccer team.

This is really big for me, and for Damien to almost fuck that up with that stupid detention just pisses me off.

Then again the asshole did just save my ass.

''Fuck,'' I mumble, walking out of the school.

He just saved my ass for the second time today. First with the note and now with the game tomorrow.

Why would he do that?

I'm not being ungrateful, I can't thank him enough for what he's done but that still doesn't kill my curiosity on why he did it.

This, 'taking one for the team' attitude has never been apart of Damien's personality.

I didn't think he'd throw himself out on the line like that for me to play in the game. Football is important as hell to him and he really just risked not playing in the game tomorrow so that I would be able to play in mines.

And here I am, all day just being an oblivious jerk.

I hate myself, I've never felt more stupid than I feel right now. And that's saying a lot, considering I'm the smartest kid in this school.

Wow.

I might as well add egotistical to my list of flaws with a statement like that.

I figure Damien will need a ride home since I drove him to school today, but when I make it to the parking lot he's nowhere to be found.

I sigh, climbing into my car and starting it up.

I should've known he'd be so pissed at my ungrateful attitude that he'd push me away. I'm not mad, I know I deserve it.

I've been acting like a bitch to him all day when he's treated me like the complete opposite of that.

I didn't mean to, I'm just so fucking blinded by myself sometimes.

I pull out of the parking lot, driving in the direction of his house.

The sooner he realizes that I'm not that easy to get rid of, the quicker he'll understand how I'm starting to feel about him.

Although I'll never just come right out and tell him.

And we are what we are.

Friends...

Brothers...

And lovers.