Over My Shoulder

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Stacy reflected on the fight she and Amy had had. It was strange and confusing... not to mention, more or less one-sided.

She walked across the campus, one destination in mind at that very moment. She couldn't understand it... Why would Amy tell her something like that? She hadn't meant to upset her friend, but she simply couldn't believe that Shane would do something so rotten. He was different - sweet, caring and thoughtful. He wouldn't ever use a girl like Amy was claiming... could he?

No, never, the leggy blonde thought. Not a chance. She shook such thoughts from her mind and made her way onto the field bleachers. As she entered a row and took a seat, she couldn't help the big smile that suddenly adorned her face.

There he was... She could see him out on the field as the team practiced. Shane was looking especially great out there. Stacy shielded her eyes to the sun, which had just started peeking out from behind a large, fluffy-looking cloud. She wondered how long it would be before he looked up and spotted her. It wouldn't be difficult, as the bleachers were deserted at this time of day.

Coach Michaels suddenly blew his whistle, and he didn't appear happy. Stacy's smile faded as she realized someone had been fumbling and looked quite sluggish on the field a moment earlier.

"Okay, that's it, Levesque!" the coach yelled. "You're done for the day." He trotted over to the dumbfounded quarterback. "Get yourself straightened out and come back tomorrow."

The tall blonde frowned as she could hear Paul protesting. She couldn't make out his words, but it was obvious he was questioning Michaels.

"No," Coach said. "You're out for the rest of the day, and that's final." He turned to a player who was positioned way toward the back. "You - Irvine! Come over here, you're quarterback for the day!"

The considerably smaller blond made a slight run for the front.

Even from this distance, as Levesque removed his helmet, Stacy was able to make out the sour expression on his face. He glared at Chris Irvine as though blaming him for the position he was in before briskly walking away and off the field.

She shuddered slightly, creeped out. She knew of the rumors about the quarterback from the prior semester but didn't know how true they were. After all, there had never been any definite confirmation. Still, she didn't like the guy, and she wondered how Shane managed to be friends with him. They seemed about as night and day as two people could get.

As though reading her mind, the dark-haired man suddenly looked up, right at her, from his position on the field. He gave her a nod and a thumb up. On top of that, Stacy suspected he was smiling at her, but from this vantage point, she really couldn't tell.

As she sat there and continued to watch the team practice, the tall blonde suddenly became aware that her cell phone had dinged. She realized that she'd just received a text message. Sighing at being interrupted in enjoying the game, she reached into her bag for her phone. She flipped it open, noticing that indeed, she had received a text. She decided to open it and read the words on the small display.

Hey. :-) How's it going? Long time no see. Was wondering if you'd like to hang out later? Let me know.

- Jay.

Stacy smiled as she closed the message and then flipped the cell phone closed. She decided she would reply to her friend later. For the time being, she'd rather been enjoying the practice game of The Badgers.

*

Forty minutes later, practice was over. Stacy made her way to the bottom of the bleachers, a smile present on her face as Shane jogged his way over. He reached up to remove his helmet and gave her a grin.

"Hey there," he said, eyeing her up and down as subtly as he could manage. He was impressed that she was here, obviously just to see him. Yeah, he was good... He knew exactly what kind of effect he was having on her. And it totally bolstered his ego.

"Good game!" the leggy blonde exclaimed, bursting with excitement. He was all sweaty and dirty, but she still found him incredibly appealing in that state. There was just something about him and his good old boyish charm.

Shane cocked a half-smile onto his face as he looked into her eyes. p>"Thanks. Look, I gotta hit the shower, but how about we go out on the town after I'm done?"

"Oh, I don't know if now is the best time," she protested, shaking her head as she thought about Jay's text message.

"Aw, come on," the young man said. "We'll have fun... Make a whole day out of it. I promise."

Stacy eyed him and quickly felt a smile returning. Slowly, she nodded.

"Okay... That sounds great."

"Awesome," Shane smirked. He stared at her, contemplating kissing her, but he was a mess. Instead, he said, "I'll meet you back here in fifteen minutes."

She nodded, and he trotted off, fully smug and satisfied.  
 
 
 

Part 28

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