Chapter 19

Adrian's POV

Today's our fifth game of the season, and I'm ready for sure. Again, practice has been completely smooth sailing for the entire roster, and me and Derek are getting along better than we have ever really gotten along. I'm so happy about that, because he's such a fun person to hang out with.

His personality has changed a lot since last year, he's more serious now, but he still has elements of being a goofball sometimes. When we're watching TV, he'll talk out loud about random shit happening on the TV, and make fun of the characters. I sometimes tell him to stop talking, but I really don't care. I like hearing his voice, because for some reason his voice makes me feel safer. Derek makes me feel safer.

I think the fact that he talks to me openly about how he's gay is also a good sign. He's comfortable enough around me to be open. He's also a great listener. I'll be yapping about anything, and he'll be nodding, giving me advice, all of that shit. He also talks to me about his problems too, I feel like we're basically each other's sounding boards now and I'm totally happy about that.

I might be a little delusional (actually, I definitely am) but Derek said we should start working out together, and I said yes immediately. Maybe suspiciously fast, but he didn't say anything. If he hasn't already figured out that I have unbelievably strong feelings for him, he might be blind.

I don't care though, if he doesn't know I have feelings for him, we can continue what is currently one of the greatest friendships I've ever had with someone. If he figures out that I have a huge crush on him, he might get weird and things might get awkward. I don't want that.

Derek is still the most beautiful person on the planet in my eyes, and that is not going to just randomly change. Add the fact that he's treating me better than anyone that isn't my mom or my dad, and this whole situation is pretty much impossible to get out of. Even if he wasn't as attractive as he is, I would still probably have feelings for him because of how nice he is to me.

Right now, I'm just chilling in me and Devin's dorm room with Devin, but not Derek. I don't know if Derek has woken up yet, it's still pretty early. Me and Devin have the same internal clock, so we're up by 7 AM and already watching TV.

"Do you have Hulu?" I ask.

"I could get it soon, I'm gonna be in some ads soon for Gatorade, so I'll be making bank."

"Damn, really? I should maybe be more open about being gay, maybe a company wants a gay spokesperson in their ads."

"Yeah, definitely. You could easily make more money than me in NIL too, that's the thing. You're an amazing football player as well, so that will also help you get deals. I think Cam and Aaron are getting deals, their deals are worth tens of thousands of dollars, it's kind of crazy. You could be making that kind of money too, just be more vocal I guess," Devin suggests.

"Yeah. That could work. I see Cameron and Aaron all over social media, and, to be honest, I don't really want to be posting things on social media, but if that brings me more attention from big companies, that would be great."

"Yeah. I know you might get hate comments, and I'm 100% sure that Cam and Aaron get hate comments, but please, just block it out. Ignore them, block them, do whatever you need to just not have to deal with those people."

"Yeah. I do need some money, my family is going to Hawaii for Christmas because of their 20th anniversary, and my grandparents paid for the hotel, all the things we can do while I'm there, but I need to pay for my plane ticket. And that is going to be super fucking expensive. So yeah, I do need to get some NIL deals, that's for sure," I state.

"Yeah. Don't worry, one advertisement will probably be enough for a round trip."

"Yeah."

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask you. You've been spending damn near all of your time with Derek, is there anything happening there?" he asks and I freeze. Damian knows about Derek being gay, and Devin might know that I have a huge crush on Derek. Are we really that easy to read?

"No, why?"

"Because you're spending all of your time with him. You never spent this kind of time with me and Cam in high school, but I feel like every time I see you, Derek's with you."

"Well, we're friends, you know, he's cool, we play on the same side of the field, you know, we have to have some kind of chemistry," I state, somehow not stuttering over my words.

"You like him, don't you?" Devin grins at me. "You have a crush on Derek."

"No I don't," I lie. I can't really keep this shit up anymore, he knows.

"I mean, I'm straight and I have a girlfriend, but Derek is one of those guys that I look at and I can tell, even though I'm straight, that he's super hot. Alicia told me she thinks he's attractive as well, I feel like you have good taste in men. You should be proud."

"Uh, thanks. I mean, I don't know what you're talking about! I don't have a crush on Derek!"

"Stop trying to deny it, I'm not judging you. It's clear Derek is trying to get some kind of attention by wearing super tight wife beaters. You just have a crush on him, and that's normal. I have a crush on Alicia still, because I still can't really seem to process that I'm with her. I bet Cam and Aaron still have a crush on each other. Crushes make you feel alive, and make you want to look your best, and that's what the two of them do, and that's what I do. It's totally normal, so don't be embarrassed about something normal," Devin tells me.

"Yeah, I guess. You're right, by the way, I do have a crush on Derek. He's not gay though, so I don't really have a chance with him." I'm still gonna cover for Derek. I don't want anyone being suspicious of him because he really wants that to stay secret.

"I mean, yeah, but still, having a crush on him is normal. Just don't sweat it, I'm sure he really likes you and wants to spend time with you, so treasure that. And hey, maybe he's raising your standards. They should be high, by the way, you deserve someone that loves you."

"Yeah. Thanks, Devin."

"No problem."

We continue to watch TV for the next couple of hours before we get going to the field for pregame warmups and shit like that. Devin is going with Cam and Aaron and I'm going with Derek. No complaints there.

"What were you doing all morning?" I ask.

"I was doing my hair all morning," he states.

I look over at him in a 'I don't believe you' look.

"I'm not even joking, look how good it is," he points at his hair, which admittedly is really good today. I want to just run my hand through his hair and get it stuck in all his curls.

"You were really doing that for 3 hours?"

"Yeah. What's so bad about that?"

"We have a game today, you're putting a helmet on, it's just gonna fuck your hair up again," I tell him, which should've been relatively obvious to him.

"Eh. Post game showers are 4 for 4 in terms of making my hair look good again after a game."

"Don't you like your hair dry though?" I ask.

"Yeah, but letting it air dry is fine too, it actually makes the curls look better," he states.

"Yeah, that's true. I wish I had curly hair."

"No you don't. This takes a lot of work to maintain."

"Yeah, but I'm willing to put the work in. It can't really be all that bad, can it?" I ask and he nods.

"Yes. It is hell waking up and going to the bathroom and looking up and seeing what mess happened in your hair. My hands have gotten stuck in my hair while I've tried to brush it with my fingers after showering. That's when it should be easy to run my hands through my hair, but it still isn't. That's also why I need a haircut, because if this shit gets too long, I will not get my hand out of my hair."

"Damn. Maybe I don't want curly hair."

"It's not a bad thing to not want curly hair. Your hair is already really good. Your parents gave you really good hair genes," he claims and I'm probably blushing like crazy. To have someone that looks like Derek say something like that to me is saying a lot. He looks like an 11/10 and he's complimenting my appearance.

"Thanks. Your hair is great, too."

"Thanks."

We get to the game and we're early so we just warm up for extra time. Derek is unbelievably attractive in his jersey and all of his gear. He puts on a little bit of eye black before games and I do everything in my power not to just run up to him and start kissing him. His smile while we just stretch in the corner is so fucking precious. I need to see his smile everyday for me to actually be happy.

Soon enough, the game begins and our offense is on the field first because we lost the coin toss.

"So, my room tonight? The Lakers first game is gonna be starting just after our game ends, so we can catch probably the second half of the game," I tell Derek and he nods.

"Yeah. That sounds great. The Lakers are gonna be shit this year though, but that's fine. We can just talk the whole time, too," he says, and my heart skips a beat. I still can't believe that he wants to spend time with me. I'm legitimately really honored.

Our offense scores a touchdown on the first drive of the game, further making us look like an unstoppable force on that side of the ball. Cam, Aaron, DeShaun, Kai, all of them are just so talented and they have been so solid all year.

Me and the rest of the defense runs onto the field after the kickoff, and we begin by giving up just 1 yard on a run play, which was well defended by our defensive line, who finally figured out that they don't need to be big to be good at their jobs. They now know they can just be fast and strong enough to do their jobs.

On the second play, Jax blitzes and forces the quarterback to run out of bounds for a loss of 1 yard, another great play by the defense. On third down, everyone does their job and they only pick up 3 yards on a bailout screen pass that was terribly blocked. They are forced to punt the ball back to the offense.

The first half goes really well, with all of us doing our jobs. Our opponent's defense eventually starts to get their act together, but by halftime, we're already leading 17-3. We'll probably win this game, but our offense kind of needs to play better.

On the first drive back on the field, me and the defense have to go on the field first, which is fine. We'll do our jobs, so everything will be fine.

On the first play, Devin gets a sack, pushing them back 4 yards. On the second play, the run play they drew up actually worked alright, gaining them 6 yards, making it 3rd down and 8.

The quarterback snaps the ball, looking around the field, not even noticing how close our defensive line is closing in on him. They are actually out dueling the offensive line, which hasn't really happened yet this year.

He eventually throws it, to a receiver cutting across the middle of the field, and I have to quickly go after him, jumping up in the air with the receiver, who is unable to get ahold of the ball.

I realize way too late that I'm falling, and my head hits the hard turf, and I blackout.

Derek's POV

"Adrian!!!" I yell, running over to him after watching his head hit the turf, not just a little softly, but really hard. It sounded like it hurt a lot.

I pick up his head in my right hand and look down at him. His eyes are closed. I think he might've just gotten a concussion.

"Adri, are you okay?" I ask, even though it's relatively obvious that he's not.

Soon enough, team doctors are there and he eventually opens his eyes. The doctors call an ambulance and take him to the hospital. I really fucking hope he's alright. I heard his head hit the ground, that was a really bad sound.

I have to keep playing for the rest of the game, but I obviously can't get my mind off of Adrian. I have to go to him in the hospital. If he has to stay all night, I'm staying all night with him, unless they kick me out after visiting hours. I really hope that doesn't happen, because I desperately want to be there for Adrian, and just make sure he's alright. He probably got knocked out by that fall, that's why his eyes were closed.

We win the game, but I still can't stop thinking about Adrian and his body just lying on the field. At least he woke up, that's a good sign I guess, but still. It's just a horrible thing to watch. That should've been me hitting the ground, not him.

Coach Nelson looks down at the floor before actually addressing us.

"Uh, I don't really know what to say. Great performance by everyone tonight, I'm proud. We're 4-1 now, so uh, that's good. Please keep Adrian in your thoughts, let's hope he's alright. That was really difficult to watch. That's the mentality we should all be striving to have. He got injured from hustling hard, he didn't think about what could've happened, he just did it. That's the heart of a winner right there. Thank you all," he says, and I bolt out of there before saying anything to anyone else.

I go straight to the gas station I know they sell pink lemonade from, buying one for Adrian and buying myself some more water. I will stay by Adrian all night if that's what has to happen, and I'll want some water so I can stay hydrated.

I get to the hospital and speed walk to the front desk, where a medical assistant is typing on her computer.

"Hi, how can I help you?" she asks.

"Can you tell me what room Adrian Sanders is in?" I reply and she nods.

She quickly types in his name and tells me to go to the fourth floor, to the left, to room 407. I speed walk again, going to the elevator and getting in, pressing on the fourth floor button and then spam pressing the close doors button.

When the elevator opens, I go to the left, where she told me to go, and find room 407.

Adrian is in there, sitting up. He's staring at his lap, where his hands are laying. I have to be honest, post concussion, he still looks really pretty. Am I surprised? Not really, because Adrian is really attractive damn near all the time.

I slowly walk in, and he looks up and his face lights up immediately. I go over to his bed and give him a tight hug. He hugs me back.

"Are you okay?" I ask quietly.

"I'll be fine. The doctor told me I got a concussion, but I'll be playing again in 2 weeks. Thank you so much for coming, Derek, you have no idea how much I appreciate this."

"Don't thank me, Adri, I needed to know that you're alright. Are you sure you're doing alright?" I ask again, looking into his eyes with concern.

"My head hurts like hell, but it's nothing I can't handle. The doctor also told me I have to stay here for the night, just to make sure I'm doing alright. They don't want me driving either, so that's another thing."

"I'll stay here with you, if you want," I say, and he smiles at me.

"That would be great, Derek, thank you so much."

"No problem. This is really not an inconvenience to me, I need to be here for you, and besides, I don't really feel like spending time with anyone else right now anyways, so this is actually good. Plus, there's a TV here, we can still watch the Lakers shit themselves on national television."

"Yeah. That sounds great."

I give him another hug, patting him on the back. He hugs me back for the second time, and I don't know what it was that just happened to me, but butterflies started to go crazy in my stomach.

"By the way, I got you some pink lemonade," I tell him, pulling the bottle out of my pocket.

"Is it warm?" Adrian looks at it in a little bit of disgust.

"No, it's still cold. It wasn't in my pocket for that long."

"Okay, good. Thanks by the way, you didn't have to buy me this. I have money by the way, I can pay you back right now if you want," he states.

"No, Adri, don't pay me back, I don't need it. Where's the remote?"

"Here, I got it."

Adrian turns on the TV and turns it to the Lakers game. I look over at him, his lips turned up just slightly. His hair looks great still and his jawline is still something that could cut someone's finger.

He's absolutely fucking gorgeous.

Adrian is one of the most beautiful people, appearance and personality. He has such a beautiful soul, and my entire life just feels better with him in it.

I don't know what's going on right now, to be for real. I think I have feelings for Adrian. I think they're pretty strong, but that could also just be me wanting to spend all my time with him. Is that something a friend usually thinks about his other friend? Is it normal for me to be falling for a guy that is currently my closest friend?

"Hey, you okay?" Adrian asks me, noticing that I might look a little conflicted.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine," I answer, smiling at him. He smiles back at me before turning his attention back to the TV.

God damnit, he's literally so fucking gorgeous.

Like I said already, my life just feels right when I'm with him. I've never totally felt this kind of emotion for any other person. Sure, I really had a huge crush on Cameron, but I didn't feel this good while being around him. Adrian is just so funny and perfect and there are so many more positive adjectives I could call him, but none of them would really do him justice.

"Holy fuck, who the hell is that?" Adrian asks, pointing to the screen at some random ass white dude.

"I don't know, but if he keeps bricking layups he'll be off the team."

"Yeah, holy shit, he's ass. Hopefully he can get better."

Again, like I've said probably 30 times by now, I don't know what's happening to me, and I don't know what special spell Adrian has on me, but I'm falling for him, and I'm falling for him hard.

Right when my life was seriously starting to go downhill, when my mom was being way more homophobic than I've ever seen her, and me falling into a serious depression that could've ended up being fatal, I found Adrian having a panic attack in the locker room, which was one of the most upsetting things I've ever seen. Since then, he's been the closest person to me. I'm spending more time with him than I've ever spent with another person, and I really enjoy the time we spend together.

And now I've caught feelings for the only person that I like spending time with. I guess it makes a bit of sense. Like I said, he's such an amazing person that seems incapable of hurting someone, plus he's so attractive.

I want to hold him in my arms and hug him forever. I want to hold his gorgeous face in my hands while staring into his beautiful eyes. I want to go on dates with Adrian.

He gives me hope for the future, whether my future holds me and him dating or not. I don't know if this is the best way to describe him, but because I feel like he's really saved my life somehow, he's my angel.

Adrian's my angel.

A/N: My new favorite chapter of this book now, I am so excited for the next couple of chapters. If this slow burn is killing you right now, I'm sorry. I love these two so much, and having them get together in less than 20 chapters would just not do them justice. Adrian is lowkey becoming my favorite character I've ever written, even better than Cameron or Aaron. Derek is getting up there, and because I feel like the plotline of this book is much more solid (in my opinion) than TWB, Adrian and Derek will probably become my favorite couple. Thanks for reading!!!