Friendly Games

A thump followed shortly after by a crash as the heavy ball flung pins aside. Bowling wasn’t something I expected considering how Emma dressed for this gathering, though it quickly became obvious that she had no intention of actually bowling. That seemed to be the guys' area. The girls were gathered up at the large table happily chatting and snacking on various things they’d gotten when they first arrived.

I’d technically already been introduced, but Emma had done it again. I recognized some already. Ryan was the main one with his charming smile, perfect hair, and looks that were on par with Trent's. Zach was another one since he was one of the people I helped study before break, his looks leaning towards skater boy with his longer hair and laid back style. Justin reminded me of a tall fantasy dwarf, sturdy and strong. Grant was a giant of a man, his muscles bulging under his too-tight shirt. Colin was probably the closest to average of the group in terms of looks. Finally there was Cameron, the quietest of the bunch who looked like one of those Korean pop stars. The girls were a different story. I remembered Sarah. She was the first one Emma had introduced and the two seemed close from what I was able to see. The others were a bit of a blur. I was terrible with names and the only reason I remembered the guys was because I was thrust into their splinter group and **** to play. The table was ‘girls only.’ What they were talking about, I had no idea. They were certainly animated about it though. Plenty of laughter was being had.

Thump. I cringed as my ball rolled down the gutter. It was closer this time, almost reaching the pins. In my defense, this was the first time I’d ever been bowling. I thought I was doing rather well…

A hand clasped my shoulder. A quick squeeze followed. “So close!” I glanced over to find Ryan standing there, watching my ball slammed against the far wall and disappeared. “You’re still putting your fingers in too deep. It’s making you release the ball late and throwing off your aim. You want to release around here,” he said as he mimicked the movement so I could see. “Remember, use the arrows to help you aim. No need to eyeball the pins.”

“Thanks,” I said with a frustrated huff as the machine knocked over all my pins to reset them for the next person.

“The important part is you’re having fun.”

“I’d be having a lot more fun if I could hit the damn pins.”

Chuckling, he patted my back. “Patience and practice. Patience and practice.”

We headed back as Grant took his turn. He launched his ball like a god damn aircraft carrier launching an aircraft. A loud clatter followed as all but three pins fell. He didn’t look all that happy when he went to wait for his ball to return.

Overall, I think things were going great. Any awkwardness at the beginning had been my own. I think it would have been worse if I had to mingle with the girls too. Hanging with six popular, socially comfortable guys was pushing it for me. Tossing in eight girls who were hot and were fully aware of it? No thanks.

Baby steps first. I was already way outside my comfort zone. Eventually…

The guys seemed pretty chill with my presence. I still felt like an outsider, but that was mostly because I was out of the loop for most of their conversation topics. Ryan was the one who surprised me the most. He seemed to be going out of his way to welcome me, going so far as to mentor me on how to toss a damn bowling ball properly. It was a different vibe than with my friends. I noticed a lot of them took playful swipes at one another. The laughter that followed showed it was all in good fun, and it wasn’t long before **** was dished out. There was also a positive energy here that was far different than I was used to.

When I hung out with the gang, topics and tone tended to be more negative. We complained about games and how they never lived up to our impossible standards. Nitpicked movies instead of praising them. Complained about school and our rather crappy place in it. Leading the charge was often Owen, who never seemed to be happy. I couldn’t put the blame entirely on his feet though. I was guilty as much as he was. All of us were—except Trent of course. Even when it was just Mike and I talking shit online, there was always something to complain about.

It wasn’t that one was better than the other, but the energy was different. Wasn't sure what to think about it but it wasn't the off-putting experience I thought it would be. If I enjoyed hanging out with my group of guys, it was probably because it was more comfortable and familiar.

Of course, it didn’t help that in the back of my mind I was constantly remembering that every guy here had slept with Emma.

Multiple times.

Worse, I’d probably jerked off to it too.

Damn it. As if things weren’t awkward enough.

I glanced back to the girls’ table and caught Emma’s glance. She smiled and gave me a wave. It was the type of smile that suggested she knew what I was thinking about and I quickly looked away. Maybe I was just projecting my thoughts and she was just smiling.

We bowled for about an hour and a half. I was getting better. Latest game, I wasn’t getting many gutter balls. Strikes and spares were rare, but I was getting pins down now. I did my best to keep up with the conversation, but the guys were all over the place and talking about things I wasn’t a part of.

Ryan stretched as he stood up. “Well, it’s about time, don’t you think?”

Colin stood up, rolling his shoulders. “Warm-ups over.”

I blinked, sensing the change in atmosphere. Confused, I looked over to see the girls had quieted down as their attention turned to us. My eyes went to Emma, who was grinning as she leaned over to Sarah and whispered something that had them both giggling.

“What about the new guy?” Grant asked in his deep voice. The others turned to me. Lost, I sat there with a stupefied expression on my face.

“He plays too,” Ryan said with a smirk.

Grant raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything. “Seriously?” Zach asked.

“Why not? Emma brought him and she spends tons of time with him. He’ll be fine.”

Shrugging, Zach moved over to the terminal and entered in names. Suddenly, we were all playing one big game.

“What is happening right now?” I whispered to Ryan as he took his seat next to me as Cameron grabbed his ball and went to take his turn. He had an intense focus I hadn’t seen until now.

“The most important game of the week.” His smile widened at the sight of my confused look. “Every week, we play ‘The Game.’ I know, creative right? It changes every week to keep it fair, but it basically is our pecking order for the week.”

“Okay…”

He slapped my shoulder. “Just play your best. It’ll make sense when we finish.”

I played my best. Not that it mattered. I got slaughtered. Dead last. By a considerable margin too. The real battle was between Ryan and Grant with Ryan pulling ahead by a slim margin in the last frame. Strutting past the others, he flexed and made finger guns as he passed. Still confused by what was going on, I followed the others up to where the girls were.

“Looks like Ryan gets first again this week.” I think her name was Callie. She reminded me a lot of Lilian. Darker skin, black hair, and a wonderful pair of legs that she showed off with that short skirt of hers.

“Such bullshit,” Grant mumbled next to me as he crossed his thick arms.

“So who will it be this week?” Emma asked, glancing my way. When our eyes met, she gave me a wink.

Ryan thought for a moment before taking a step back. Slapping me on the back, he pushed me forward. “In honor of the new guy, I’ll switch places with him.”

He told me things would make sense when we finished the game, but I had no idea what the hell was going on. All I knew was I’d never seen Emma’s smile drop so quickly.

“Um,” I said, looking around in confusion. The reactions were mixed at the table. Most were neutral with a few curious expressions. Emma was the only one upset.

Slinging his arm over my shoulder, Ryan pulled me against him as he gestured to the girls with his free hand. “You get first pick of the ladies here.”

“I…uh…what?”

Now he looked confused. “Didn’t Emma explain things when she invited you? This is how we pick our partner for the week. We play a game every Friday to see what the order will be. It’s a fun way to mix things up. The girls pick the game and enjoy seeing us make fools of ourselves as we fight each other to get first place.”

“By partner you mean—”

“Sex partner,” he said, chuckling. “Come on, Emma. You seriously didn’t tell him what he was getting into tonight?”

Her expression was dark. “He doesn’t get a pick.”

Ryan frowned. I noticed he wasn’t the only one. “He played. He gets a pick.”

“He’s a guest, not a contestant.”

Colin spoke up on my behalf. “Lighten up, Emma. We’re short on the guy side anyway. Now only one of us has to double up.”

“Absolutely not. If you let him pick, I’m skipping this week.”

“Works for me,” Grant said with a shrug. “That makes it an even seven-seven.”

I was so lost as to what was going on. Emma seemed to be in a panic. It was kinda scary actually. Emma had always been this god-like presence in my life, always in control of everything around her. Here, she might still be a goddess, but she was in a pantheon of equals.

“There a reason you don’t want to let him pick?” Sarah asked, looking at her friend.

“He doesn’t get a pick because he isn’t one of us.”

“Okay, but you still haven’t explained why.” That was from the pretty blond whose name escaped me. If I remembered correctly, she was a cheerleader. Certainly looked like one. Her eyes went to me and gave me a once-over. “Not really my type, but I’ve had worse. Besides, a new cock will be fun. Haven’t had one since Callie broke up with that one guy.” I noted a few other girls nodding.

Emma looked angry, staring at me as if this was my fault. My head was still trying to process the whole picking sex partners thing. She had mentioned there being causal sex in her friend’s group, but I wasn’t expecting this. Seeing this was causing some friction, I decided to try to resolve it the only way I knew how: picking someone.

“I’ll just pick Emma then.”

“Can’t,” Colin said with a grin. “She withdrew her name.”

“Pick me. I haven’t had a new guy in months.”

“There’s a reason for that. You want to pick me. Play your cards right, I’ll even let you do anal.”

“You’re so full of shit, everywhere is anal with you.”

My world was swimming as the girls playfully fired insults at one another as they marketed themselves as the best option. Beside me, Ryan grinned as he elbowed me. “Well? Which one will it be?”

“No one,” Emma said, cutting through the playful buzz. She looked pissed. This wasn’t the first time I saw her angry, but I was sure this was the first time I’d seen her legitimately angry.

“Emma?” Sarah asked.

“He’s my picture guy,” she muttered soft enough that I barely heard. The girls around her had no trouble hearing. Sarah seemed the most surprised, though the others all had wide eyes.

“Wait. Him?”

Emma crossed her arms with a sour expression. “He’s off-limits.”

There were a lot of things I could reasonably expect from this situation. Seeing five or six girls looking disappointed at the prospect of having sex with me was…

Holy hell. I don’t know what I was even feeling right now. Disappointment? Confidence? Joy?

Never in a million years did I ever expect to have my pick of eight—well, seven with Emma out—hot girls. It was a hell of a rush to have girls make arguments to pick them over other girls. And they had been serious too.

Ryan was by my side, sighing heavily. His hand was back on my shoulder, giving me a comforting shake as he brought me back to Earth. “Tough luck there, Isaac.”

My attention wasn’t on him. I couldn’t take my eyes off Emma who was still looking unhappy about this whole thing. The world was a crazy place, and I swear everything was inverted right now as thoughts flooded my mind. Was this how Emma felt when she was teasing me? A surge of something ran through me as I grabbed hold of a singular thought. Emily’s words bounced around my head.

Emma could dish out shit, but let’s see how she enjoyed being on the other side for once.

“What if I want to pick?” I glanced over to Colin. “You said so yourself. I’ll even things up.”

Looking back over to Emma, my smug grin vanished as I saw something I don’t think I’d ever witnessed.

Rage.

Before I could say I was joking, she stormed off with all the energy of a tornado.

Fuck.

Fuck.

“S-sorry,” I said as I pulled away from Ryan’s grasp. “Emma. Emma wait!” I called out as I chased after her. I caught up easy enough but she was completely ignoring me. “Emma, I was only joking.” Matching step with her, we made it to the lobby area before she finally stopped to face me. There was a complex mix of emotions there and I wasn’t even going to start trying to unravel. There was some heat in her gaze as she stared at me. She was waiting for me to say something.

“Are you… jealous?”

Why did I say that? The anger boiled from her as she went to leave. I grabbed her arm as gently as I could to stop her, snapping my hand back at the fear I would lose it. Not backing down, I let a little of my own anger slip into my voice. “You of all people have no right to be angry about this,” I started. Seeing she wasn’t running off, I bulldozed my way forward. Emotional as I was, I kept my voice low. We were alone in the lobby, but the front desk wasn’t that far away. The guy manning it was oblivious to us, his attention on his phone. “You have made it abundantly clear we aren’t a ‘thing’ and seem to be doing your damnedest to ensure we never are. Shit, Emma. It was only a few hours ago that you were telling me your friends would be happy to take your place if I wanted. Seems that is exactly what happened.”

“But you didn’t take that option, Isaac. I offered this path, and you turned it down. The first opportunity you get, you change your mind? That’s not how this works.”

“I was only joking,” I said as I looked at my feet.

“Were you? You looked pretty fucking smug having all those pretty girls throw themselves at you.”

My nails dug into the flesh of my palms. “Can you blame me?” My eyes met hers as I continued. “Is it so bad to feel fucking wanted for a moment? For just a few seconds, feel like I’m actually worth something?” I fought against the hot tears, but I was dealing with emotional magma right now. Nothing was going to stop it as it slowly burned its way through me. “This. This right here is why I can’t trust you. It’s always a fucking one-way street with you. How the fuck am I supposed to trust you with anything when you refuse to trust me? Every time I put myself out there, you swat me down like I’m some insignificant insect bothering you. Yet you never let me go. If you don’t want me, fine. I’ll accept that. I’ve always accepted that. But why? Why won’t you let me go if you don't want me?”

Tears ran down her face. Actual tears. The shock of it was enough to blow away what I was feeling. This was one of the clearest I’d ever seen Emma, her emotions finally open and free for me to read. I could see it in her face. Everything I’d said was nothing new to her. She knew. This whole time she knew.

The shock of it made me hesitate and that hesitation cost me as she turned and left. I was about to chase after her when a hand stopped me. Wheeling around, I found Sarah resting her hand on my arm. She was carrying Emma’s coat and purse in her arms. Giving me a kind smile, she shook her head before hurrying off after her friend.

Groaning, I ran my hand over my face. Today had been one hell of a roller coaster. Today had been going so well. Where did everything go so wrong? The anger was making a comeback. It wasn’t fair. I was finally feeling more confident in myself, pushing myself to explore things outside my comfort zone and this is what it gets me?

“Women, right?” I spun around to see Ryan strolling up to me, hands in his pocket as he looked out into the parking lot where Sarah had caught up with Emma. Standing next to me, he glanced over. “You okay?”

Shit. I quickly wiped at my eyes.

“I…” My shoulders slumped as I let out a breath. “Sure.”

He patted my shoulder. “Emma’s always been a bit of a weird one. You did not pick an easy one to chase after.”

“I don’t even know why I’m chasing her. She clearly doesn’t want to be chased.”

Ryan was silent for a moment. It looked like he was having an internal debate with himself. “I wouldn’t be so sure…” He frowned, looking like he finally decided on whatever he had bouncing around inside that unfairly charming head of his. “I’m sure Emma’s told you all about our group dynamic.” I nodded, not enthused where this was heading. I managed to push aside thoughts like wondering how many pictures of him and Emma I’d masturbated to, and he was beckoning them with where this conversation was going. “We keep all this secret—best we can, anyhow.” He chuckled softly. “Pretty sure everyone at school has heard at least rumors. I wouldn’t normally say anything, even if you knew about all of us, but you are ‘Picture Guy’ after all.”

“What is that?”

He grinned. “Come on. You know exactly what it is. Emma has always been clear about what her recordings and pictures were going towards.”

“And you were okay with that?”

His shrug perfectly encapsulated someone who didn’t care in the slightest. “Our faces were never shown and she was careful not to use our names. She enjoyed it, so why not? As I said, Emma’s always been sort of weird, but she’s our sort of weird. All of us have our kinks. Some are more obscure than others.”

“Yeah,” I said, circling back. “But she was sending that to all sorts of people, not just me.”

“True,” he said, confirming what I already knew. He thought for a moment before continuing. “I’m going to continue explaining since I figure you are already okay with it. You know I sleep with Emma, right?” I powered through the tightness in my chest as I nodded. Even if I kept my face calm, I didn’t trust myself to say anything. “We’ve all been friends since freshmen year. Been doing all this for almost as long, so I have a lot of experience with her.”

Looking away, I focused my attention on Emma and Sarah in the parking lot. What I wouldn’t give to know what they were talking about right now. Certainly better than this.

“Having sex with Emma has always been kinda weird. She’s always down, which is great, but she never seems into it… you know?”

“No.”

He grimaced at my flat response. “Right.” He rubbed the back of his neck as he grinned sheepishly. “This is a lot more awkward than I thought it would be.”

“You don’t have to tell me. Believe me, it’s not exactly a wonderful feeling hearing it.”

“I believe it. I know our group is a bit out there with what we do, but of the few girls I dated, never had any interest in sharing them with the group.” I turned my head slightly to stare at him. “Not that it’s a bad thing!” he said, misinterpreting my look. “I’ve had threesomes and plenty of solo fun with a few of Colin’s girlfriends before so I’m totally not judging.”

He cleared his throat and rushed forward. “Beyond everything else, Emma is my friend and I know she has trouble talking about things, so I figure this is my chance to hopefully help out.” He sighed. “Look, really don’t know how best to say this so I’m just going to say it. Filming those videos? Taking those pictures? Only time she gets into things. I mean, really into things. I’ve been doing stuff with her for a long time and it’s only when she said she was ‘collecting material’ for her ‘Picture Guy’ was when she came alive. Outside of that, it was just kinda…lifeless?”

Ryan shifted uncomfortably under my stare. “I have no idea what to make of that.”

“Emma is weird. Always has been. She’s a great friend, but she isn’t the type of person to get all that excited over things—unless it has something to do with you.” He shrugged. “Maybe that means something to you, I don’t know. I thought you should know though.”

I frowned, trying to think back over all my interactions with her. “That doesn’t really sound like Emma though. At least the Emma I know.” I sighed. “You’ve given me something to think about at least. I… don’t know how to process it, but it does give me another perspective to consider.”

“Hope it helps. Between you and me, I think she likes you.”

I turned to face him. “And when was the last time you had sex with her?”

“Few days ago?” he said after a slight pause. I lifted my eyebrows, his answer making my point for me. “Yeah, but that doesn’t mean she likes me. Not like that anyway. The only reason she did it was to get more stuff for you anyway. You know how hard it is to hold an erection when all the other person is doing is talking about camera angles and treating you like a prop?”

We both stared at each other.

“Maybe we should stop the conversation here.”

“Yeah, that would probably be for the best,” he said with a good-natured laugh. His hand grabbed my shoulder and gave it a slight shake. “I know I’m probably the last guy you want to hear this from, but I’m rooting for you two. You’re the first guy she’s ever shown interest in. The fact she blew up today was somewhat shocking. Never seen her so possessive before.” He grinned. “That has to be a good sign, right?”

Was it? Nothing was ever simple with Emma.

“I’ll take her home.” My eyes went to him. “Probably best to give her some space. Sarah knows her best and I’m sure she’s helping her work through things.”

I nodded, not saying anything. That didn’t stop him from reading my mind.

“I’m not going to sleep with her. Not tonight at least.” His charming smile was in full ****. “Sarah on the other hand…”

He was heading out the door. “Ryan?” Holding the door open, he looked back. “Thanks. I think.”

“I’m not a rival, Isaac. None of the others are either. Never will be. Emma made it clear a long time ago where the boundaries of our relationship are. If you two figure things out between you, we’ll support you both a hundred percent. You two decide to keep it between the two of you, that’s what will happen. Want something a bit more open? Let us know what boundaries you are comfortable with and we’ll stay within them. No hard feelings. No judgments.”

I didn’t say anything for a few seconds. “You guys are super weird.”

Throwing his head back, he bust out into laughter. After a few seconds, he calmed enough to speak. “Yeah? Sounds like you’ll fit right in.”