Lunch with Mars and Val

You get out of the locker room in a hurry and meet up with Mars and Val outside the women’s changing rooms.

“Trying to get a peek inside?” Val asks, flashing you her classic vulpine smile.

“Can you blame me?” you grin. “There are some real hot girls on this soccer team.”

“Anyone catch your eye?” Mars asks, gently ribbing you.

“Other than us, of course,” Val says.

“Damn it, I was trying to fish for a compliment over here,” Mars laughs. “Why’d you just take us off the table?”

“Well then, of course it’s you, Mars, you’re a good looking gal,” you say, slinging an arm around her shoulder. “And you too, Val, can’t forget about you.” You get an arm around the other athlete’s shoulder, and the girls laugh and pretend to snuggle close to you, before breaking free as the dining hall comes into view.

“I think Katie and Khloe are into you,” Mars mock-whispers as the three of you head into the building. “They want you to join them on their runs.”

“They ask about Jack too, so don’t read too much into it,” Val laughs.

“Fuck, I hate that guy,” you say.

There’s a brief pause as you join the long queues for the tacos al pastor that are being served today.

“He’s not bad looking,” Val shrugs, idly licking her lips as she looks at the juicy food in the distance. “I can see why they’d be into him.”

“Plus, he’s usually pretty nice to us,” Mars says.

“No, don’t tell me you’re actually into him,” you groan. “That would be the worst.”

“He’s clearly not boyfriend material,” Val says. “You’d have to hate yourself to date him. But I don’t know, he could be fun…” She shares a look with Mars, who nods.

“Anybody, and I mean anybody, but Jack,” you say. “There’s got to be somebody else on the team.”

“Javier’s a hunk,” Val says immediately. “Have you seen him on the field? Shit, when he got physical with some of the Smashmouth girls today… they’re big girls, and shit, I’d let him handle me like that.”

“I can put in a good word for you,” you smile as you finally reach the front of the line, helping yourself to four tacos. “Wasn’t that the agreement? I’d be your wingman, you’d be my winggirls?”

“Fuck yeah,” Val says, nodding hard as she fills up her own plate. “That’s why we spilled the dirt on Katie and Khloe. We had to do work to put out those feelers for you.”

“Appreciated,” you say, finding a table to sit at. You turn to Mars. “You’ve been quiet. Any guys on the team you’re into?”

Mars gives you a meaningful look, and then, a brief pause later, a slight smile crosses her face.

“Charlie and Jason are both cute,” she says. “But they’re not that good looking, I wouldn’t go out of my way to chase them…”

“Lies,” Val says, pointing an accusatory finger at Mars.

“They’re really nothing special,” Mars says, looking at Val, and then back at you. “So I mean, if you’d set them up with me for free, Alex…”

“Come on, if I get you one of them, you’ve got to get me at least one girl in return,” you say. “It takes work to set you up with a guy.”

“No it doesn’t,” Val says between two messy bites of her taco. “You just walk up to Javier and say ‘Hey dude, Val wants to smash,’ and then he’ll come up to me and ask and I’ll say yes, and that’s literally it.”

“It’s not that simple, guys aren’t that horny,” you say, and then you pause mid-lift of your taco, catching yourself. “Okay. Maybe we are. But still, it goes better when it’s done with tact.”

Your taco breaks then, spilling all over your plate, kind of undermining your point.

“So anytime you want Katie or Khloe...” Mars says suggestively.

“What if I’m into Daphne?” you ask.

“Oooh, interested in the captain?” Val says, waggling her eyebrows. “I think I know how to make something happen.”

“She’s said that she has a particular taste in guys,” Mars says. “Something about showing dedication, or following through with stuff? So you better make sure that you’re doing the right thing.”

“I’ll take care of all of that stuff,” you say, confidently. You polish off another taco, when something else pops in your mind. “Hey, by the way, are you two going to the basketball game tomorrow?”

“Yeah, you going?” Mars asks.

You nod, and Val smiles.

“See you there,” she says. “The hookups are legendary when we win.”

Valentine +7
Mars +7