Chapter 20: Surprise! - Monet

Today is extra crazy on campus with the game being tomorrow, and for some reason parking is a nightmare. Now I know to never drive my car on a damn Friday.

I'm hungry and irritated when I get to my dorm, and I drag my feet up the stairs to my room. Chrystal is there, rummaging through her things to find something to wear to go God knows where.

I don't mind sharing a room, I really don't, but I miss the privacy my bedroom at home gave me. I'm sort of a neat freak, and this girl tends to just throw everything out of her closet and sometimes leaving it just like that. And the year just started, I might go insane before I can move out to a different room. I'm definitely applying for a single bedroom after this.

There is small, pale pink wrapped box on my pillow, with a piece of paper stuck underneath.

"Hey, did you put that there? " I ask her, feeling bad for my thoughts if she brought me a gift.

"No, it was there when I got in." She looks up long enough to look at the box. "Maybe someone asked the janitor to put it on your pillow or something. Maybe it's from James! Rumor has it you guys are dating."

"We're not dating." I roll my eyes at the rumor mill. "We're just talking."

And I've been ghosting him again since Wednesday night after he actually kissed me. It wasn't a French kiss or anything, but his lips were on mine. I feel like a bad person, but then I think back on Cole dancing with me last night, and it puts a huge smile on my face. It wasn't really dancing, but he was holding me, taking me back to how safe I always felt in his arms.

I know it's fucking wrong to feel this way. My feelings are confusing. I'm thinking of him as my brother, while thinking of his cock at the same time. Mom would die if she ever found out what's really going on in my mind.

I pick up the little box and the note, my ears burning when I read it.

Now you can have your own.

Love, Cole

I open up the wrapped box slowly, the anticipation killing me of what it could be. There's a logo of a jewelry brand on the lid of the pink box, and my mouth drops open when I see what's inside.

It's a pair of pearl earrings, with a diamond on the top of the pearl.

Oh my god. How much did this even cost? Can he even afford to buy me gifts like these? And if he can, where is he getting the money from?

It's beautiful, though, and a smile breaks out over my face.

"Is that real?" Chrystal peeks over my shoulder, and I take out the little paper that states where the dimoands and perals were sourced from.

"It's real." I confirm.

This is something that the old Cole would do for me. He used to tell me one day when he is big, he is going to buy me all sorts of things like a really big house and a fancy car. I used to eat all of it up, but as I grew older I knew that was just make-belief.

"Hook me up!" Chrystal groans. "He's hot, the starting quarterback and he treats his sister like a princess, I need that man!"

The reminder is like a cold splash of water on my voice. I'm his sister. That's all I will ever be.

I shut the lid of the box, and bury it in the top of my drawer. Next time Amy invites me to an event, I will be better prepared.

We actually don't go out on the Friday night, even though the whole camous is partying in preparation for the day tomorrow. I get dressed at Amy's house,and I must say I really love our outfits that she coordinated. We have on the silver cowboy boots, which I didn't even know she also had a pair of with red and white jumpers that doesn't accentuate my ass too much. We look cute, and I pose for her as she takes pictures and videos.

We're already at the stadium which has an insane amount of people there, the air electric with big posters on the outside of the building of the starting roster. I take a selfie with Cole's face in the background and send it to him, wishing him luck.

All these people dressed in a sea of white and rewill watch him play today. I think I'm more nervous than I've ever felt before. Not even when I had very difficult exams did I ever feel so nervous.

My phone rings in my hand, and I think it might be Cole, but I'm already smiling when I see it's a video call from Mom.

"Mom!" I scream over the noice all the fans are making. "Oh my god, you should see the madness!"

"I'm here!" She shouts back, and that's when I see she's actually in the exact same place I'm at.

"Where!" I look around, in disbelief that she's actually here.

"I'm at the entrance, the coach got me a ticket, I think I'm in the box with his wife."

"We'll meet you there!" Amy tells her, and again I'm so grateful that she's my friend.

"I can't wait to meet you!" Mom shrieks. "See you guys soon!"

"See, perks of being the coach's daughter." She whips passes out of her bag, and grabs my hand as we quickly get cleared by security and go inside the huge stadium.

I'm a bad sister, because I totally skipped the tour of the stadium as well. I used to sit in the bleachers when Cole played in high school, but I have clearly lived under a rock, not knowing the sheer magnitude of college football.

Amy knows her way around the stadium like the back of her hand, and I nearly faint when I see my beautiful mother standing next to Mrs. Murray wearing the school colors.

"Mom!" I didn't even know how much I missed her until I'm engulfed in her arms. "I can't believe you're here!"

"I wasn't going to miss my boy's first game as QB1!" She laughs and kisses me hard. "Look at you! You guys look so cute!"

She hugs Amy next as if they've knows each other for a long time.

"How long are you staying?" I want to know excitedly.

"Only for tonight, I'm driving back early tomorrow morning."

"No!" I whine, wishing she didn't have to go so soon.

"I have school on Monday, baby." She runs her hand through my long hair. "I booked us dinner at the hotel where I'm staying at, okay? I'll try to come through every home game."

I don't tell her she shoudln't do that, because how awesome would it be to see her every few weeks?

"We have to go, college kids in the bleachers."

We go down to our seats, and I smile, happy my family is one place.