Smoke and Wishes (Best Wishes #1)(53)
“Of course, doll. Just remember what Nik and I said if those girls give you any issues tell us. We won’t let them break up our family, that includes you,” I smiled even wider before turning towards Hudson who finally made it to us. The frown marring his handsome face was even more prevalent than before, and his eyes were narrowed on Cam.
“Hey, Hudson, how was your dinner with Bitchney…I mean Brittney,” Nik tried to cover his laugh at Cam’s blatant slip up with a cough but was unsuccessful.
“It was great, how’s it going over here?” Crossing his arms, he raised an eyebrow at both of us. The negative vibe he carried was like a storm cloud pouring over the good time I had been having. I was slightly irked that he was acting like this when he was clearly taken. Why should he get to have an opinion on my seating arrangements? He doesn’t get to stake a claim unless he’s single.
Stake a claim?
You’re losing it, Lucie.
“It’s amazing, Lucie’s really excited for the game. So why don’t you sit down so she can watch it,” Sadie’s voice seemed friendly, but her eyes were cold, obviously just as irritated with Hudson’s attitude as I was. “Scooch over, would’ya?” She motioned for Benji to move over as Hudson sat between Sadie and me. There hadn’t been much room on the bench to begin with, so I was basically in Cam’s lap at this point.
“Hey, princess,” Hudson’s voice was less irritable when he addressed me, but he still was eyeing Cam’s hand nestled against my legs. “Sorry I was a bit late.”
“No worries, the game hasn’t even started, so you’re not really late.” Shrugging, I kept my voice even. He may be irritating at times, and slightly irrational, but I was determined not to let it get to me.
“I know, but I want to be here for your first game,” his voice had lowered. Leaning into me, his left arm snaked around my shoulders, “you look beautiful tonight,” he whispered against my ear. His cold nose was pressed into my hair as his gloved fingers brushing softly against my neck. My heart thudded painfully in my chest and my breath caught.
With my left leg almost on top of Cam and my upper body pressed into Hudson’s coat, I was more than aware of the spectacle we were putting on. Oh, this is just ridiculous. I avoided looking over to the Bitch Crew, knowing what I would find. Cam was discretely eyeing Hudson with a raised eyebrow. When Hudson finally pulled away, he shot Cam a smug smile, his fingers trailing my neck once more. What in the actual fuck? I bristled at the thought of being a tool to make Cam jealous.
Untangling myself from both of them, I opened my mouth to give Hudson a piece of my mind when a thundering boom sounded, marking the beginning of the game. The announcer’s voice was strong and loud over the cheers of the students. As the OSU team was announced, the bleachers on the other side of the stadium went wild, sparks of color and magic were shot into the air to celebrate. The teams green and gold uniform tops were bright against the black bottoms as they walked onto the field. Following that, our own team entered the field in burgundy and white uniforms. Dante led them in his 22 jersey, the twins followed in 7 and 8, the rest of the team filed out behind them, all waving at the crowd.
Our side of the stands erupted in cheers as well, spells shooting into the night sky. Some students were tossing balls with runes drawn on them into the air that exploded into confetti and glitter. The energy was contagious, and I found myself cheering with all the other students. Excitement built within me, overshadowing my previous anger. Everyone had moved to stand, singing along to the school song blaring through the stadium.
Once the teams were at their respective “home bases," several teachers stood around the edge of the field and activated the prepared obstacles. I remembered Dante saying that they were changed each game and created by teachers or officials. Having them activated at the beginning of the match ensured neither team had more of a home-field advantage.
The field was an elongated oval, and each end held a small sandstone turret and a bright red flag, a Guardian never far from the little structure. Once activated, the flat surface of the field rumbled. An array of traps and challenges rose from the ground. A set of stones suspended in the air formed a walkway, shifting at random intervals. My mouth dropped open in awe as I gazed upon the transformed Kohl stadium.
A loud, screeching whistle sounded over the crowd. A girl in a burgundy uniform caught my attention as she ran towards the opposing side of the field. Her arms pumping fiercely. Without warning, a large opening appeared, swallowing her under the turf. Any screaming she may have done was drowned out by the Portland side’s cheers. Holy shit. My eyes widened to the point that I thought they might fall out of my head until Cam nudged me pointing towards our team’s home base where she was climbing out of a small hole. Her red curls were wild as she stepped off the metal ladder. The more I watched, the more I realized these obstacles reminded me of the Triwizard Tournament while the game itself captivated me, it’s like Quidditch on steroids. I whipped my head towards Benji, his Harry Potter tattoo at the forefront of my mind as I shouted to be heard.
“I can see why you love this game!” His face glowed with excitement, a hand reached in front of Sadie and Hudson waiting for me to fist bump it. Laughing, I tapped my gloved knuckles against his before being sucked back into the competitive game.
My voice was rough and cracking from the amount of yelling and cheering I did during the game. We won and I was still buzzing as Cam, Nik, Hudson, and I waited for the team to leave the locker room. The air was cold enough that my breath was visible. I was huddled between Cam and Hudson with Nik’s arms wrapped around my shoulders, their combined heat helping to keep me warm. Adrenaline still pumped through me. I couldn’t stand still, so I was shifting from one foot to the other as the team came out. The twins came out first, and I burst out of my little cocoon running towards them.