Rebound 2
#2 of Rebound
Hey y'all. I haven't posted in ages so... I apologize if anyone was waiting. I've been pretty lazy recently, obviously. I'd call this chapter more of a continuation of chapter one than one all it's own. I just figured chapter one was getting too long. I hope you guys enjoy this, and please tell me what I could work on. 'Preciate ya!
Mason and Tyler stood still, the ball bouncing to the ground as the last shot fell through the rim. With a nod they agreed the game was over. The final score was close, but eventually forgotten under the intensity of the game.
Two tired heaps of sweaty fur hit the floor next to each other. It wasn't until they sat down that they realized how exhausted they really were. They'd been playing for upwards of forty-five minutes, and they were soaked in sweat. They were panting hard and sweat freely dripped off their heads.
They both wondered of the whereabouts of a certain Jason, but were both too wiped out to care. Neither knew really knew what to say, so they sat quietly, the only noise being their hard breathing. Mason couldn't take the quiet and piped up to try and get a decent conversation going.
"I'll be honest, you really gave me a run for my money there Tyler." Tylerlit up in response to the praise. He was obviously a humble guy, but to what extent? Mason wondered at this point wondered if Tylerhad self esteem issues.
Tylerdidn't prove him wrong. "Really? I thought you beat me pretty good." Mason took the opportunity to try and give Tylera boost. By the hopeful expression on
Tyler's face, he was either being nervous, or desperately hoping for some kind words. Either way Mason obliged him. "Oh please, Tyler, you're talented. Why you didn't try out is a mystery to me." Tylersmiled again. Tylerobviously didn't have a lot of self confidence for some reason, and Mason hoped for Tyler's own sake that would change. Tylerwas good, he just needed confidence.
"So," Mason started. "I hardly ever see you at school. What classes have you got?" Tyler's ears dropped, and a confused Mason tilted his head. "I sit behind you in History..." Another set of ears fell, and a blush surfaced on Mason's face. So much for Tyler's confidence.
How could he have missed this guy? He was kind, had a mutual interest in basketball, good looks, an excellent personality, and even though they only just met, he wanted to see more of this dog.
Then Mason realized he needed to pick up the conversation. Tyler's eyes were still awkwardly examining the floor, and Mason felt bad about putting the guy down. He cleared his throat softly, drawing Tyler's eyes to his level. "I'm sorry. I guess I was just too cool to turn around and give you a hello," Mason said, smiling weakly. For some reason Tylerwas still able to smile back at him.
Mason's eyes caught Tyler's sparkly green ones and Tylerlooked down again.
Mason took the opportunity to get a good look at him, examining his features.
His spots were odd for a dalmatian. They weren't so much spots as speckles. Almost like one of those splatter paint projects. And his fur was an excellent off-white color. The he saw Tyler's body. He was a lean, sculpted fella; he wasn't ripped, not a stick, not chubby. Tylerwas definitely a good looking guy.
"Whatcha lookin' at?" Mason blushed hard and looked away, cursing under his breath. "Sorry, my mind was somewhere else." Tylerlaughed at Mason's flustered expression, "That's okay. It's not really that big of a deal. We've got plenty of time to talk anyway." Tylersaid, adding a smile. "Wait what?!"
Mason said, fearful his ogling had gone noticed. "I meant the school thing." Mason nodded his understanding, and his relief. He was worried he'd made this awkward with his blatant staring.
"I think you won, right?" Mason smirked at that, his cockiness showing. "Mmm yeah I think I did. "You're good, better than I thought, but you could work on a few things," Mason said. Tylerperked an eyebrow. "Is that so?" Tylersaid, with another one of his sly smiles, which Mason had already seen a lot of. "Would you like to give me some pointers over at my place some time?" This prospect sparked some interest in Mason. He didn't really know this guy all too well yet, but there was no doubt in his mind he liked him a lot. Wait a minute, wasn't this
guy being so shy and reserved just a minute ago? Mason was more than glad to get to know this confusing dalmatian in detail. Mason pretended to ponder this idea, and after a pleading look from Tyler, he gave a nod. Maybe he was bipolar? His slyness and shyness were tagging in and out quickly. Quicker than Mason liked.
They looked at each other for a few seconds before a door opened on the other side of the gym. They jerked their heads to see what it was, to discover that
Jason had finally returned, and he was wet, soaking wet. Tyler and Mason opened their mouths to speak, hardly restraining laughter, but Jason cut them off with a raised paw. "It's raining. Hard."
Scowls spread across the room. They were going to have to wait out the storm. It wasn't especially late, but they definitely needed to shower. Fleas, not to mention all athletes foot and staff did not sound very appealing.
They agreed it was about time to go to the locker room, and headed in that direction. They arrived, stripped, and headed around the corner to find the showers. Mason had been in the showers before with teammates, so this wasn't anything new. No surprises or awkward moments.
The shower consisted of two columns going from the floor to the ceiling. Four heads pointed in all directions. Basically, Mason would be looking his friends in the eye the whole time. It was damn weird to have your buddy's junk dangling in your peripherals, but obviously everyone who'd ever been in a locker room got
over it.
They turned the knobs on their respective shower heads and the water poured out. Mason's eyes closed as he felt the beads of water hit his exposed chest. He tried to relax and let the warm water soaking his fur ease him out if his tense, recently worked muscles. He probably got a little too relaxed. His eyes certainly did. He glanced downward, catching a peep of some junk on their way down. To Mason's relief, it didn't do much for him.
Maybe this minor attraction was just a fluke after all. The rest of the shower continued somewhat silently, some small talk floating around. Every now and again Mason's eyes would catch Tyler's in way that wasn't just a glance, but Mason couldn't put his finger on what it was. He figured it wasn't important, so he decided to ignore it.
They finally left the shower with soaked fur and the realization they had no towels, or extra clothes. It stopped raining, and Jason lived rather close. He made a run for some shirts and jeans (after a lot of complaining) and returned before Mason and Tylerfroze.
The two spent all of 20 minutes laughing and talking awkwardly, covering their lower extremities with their t-shirts. They shivered and talked about how odd it was having naked chats with strangers. Jason took his time, and when he finally returned he was barraged with more complaints.
If there was a way to make friends, this wasn't it. Mason had begun by making fun of Tyler's dress code on a cold day, acknowledging that he basically overlooked him in a class he had every day for the past two months, and take a shower with him. Not to mention having a naked small talk session. If Tylermade friends this on more than one occasion, which according to Tylerhe did not, Mason didn't want to meet them in the slightest. Whether it was a picture perfect friendship or not so far, if one would call it a friendship yet, it was going well so far. Mason was always glad to meet new basketball buddies, and he was especially glad this one wasn't a dumb jock. And on top of that, he'd already given Mason something to do besides shoot around next weekend.
Considering last month, Mason realized this was quite the rebound.