“Sorry, bro. I got stuck with a one-nighter who wouldn't leave. I finally got her out around ten this morning,” he said as he crashed onto his couch and sighed.

“You know how to get a one-night stand to leave, right?” I said as I picked up the rolling papers and started to roll a joint.

“No. Please enlighten me, oh great one.” He waved his hands around like he was summoning someone. I kicked him, making him laugh.

“If you want a one night stand to leave, all you have to do is pull out your wallet and ask how much you owe her.”

Finn burst into laughter. “Damn, that’s fucked up, dude. Leave it to you to come up with some shit like that.”

Once I was done rolling up some green, I lit the joint and took a long, hard hit. I strained to hold it in as long as possible as I passed it to Finn.

“So, what happened to the eye?” he asked as he blew out his hit.

I tried to come up with a damn good excuse, but my head felt all fogged out. Not that I was making it any better by smoking weed and getting high. When I didn’t respond quick enough, Finn started in on me.

“I hope you at least kicked their ass.”

I didn’t say anything. Instead, I cut my eyes at him and gave him a look that said I did.

Who knew? Maybe next time would be the straw that broke the camel’s back. Maybe next time I’d get tired of being his punching bag and I’d haul off and beat my dad to death. Sometimes, that’s what I felt like doing when he went off on me. The thought of spending the rest of my life in jail wasn’t very appealing and I was already planning on leaving Dad’s house very soon. I could take his shit for just a few months more. I’d done it for years. What’s a few more months?

If I had the choice, I would’ve skipped community service, too, but again, the jail time thing wasn’t something I wanted to do. So, after spending the day with Finn and smoking entirely too much weed, I drove over to the Boy’s Club. Patience met me at the door. She had a light glistening of sweat over her face and her eyes were unusually bright. Guess what they say is true—exercise is good for you. She looked vibrant and full of energy, while I felt like finding the nearest bed and taking an all-night nap.

She popped out her ear buds and rolled them around her phone. I leaned in to open the gymnasium door for her and she stopped me.

“What in the hell is that smell?” she asked. Her cute mouth curled up in disgust. “Did you just leave a house fire or something?”

Shit! I didn’t even think to run home and change my clothes and now I was about to walk into a place full of juvenile delinquents smelling like weed. She thought I smelled like a house fire, which was hilarious. Leave it to Patience to be the only seventeen-year-old alive to not know what weed smelled like. I bet she’d never even been near the stuff, with the exception of The Pit. I knew for a fact it rotated around the room there.

“No house fire,” I said as I pulled my shirt over my head.

I walked back to my car and threw it in the front seat. When I walked back to the door she was still standing there waiting on me. Her eyes looked like big blue pools of shimmer as she openly stared at my chest. I loved the way she looked at me—like I was the only guy she’d ever seen with his shirt off.

I watched as her eyes landed on each of the tattoos on my chest and arms and then moved down my stomach. Her eyes were taking me in and for some reason it was a massive turn-on. It was as if she touched me every place she looked. I started getting hard. I’d never had a girl get me hard just by looking at me. More than likely it had more to do with that fact that I hadn’t had sex in weeks, but still, I really fucking liked it.

“You’re going to go in there like that?” She motioned at my naked chest.

I chucked to myself. “No, I was going to see if you would run inside and get me that stupid Big Brother shirt.”

“Oh.” Her eyes flicked over my chest once more. “Sure, be right back.”

She pulled open the door and slipped inside. A few minutes later she came back out holding the god-awful blue shirt. I pulled it over my head and shifted my hair out of my face. She watched openly so I smiled down at her as I pulled open the gym door and held it open for her.

“After you.” I motioned for her to go inside.

I wasn’t usually the gentlemen type, but she had gotten a good view of me. It was only fair that I get to watch her tight little ass in those gym shorts I loved so much. She didn’t disappoint as she shifted her hips. Unlike most girls, she wasn’t doing it on purpose. She had a natural sway that had me practically bobbing my head from side to side. Her ponytail bounced with the beat of her walk. I was so involved with watching her ass and thighs that I slammed into her when she stopped abruptly to miss a wild basketball.