Chapter One

Warming Up

Step. Swagger.

Step. Swagger.

Am I trying to hard? I already know I look like an idiot!

I pull up my board shorts cause I know they're starting to sag. I twist my baseball hat backwards on my head and look around the campus.

USC is big. And kind of sketchy, what with it being downtown LA. At least compared to my small hometown in Virginia.

I had already checked into my dorm room, the athletics dorm room, which happened to be coed.

Swaggering down the hallway, with maybe a bit too much swagger, I walked into the elevator and punched in my floor number.

There was some blond chick in the elevator with me, looking me up and down before saying. "Hey."

Uncomfortable with her stares, I could feel sweat forming on my forehead and neck.

"Hey."

Licking her lips she says, "Football player, huh?"

"What? Oh, yeah," I stumble and cough because my voice cracked.

"Trojans are going to kick ass this year," she says and steps a bit closer than to my liking, "Especially with you on the team, I bet."

My eyes widen.

Holy shit! Blondie was hitting on me!

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

The elevator doors slid open and I practically jumped out head first with a haste, "See ya," to blondie.

Fiddling with the key attached to the USC football keychain lanyard, I opened the door to my dorm, hoisting my athletic bag onto the bed that was most likely mine since my roommate's things occupied the other side.

The athletic dorms were nicer than the others, I gather, especially because I was on a full scholarship. There was a small kitchen, with a bolted in table-just in case we decide to fling it out the window during a party, I suppose-fridge, microwave, and oven. And although my roommate and I didn't have our own separate rooms we did have our own bathroom from the rest of the building.

This could get complicated, I thought warily to myself.

Suddenly the water started running in the bathroom and I staggered backwards onto my bed when I realized that my roommate was in there! I thought I had time!

Don't act gay. Please don't think I'm gay. Cause you don't want him to think you're gay!

I coughed and staggered into kitchen, grabbing a water bottle from the fridge that I had stocked with a bunch of food items. I thought I would try to cook instead of gaining the Freshman 15 (pounds, that is) on cup-of-noodles.

I sat down at the table, slowly drinking my water while waiting for him to walk out of the bathroom.

Just calm down!

The bathroom door flew open and out came my roommate with a black wife beater shirt and black USC basketball shorts on. He had some sort of necklace that all guys from Hawaii seemed to have. It was the kind that was black leather with seashells in the middle-hanging tightly around his neck.

Yep, my roommate was from Hawaii even though he wasn't native. He still had a dark complexion from living on the island most of his life. He was also on the football team with me. How do I know this already?

Orientation was just so much fun for me.

I roll my eyes at my internal sarcasm and say, "Hey, Zach!"

Zach turns around from his desk next to his bed and looks up at me.

"Oh, hey Grant! I didn't hear you come in," he says and gets up from his desk chair and slides into the seat across from me at the small table.

"How you doing man?" I ask with another cough because, again, my voice just cracked.

"Not much, just getting ready for practice tonight. How's the arm?" he asks.

"Huh?" I think for a moment and stammer, "Oh, yeah, it's fine."

"I heard you hurt it over the summer when you crashed on your bike," he looks at me questioningly and I could feel my heart speed up.

What is this, the Spanish Inquisition?

"It was just a small sprain, I swear…uh, dude. It's better now."

He nods his head, dropping the topic.

"Good, cause we need our backup quarter back."

I try to copy his smirk and say, "Yeah, just in case you screw up, Mr. Starting Quarterback."

He laughs and I want to giggle along with him but…the whole don't act gay thing.

Yeah.

"Don't get all cocky, Freshman."

I down the rest of my water, "Whatever, Sophomore."

I get up and throw the bottle in the trash. Walking over to my bed and grabbing my keys and my smaller USC daypack, I head for the door.

"Where ya going Grant?" Zach asks, suddenly behind me.

I jump, startled, and say, "To visit my sister to make sure she got to her dorm okay." I say this without turning around.

"You have a sister?" Zach asks with his hands in his pocket.

Hiding my blush quickly, I turn my head around with a grin, "Older than me," I open the door and before closing it I say, "See ya, Zach."

Once I know that all of the doors on our floor are closed, I dash down the hall and leap into the elevator after attacking it with my fists.

I run back to the parking lot, forgetting all about swaggering and nodding my head at the California chicks.

I jump into my truck-the one I drove down form Virginia all the way to Southern California-and grab the bag from underneath the seat.

I pull of the brown haired wig that looked suspiciously like a replica of Justin Bieber's hair, and shook out my long locks of dirty blond hair. I pull out the slight sideburns and thick eyebrows. I look around outside of the parking lot to make sure it's all clear before throwing off my top and unraveling the brace from around my chest.

"Ah, that's better," I sigh in relief and flick the offending ace and guy shirt into my bag.

I pull on a strapless bra-blue with poke-a-dots-and a purple tube top. I slide the athletic shorts down my legs and pull on short shorts with a matching belt. I apply some mascara, just because I'm paranoid, grab my daypack, and dash out of my truck.

Heading in the opposite direction of the athletic building, I walk casually and inconspicuously.

Hey, do you know about Grant Morgan? The five star recruit freshman from Virginia?

Who me? Nahh…

That would be good and all if he wasn't my brother by blood.

Ugh.

I walked into my dorm building called Honors House. Walking up the stairs to the second floor where my dorm was located, I pulled out a different set of keys on a different keychain lanyard that just said 'USC Trojans' and opened the door that had a whiteboard with my name and my roommate's name on it.

My suitcase was already unpacked in the bedside drawers in the separate room from my roommate's. As soon as I dropped my keys onto my desk and kicked of my shoes, I padded out-sock clad-into the small living room.

"Hey Bex!" I say and steady myself as she suddenly leaps into my embrace.

"Cammie! God, I missed you over the summer! Sophomore year is going to be a blast!" she says and holds out a bowl of Original Lays, "Crisps?"

"Sure," I laugh at her Brit slang and sit next to her and the couch.

"How was it?" she asks after the end of the episode of Friends.

"How was what?"

"Meeting the star football player of USC! The rookie who is already on Heisman watch!" Bex squeals.

I blush crimson and say, "He is so much better up close, Bex…I don't think he recognizes me from our Chemistry class last year."

"Well, you were dressed up as a fellow, girly, can't expect the guy to recognize or want to recognize a girl when he looks at his guy roommate!"

I shrug my shoulder and say, "He's super sweet, too. Just like he was at Orientation before freshman year, hell, even this past summer when I stood in for Grant!"

Bex wraps her arm around me, "This is so exciting! Just like a bloody movie!"

I laugh and relax into the soft cushions of our couch.

"I don't know how I'm going to survive this constant switching."

"You'll be okay."

"I'm just a quarterback-standing in for Grant-but I really, really, don't want to be tackled by 200 pound guys, Bex!"

"Run fast."

"I have a good arm, though."

"Just as good as your brother's."

"We can pull this off."

"I'll help!"

I sigh and go to get my daypack.

"Where you going?"

"Time for another switch!"

.

~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X~

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A.N. Hey guys! This is a look into my new story I will be doing for the summer! No worries about Letters to My Soldier and Broken Swans because I will be continuing to finish those up over the summer as well!

I know some have done a story like this before, but I always had this idea rolling around in my head, so now I'm gonna make my attempt at this!

REVIEW and I'll give you another teaser!

Thanks a BUNCH!

~Akira