Title: Someone Like You
AN: Thanks so much to all you ladies that reviewed the last chapter. I appreciate all the positive feedback. Also thanks for all the story and author alerts! I'm glad that people are actually enjoying this fanfic! I hope this chapter will be well accepted too. Enjoy!
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The sunlight shining through the blinds woke Tim up on Friday morning. Groaning, he rolled over to look at his alarm clock. 10:27. Damn. That was still early for a Friday.
He and a few teammates had gone down to Harper's, one of the popular hangouts in Austin, last night after practice. Tim had probably had one too many, and was feeling it this morning as he rolled himself out of bed and made his way toward the bathroom for a shower, knowing that will be the quickest way to return him to the land of the living.
After the quick shower, he grabs a faded pair of jeans and an old Dillon Panthers t-shirt, slipping them on his damp body before stepping out of his room and making his way down the hall.
"Mornin'." Tim says to Josh, his roommate sitting on the couch.
"Hey Riggs." Josh says, standing to carry his empty cereal bowl into the kitchen. "I used the last bit of milk. Sorry man."
Tim tries to give Josh a pissed off look, but can't pull it off. He ends up grinning instead. "No hard feelings, Curly." Tim says, using the nickname Josh had been given from the team because of his curly, brown hair.
"I'll buy some more today." Josh promises. "I've gotta run man. I'm gonna be late for my math class already. See you at practice." Josh yells as he rushes out of the apartment.
Tim smiles and shakes his head as he heads into the small kitchen to try and find something to eat. "Bye." He mumbles.
Josh was like a big ball of energy. Always talking and always on the go. In a lot of ways he was the anti-Tim, but Tim genuinely liked the guy. Josh played running back for the Longhorns, so Tim had quickly gotten to know him through the summer during the many two-a-day practices.
Josh had been looking for a roommate to help out with the apartment rent, and Tim had quickly jumped at the offer. Tim sure as hell didn't want to live in the dorms. Way too many rules to suit him.
So far he was enjoying going to UT and was glad that he had decided to transfer. He had already bonded with a lot of guys on the team and he had lucked up and found a nice apartment and a good roommate.
There was no short supply of females either. Tim had learned that the girls of UT were more than willing to show their support for the guys on the team. Not really that much different from high school and the endless rally girls when he really thought about it.
He was still a little worried about his classes, but he'd just have to buckle down a lot more this year. And of course, there was always the offer from Julie to fall back on.
Tim grins as he thinks of her. Julie Taylor. He had been pleasantly surprised to run into to her yesterday. Well, maybe 'run into' weren't the best words, but he had been surprised to see her. Coach had mentioned her being at UT, but he hadn't really thought about it until he'd seen that flash of blonde hair that was like none other.
She had been a real trooper. Tim had had ankle injuries before, and knew that her foot was probably hurting like hell. But there had been no tears, and no real complaining. Mostly just Julie and her witty, sarcastic comments – something that he had always loved about her.
Unlike other girls, Julie definitely kept him on his toes, and wasn't afraid to take him down a notch or two if she thought he needed it. It was nice in a way to have a girl who just accepted him and didn't have any false pretense or an ulterior motive.
He wasn't blind though, and Julie Taylor was definitely easy on the eyes. With that long blonde hair and big brown eyes, and those lips that could drive a man to impure thoughts in a second, she was definitely going to drive the young men of UT wild.
Tim wasn't sure why that thought made him cringe. But he didn't ponder on it, shrugging it off quickly. She was Julie Taylor. And she was a friend. End of story.
"Friends." Tim mumbles. He finally gives up looking for anything to eat in the kitchen. The cabinets were pretty much bare, and he was hungry.
Tim heads over to the door to grab his boots, deciding to go out and grab a bite to eat for lunch. As he's pulling his boots on, his mind wanders back to Julie and how she said that she was going to stay in her dorm room all day.
I'll take her lunch, he thinks to himself, quickly liking the idea. It would be the 'friendly' thing to do after all.
He didn't have anything to do until practice much later in the afternoon. What better way to spend a few hours than by aggravating Julie Taylor, he thinks with a smirk as he heads out of the apartment.
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"Tyra…" Julie says. "Will you please stop laughing? It's really not that funny."
Julie had been in the dorm room all morning by herself and she had started to get antsy already. She had intended to call Tyra and tell her about the events of the previous day, hoping to receive a sympathetic ear. Unfortunately, Tyra obviously thought it was the most hilarious thing she'd ever heard from the way she was laughing.
"Tyra, seriously."
"Oh Julie. I'm sorry. It's just funny." Tyra laughs. "Come on. You've gotta admit that the whole situation is kind of funny when you think about it. I mean, especially it being Tim and all."
"Maybe slightly humorous looking back on it. But I don't think it warrants laughing until you cry, which is what you sound like you're doing." Julie says, stretching back to lie on her bed.
"Sorry Jules. Really. I am sorry that you got hurt though. Do you need me to bring you anything?" Tyra asks. "I'm on my way to work, but I could stop by later if you need something."
Julie wants to say 'Yes! I need company.' Liza had left out for classes early that morning and wasn't expected back 'til much later in the day.
"No. I'm good." Julie says instead.
"Well, make sure you take it easy like the doctor said. How can I take you out to enjoy the Austin night life with you on crutches?"
Julie laughs quietly. "I'll be back to normal in a few days, and then I fully expect to do some clubbing."
As Tyra starts to say something else, Julie hears an unexpected knock on her door.
"Who's that?" Tyra asks.
Julie struggles up to a sitting position, reaching for her crutches so that she can maneuver to the door. "I don't know. Probably a neighbor or something. I guess I'll let you go so you can get to work. Call me later."
"Okay girl. Take care." Tyra says before hanging up.
As Julie slowly makes her way to the door, she hears another knock.
"Hold your horses!" She yells. "I'm coming already."
Opening the door, she is surprised to see Tim standing on the other side, leaning against the doorjamb like he belongs there.
"What took you so long Taylor?" He asks, that famous Riggins smirk forming on his lips.
"It takes us cripples a little longer to make it to the door Tim." Julie says smartly as she wonders what he's doing there.
Tim laughs at her comment, and she once again notices how utterly gorgeous he is without even trying.
He holds out a large plastic bag. "I brought lunch."
Julie smiles. "Seriously?"
"Yep. It's not much. Just a couple of sub sandwiches and chips, but I figured you might not be able to make it to the food court or anywhere else to get something." Tim says with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Sounds delicious to me." She says. "Um, did you bring lunch for you too or are you just dropping something off for me?"
Tim grins as he runs his hand through his hair. "Well, I brought us both lunch. That is if you can handle my company two days in a row."
"Well, to be honest I usually don't eat with people that try to kill me, but for you I guess I'll make an exception." Julie says, grinning up at him.
"That's really big of you Taylor." He says with a smirk.
"That's me – heart of gold." Julie says, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "One request though."
"Name it."
"Do you think we could maybe eat downstairs, or even outside at the picnic tables. I'm about to go crazy cooped up in this room." Julie says, giving him a pleading look.
"I think I can handle that." He says with a grin.
A little later finds them out on the lawn in front of Julie's dorm, sitting on the grass underneath a large oak tree. The picnic tables had been full, so the two of them had opted for the shade of the large tree. Julie was sitting with her back against the tree, her legs spread out in front of her. Tim was sitting a couple of feet away, facing her as he devoured his sandwich.
The two ate in a comfortable silence. That was something Tim had always enjoyed about being with Julie. Unlike other girls, Julie was able to enjoy the silences instead of talking incessantly. Though at times she could be a chatterbox, she always seemed to know when to talk and when to take it easy.
He watches as she finishes her sandwich before opening her bag of chips. Julie always ate one thing at a time, finishing one item before she would begin another. He had learned that weird habit when he had lived with the Taylor's, and had enjoyed teasing her about it. That was just one of her many quirks, he thinks with a grin.
Julie looks up to see Tim grinning at her. "What?" She asks, knowing that grin means he's probably up to no good.
"Nothing."
"You're thinking something. Though I probably don't want to know." She says quickly, arching her eyebrow as she pops another chip into her mouth.
Tim continues to grin, but just shakes his head as he continues eating his lunch.
"I needed this." Julie says a few moments later as she finishes her meal, sitting her trash to the side.
"Cabin fever huh?" Tim asks.
Julie laughs quietly. "Yeah, pretty much. I was about to go crazy in there when you showed up."
"Glad I could be of service." He smirks. "Those dorm rooms are too damn small."
"I agree." Julie says with a nod. "Do you live on campus?"
Tim shakes his head as he wads up his trash and sets it to the side. "Nope. Live a couple of blocks over in an apartment. I got lucky and found a room with a buddy on the team."
"That's good. The dorm's not so bad. I just worry about not having my own room. Liza's great, but I know that I like my alone time every now and then though. I guess I'll just have to escape every now and then."
"Well, one thing I've already learned about Austin is that there's lots of cool places to hang out."
"Yeah. Tyra's supposed to show me the hot spots. Well, whenever I recuperate." Julie says with a small laugh, nodding toward her injured foot.
Tim grins. "You and Collette out on the town sounds like trouble."
"Probably." Julie says with a smirk.
"Tyra and Lando still true lovin'?" Tim asks with a grin.
Julie laughs at his statement. "If you mean are they dating, then yeah. Landry's going here too, so they'll be able to spend plenty of time together."
"They're an odd pair, but I guess it works." Tim says. He leans back, propping himself up with his arms. "Heard you and Seven split."
"Yeah. A few weeks before graduation."
"Y'all seemed like the perfect couple. What happened?" Tim asks.
"I don't know. It sounds cliché, but we just grew apart. We got to be more of just good friends than boyfriend and girlfriend." She says simply.
"Yeah." Tim nods slowly. "So the sex got old, huh?"
Julie laughs. "I didn't say that Tim. Leave it to you to make it about sex though."
Tim grins as he notices the slight blush on her cheeks. "Y'all still talk?"
"Not really. I mean, I still consider him a friend and all, but I haven't talked to him in a while."
Tim nods, understanding what she means. He and Lyla had been the same way. They had went there separate ways because of the school situation, but Tim would still consider her a friend, even though he hadn't seen or heard from her in probably half a year.
"How about you and Lyla? I know you guys kind of ended things last year. Do you guys still talk?" She asks.
Julie must be a mind reader, he thinks with a grin. "No."
"But you guys ended things amicably right? No hard feelings or anything right?" Julie asks.
Tim just nods as he leans forward and pulls his knees up, wrapping his arms loosely around them.
Julie laughs at his lack of response. "I see how it is. You ask me twenty questions about my breakup with Matt and I answer each one. I do the same to you, and I get a nod. Not fair Tim."
"Taylor, haven't you figured out I'm more the strong, silent type?" He says, giving her a sexy smirk.
Julie rolls her eyes as she stretches her legs out, making sure not to jostle her ankle. "Pig-headed is more like it."
Tim laughs quietly, but doesn't disagree. He watches as Julie tries to get comfortable, stretching her bare, tan legs out very near him. Julie did have some mighty fine legs, he thinks to himself as his eyes run from the hem of her shorts down to her dainty feet.
"What's that on your ankle?" He says. He reaches out to touch a spot of black on her uninjured ankle.
Julie twists her ankle to the side, revealing a small heart tattoo. "It's a tattoo."
Tim couldn't help but start laughing. Julie Taylor had a tattoo. He leans forward to get a better look, lightly running his finger over it.
He notices Julie's intake of breath and the shiver that runs through her body. Hmmm, maybe Julie wasn't as immune to him as she seemed to be.
"What? Never seen a tattoo before?" Julie says smartly, pulling her leg away from him.
Tim looks at her, grinning like an idiot. "Not on you." He says. "When'd you get that?"
"Junior year."
Tim whistles lowly. "What'd Coach have to say about that?"
"A lot." Julie laughs. "You would have thought that I had committed a felony or something the way that he and mom acted. But, they eventually got over it. Thankfully."
"You know, in a way it's so not you. But at the same time, it suits you Taylor." Tim says, giving her a smile that makes her stomach flutter.
"Thanks. I thought so too." She says, giving him a returning smile.
Julie watches as Tim's sincere smile changes into a mischievous grin. "Got anymore tattoos? You know, in more interesting places?"
Julie can't help but laugh as she feels her cheeks blushing. "Wouldn't you like to know?" She says playfully.
Tim laughs quietly, shaking his head, not sure what to say to that. The thing about it was, he realized that he would like to know - which was scary as hell. This was Julie-fucking-Taylor, not just some random girl. And he sure didn't need to be thinking of her like that. That would only lead to trouble.