If Like Repels Like, Do Opposites Attract?

This one’s not leaving me alone. Thanks for the reviews, I’m glad that people don’t seem to mind a clichéd plot haha. I hope that I add some new twists to the idea.



If Like Repels Like, Do Opposites Attract?: Chapter 2



xxxxxx



Sam began to regain consciousness and heard voices talking around him.



“They sure did a number on him. He looks so bruised,” that was Alyssa’s voice. She sounded worried.



“He still looks pretty though.” That was Todd.



“Shut up. I have to wake him up now.” That was Chad. He felt a soft touch on his shoulder and Chad’s breath close to his ear. “Hey, Sammy, time to wake up.”



“Told you not to call me that,” Sam muttered as he stretched, and instantly regretted it. He winced at the pain in his ribs.



“How are you feeling?” Alyssa asked.



“Mmmmm…Sore. Sleepy,” He turned his head to look at her. “What’re you doing here?”



“Chad called us. He was worried,” Alyssa answered softly.



Todd snorted. “More like the boy was so mad I thought he was going to hunt down those football players and beat them to death and figured we should come to prevent murder.”



“Yeah, I’m sure,” Sam rolled his eyes. He glanced at Chad. Chad seemed frozen, unmoving in place and was looking at Sam seriously, his jaw clenched. “Did I say thank you?” Sam asked.



Chad kind of relaxed and smiled at that. “Nope.”



“Why’re you smiling? What did I do?” Sam asked. He thought he remembered most of what happened.



“Well, mostly you bitched at me for helping.”



“Oh.” Sam was embarrassed. He might not really like these people, but he didn’t want to feel like an ass. “I’m sorry.”



“It’s okay,” Chad quickly reassured.



“He thought it was cute,” Todd chimed in with a chuckle.



In his peripheral vision, Sam saw Alyssa smack Todd’s arm.



“I called your parents,” Chad got his attention again. “They weren’t home. I left a message that you were at my place.”



“Thanks,” Sam fidgeted. “I’d like to get up now. I’m not exactly an invalid.”



“Awwww but Chad likes having you in his bed. It’s the most action it’s seen. Ever,” Todd’s comment made Chad’s face redden.



“Stop being a douche Todd,” Alyssa reprimanded him.



“Come on, I’m bringing humor to the situation, right Sam?” Todd’s tone was light and teasing.



“You just keep telling yourself that.” He knew it was a lame retort, but he was putting more energy and focus in getting up. He pushed himself up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He was feeling a little dizzy, so he moved slowly.



He rose to his feet. He felt a little unsteady.



Chad put a hand on his arm.



“I’m okay,” Sam sighed the protest. He hated when people tried to baby him. Chad seemed to understand and removed his hand.



“Let’s go in the den,” Chad suggested.



Sam followed the trio who all knew where they were headed. They entered a room with wood paneled walls. It had a large tv and two sectional couches. It looked really comfy. They all flopped on the couches. The change of scenery was good, but Sam suddenly felt awkward.



“Did you need more ice? For your face?” Chad asked.



“Sure,” Sam paused. “I’m kinda’ thirsty too, if I could get something to drink.”



“Yeah. I’ll get it. Want water or soda?” Chad offered.



“Just water thanks.”



“Ohhh you got him so whipped already,” Todd joked after Chad left the room.



Alyssa smacked his arm. “God stop it. You’re so embarrassing. Ignore him Sam.”



“I always do,” Sam replied.



They were chuckling when Chad returned. “What did I miss?” He asked as he handed Sam the ice and glass of water.



“Just Todd being an ass,” Alyssa answered.



“Oh so not much?” Chad smiled.



Sam couldn’t help grinning as they bickered among themselves, bringing up a few inside jokes that Sam didn’t really understand in that context.



“Let’s watch a movie,” Alyssa broke into their verbal battle. She looked at Sam, “Did you want to hang out with us a while? Or did you want Chad to bring you home?”



Sam thought about it seriously, weighing the options of staying or going. He was still feeling kind of dizzy and he didn’t really want to move. He didn’t really have a burning desire to spend time with the trio, but they had helped him and didn’t seem as terrible as he imagined.



He nodded. “Sure I’ll stay.”



The group seemed happy with his answer and they all picked a movie. During the movie, they commented and made jokes amongst each other. It made Sam more at ease.



When it was over, Todd and Alyssa decided to go home and Chad took him home.



Chad pulled into the driveway and Sam’s mother came rushing out of the door.



“Oh! Sam, your face! Are you okay honey?” She immediately began coddling him.



“Yeah mom.” He felt embarrassed that she was gushing in front of Chad.



As if reading his mind, she focused her attention on the other boy. “You must be Chad. Thank you for helping out my son.”



Chad shuffled his feet in the dirt of the driveway. “It was nothing ma’am.”



“Would you like to come in?” Her expression was soft as she looked him over.



“No thank you ma’am. I should get back home,” he glanced at Sam. “See you tomorrow Sam.”



“Yeah, thanks Chad.”



Chad smiled before pulling away in his truck with a wave.



Sam’s mom turned to him. “Let’s get some ice on your eye.”



They went into the kitchen.



They were sitting at the table when she broke the silence and asked, “Are you being hassled a lot at school?”



Sam felt a jolt of fear. Did Chad tell? “No mom.”



“Sam…Why haven’t you told us that you like boys?”



Anger shot through him. “Did Chad tell you? That fricking…”



His mom cut him off. “We suspected for awhile honey. And all those salespeople that have been calling the past week that your father seems so angry about? Those are prank calls about you.”



“What?” Sam’s mouth dropped open.



“Did you think we’d be angry? We love you no matter what. I want you to know that.” She paused. “And if you wanted to introduce us to someone special, we’d love to meet him.”



“I don’t have a boyfriend.”



“Oh? Then how do your classmates know?”



He sighed. He hadn’t wanted to tell her, but with all the honesty that was happening, he felt it was the right thing to do.



“There was a party a couple weekends ago,” he began.



“Yes, I remember. That was the last weekend you went out in awhile.”



“Well, at that party there was a boy who I’ve had a crush on for awhile. His name’s Tony,” This is where it got awkward to talk about with a parent. “He was flirting with me and we ended up kissing in front of people. Then he pushed me away and started laughing. Another guy came up to him and gave him $50. It had all been a bet and a set up to see if I was gay. Now basically everyone in school knows.”



“Oh honey, that’s terrible.” She pulled him into a hug, rubbing his back. “I wish you’d told me sooner, but I’m glad you told me now.”



“Thanks for being so cool about this mom,” he whispered. He knew this had the potential to go in a whole other direction.



“I love you honey, no matter who you end up loving.”



“And dad?” He was almost scared to ask.



“He’s adjusting to the idea. Give him some time.”



They talked the rest of the evening and Sam felt a bit better about it all.



xxxxxx



The next day Sam felt like everyone was staring at his face. He had a big bruise on his eye and some cuts along his forehead and jaw. He kept his head down for most of the day and hoped that no one bothered him.



At lunch, he went out to the commons and settled at an empty picnic table. He was startled from eating when a lunch tray clattered on the table in front of him.



“That shiner’s a real beauty,” Todd told him as he slid onto the bench. Alyssa was next to him and Chad ended up sitting next to Sam.



“Ummmm….Hey.”



Alyssa looked upset at his indifferent reaction. “What we can’t sit with you?”



“No, you can…I just…” Sam didn’t see why they wanted to.



“Want us to leave?” Chad asked.



“No, it’s okay,” Sam relented.



They stayed and it wasn’t all bad. Talking with them more, about general stuff like classes and weird teachers and people that went to their school, they just seemed normal and kind of nice.



When they were done eating, Todd pulled out a Frisbee. “Hey wanna play?”



“You and Chad go. I want to talk to Sam,” Alyssa waved him off.



Sam watched as they went away and began to chuck the Frisbee at each other.



“So, do we pass whatever standards you have for becoming friends?” Alyssa asked bluntly.



“You guys seem cool so far,” Sam admitted.



“After the party, I can understand you wanting to stick to yourself, but you can trust us. Seriously.” She studied him for a moment before saying, “It wasn’t a coincidence that Chad was there for you yesterday.”



Sam was surprised by that statement. “What? What do you mean?”



“He heard some of the other football players talking. Apparently they planned that. Chad drove around looking for you.”



“Oh.”



“Chad’s a good guy. A lot of people think that just because he’s tall, muscley, and good at sports that he’s just some dumb asshole jock. But he’s not. He’s really sweet and sensitive,” she told him.



Sam found his gaze drifting to the topic of their conversation. He didn’t say anything, but watched Chad and Todd run around, picking on each other and laughing.



“Come watch their basketball practice with me after school,” Alyssa half-suggested, half-demanded.



Sam hesitated. Him in a room with all the basketball players? That just sounded like a recipe for disaster.



“I usually go to the art room after school,” he tentatively tried to turn her down.



“Bring your sketchbook with you. You can draw the guys. They’d love it.”



He stared at her. “Are you serious?”



She paused, seeming to catch on to the reason for his hesitation. “Oh my God! You think we’re going to hurt you or make fun of you! That’s not going to happen. I promise. A lot of us are cooler than you might think. The guys on the team, they don’t care that you’re gay. They might make dumb jokes, but they’re harmless. And if they did more, Chad and Todd will take care of it.”



Sam still had doubts, but her face was so sincere. He found himself replying, “okay.”



She beamed at him. “Awesome! I’ll meet you after class then.”



Sam hoped he’d made the right decision.



xxxxxx



They settled into the bleachers. Sam was surprised at how many people were there to watch a practice. During the day, he’d had a fear that it would just be him and Alyssa in the stands, but there were others. A lot of the players’ girlfriends, the girl basketball team, the cheerleaders, and other random fans were scattered in the sidelines.



He didn’t know much about basketball so this was an experience that was new to him. It was actually pretty exciting to watch, the players moved so fast and had to think faster to get the ball away or into the basket.



Alyssa whooped next to him as Todd made a particularly difficult shot. Todd grinned over at her and noticed Sam. He waved at them before making his way to Chad and getting his attention. Chad looked up to see them in the stands. He smiled and waved as well before getting back into the practice.



Chad seemed to be doing particularly well, making practically every shot he attempted.



Alyssa nudged his shoulder. “He’s showing off for you.”



“What? Why would you think that?” Sam asked.



“He wants to show you what he’s good at.” She gave him a sidelong glance. “He always looks at your artwork when it’s on display or when it’s in a show. He thinks your really talented.”



Sam was about to reply, but his jaw threatened to drop open as he watched Chad take off his shirt.



Holy shit.



Sam didn’t usually like muscles, but something primal and instinctual arose in his being and he found himself staring. Chad was built like a frigging brick shithouse. The guy was a perfect candidate for an example of how to get six-pack abs.



Alyssa was watching him knowingly. “I know right? It took me awhile to recover the first few times I saw him do that, but I’ve seen it so much now it’s cool. And Todd’s pretty close to looking like that. They’ve been weightlifting a lot together.”



“Uhhh…” Sam couldn’t think of anything to say to that.



A few of the other teammates took their shirts off too, but none of them could compare to Chad. Todd was close, but not quite there.



Sam realized he’d been staring and turned his attention to Alyssa. She was smiling at him.



“So what kind of guy is your type?” She asked, so casually.



“We’re going to talk about guys now?”



“Oh come on, now that I have a gay friend, I was hoping we could scope out guys together.” She was completely serious.



He sighed. He’d never talked to anyone about this kind of thing before. It was a little hard for him. “Well obviously I was attracted to Tony,” he replied softly.



Alyssa looked sympathetic. “But what a jerk right? That was so low and shady of him to do what he did. He really looked into you, we thought that he was…well, up until he started laughing.” She paused. “Sorry I brought that up.”



“It’s okay. Actually I’m glad that you said you thought he was into me too. It makes me feel less stupid for believing him,” Sam admitted.



She rubbed his back comfortingly. “You’re not stupid.”



They sat in a comfortable silence and watched the rest of the practice together.



When it was over, she tugged his arm and led him down to the ground. Todd and Chad came to meet them. They were both topless still and there was a sheen of sweat on their bodies.



“Hey, you guys were awesome. It’ll be a great game on Friday night!” Alyssa told them.



“Two hotties watching in the stands is great motivation,” Todd joked and slung his arms, one around each of their shoulders.



Sam tensed a little at the physical touch, but it was only friendly and affectionate.



“God you need to shower.” Alyssa gave Todd a quick kiss.



“I’ll be thinking of you in the shower,” he replied.



She smacked him in the arm, but she was smiling.



“And we know Chad’ll be thinking of Sammy,” Todd added impishly.



Sam rolled his eyes. “I’m sure he will be,” he replied sarcastically.



“You should see the tackle on this guy. He’s hung like a wildebeest or something,” Todd added, causing Chad’s face to turn bright red. “I swear you could play a ring toss game with his morning wood…”



Chad smacked him with the shirt he was holding. “Shut the fuck up.”



“What? I’m complimenting you. If it makes you feel better…” he turned to Sam. “Chad has a tiny dick. It’s like a baby carrot…”



Chad dragged Todd away from Sam and Alyssa. “Come on, let’s go.” He glanced back at Sam. “Did you want me to give you a ride home? I’ll just be a few minutes.”



“Sure,” Sam found himself answering.



Alyssa was still giggling next to him when they were gone. “I know my boyfriend thinks he’s funny when he‘s totally not. Don’t take him seriously.”



“I never have.”



They waited together until the boys emerged from the locker room and they went their separate ways.



xxxxxx



It was a fairly silent drive to Sam’s house. The radio was playing softly, tuned into a classic rock station. Sam felt surprisingly comfortable in the truck.



“Thanks for coming to watch the practice,” Chad said softly, almost shyly.



“It was interesting. I’ve never been into sports much, but I liked it. You’re a really good player,” Sam complimented him. “I don’t think I could even make a basket.”



“I could show you sometime,” Chad offered, glancing at Sam.



“Okay.”



They pulled into Sam’s driveway.



“Thanks for the ride home.”



“I’ll give you a ride tomorrow? If you want?” Chad seemed hesitant, as if he thought Sam was going to yell at him and say no.



“Sure, that would be cool.”



Chad smiled. “See you tomorrow.”



Sam waved and watched him leave.



When he came in the house his mom was waiting for him. “Was that Chad giving you a ride? He seemed like a nice boy, so polite. You should invite him over sometime,” She suggested.



Sam nodded.



“Hey mom, do you think dad would want to go to a basketball game with me on Friday?”



xxxxxx



Okay second chapter! I hope you all like it!!