The Bad Boy Next Room (Charlie and Taylor)

Charlie's eyes rounded.

Standing before her was a shirtless Taylor. His body was glistening in sweat.

Clearly, he was having some kind of workout!

Sure, green thoughts filled her head as she eyed his well-defined body, but when her eyes landed on his shorts, she wondered, 'Who wears jersey shorts while having sex?'

"Charlie?" Taylor was chasing his breath. He asked, "Did you text me? I did not notice."

"Charlie? Where is she? Where is she?" Suddenly, a young boy's voice came through.

He subtly pushed Taylor aside and extended his hand to Charlie. This boy looked like he was ten, or so Charlie thought. He had brown hair. He was slightly underweight-looking, and his forehead was somewhat broader.

This boy gave Charlie an extra wide smile and said, "Hi, I'm Carl! Taylor told me all about you!"

Charlie fell confused. She glanced at Taylor, silently asking.noveldrama

Taylor coughed against his fist and explained, "Just today. I told him about you just today."

"Yeah! And he told me everything about -" The boy could not finish his sentence because Taylor covered his mouth.

"I told him you are my roommate and all that stuff," Taylor said.

Carl managed to free himself from Taylor's hand. He excitedly revealed, "Taylor told me you are cute -"

"He asked if you were cute, and I said." Taylor made a face and said, "I said you were okay and that you are too old for him."

Charlie, "..."

"Can you play with us?" Carl asked.

"Yeah, why don't you come in," Taylor suggested.

Before Charlie could answer, Carl turned and screamed, "Mom, Taylor's girlfriend is here. Can I play with her too!"

'Girlfriend?' Charlie mused.

A woman in her late forties made her way to the door. She was in a formal dress and looked like she was about ready to leave. She said, "Taylor's girlfriend? Oh, how pretty!"

The woman walked past Taylor. She stretched her arms and hugged Charlie. She said, "I did not know Taylor was dating someone." She turned to Taylor and gave a thumbs up, “I'm happy for you, Taylor."

"Oops! I have to go. My husband is waiting for me," the woman said before calling her daughter. "Macy, I'm heading out now. Take care of your brother and give Taylor snacks before he leaves."

After the woman left, Taylor invited Charlie in. Charlie still did not know what was going on, but it was now clear to her that Taylor was not here for sex.

The two boys brought Charlie to the backyard, and it was there that she finally understood.

There was a basketball ring!

Taylor was giving Carl basketball lessons!

"Charlie, play with us, please. My sister never plays with me," Carl requested.

"I have an extra shirt in my gym bag," Taylor said, pointing to where his bag was.

Luckily, Charlie was wearing shorts.

She grabbed Taylor's shirt and headed to the shared bathroom to change. Once she was done, she joined Taylor and Carl. Though for the most part, they would pause and let Charlie take the shot. She could not really play it like a man, but she tried her best.

While playing, Charlie noticed that Carl was very awkward. He was often stiff, and Taylor would take break to help him practice his balance. When they were done practicing, Charlie finally noticed something different about Carl.

“Hey, Charlie,” Carl called while they sat in front of the outdoor table. "Do you like basketball? What's your favorite team?"

Charlie stammered. Before she

could reply Carl resumed, "Oh, you don't watch it? That's okay! Let me tell you why you should. First, it's fast-paced, and there are so many strategies! Also, did you know the three-point line wasn't always in the NBA? It was added in 1979!"

Charlie, "..."

"Did you know the highest-scoring NBA game ever was in 1983 when the Pistons beat the Nuggets 186 to 184? That's crazy, right? That's a total of 370 points! Most games don't even break 250."

Charlie, "???"

"Michael Jordan's free throw percentage was 83.5%, but Steph Curry's is over 90%. That means if they each took 100 free throws, Steph would make about 7 more shots than Jordan."

Charlie was having a nosebleed. The kid was giving her an info dump about basketball, a game she seldom played. Beside her, Taylor was chuckling. He remarked, "Amazing, right?"

"Oh, will you stop talking, Carl? Taylor already knows this stuff," Macy came out from the house, carrying a plate of cookies and juice. When Macy spotted Charlie, she frowned and asked, "Who is she?"

"This is Charlie, Taylor's girlfriend!" Carl said. "Isn't she pretty!"