Math is the shit.

Mathematics is a place where you can do things which you can't do in the real world.

Like who the fuck buys sixty-four random ass watermelons and divides them up equally.

Math brings possibilities and connections.

The adrenaline rush when you finally solve a problem which initially seemed impossible is unparalleled.

Like that one beautiful woman I saw last night.

Math keeps me on my toes and never gets too monotonous.

Especially when dividing legs and subtracting clothes.

Math is only hard for people who don't try or give up easily.

Rashad.

Math builds growth. It builds a healthy mindset and expands your mindset to think bigger and analyze problems carefully.

It's a universal language and you can't do anything without math. The simple arithmetic of 2+2=4 is the same around the world, no difference.

That's why I'm so good at hooking up. It's arithmetic.

I know that if I say the right words, apply patience, and input all the right body cues, then pussy is always my answer.

Take, for example, Courtney from my statistics class. I saw her before practice couple of days back decorating for tonights game with the student union. I complimented both her nice work and her beauty, she gave me her number, and I invited her out last night two plus two.

"I had a great time last night." Courtney combs her fingers through her hair. She lazily plants a kiss on my lips, lingering for a bit to make sure I remember her wild words in my ear last night

And they were wild, even in public.

"Me too." I pull back, opening the door for her.

"Call me," she purrs and spins on her heel.

I answer to the back of her head, "I will."

I won't.

I nod at her, watching her stop at the door frame and pushing her hair with her shoulders, silently asking if I would add more hickeys to the ones she's got on her neck. She hitches her breath as I press my body against her back, raising the hairs on the back of her neck.

"I'll see you around," I whisper in the shell of her ear.

She lets out a soft whimper and looks back at me with her eyes, lips uplifting and wanting a kiss, but that just messes up the whole entire one-sided equation. She puts an extra switch to her hips, glancing over her shoulder.

She opens her car door, accidentally dropping her keys and bending over for me to get a full glimpse of her ass. She pops up quickly, catches me watching, and sends a devious smirk. I shoot her wink, spreading a blush right across her cheeks.

Now leave. Simple as that.

Told you math is the shit.

Math has always been a constant with me. It's gotten me through the toughest problems of my life. Numbers create clarity, which helps me gain clarity about uncertainties in my life. But it also teaches commitment, which I gotta be so careful of.

I sigh quietly, opening the patio blinds and allowing the winter sun to burst forth in the kitchen. The warmth heats up my bare chest directly right on my left pec. I crease my forehead from the tension shooting across my head after the damn beergarita Jordy made us all try.

Not going lie, the shit was good..... A lot of things were good about that place.

Except those damn piñatas I bumped my head into whenever I stood up.

I chuckle, placing open the cabinet and viewing Jordy's bright yellow sip-a- bowl he was so crazy about getting for his birthday.

This shit is so huge, I'm surprised it fits in here.

With a head shake, I take my bowl down and shut the cabinet.

Jordy couldn't get over the attention he was getting for his birthday. But deserves it to the fullest extent. He shares the same birthday as his older brother. He said when his brother found out he had his birthday, he pinched his cheek when he was born and left a mark for life. He isn't ashamed of it. He always makes some hard shit up like someone scraped his cheek with a knife.

I release a chuckle at how his date last night fell for that shit. Told you, arithmetic.

Uncle Steve once said we don't give someone a number that they can't make better and all of numbers define a significant piece of our life.

January ninth means more than just a day to Jordy. It means honor, remembrance, and pain. I remember when we turned eighteen that's when we first got our brotherhood tattoos. Because we've been through the same shit of grief.

Jordy screamed like a bitch.

On the court, Jordy wears number nine probably because it's his life story and his dignity. We don't choose numbers just because. We choose it because it's a part of us like my number eleven

My chest hitches as I pour the fruit loops into my bowl, thinking how the number eleven changed my life forever.

I shake my head, thinking about how terrible of a child I had become because I was so angry because it was the only emotion I could produce.

Since men can't cry.

Fucking bastard.

I clench onto my bowl as I remember PJ shoving my chest as I tried to help clean up Mom's face. She had vomit on the corner of her mouth and he told me, "Stop crying like a bitch," and roughly wiped it away.

Fuck PJ.

I shut my eyes tightly, flexing my hand out and bawling it into the fist of thinking of his cold words while driving to the hospital.

"She only cared about herself, you think she really was going to stay and live for you?"

My stomach growls as I take a spoonful of cereal into my mouth to let the sugar take over to soothe my aching soul. I flip open the first page of what quickly subsides my anger more than anything, my daily Sudoku puzzle book, and get my mind focused for game day.

"Mornin Gramps." Jordy yawns, walking to the kitchen.

The joke never gets old all thanks to Jordy.

"Morning." I chuckle, adding an eight into a black tiny box.

He proudly holds no shame with his stuffed animal Terrapin against his chest as he gets his birthday gift.

If anybody knew the promising NBA Draft secret.

I chuckle, watching him carefully put his stuffed animal on the counter like it was some kind of human being.

"Man this thing is fire," Jordy lazily grins, placing his giant ass bowl at the table.

"Did you have fun last night?" I grin, erasing the one I tried first and putting a three next to the printed seven.

"Oh yeah, the ladies, the food, got a nice after party too." He wiggles his eyebrows. I chuckle because Jordy always has a tough time getting action, but he got it.

He plops his turtle right on the counter, bringing air and flipping my Sudoku page. I suck my teeth but can't help but smirk at his childlike heart.

"Natasha everything you ask for?" I take a bite of my cereal, turning the page back.

"Oh yeah." A boyish grin spreads across his lips. With his relaxed expression and body language, the boy finally looks freshly fucked other than his normal cranky toddler syndrome.

I chuckle, shaking my head and stirring up my cereal while trying to figure out where to put these last five numbers.

"Glowing," I tease, only for Jordy to touch his face believing it.

He grumbles, being so gullible. He pulls out his phone and scrolls through, probably on Twitter. I don't even have to ask what he's looking at when his face frowns.

Ahhhh, the athlete burn journal. I wonder what shit they said about Rashad this time.

"You see all the shit Iowa saying," Jordy grumbles.

I shrug, "Not surprised," I add the three next to five in the box.

"I wish they would stop talking about him like that.. Look, they got memes." Jordy holds up a meme at Rashad sliding across the basketball court on his stomach.

"That's a good one." I throw my head back and cackle.

"Jaylan don't be like that." Jordy furrows his brows.

"They aren't wrong," I shrug, taking another bite of my cereal.

Jordy flattens his smile because, in his mind, brotherhood is all sunshine and rainbows but in reality it's far from that.

"Give him a chance," Jordy vouches, holding on to his stuffed animal and eating his cereal.

I tighten my lips, "I have Jordy."

Fake people don't deserve chances.

"But we've all been together since freshman year," Jordy sighs, stirring his cereal.

"And people change Jordy," I say frankly, something I know he doesn't like hearing.

"True." He sighs, placing the cereal box down on the counter. "I just miss how it used to be."

"I know," I deflect not wanting to open the can of worms to ruin my day over a person who couldn't care two sense about anyone but themselves.

"For ten years I've known you, I still don't understand why you like Sudoku anyway," he teases, shaking his head.

Uncle Steve got me hooked on this shit since the night they got custody of me. Dead silent on the outside, no one could get me to talk after Mom's body was removed. Inside, I was angry, scared and sickening enough to be back with the bastard. PJ was all I had and the only love in my life was taken away from me.

Uncle Steve tossed the book on my bed and said "solve it." I remember angrily throwing the book at the door, questioning what a bunch of numbers was going to help me with my shitty problems. I stared at that damn thin book until midnight with hatred until something in me made me spring off that bed and just do it.

It took me all fucking night to figure out how get nine numbers into perfectly placed positions but determination and sense of control stirred in me. Solving the simple puzzle brought me both mental and emotional stillness, knowing my heart needs it besides chaos and disorder.

"Helps me focus under pressure," I vouch, erasing the seven.

"No wonder your ass is so cocky, rip me a page." Jordy waves in front me but I just give him a high five.

"Nah." I smugly grin, continuing my therapy and only glancing at Jordy having a small conversation with Testudo as he looks at me and back at that stuff animal.

I faintly smile, shaking my head at him snickering. I erase the seven again because shit ain't working. Seven is probably the hardest thing to fix in the damn nine boxes.

But it's mental therapy.

And what I've learned is that all things are difficult before they get easy.

My shoulders relax when I place the last number. I write the date like always, as if it was my diary, and shut it.

"What's up, Pops?" Hollis comes in with a big cheesy grin, fully dressed for the day in his warmups.

"What you all giddy about," Jordy grunts, eyeing up Hollis.

"My first night out on the town with the team," Hollis reminds us, opening the refrigerator to grab his half-empty OJ.

Marcus is a world class asshole.

Hollis groans, "Fucking Marcus." Hollis shakes his head, just takes the last swig of it.

"Shit, you still holding on to that? Let it go," Jordy grunts, rolling his eyes.

They could be twins but they don't see it.

My eyes widen, "Jordy," I burst out in laughter.

He grumbles like a two year old and holds on to Testudo.

"Yes I'm still on it, Jordiana." Hollis playfully plucks the nose, making him yank it away like a kid.

"It's nothing to see out there." Jordy grumbles.

"Or you don't want me to see." Hollis reaches for a bowl in the cabinet.

"Nobody wants your Guido looking Jersey shore self." Jordy grumbles.

Bouncing my shoulders,"Jordy relax bro."

Hollis rubs across his upper chest with his hand, "I'm flattered you think I'm attractive."

"I didn't say that, grenade." Jordy rolls his eyes and I throw my head back and laugh.

We all erupt in laughter filling in the kitchen as Hollis takes down protein powder on the counter.

"Trying to see the prospects out here," Hollis rubs his hands together and twisting the protein lidZ

"Maryland girls are ruthless, rude mean, cut throat." Jordy shakes his head.

"If I can handle New York women, Maryland is a piece of cake," Hollis flexes his weak arms in Jordy's face.

I bow my head down tucking my lip in as laughter comes out. The two begin to debate on the girls here on campus. I wanted to chime in but I glance at my phone seeing Ava name. I roll my eyes.

Ava: Did you have fun last night? 🙄
Being an ass I reply

Me: best night of my life 😉
Not even seconds later I get another message

Ava: 🖕🏻

I don't see her point in trying and trying. The one thing I hate is repeating myself and Ava knows that. She feeds on it. I've done everything I can to be an ass towards her yet she doesn't give up.

I wish she would give up but she won't because deep down in her delusional mind she believes it can work.

Jordy slaps them down and I laugh at them. "The chicks here are just different and half of them sleep with this one," Jordy sounds annoyed as he points at me.

"The fuck, no I didn't." I couldn't help but cackle, rubbing my bare chest at the roast.

"Yes you did!" Jordy draws his eyebrow together.

I mean yeah I got a track record and don't ask me my body count but it don't mean I sleep with every girl I see. I am selective.

"Why you call me out," I suck my teeth.

"Because you've literally slept with this whole campus," Jordy huffs like a bitch.

"Not true." I gruff.

"Shall we begin," Jordy clears his throat.

"Go on, talk yo shit Jordy." I rub my jaw, trying to hide my smile yet laughter slips out.

"Cap I can't believe you." Hollis shakes his head like he is ashamed of me but he has no room to bitch.

"Hollis remember the girl you was with the first night you got here?" I hum.

Hollis gasp trying shut his gaping mouth. "That don't mean I'm a fuck boy."

"Fuck boy." Jordy and I say at the same time.

"I'm offended, I was just showing some New York love." He rubs his hand over his chest with a big ass grin.

"Right." I glance down at my phone,  a couple emails of what he is talking about but one message was not what I wanted to see this morning. Jordy continues to share my dirty laundry to  Hollis while I open an email from my Statistics professor.

Yeah, that's the only math that makes no sense.

Jaylan,

Please consider reaching out to the Academic Tutoring Center about new steps to improve your grades. You currently have a sixty seven in the class. Please be sure you are doing all your homework and assignments that are due. I know basketball is a priority but so is your education.

Here is the link to sign up for tutoring hours and please let me know once you sign up.

Good luck tonight,

Professor Stencil.

I roll my eyes, shoving my phone back in my pocket. My jaw tightens because I need these credits to graduate.

And no graduation, no NBA draft.

Tutoring is worse than counseling.

"I did not," I interject Jordy's lie that I had a threesome in the locker room with Ava and her teammate.

I mean, shit fucking in the locker room is off my checklist and the threesome is half-true, but it was more of me and her teammate Nikki involved than I was with Ava.

I release a chuckle at my ruthless behavior, licking my lips thinking about the shameless amount of times I've had a casual hook up.

But oxytocin is so good. Sometimes you gotta ride the high so you don't think about the lows.

"Shall I pull it up?" Jordy snarkily says, scrolling through his phone.

"Pull what up?" Hollis arches his brow, biting his granola bar.

"UMD's narcissistic fuckboys...," he announces with a laugh at me. "They suck all the life out of you, then toss you aside like the trash wrapper. Want names? Here they are."

I couldn't help but laugh too because fucking Ava just cannot let her opinions go.

"Damn, you really on here." Hollis laughs over Jordy's shoulder at me.

"Marcus too," Jordy adds, shaking his head.

"What about me?" Marcus comes in, also fully dressed.

"UMD Fuck Boy site," Hollis deadpans.

"I'm not fuck boy though." Marcus laughs, shaking his head, but he knows good and well that he is indeed a fuck boy.

"Shut the fuck up." I cackle.

"I'm not." Marcus couldn't contain his laughter as he throws his head back.

"Your right he isn't, he too worried about Strawberry shortcake." Jordy teases.

"Who the fuck is-" I laugh catching on to Jordy good joke this morning. Man he on the role.

"Jordy you walkin to campus." Marcus sucks his teeth.

"Wasn't she here a couple nights ago?" I add.

"Yeah they were getting freaky deaky on the couch!" Jordy bounces his shoulders.

Marcus tries to keep a straight smile but couldn't. "Why you peepin tho?"

Jordy shrugs. "Wasn't much to see."

"Damn Jordy you on the fuck boy list!" Hollis waving his phone.

We all cackle as Jordy gasps rushing to his side and he sucks his teeth. "Not funny!"

Jordy cares about his reputation and I'm thankful he respects and honors to one girl.

Sometimes I wish I could be like him.

"Well, since I'm not on there, I'll have no problem tonight," Hollis boasts.

"Tonight for what," Marcus grumbles, opening the cabinet.

"I promised him we would go to Terrapins Turf."  I shrug and Marcus groans. "Anywhere but there."

Hollis leans on the dorm frame of the kitchen. "Relax we will be there for a couple of hours and we dip." Hollis assures.

Marcus rolls his eyes at the bar suggestion and flashes a smile at the end. "Maryland girls are different and they all slept with Jaylan." He slaps my chest and my breath hitches from the stinging on my bare chest.

"Not all," Jordy gloats.

"What you mean?"

"Alexis Clark, hmmm Maxine Jordan.... Faith Harrison.... Bree Gregory Uh, Janay Peterson.... Mya Douglas-" Jordy lists, counting his fingers. I shake my head, chuckling at him.

"I definitely fucked Mya Douglas." I gloat.

Jordy grumbles calling me a slut making us all laugh.

"All who shot you down," Marcus teased.

"That beautiful, beautiful mamacita last night shot you down," Jordy gushes, giving a chef's kiss.

"Not her." Marcus crosses his arms. "She's off limits."

Jordy, Hollis, and I slant our eyes at him while Marcus pours his cereal. All three of us saw the Mother Nature-blessed cutie with a big booty. Even with Courtney hanging on me like a second coat sleeve, my eyes preferred the warm, gingerbread-brown gaze that shyly met mine as she walked around the table.

"What you mean, off limits?" Hollis leans on his elbows on the counter.

"Right, why? Because Rashad put a claim?" Jordy blizzards his lip.

"Nah, unless you want to keep your dick," Marcus reveals, making my eyes widen at the revelation.

"Wait a minute, wait a minute! That's Big Red's roommate?" I gape my mouth open. I rub my chin when it just hit me.

Wow, Ginger demon really kept her locked away in a tall tall tower away from the big bad wolf all these years. That ginger demon.

Damn she had a fucking fat ass and her perfect dimples in her cheeks. Shit.

Marcus must have know what I was thinking because he groans loudly.

"No" Marcus firmly says.

"She is a ten" I devilishly grin, recollecting last night how tight her round, mouth-watering tits sat perfectly in that tight black shirt. With how low-cut it was, her shirt left little to the imagination but damn thinking about my face pressed in between them was more entertaining than the damn guac cart..

They had to be at least Thrity D cup

The diamond belly ring glistening in that shitty lighting and under those piñatas practically screamed for my teeth to tug on it. Her voice from those full lips was soft and as sweet as sugar.... No, angelic... Just thinking about her moaning my name, cursing in Spanish, and calling me Papi over and over again. Fuck me.

Oh, Ginger Demon.... You have unleashed evil. Demon time for Jaylan Parker

"Roommate," Hollis and Jordy say like wonder twins.

"Just drop it, I ain't say shit." Marcus shakes his head, trying to end the conversation.

"What was her name again?"I smirk and think about how I was mesmerized by every feature of our waitress last night. 

Now she is a math equation I'm going to take, like the dudes who be working on the white chalkboards to find the solution.

She is truly Math fifty-five.

Marcus was not lying about her ass.

Damn, she had a big ass.

I dropped two hundred dollars when I saw Rashad leave his number on the table like every other dumbass who ate all their chips just so she brought back more.

With no hesitation, I took his number and crumbled it. I know I'm an asshole but I'm saving her the heartbreak. One thing I know is that she definitely is a terrible waitress, I mean who lets their employee sit at the bar doing homework anyway.

But that also shows who she truly is, a serious student, and that intrigues me.

Red headed bandit's roommate.

I boyishly grin, listening to Jordy try to describe the shape of her ass with his hands. Marcus shakes his head, tuning him out.

"Her ass was like like like a globe," Jordy stammers off the right words watering from the mouth.

"Rashad really was trying though, I told him right away it's a no." Marcus laughs, shaking his head.

Rashad tried to quickly make that shot with sweet face. He doesn't think, he just does like he normally does in the game. Often he misses and he definitely missed on her. Only the elite can make a clean shot with a prize like her, if they strategize it enough. Especially when you have defenders like atomic flame and the princess of Philadelphia that will be all up on his ass, a nice, direct approach is a weakass game.

"Good all more play for me" I gloat.

"I'm telling you don't do it. MJ will kick your ass to graduation." Marcus warns.

"Oh MJ" Jordy heightens his voice.

Marcus slants his eyes, "Jordy you are walkin."

"I'm not afraid of Ginger snap," I smirk, making them all look at me in shock.

"Cappin." Jordy laughs in disbelief.

"No cap, not afraid of her," I admit, shrugging my shoulders.

What's the worst Firecracker could d-

Our attention is drawn to loud slams on the front door, making us all quiet while Marcus curses underneath his breath. We all grin, knowing good and well Marcus about to get his ass handed to him.

"Marcus Greene you open this door!" A nasal voice says high pitch.

Oh shit he is a dead man.

Marcus walks to the door and we all congregate in front of the door frame.  Marcus goes out the door and all you see is her tossing a card in his face and stomps her foot.

Marcus didn't really read the problem good enough.

"Marcus!" Her Boston aching voice screeches.

Big red dramatically threw her hands in the air, pacing back and forth and screeching like a wild cat, only for Marcus to just keep a level head as she just loses it.

Told you this wasn't going to work.

"Who is that girl in the Jeep?" Hollis leans in, stretching the blinds, but I whack his hand.

"She definitely off limits." I look directly at Alexis Clark. Not only big red is protective of her and her beauty but she used to be with Derek Thompson, Our Quarterback. He has definitely told everybody to stay the fuck away from her.

"Out of your league, I've tried," Jordy gripes, opening the blinds again.

Maxine fists her hair crazy and waves her phone in his face. Marcus makes the wrong move, flashing his boyish grin.

Wrong move again... come on... Marcus.

Two plus two bro. Two plus two.

We can barely hear what Marcus says but see their whole exchange. He uses a lot of hand waves but Maxine's face turns bright red and her eyes slightly wells up. She quickly walks to her Barbie yellow ass jeep and pulls out like a crazy Boston resident.

For a few moments after she leaves, Marcus hangs his head down low. We jump back when he comes in the door, his shoulders slumping and a heavy look of defeat in his eyes.

In a quiet voice, he says, "We are going tonight."

Guess he found out his right answer.

Edited by still_just_me