just dive in [reed bishop spin-off] ✔️

sixteen

— s i x t e en —

OLIVER WASN'T SURE what it said about him that less than a week after the disastrous events of their night out on Saturday, he took up Cora's invitation to a party.

There were any number of reasons that night had ended up being more of a disaster than anything. Namely, the intensely hot make out Oliver had shared with Reed in the bathroom, one that he wasn't allowed to bring up ever again even thought he was finding impossible to think of little else. It only made it so much more impossible when he had to see Reed everyday, had to share a backseat with him in Adam's car and change out in the same room for swim practice and had to pretend it didn't wreak havoc on him each time Reed so much as glanced in his direction. He took little comfort in the fact that Reed hadn't totally closed off from him following what happened and their friendship remained unaffected. It could only mean he wasn't as affected as Oliver, that there were no feelings to grapple with.

The second disaster had been waiting for them when they stumbled back to their hotel around 1AM, drunk off their faces, to find Me Jeffries waiting for them. And he was furious. In all the excitement of fake IDs and catching up with his old friends, Jeffries's strict lecture on their curfew of 10PM had totally slipped his mind. It was only when he checked his phone later he saw the countless texts and calls from Charlie and Kessy, warning that Jeffries was on the warpath and they better haul ass back to the hotel. Jeffries had given them a good twenty minute long dressing down in front of the entire team the next morning, made entirely more unpleasant by how hungover they both were, and after assigning them to two weeks of detention, he sent them to opposite ends of the minibus for the drive back.

"I hope it was worth it," Charlie said, peering between over his seat to look down Oliver from where he sat in front of him. He glanced over his shoulder as if to make sure Jeffries — or Reed, for that matter — weren't listening before continuing. "The scolding and detentions, I mean."

Oliver sighed, taking the bait. "Was what worth it?"

"Your night out in London, you and Reed, just the two of you..." He dropped his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "Everyone knows Reed and Bailey broke up, meaning he's single and ready to mingle...who knows what you could have gotten up to?"

"It wasn't just the two of us. We were with my friends."

"Oh?" Charlie eyes gleamed in a way that didn't bode well for anyone involved. "Was it one of them who gave him that hickey, then?"

He spoke the words so casually it took a moment for them to register with Oliver and when they did, he nearly choked. "What?" He instinctively glanced back down the minibus to Reed but he was out of sight, no doubt passed out to make for the lack of sleep both of them had gotten with their late night and early morning. In all the drama of last night, Oliver hadn't noticed anything but his face burned at the thought that all his friends must have seen it when they came out of the bathroom together, that Mr Jeffries had seen it. Not that his first thought would have been that Oliver had been the one to give it to him.

"I knew it," Charlie cackled, jabbing an unimpressed Kessy in the side. "Didn't I tell you, Kessy? I told you they were getting their shit on. You totally owe me five quid."

Oliver was appalled. "You bet on us?"

"For fucks sake. I was so sure Reed was too stuck up his own arse to do anything with a guy," Kessy muttered, rummaging around in her pockets before slapping a five pound note in a gleeful Charlie's hand. She pinned a glare on Oliver as if it was his fault she had lost her money. "I blame you, Sterling. He was such a straitlaced asshole before you came along."