I let out a heavy sigh as Dakota rolled off me. He positioned himself next to me on the bed, both of us panting heavily. The room was hot with the stench of sex hanging in the air.

"We can't keep doing this," I puffed, waiting for oxygen to reacquaint my lungs. "It's not right."

Dakota glanced sideways me. "Why? Because we're sworn enemies always out to get each other?"

"We're lying to our friends. It doesn't feel right."

Of course it didn't. When did lying ever feel right? My friends and I told each other everything because we trusted one another. That's the way things had been since we were little kids. Keeping this a secret was well out of my moral code and the idea put me on edge.

Beside me on the mattress, Dakota's laboured breathing matched my own and our bodies were sweaty in the aftermath of our lust. The sheets tangled around our feet from where I'd kicked them to the bottom of the bed.

Despite my relaxed state, the waves of euphoria rolling off me were quickly turning into heated shame. I thought eventually the pleasure would be enough to override my guilt but old habits die hard. Especially when it came to Dakota Anderson.

Dakota and I had been hooking up in secret for a little over a year now. I'd lost count of how many times we'd done it after the first six months. Even my memory of how we started was hazy.

The only recollection I had was a party last year where we'd both been drinking and deep into a heated argument when Dakota's mouth was suddenly on mine. Before I knew what was happening, I'd been shoved up against a wall as Dakota attacked my lips with his own.

We'd found a spare bedroom and one thing led to another. Not only did I lose my virginity that night, but it was my first time being with a guy. Suspecting you're gay was one thing, but affirming it with your worst enemy only made my skin crawl even more.

There was so many excuses I could pin the blame on  that night: alcohol, resentment, being in the throes of an argument, but I couldn't because I knew what it really came down to.

At the end of the day, I revelled in the way Dakota's lips felt against mine. His teeth grazing my skin. The weight of his hand on my shoulder, pinning me against the wall as the other came up to tangle in my hair. My mind loathed every inch of him I'd learnt quickly that my body felt differently. It was both exhilarating and humiliating to be taken apart under the flames of hatred.

One hour and three mental breakdowns later, I came to the conclusion that I was very much attracted to Dakota, so imagine my shock when Dakota revealed he didn't hate the experience either.

Once the instantaneous period of shock and confusion had passed, coupled with a handful of exhausted threats, Dakota and I agreed that the sex had been fun. It took a while to coax the confession out of Dakota that he wanted it to happen again but it was the truth for both of us. So, that's what we did.

We kept it a secret purely for the fact that people didn't need to know. My best friends would kill me, my school would hate me for hooking up with the competition and it would all crash and burn. People at school weren't homophobic but I'd only told Scott and Trent last year that I was gay.

It's not that I was ashamed of my sexuality - though I'd certainly had a few regrets when my best friends thought words of support hadn't been enough and left The Joys of Gay Sex gift wrapped on my pillow with a box of condoms and a sticky note telling me to have fun you beast!!! - but I was ashamed of who I coloured my flag with. No one knew about Dakota. That was my secret alone.

Dakota respected my wishes in keeping what we did private, but the Ridgemount Captain had unashamedly made his bisexuality well known by tenth grade.

Being proud of who you are was fantastic but I couldn't shake the feeling of surprise that Dakota had come out so young. Ridgemount Academy was more traditional than Northshore. The students were made to wear uniforms and had a strict code of conduct in attempt to subdue juvenile behaviour. Flaunting your weekly conquests seemed like a good way to rile every policy the Academy stood for.

But, as most things were when it came to Dakota Anderson, his coming out was received with open arms and high-end praises. Being bisexual only seemed to boost his reputation as it meant he was available to both girls and boys.

There had never been an issue with Dakota's sexuality. He kept our activities private only for my sake. Even someone like Dakota wasn't cruel enough to out a person without their consent. I couldn't imagine having someone like that in my life.

Despite the shameful amount of times we'd been inside each other, it wasn't a relationship. That had been made explicit from the very beginning. What Dakota and I did was a complete no-strings attached way to relieve tension and stress. It was a way to let loose with no commitments, and it had been working fine until I started feeling guilty about lying to the people I cared about.

"What do you want to do, Connor?" Dakota asked, lazily watching me from his side of the bed. "You want to stop? Tell people?"

"No!" I bolted up. "Absolutely not!"

Dakota waited, a bored look on his face. He didn't usually offer support when I started to overthink everything. It was one of his many disreputable charms.

Dakota played with a loose piece of hair over my eyes. "So, you want this to still be a secret?"

"No, but-"

"But what?"

I groaned and fell back on the bed, covering my face with a pillow. Voice muffled, I said, "I don't know. I just feel bad."

"Can't hear you."

The pillow fell to the side as I jerked my head sideways to look at him. "I just don't feel right about lying, you know?"

"What about this is lying?"

"It's-" I made a flimsy gesture of distress. "I don't know. My virtue? Moral integrity? I promised my friends and my team that I would lead us to victory this year when all I'm doing is sleeping with the competition behind their backs. It feels like treachery."

"Calm down, Jane Austen. You're not going to win whether you sleep with me or not."

I glared at him and he snickered. "Thanks for the advice, asshole."

Dakota sighed. "Maybe we should stop for a while. I don't want things to get serious."

"I don't want to stop." My arm came up to shield my face from view. "I just need some time to think things over."

"You thinking has never led to anything good in the past."

I lowered my arm slightly to glare at him again. "Why does something that feels so good make me feel so bad?"

"You're spiralling, babe." Dakota replied with an amused smile. He poked my side. "Come back to me."

I squirmed at his touch but didn't offer a reply. He was right.

To some people, it might've seemed strange that we used pet names. That was a couple tendency and we certainly weren't a couple. However, since it was just sex and a way to relieve the stress of everyday life, we could act however we wanted as long as it didn't get serious.

I sighed and closed my eyes. A moment later lips began to trail across my shoulder down to my collarbone and a lazy smile fell over my face.

"Koda." I moaned, a nickname I'd given Dakota long ago, as he worked his way across my collarbone to the crook of my neck, teasing my sensitive spot with his teeth.

I sighed in pleasure and tangled my hands through his hair as Dakota ran his hands down my sides.

It was only when his hand slid lower that my eyes shot open. "Did you lock the door?"

Dakota looked up with a small smirk. "Yes Connor, I locked the door. I'm not stupid."

I rolled my eyes and he went back to kissing my neck, biting and sucking on my sweet spot.

"Thanks a lot, playboy." A laugh escaped me. "I'm going to have to steal my mum's makeup tomorrow to hide that."

Dakota snorted. "Con, you have your own share of fun just as much as me. Don't even go there. Besides, do you really want me to stop?" His teeth grazed the skin beneath my collarbone.

"No." I groaned honestly and dug my nails into his back as he worked his way down my chest.

It was over too soon as Dakota sat up. "We should go. People will start to get suspicious if both of us are gone too long and suddenly appear at the same time."

I nodded in agreement. We'd been at this party for three hours already and were due for another appearance. I thanked God that everyone was too drunk to pay attention to us right now. Smart Dakota.

We climbed out of bed and hurriedly dressed. I winced a little when I hit the part of my shin that Dakota kicked earlier during the game.

Dakota must've heard me because he looked up and smirked. "Oh, I'm sorry, baby. Did I go too rough on you today? I can kiss it better?"

"Shut up." I snarled as he snickered. Dakota may be my routinely hook-up but he was still a complete jerk.

Once we were dressed, Dakota left the room first and I followed a moment later as to not look suspicious.

Making my way downstairs, I found my friends in the kitchen. Trent saw me coming and grinned, yelling over the music, "Hey, Connor! Where'd you disappear to?"

I said nothing as I took the drink he offered, downing it a moment later. They didn't miss a beat. My smirk spoke volumes.

"Oh yeah, Connor. Get some!" Scott cheered in his drunken stupor, words slurring as he spoke. Trent and I laughed at his antics.

As conversation shifted to the upcoming season, my gaze drifted over to the living room. Couches and tables had been pushed back to form a makeshift dance floor where hormonal teenagers were currently grinding on one another. It didn't take me long to spot Dakota in the corner, kissing the life out of a Ridgemount girl. I rolled my eyes. He really did act like a player. Hit it and quit it.

For the rest of the night I hovered around downstairs, dancing and chatting with people from my school and avoiding Ridgemount kids as if they were an infectious disease.

It wasn't uncommon for Northshore and Ridgemount to integrate at parties. Our schools shared a district, after all. However, each other's attendance had become more intentional over the years since Dakota and I had become Captains.

Our schools like to pull pranks and dirty tricks on one another. It was easier to watch your back when you were in close proximity with your attacker. Maybe it was petty but where was the fun if you didn't bring someone down where people could see it happen? As they say, witnesses validate the truth.

It was close to one o'clock in the morning when I hauled Trent and Scott out of the house and to Trent's car. Scott was in no state to be out any longer but Trent was only a little dazed. It was my turn to be the designated driver out of three of us so I jumped into the driver's seat and got us on the road.

I drove my friends home, taking them inside and alerting their parents so they knew their kids were home and to look after them. I also didn't want to deal with Scott flirting with a lamp post any longer. Listening to your best friend tell an inanimate object that it had a big pole and could be turned on any time of day was not something one should ever have to hear.

When I arrived home, I quietly opened the door to a dark house and crept up the stairs. My parents were asleep and if I woke them, they would kill me.

There were no problems passing my parents' room but my foot creaked on a floorboard outside my own bedroom. I held my breath but no one came out so I let it out and quietly closed the door behind me once inside.

I took a quick shower, being sure to wash the stench of sex from my body before climbing out and throwing on a pair of shorts with no shirt. My head was about to hit the pillow when my phone suddenly beeped on my bedside table.

Rolling over, I snatched it up to see I had a text from none other than Dakota himself.

I could practically see Dakota smirking as he typed the message and the thought irritated me. Instead of humouring him with a response, I rolled my eyes and tossed my phone back on the small table. Leave it to Dakota to find a way to annoy me without even being physically present.