Played by Love (New Adult Romance): A #Played Novella

“I feel stupid.” Jaden Sloup wiped his palms over his stretchy blue and gold soccer uniform.

“You should.” His friend Kimber sneered. “She doesn’t date jocks or frat guys.”

Jaden pulled on the thick padded goalkeeper gloves he wore on the field. “This is a costume party, right?”

“Cosplay.” Kimber raised her white Assassin’s Creed hood to glare at him. “Big difference. Observe and stay behind me.”

Electronic house music pulsed throughout the lower level of the co-op. A pair of furry Ewoks waddled by, and a woman warrior with golden skin and metallic breast shields swung her sword at a muscular man wearing chains.

“You see her?” Jaden craned his neck. Kimber, his frat brother’s girlfriend, owed him one, and payback was introducing him to the pixie blonde who danced on her team.

“Ella didn’t tell me what she’s coming as.” Kimber drew down the hood. “This costume itches and the arm bands keep slipping. But at least I fit in. You’re too noticeable.”

“Not really.” Jaden pulled out a pair of nerd glasses, the kind with the Buddy Holly thick rims, and looped it over his eyes. “I’m an Asian guy in glasses pretending to be a soccer goalie.”

“Whatever, let’s look for Ella.” Flashing their tickets at the door attendants, Kimber led the way into the party hall.

Inside, various creatures from every comic book, sci-fi movie, and action film writhed and wiggled to the electronic pulses passing as music. Strobe lights flashed, and spotlights were trained on a makeshift stage. A pair of blue-haired fairies with gossamer wings wearing fig leaves sang, and Japanese characters flashed across the screen behind them.

Most of the party goers were Asian, typical of the UC Berkeley campus scene. Ella should stand out. A petite blonde, she’d make a cute fairy, elf, or nymph.

“Stop gawking.” Kimber poked his side.

“I can’t believe how revealing the costumes are. They really don’t hide much. I thought there’d be a lot of Disney princesses in long flowing gowns.”

“You really are a geek. While we’re looking for Ella, let’s dance.”

“Did she give you a hint what she’d be wearing?”

“Nope. She said to let you find her, that it’d be symbolic.”

Jaden’s height advantage had him looking over all the headdresses and helmets on the dance floor. He and Kimber moved half-heartedly from one side of the room to the other. He wasn’t going to risk anyone accusing him of moving in on his frat brother’s girl, but then, it was extremely unlikely any guys from his frat, the uber-cool Kappa Alpha Omega, would hang out at such a geeky party.

He definitely stood out with his soccer uniform, and if it weren’t for the glasses, he wouldn’t be able to pass for a techie guy, the ones with the best tools and gadgets. At least he was in shape, thanks to soccer. What was laughable were the guys with pot bellies wearing superhero tights.

“I don’t think she’s here,” Jaden said after checking out half a dozen Asian anime heroines wearing blond wigs.

“Remember, you’re on your own as soon as I introduce you.” Kimber danced lackadaisically. “Jax is waiting for me and I have to return this ridiculous outfit.”

Jaden tugged at his jersey to fan himself. Those Ewoks had to be boiling. Even the mostly naked Vampirellas were sweating, their heavy black mascara smeared and wigs plastered.

A buzzing black and golden bumblebee jabbed her stinger into his leg. He recognized Tricia Chu, a woman from his computer science class.

“Jaden! What are you doing here? That’s not a costume.”

“What do you mean? I’m playing a Japanese goalie from some anime film.”

Tricia eyed him up and down. “You could pass for Mamoru Endou of InaZuma, but you’re missing the orange headband. What’s with the glasses?”

“Disguise. Do you know Ella Kennedy?”

“Know her? Heck ya.” The bumblebee buzzed and flapped her cellophane wings. “We hang at all the cons together. She’s over there.”

Tricia pointed to a bouncing ladybug. She was flapping a pair of red wings with giant black dots, and her cleavage almost spilled out of her tight polka-dotted tank top. A fluffy satin bottom wiggled over black fishnet stockings, and two antennae made of springing black ping pong balls sprouted from a headband.

For a ladybug, she looked damn sexy, if he was into bug sex. Okay … He doubted real ladybugs sashayed around in platform boots, but then, Ella could turn a black widow into the new hot.

“Ella, come here,” Kimber called. “Jaden, meet Ella. Ella, Jaden. I’m outta here.” She pulled her hood over her face and gave Jaden a shove in Ella’s direction.

Jaden flashed his geekiest smile and touched his glasses, the better to pretend he needed them. What exactly did a guy say to proposition a ladybug?

“Ella can’t talk,” Tricia explained. “Ladybugs don’t make any sounds, at least not what humans can hear.”

Ella shook her head and wiggled her finger as if disagreeing.

“Oh, right,” Tricia said. “It’s too noisy in here. Ladybugs prefer open space and lots of greenery.”

They also eat green aphids, white flies, and other pests.

“Well, I’m Jaden and I’m not a soccer player.” Jaden reached for Ella’s black-gloved hand, or foot or whatever you called ladybug appendages.

Ella beamed, her cute, prankish face lighting up. Nodding eagerly, she pointed to herself, then slashed her finger back and forth, pouting, before delivering a sweeping kick with her boot.

“She says she’s happy to meet you because she doesn’t like real athletes,” Tricia translated.

“Well good,” Jason said. “Tell her I’m a certified computer geek. I even built a PC and installed Ubuntu LINUX on my smartphone.”

Ella clasped her hands and nodded so furiously, her ping pong balls hit her forehead. She reached into her spandex skirt and pulled out a phone with the Ubuntu welcome circle.

“You installed this yourself?” Jaden asked.

She hugged herself and nodded, then opened the People App. Jaden understood what she wanted, and he mated his phone with hers, back to back to exchange contact information.

Ella hovered up to him on tippy toes and kissed him on the cheek. Her antennae jiggling, she flapped her half oval ladybug wings and danced in a zigzag, from one potted plant to the next until she flew out the French doors.

# # #

Ella dragged Tricia to the garden where it was quieter. Her lips were still tingly where she’d kissed Jaden and held traces of his woodsy, sporty scent. She even had to tiptoe to give him a peck, and she wasn’t that short at five foot three.

“Did I make a good impression?” she asked when they were well away from the squirty synthesizer music.

“Heck yeah. His eyes were popping out of those glasses.” Tricia’s tongue made a lump in her cheek. “Let’s just say he got bug eyed over you.”

“Oh, goodie, so, what is he?”

Tricia flickered her eyes sideways and up. “He’s a man. Not a soccer player or frat brother.”

“I know that!” Ella exclaimed. “He said he was
disguised
as a soccer player. I meant what
is
he? Chinese, Japanese or Korean?”

“Oh, that.” Tricia’s eyebrows bent to the side. “Why does it matter?”

“Duh!” Ella swiped her smartphone to the language translator app. “The next time I meet him, I’m not going to be a ladybug, so I have to say something. Like, ‘ni hao’ or ‘konnichiwa’ or oh, gosh, this one’s hard, ‘ann-yeong haseyo.’ Did I say it right?”

“Do I look like I know what you’re talking about?” Tricia planted her hand on her hip. “Put that app away. He’s Korean.”

“Korean guys are hot!” Ella was so excited she could freak. A guy with the body of an athlete but the brain of a geek. What a catch.

“Yeah, yeah, just don’t say that in front of him, okay?”

“No, I’m not stupid. It’s like if he said ‘blondes have more fun’ I’d be like, ‘not with you, bucko.’” Ella wasn’t racist or anything. Geez. “Don’t you think he’s hot?”

“Eh, he looks too much like my brother.” Tricia’s cell phone rang and she fumbled with it.

“What’s his name? Jaden who?”

“Song, S-O-N-G.” Tricia had a tiny smile on her face as she tapped a text message.

“Thanks.” Now that she knew his name and that he was Korean, she’d do more research. She typed in his name, but nothing popped out. “Ugh, everything’s about Jaden Smith and his hit song.”

Tricia kept texting and giggling, so Ella added ‘Jaden Song Korean’ to the search bar. This time she got hits to Jaden Smith singing with Jay Park, the Korean rapper.

“Does he have a Facebook page?” Ella tugged her bug bodice which was beginning to itch.

“Nope, he’s a nerd, remember?” Tricia was cracking up by now, but her thumbs were still flying over her phone.

What did being a nerd have to do with not having Facebook? Ella stomped her bug boot and went to YouTube. At least she could learn how to say hello to him next time.

“Oh look, I found a video. It says I should just say ‘ann-yeong’ since he’s a regular guy and not an elder.”

This time, Tricia stopped texting. She pursed her lips and shook her head. “You’re pathetic. Maybe it’s better if you stay in ladybug mode and not say anything at all.”

“What’s so pathetic about learning his language?” Ella gave Tricia a push and laughed. “Besides, you’re a bee. You walk around going buzz, buzz, buzz, and sting guys with that saran wrapper tube you have on your butt. That’s pathetic.”

“I’m not the one using smartphones to pick up guys.” Tricia pushed back.

Ella shoved her smartphone into her bug pocket. Why wouldn’t Tricia want her to practice? She had only one shot at a second impression and she wanted to get it right.

“Ni hao, ni hao, ni hao. How do I sound?”

“Like a parrot.”

“Konnichiwa to you too.”

“Buzzt.”

“Ann-yeong, ann-yeong ha-ha-se-ko.” She could K-Pop rap too. Ella bent toward Tricia and shook her ping pong ball antennae and bounced them on Tricia’s black and yellow bonnet.

“Buzz, buzz off.” Tricia turned and bumped her butt with the stinger.

Ella flapped some more. “Ann-yeong ha-se-ko, ann-yeong, ha, ha, ha, seko, seko.”

They chased each other around the garden, trampling over the neat rows of whatever was planted. Laughing and giggling, they flew around a chicken coop, their insect wings a fluttering.

Tricia disappeared around a weeping pepper tree. If she thought bees could outrun, er outfly ladybugs …

Pumping her legs and arms, Ella launched over a picnic table and sprang to cut off Tricia.

Bam, she crashed into a wall, or rather a wall of hunky man chest, or oops, a wall of jocks.

“Whoa there, little lady, or shall I say ladybug, wanna have some fun?” A burly guy smelling like beer grabbed her around the waist and ground his hips against her.

Ella swallowed the rising tide of panic. She pushed against the muscular chest, but it was unyielding. The hard rod grinding against her belly stabbed her with nausea. What did Master Peng say to do? Palm heel to the nose, or was it upper cut under the jaw? Or that turning circle thing, push hands thing-a-ma-jig?

The guy leered, seeming to sense her intentions because he clamped her in a bear hug, pinning her arms.

“Snug as a bug.” He angled his head toward her. “How about a little kissy to get warmed up?”

“Let me go. I don’t know you.” She aimed her antennae at his face. They bounced and did absolutely no damage.

“That’s the point. I wanna get to know you.” He crushed his scruffy face against hers and wrapped his arms tighter. The guy was doing some serious damage to her wire-framed wings. Dammit.