He simply couldn't let himself go to the dogs in front of his next-door neighbor, but between Ellie's pheromones and Bill's shirtless torso, that looked to be an almost foregone conclusion.
Until, after casting about with his eyes, he found a solution and acted on impulse, hoping to short-circuit the ring's curse. Without any warning, Freddie leaped into the pool. His dad hadn't yet pulled a cover over the pool to keep out autumn's falling leaves, so the body of cold water was easily accessible for the desperate teenager.
The shock of the cold water took his breath and he surfaced, spluttering, only to see Bill staring at him as if he had lost his mind. In fact, the man looked quite speechless.
Freddie tried to put a good spin on it. He grinned toward Bill and walked toward the steps at the corner of the pool. He shivered as he stepped out of the pool, his clothes sopping wet, and offered Bill a vague motivation. "I've been wanting to do that all day." Freddie shivered again. His teeth began to chatter. "It's... very... invigorating."
Bill nodded. "I'm sure it is," he said with some reserve and quickly made an excuse why he needed to get back into his house.
Freddie watched him go and admired the man's butt under his tight shorts as he walked into his home. He still smelled Ellie's pheromones on the breeze, and he realized that staying outdoors with all the stimulation being wafted on the breeze wasn't a good idea.