Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 86422 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 432(@200wpm)___ 346(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86422 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 432(@200wpm)___ 346(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
“No underwear?”
“Evidently.”
“That’s uh…wow.”
“Yeah. So I guess she slept on my sister’s floor on a yoga mat, which is fine for a night, but not ideal for the next month and change. They're trying to figure out a solution.” He slides his phone back in his pocket as we arrive at the hotel.
Food is waiting for us in the lobby. We opt to take ours up to our room because Brody is people’d out, and tonight wasn’t his best game. I get it.
“So what’s going on with you and Fee?” Chase asks once we’re congregated in his and Brody’s room. “And don’t say nothing, because my girlfriend already spilled the tea.”
“Why are you asking if you already know?”
Chase folds a slice of pizza in half and takes a huge bite. “Because I want your side of the story.”
I sigh and explain what happened.
“Why hide that you’d applied to those programs when you’d eventually have to fess up?” Brody asks.
“You’ve all seen me on the ice this season. Even Alex Waters knows I suck a bag of D.” Obviously talking about this puts me in a mood. Especially since I know I fucked up royally.
“You were solid out there tonight,” Gage reminds me.
“And your stats are almost where they were last season again,” Brody adds.
“So what’s the real reason you didn’t tell her?” Chase presses.
“I don’t know.” But I do know. “I didn’t want to screw with the good thing we had going.” It’s more than that, though.
“How’s that working out for you?” Chase asks.
I consider flipping him the bird, but Cammie and Fee are besties, and he might have intel. “Cammie say anything about Fee and how she’s doing?”
“You should call her and find out yourself,” Gage suggests.
“She asked for space. What if she doesn’t want to hear from me?” I retort.
“Asking for space doesn’t equal zero communication. You’re the one who kept secrets, man. You have to do the work to earn her trust back.” Gage hula-hoops a friendship bracelet on his finger. “Fee’s like super chill but, dude, she lost her parents in a horribly tragic way. They didn’t get a divorce or move to another country. They’re gone. She didn’t get to say goodbye to them. Not telling her you might disappear for a few months is kind of a big deal, especially since we’re graduating this year and any of us could also get called up.” Once again, Gage surprises me with his insightfulness.
“At first, I honestly didn’t think it was worth saying something because I didn’t believe I had a chance,” I admit.
“But you turned a corner weeks ago, so that excuse doesn’t hold any water.”
I let my head fall back. “I didn’t want to upset her or for it to cause a fight. Or worse, for her to decide she doesn’t want to do the long-distance thing with me.”
“You gotta see how that wasn’t your best choice,” Chase’s tone is full of empathy.
“Yeah, I see that.” But not until it was too late to undo the damage. My parents used to get into it with each other and it always resulted in these all-out shouting matches, followed by slamming doors and angry silence for days. This feels like a gentler echo of that. I caused this because I was afraid to repeat history and disappoint my girlfriend.
“She needs time to digest this and then you talk through what you both want. We can all see you’re super into each other, Mac. You can’t promise her it’ll be easy, or predict how the future will play out, but Fee might need some reassurance from you about what you want, or where you see this going with her,” Chase says. “Maybe she believes you won’t want to try the long-distance thing.”
“I didn’t want to put too much pressure on her or us, but I’d want to try to make it work, even if we’re apart for a few months, or we have to do the long-distance thing for a while.”
“So make sure she knows that." Brody nods to the phone sitting on the floor by my leg.
“I'll be back.” I grab my phone and hop to my feet, crossing to the adjoining room I share with Gage, and pull the door closed behind me.
I’ve been floundering the last couple of days. Being single might mean I only have to worry about myself and my teammates, but I miss having my person.
Mac
Thinking about you.
How are things?
I flop down on my bed and wait, grateful when she responds almost right away.
Fee
I’ve been thinking about you, too.
And things are okay.
How are you?
Cammie said you won the game.
Mac
The game was good.
Is it okay that I’m messaging you? I want to honor your request for space, but I hope it’s alright for me to check in.
Fee
It's okay. Thanks for checking on me.
Mac
Can we video chat?