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“Besides…who knows what I assumed back then?” I finally say. “It’s been so long, who can remember?”
It’s a lie though. I do remember. I remember everything, the good and the bad, but mostly the good.
And that’s the real reason why seeing him hurts so much.
chapter five
Bishop
I take another sip of my beer and lean my hip against the railing, looking out along the length of Main Street from where Cedar Cider sits at the end of the road on an incline. It’s a pretty dope view with all the shops stretched out and the lake in the background, and I don’t doubt I’ll be here on a regular basis.
Boyd and Rusty and their friend Jackson did an amazing job with this place. Part of me wishes I’d been around a bit more as it was being built, but I was busy all summer at a training camp prepping for the draft combine. I guess if I have to be back in town because of this stupid injury, I can be glad I’m at least here to see the opening and enjoy the fruits of my brother’s labor: delicious beer on tap. Who knows? Maybe I can talk him into giving me a family discount or something.
I smile at the thought—Boyd would never go for that—then spin around, resting my butt against the rail and looking inside, through the windows, back into the crowd snuggled away from the late September air that’s been a bit more chilly than normal. Pretty much everyone in town is here tonight, enjoying beer, mingling inside or out here on the patio, chatting away.
They’re also all asking a lot of questions about my arm, hence why I’m out here while most of the people I know are inside. Originally, I mustered up the energy to come because I wanted to be here to support Boyd. I love my brother, and Bellamy made a good point when she hinted that it would mean a lot to him for me to be here.
But the unwanted questions started almost immediately.
Are you moving back to town for good?
Did they release you from the team?
Will you still be able to play?
I grew tighter and tighter and tighter, until I could barely handle it anymore. Then Gabi walked in, and it felt like all the air had been vacuumed out of my lungs. She looked gorgeous, of course, like she always does. Long dark hair flowing down her back. Lips tinged with maroon, hazel eyes glowing.
She froze when she saw me then looked away quickly and moved to the bar with Nicole. I don’t know what I pictured when I came home, but it definitely didn’t include Gabi Ventura avoiding me like I have the plague.
Clearly I couldn’t have been more wrong.
My mood, already sour, took an even more bitter dive after that, and now I just want to go home, but I promised my parents I’d stick around for a while. Also, it would feel shitty to bounce so quickly when I see my brother so rarely anymore.
Not that we’re hanging out tonight. He’s in there catching up with friends and helping problem solve, I’m sure. As he should be. As much as Boyd was ready to escape this town once he graduated, out of all the Mitchell children, he takes after my parents the most. He’s a bit grumbly but knows how to converse with pretty much anyone. It helps that his fiancée, Ruby, is a bright, shining star as well.
Sure enough, when I shift around and scan the inside, I can see Boyd and Ruby chatting away with a handful of customers. If I want a chance to talk with my brother at all, I’m sure I’ll be here for a while, waiting.
The door opens to my left and Rush walks out, beer in hand, smile on his face.
“This place is hoppin’,” he says, crossing the patio and sidling up next to me where I’m still leaning back against the rail. “And dang it’s getting cold. I am not ready for fall weather. Why are you out here freezing your ass off?”
I laugh. “I love the cold, man.”
Rush takes a sip from his glass and nods. “I know, and I don’t think I’ll ever get it. Give me long summer days and hot, hot heat for as long as I live, and I’ll be a happy man.” He chuckles then glances at me. “You’re seriously not cold?”
I shake my head. “Nah. I can’t wait for it to snow.”
Rush shakes his head again. “I guess it makes sense that it was your idea to start that polar plunge thing.”
Grinning, I shrug. “What can I say? I’m a creative guy.”
“Bullshit you’re creative. You’re a monster is what you are. Making us all freeze our nuts off in the lake in January.”
Shrugging again, I take a drink from my own beer, a smirk on my face. “It was optional.”
“Sure it was.”
I wanted to make my mark freshman year with the team, and when we got into a kind of ‘dare you to do this stupid thing’ hazing situation during the winter between Fall Ball and the regular spring season, I had to go dunk in the brutally cold water of Cedar Lake. Instead of squealing and rushing out of the water, I just floated there, eyeing the upperclassmen with a smirk on my face as they all stood on the dock staring down at me.
