“Okay,” Liam calls after me, before making a big pronouncement to the guys he’s standing with. “Here’s Grandpa, holding on to the rail for dear life, and he thinks he’s gonna come back to the team?”
My phone slides out of my right hand, bouncing off a step, and cracks on the pavement. Ignoring the laughter behind me, I carefully step back down to pick it up. The screen is shattered. Great.
I find Ellie a few rows from the front, clutching her bag and looking out the window. She doesn’t move when I sit down beside her. A single tear slides down her cheek.
Everyone else is boarding the bus now. Fortunately, behind the lines and discoloration, my phone still works, so I send her a text.
JACKSON:
Ignore him. Liam’s the worst.
I hear her phone vibrating in her pocket. She doesn’t move to grab it until I gently nudge her. She reads the message and types back one word.
ELLIE:
Sure.
Does she understand that I was just as offended by Liam as she was? I send another text.
JACKSON:
This wasn’t a good time.
She shakes her head as she types her response.
ELLIE:
No, it wasn’t.
But she turns and leans into me, resting her head on my shoulder. I sit straight and close my eyes.
Let’s just get home.
Chapter Twenty-seven
Ellie
It’s a longdrive back to Amber. Jackson dozed off quickly into the drive, and I wish I were tired enough to do the same.
What’s it going to be like in the spring when Jackson officially starts back up with soccer again? If Jackson decides he’s done hanging out with me after this terrible trip, he’ll probably go running right back to the team. He’ll return to sitting with them every day at lunch. There’s always been a time limit to our relationship. He’s using me to get through the offseason, and I’m using him until I can leave Amber. I guess that’s all this has ever been.
Except Jackson’s here right now. Asleep on my arm. He’s upset with me but still chose to sit by my side. How do I make things right?
Back in the school parking lot, Jackson hesitates as we are about to leave. I’m dying to talk about last night, but he simply says, “I don’t want to throw up in an EasyRide right now.”
“I can take you,” I offer without hesitation.
He’s unsure. “Can you—” he says, then something about “my cousin?”
Darius is over there with Liam and the others, probably planning to keep the weekend outing going. “He’s with some of the soccer guys,” I say.
“Ugh, Darius usually hangs out with the better guys on the team, not those assholes.” Jackson groans, then gives me an apologetic look. “I promise they’re not all as bad as Liam—I’m not sure how much you heard of what Liam was saying…” His words trail off as he closes his eyes and scratches his forehead. “I had nothing to do with that. They were just trying to get a rise out of me.”
It’s not the first time I’ve come across gross, ignorant behavior like that. I know Jackson wasn’t a part of it, so I don’t want to deal with that right now. “Really, just let me drive you home. It’s the least I can do.”
“Okay,” he mutters. He trails behind me to my little old sedan and grimaces as he lowers himself into the passenger seat.
“What?”
