Kai goes silent, and you realize in the span of a heartbeat that you fucked up. But it’s too far gone to fix. There’s nothing but your heartbeat in your ears, and the sick, painful feeling of being turned inside out.
“Maybe,” he says at last, “maybe aggression is just a sign of being over my boyfriend’s bullshit. I’ve got too much on my plate for your kind of games, Sterling. Maybe don’t call me for a while.”
And, just like that, he disconnects the call.
Chapter Eighteen
REINHART WILL NOT SERVE SUSPENSION; NFA OFFICIAL ACCUSED OF FAVORITISM
Around the NFA
Kaius Reinhart will pay a six-figure fine for his part in a brawl with Buffalo Blues LT Julian Tamatoa, the Miami Cyclones announced Saturday. The team confirmed that the Association also decided against suspending him for future games.
“We’re so glad that officials made the right decision regarding the Train,” Cyclones General Manager Brent Sinclair announced in a statement. “Everyone is eager to put this mess behind them, and nobody more than Kaius Reinhart himself. We just know that he’s going to grow from this experience. He’s a powerful component of this team and community, and we stand behind him as he pays restitution from this ugliness.”
The news that Reinhart would pay a huge fine, but would not miss any upcoming matches, sent shockwaves through the NFA. The Buffalo Blues are outraged, and issued their own statement questioning why a player who broke “two cardinal rules of the game”—removing a helmet and striking an official—did not face more severe censure. “It’s a disgrace to the good name of the Cyclones organization and the National Football Association,” the statement said. “This kind of violence can not and should not be tolerated.”
Rules analyst Sal Barbieri offered some insight into the decision, pointing out that Association officials have some leeway in deciding player punishments, and they consider all extenuating circumstances. Barbieri, who is not a current NFA official, speculated that Tamatoa’s long and thorny history with Reinhart had been taken into consideration, along with the two players’ disciplinary records. Reinhart’s rap sheet is spotless, Barbieri pointed out, and Tamatoa’s is spotty and marred by interpersonal conflicts.
On social media, NFA fans were quick to point fingers at the Association and its officials, leveling accusations of favoritism, rigging, and the NFA’s pet conspiracy theory: the season being scripted.
“You really think they’re going to suspend their cash cow?” one X/Twitter user asked. “If Reinhart’s not in the game, Sterling Grayson doesn’t show up. And we all know that the Association loves those Grayling dollars.”
The fracas cast a pall over the Cyclones, who limped to a half-hearted victory over the Blues without having Reinhart in the game. Rookie James Wainwright III, who covered Reinhart’s position during his injury, did a more-than-respectable job in Reinhart’s absence, earning a spot in the Top 10 for sacks for the Association. Wainwright may not be the havoc-wreaking edge rusher that Reinhart has proven himself to be for the Cyclones, but he is well on his way to making a name for himself.
It’s onto Week 11 for both the Blues and the Cyclones.
***
@People:Sorry, Graylings! We hear that Sterling Grayson won’t be in attendance for this afternoon’s Miami Cyclones game against the Baltimore Blackbirds at the Hard Rock Stadium. Although Grayson has become a fixture at Miami home games, a source close to Grayson reports that the singer has a scheduling conflict that is keeping him from watching his boyfriend, Kaius “The Train” Reinhart, take the field. CHECK OUT OUR ROUNDUP OF THE COUPLE’S CUTEST RED CARPET PHOTOS HERE.
@shiplapsu:trouble in paradise???
@dangerran&er23:What scheduling conflict? He’s fallen off the map since he finished tour.
@robsBIGGESTFAN:Finally a peaceful home game. Can’t stand watching his smug face mugging for the camera.
@GRIZZO:Maybe enhanced security measures since the b@mb thr--t at the last home game? Could be a safety thing. Nobody wants to see SG get unalived at a football game.
@jdawg582:Eww this isn’t tiktok. No need to censor yourself!!!
@liliput__:I heard that Derrick Honeybone called the Train his best friend on the team. They’re ALWAYS hugging and being touchy-touchy. I thought KR and SG were endgame, but now I wonder.
@allegri19:hey @people we don’t need to hear abt it every time Sterling Grayson takes shit. there are other people to report abt.
***
GABRIELLE ROSE: “DON’T JUDGE THIS BOOK BY HER COVER”
I met with Gabrielle Burgess Heller, alias Gabrielle Rose, alias Gabi, a few months ago in her sun-drenched living room in Hibiscus Island, a tony Miami Beach neighborhood where her neighbors include Enrique Iglesias and Shaquille O’Neal. Twenty-three-year-old Gabi says that O’Neal is “sweet… and very tall.” Gabi is no stranger to athletes—her husband, GoGo Heller, wide receiver for the Las Vegas Rogues, is not in attendance, but she mentions him near-constantly. The Hellers are looking into buying property in Sin City, Gabi reports, but haven’t found the perfect fit just yet. In the meantime, GoGo prefers that Gabi keep the home fires burning in Florida.
“He’s so protective of me,” she explains, stretching like a cat. “He’s worried about bad influences in Las Vegas. You know, GoGo’s a Christian; he’s a man of God. He always has been, but he really found his faith when he left Miami. I did, too. Nowadays, we try to live our lives as purely as possible. We watch what we eat, we watch who we hang around with. GoGo has to spend a lot of time out there, but he’s like Daniel in the lion’s den. Every day, he’s surrounded by temptation and hard living. He likes our home to be an oasis from all that. He says I’m his peace.”
I can’t help but raise an eyebrow at Gabi’s professions of sin-free living, when her new album, “2Hot,” has been pithily described as “a thesis on the joys of fucking.” The music video for her lead single, “Snake,” features Gabi and GoGo grinding on each other to the thudding throb of an R&B-infused beat. Gabi, notably, is wearing nothing but body paint and snake fangs. She gets defensive when presented with his contradiction, however.
“The Bible says that the marriage bed is undefiled,” she explains. “I would never dance like that with someone who wasn’t my husband. But I’m proud to show off our love. Sexuality is a gift given by God. GoGo didn’t really like the idea of me making music without his input. Suggesting that he get involved was what opened his heart to me taking the next step in my career.”
Our interview is paused when Gabi’s phone rings. It’s GoGo. She jumps up off the couch so fast that she almost trips.
