Page 299 of On His Team

He kisses me on the bed with the door open and everyone downstairs. I’ve kissed him in better circumstances and worse ones, and I don’t think any of them compare to this because this is the end of Hawthorne as I’ve known it.

Downstairs, people are starting to leave. Dinner’s at six, and there are three sets of parents in this house, and everybody has somewhere to be.

Rowan kisses me one more time and pulls me downstairs. Benson does something with a key. I don’t hear what’s said because the moms are talking and laughing. I’m in the doorway with my coat, and I see him take his key off his ring and hold it out, and it isn’t to Percy.

Rowan looks at it in his hand.

“This is it,” Benson says, looking around. “Stan, we’re done.”

Stanley shouts, “Take care of my house!”

Aspen pats his stomach.

“The house of national champions, baby!” Stanley bellows and points at the ceiling.

Benson pulls Blue into a hug first. “It’s been a good run, brother.”

Stanley carries Percy around the room, and Percy lets it happen.

Benson shakes Rowan’s hand and then pulls him into a hug. He steps back and says, “Glad you’re here to look out for my sister. I can’t think of a better man, Laurens.”

Rowan nods. “I’m gonna miss you, brother.”

“Same.” They hug again.

Benson bops my nose and then starts hugging the girls.

He finally gets to Percy and hugs him. “Keep it up, Deveroux. I’ll put in a good word.”

Stanley joins them. “I will too, buddy.”

Penelope walks over and hugs me. With her head over my shoulder, she says, “Thank you for being such a good friend.”

I squeeze her. “I’m going to see you around, right?”

She pulls back and nods. “Yeah, Percy will still be here.”

“Thank God,” I exhale with my hand over my heart. “You got me for a second there. I thought you were moving or something.”

I hug Aspen next. I’m about to tell her how thankful I am for her, and then Stanley grabs her from behind, pulls me up with them, and runs around the house. I laugh my head off, then he pushes Aspen out of the way and says, “Let me hug my little sister.”

Stanley hugs me for one second and steps back. “I made new rules for Hawthorne.”

I grin. “You did?”

He talks quietly, “I hid the whiteboard in the garage, so when you come back in the fall, make sure to put it on the wall.”

I high-five him. “You’re going to be deeply missed, Stanley.”

He pulls Aspen under his arm and says, “There’s only one me, and I know it.”

“In all seriousness, Stanley, you’re going to do amazing things. We’ll try to make your games, okay? I’m planning to go to a few of Benson’s.”

He nods.

The hugging takes about ten more minutes, and it’s starting to get ugly. Melly cries when she hugs Aspen. Mara cries, which nobody expected. Aspen doesn’t cry. I’m bawling my eyes out watching the guys hug each other again.

Percy hugs Stanley for a long time and says something in his ear in French, and Stanley — who has been an absolute clown for six straight hours — has to go and stand in the kitchen by himself for a minute.