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I saw Jonas look over at me, wide-eyed. I could tell he knew what this news would do to me. Ethan was always in his own world, but Jonas knew me a lot better. I shook my head discreetly to him so that he wouldn’t say anything.

I didn’t know Becker or Paul that well, and I wasn’t about to let on that Becker’s news was eating me up, although I wondered if that wasn’t his intention to begin with.

I finished up a couple more sets of the weights I was working with, and then excused myself from the group to do some cardio. I made my way over to a treadmill and started to run, which gave me a chance to be alone with my thoughts.

What was Zia thinking, dating that guy?

I didn’t know Becker that well, but what I knew about him wasn’t stellar. He had a reputation for being a hot-head with a quick temper. The word among friends was that he had been known to use body-building supplements that may have been a catalyst for the quick temper.

I personally didn’t care one way or another, but I cared if it meant bad news for Zia. I cared about Zia and wanted the best for her. I wanted her to be happy, but one thing was certain. I did not have a good feeling about Becker.

Maybe it was jealousy, I thought, as I finished the first mile. In all honesty, it was killing me that Zia had gone out with anyone. I felt a little stupid for thinking earlier that the previous night could have been a turning point for us.

She had never given me any other indication before last night that she had any feelings for me outside of our arrangement. The only way to know for sure, I thought, would be to see how she reacted moving forward.

I decided that I was going to wait it out and see if Zia called or texted me that day. If the previous night together had meant anything at all to her and wasn’t just a lapse in judgment, she would want to talk to or see me when she woke up today.

I decided, as I surpassed mile two, that the ball was in her court. I would just have to wait and see how things played out from there.

* * *

I waited all week to hear from Zia, and every day that passed without a word from her solidified that she felt nothing for me.

Needless to say, I was disheartened and disappointed.

By Friday, I had all but given up any hope that the night we kissed was anything but a regret for her. Talk about a blow to the ego. This was not something I was used to.

Luckily, I was able to keep myself busy and my mind occupied, putting my focus on school and that night’s soccer match. I couldn’t even count on the guys to keep me distracted by going out with me. Ethan and Katy were getting pretty serious by that point, and Jonas had been out on a couple dates with Moira already.

Not that I fe

lt like going out, anyway.

There was a big turn-out for the game that night as the crowd filled the stands. I played hard, and the team was on point that night.

It wasn’t until after I had scored my third goal of the game and was coming off the field that I saw her. Sitting in the stands with Clara to one side and Becker to the other, there sat Zia in the cold, cuddled up against him with his arm around her shoulder.

It felt like a blow to the chest as all my fears were confirmed. Zia was there with another guy. It really was over before it had ever begun between us.

I knew I had to keep my head in the game. I had to focus and not let it affect my performance. I did my best to pull from all my skill and discipline to separate my personal feelings from the task at hand. Somehow, I was able to pull it off, and we won our game with five points over our opponent’s two.

After the game, I went and changed in the locker room before heading back out to make an appearance and talk with some of the fans. Everyone was lively and excited as I greeted and shook hands with them.

A lull in the crowd of people approaching me led me to wander around the grounds, weaving in and out of people aimlessly, but I knew in the back of my mind I was looking for Zia. It wasn’t long before I found her standing alone outside the public restrooms.

She turned around and smiled as she saw me approaching. “Hey! Great game tonight. You were awesome.”

“I thought that was you I saw in the stands. I’m glad you enjoyed the game.” It was hard to make eye contact with her, so I found myself looking down at my feet instead.

“Yeah… Dylan, I hope things aren’t weird between us. I know I acted like a pretty big fool the last time we saw each other, and I wanted to say how sorry I am for that.” Now she was the one looking at her feet as she blushed.

Not sure of what to say, I remained quiet.

“I don’t know what got into me. I can only blame the copious amounts of alcohol… and… well, the whole thing with Cason. I guess you could say that shook me up a little bit,” Zia said, filling the silence between us.

“No need to apologize, Zia. I was just trying to look out for you…” I paused as my words reminded me of Becker and the uneasy feeling I had about her dating him. “Actually, speaking of that… Zia, I saw the guy you were here with tonight. I know it’s none of my business, but I know Becker, and he’s not…” I couldn’t finish the sentence.

“Not what?” she prodded.

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