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“It so is,” Adrien rasps without looking at me. “I have never seen Brody be called out on. I haven’t even seen him this pissed before. It’s amazing. Best night ever.”
I stifle the need to groan and grab my water, downing it quickly. This was obviously a mistake. I should leave as soon as possible before it gets any worse. Not to mention, I have a Skype meeting with Dr. Forrester tomorrow. It would be terrible if she saw me with a black eye due to Brody.
“All I’m saying,” Darlene continues, “is that you could lay off the booze. Get more rest. Allow those bags under your eyes to disappear for a week or two. It wouldn’t do any harm,” she adds with a shrug.
Brody’s mouth hangs open and he jerks toward me, eyes bloodshot, his hand on his beer tightening. “Bro, just drink the fucking beer. Why do you have to make me look bad?”
“Huh?” Make him look bad? I give him a look like he’s gone crazy. Why is me not drinking making him look bad? I can refuse a drink. I’m a grown ass man and can make my own decisions. Ugh. I feel like I’m in college all over again with idiots pressuring me to do something I don’t want to. And then, afterward, them telling me about how I make them look bad.
“Dude, leave him alone,” I hear Adrien say. “He doesn’t have to drink if he doesn’t want to. Why do you have to be such a dick?”
Brody rolls his eyes. “I’m not being a dick. He’s the one being a buzzkill.”
I’m about to tell him off when my phone decides now is a good time to vibrate. I take it out of my pocket, thankful to see Rachel’s name on the ID. “Excuse me,” I mutter while jumping down from the stool. “I have to take this.”
“What?” Brody laughs. “Is that your girlfriend?” he asks, as if it’s somehow a bad thing that I have a girl.
“Yep,” I say while stalking away from the group, not bothering to look at Brody as I answer the phone. I hear laughing behind me and decide to ignore it. “Hey,” I say brightly into the receiver. “Great timing.”
“Hunter?” Rachel sounds uncertain. “Are you there?”
“Yeah, I’m here,” I say, louder this time.
“It’s loud there. Are you still at the stadium?”
“No, I’m with the boys,” I say while glancing over my shoulder, watching Brody smack one of my teammates while Adrien rolls his eyes, looking absolutely miserable. “We’re at a bar.”
“A bar?”
I frown. She sounds… perturbed. Is that the right word? “Yeah,” I say, my stomach twisting with unease.
“Are you sure that’s okay? You know—”
“I know what?” I grind out, hating the bite in my tone, but unable to hide my anger. Like she knows what I have been going through.
“You don’t have to get so angry,” Rachel says, her tone pitchy, as if she’s about to cry. “I’m just worried about you.”
“I’m fine.” I wince. There I go again acting like a jerk. We’ve barely talked this week. I’ve been so busy with training and preparing for the first game of the season. I should be speaking sweet nothings in her ear, telling her how much I miss her, how much I wish she were here with me. Not yelling at her for being concerned about my well-being.
“I just don’t understand why you’re at a bar given your history.”
“Because, Rachel,” I spit, hating the way I sound, hating the way I’m speaking to her, but I’m unable to stop myself. Why can’t she just trust me? Why can’t she believe in me? “Brody invited us for drinks and I’ve been the black sheep since the very beginning. I’m so tired and lonely. I only wanted this one night not to feel like the odd man out.”
“Hunter, I’m so sorry—”
“Stop, Rachel.” I sigh and run a hand through my hair, pushing the blond locks away from my face. “You know what, I’m being an ass. I’m tired. I’ll call you back tomorrow.”
Rachel sniffs and I can tell she’s on the verge of tears. Why am I so cruel to her? This is clearly difficult for her as well. Not everything has to be about me. “O-okay,” she says softly, too softly. “B-bye.”
“Bye.”
I stab my finger into my phone, hanging up quickly before shoving it back into my pocket. I grind my teeth, my fingers rubbing my temples. Honestly, I could go for a beer right about now. I could go for a beer and several shots of tequila. Make that four shots of tequila.
I need to get out of here before I make any more dire mistakes. I make my way for the door, ignoring my teammates still sitting at the bar. “Hunter!” I hear Adrien shout, but I ignore him as I push open the door, desperately needing the fresh air and the silence.
Instead, the humid breeze rustles my hair, followed by the stench of pollution and the sound of cars honking nonstop. I inhale deeply. I’m probably getting lung cancer, but I don’t care. It’s better than being in there with Brody. I don’t think I can handle him teasing me about Rachel, especially when things have not been okay between us. I feel like we’re on the verge of breaking up. Tears prickle my eyes and I quickly blink them away.Don’t think about that,I tell myself over and over again. However, it’s hard not to think about it when I feel like I keep messing things up. I should do better. She deserves better.
“Hey, man, you okay?” I hear Adrien ask from behind me. “You kinda ran out.”
