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“I understand the feeling, but you can’t say shit like that. As for the game, you should know I wouldn’t miss it.” She squeezes me tighter and whispers, “And I meant what I said. Nothing happened with him. And not that it should matter, but nothing will. It’s not like that.”
We hold each other as tension builds around us. I’m starting to wonder if we’re about to kiss in the still-busy hall, when Miles walks up behind Rae. “Oh boy, what drama am I interrupting this time?”
We pull apart and turn to face him.
Rae shrugs. “Nothing this time. For the most part.” She gives me a menacing look, then smirks.
Miles shakes his head and hands me one of the three coffees he’s carrying.
“For you.” Then he turns to Rae. “And for you, m’lady.”
She laughs at him then says, “Have I told you you’re my favorite person?”
He grins, but his eyes catch mine and he says, “Somehow, I doubt that.”
“For the next hour, at least,” she says with a smirk. “But hold onto it for a second, because I need to pee.” Then she scampers off toward the bathroom, leaving Miles staring at me expectantly.
“So, what happened this time?”
I sigh and shake my head. “I might’ve not given her the season pass until she asked about going to the game this morning.”
Miles rolls his eyes and sighs. “Why? I thought you guys were doing better.”
“We were. Are. But then she started hanging out with Kevin.”
Miles shakes his head as his hand clamps on my shoulder. “Dude, you’re an idiot.”
“I know, okay? Well, I know that now. I was jealous and might’ve accused her of sleeping with him.”
He yanks his hand off my shoulder and guzzles some coffee. “I take it back. You’re not an idiot. You’re an ass. You have no idea if that’s true. In fact, it probably isn’t.”
“Well, now I know it isn’t. But my jealousy was raging, and I said it.” My eyes flit to her walking back down the hall. She smiles widely. “We’re okay now.” Sometimes it feels like okay is all we’ll ever be again. It constantly feels like two steps forward, one step back with our relationship or whatever the hell this is.
Miles nods. “Take it easy on each other. And on yourselves, okay?”
“Noted,” I say as Rae walks back over to us and holds her hand out for the coffee.
Miles hands it to her and says, “Let’s get to class.”
He gives me a nod, and she smiles at me and says, “Later, Ace.”
I give them both a lame wave and watch as Miles loops his arm over her shoulders and they walk to class together.
It makes me unspeakably jealous. Not because I’m worried about anything romantic happening there—I know it never would—but because that used to be us. I miss our friendship so much. I let out a sigh and realize I’m standing in an empty hallway, looking at the door that she and Miles walked out of.
I collect myself, take a swig of my coffee, and head for the baseball fields where I have a one-on-one with Tanner, who has been throwing like absolute shit the last couple of days.
We’ve been working for about forty-five minutes with little change, so I call him over to the dugout. We sit down on the bench.
“All right, man, I need you to talk to me. What’s going on in your life?”
He gives me that look. The one that lets me know there’s something going on, but he doesn’t want to talk about whatever it is. Or thinks it isn’t a big enough deal that it could be affecting him.
“Nothing,” he says finally.
I let out a little laugh.
“Senior year of high school, right at the start of the season, I was going through a bunch of shit and, well, basically fucking it up big time with the girl I love. My coach called me in and asked me what was going on. I looked at him like you looked at me. Then I told him what you told me. So you know what he did?”
