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“Um, there’s something you should know.”
The concerned look on Michelle’s face instantly filled me with fear. “What is it?”
“They said on the TV that Wyatt wouldn’t be playing today. That he took some sort of family medical leave from school.”
“What?” My heart never beat so hard in my chest.
The only thing Michelle could do was nod. “Yeah. They were talking about his uncertain future with the football program at Baylor.”
Covering my mouth with my hand, I shook my head. “No, no, no! I never meant for him to not play football. Shit!” Rushing past Michelle, I reached for my phone that was still turned off.
“What are you doing?”
“Checking on Wyatt. What if something happened to him? It was so stupid of me to keep my phone off like this.”
The moment my phone turned on, my notifications started going off.
I dropped to the edge of the bed and whispered, “Oh my goodness.”
“What?” Michelle asked, sitting next to me.
“I have a plethora of messages from Wyatt. Plus, more from my parents, Skip, Mitch, and your parents.”
We looked at each other as Michelle said, “I’m going to be in so much trouble with my parents.”
I nodded and replied, “We both are.”
Pulling up my voice messages, I sighed. “He left so many.”
“Go straight to the last one from Wyatt.”
Doing as Michelle had said, I held my breath and hit play.
“Skylar, I’m going out of my mind. Where are you and Michelle? Please don’t do this to me. Please.”
A tear rolled down my cheek. “He sounds so distraught.”
“Go backward and listen to them. Maybe he will tell you where he is.”
I did exactly that. Each message was Wyatt pleading for me to call him. Each one was short. Then, I played the one that changed everything.
“Sky, baby, please call me. I don’t want to do this over voice mail, but you’re leaving me no choice. I fucked up and didn’t even think of mentioning the physics group meeting last night. When the team meeting got canceled, I headed over to the study group. The girl heading it up is named Ashley. I swear to God, Sky, that’s all it was. They’re trying to do a group meeting each week, and I told her I doubted I could attend them all. Skylar…please call me. I’m fucking going out of my mind, worrying about where you are. I love you. Call me.”
I closed my eyes. “I did it again. I jumped to conclusions and look what I’ve caused.”
Michelle wrapped her arm around me. “Call him, Sky.”
I’m so stupid.
Quickly wiping my tears away, I dropped my head and stared at the ground. “Maybe he is better off without me. All I seem to do is rush to a decision that is fueled by my own insecurities. And, now, I might have cost Wyatt the one thing he loves more than anything.”
Squatting down in front of me, Michelle took my hands. “Sky, you’ve been through a lot. Did we both make a dumb choice by running away? Yes. I was right there with you, looking for a reason to hide from reality. But, now, we have to face the truth.”
“What if your truth is different from mine?” I asked.
Tears formed in her eyes. “Then, I’ll deal with it.”
I shook my head. “Not alone. You won’t deal with it alone.”
A weak smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. “I know.”
Taking the phone from my hand, Michelle pulled up Wyatt’s number, hit Call, and handed me the phone. She stood and walked out to the balcony.
It rang three times before Wyatt’s frantic voice answered, “Skylar!”
A sob slipped from between my lips. “Wyatt,” was all I could manage to say.
“Please tell me you’re okay. Tell me where you are.”
“Why are you not playing, Wyatt?”
Silence.
“What?” he asked.
“I didn’t mean for you to miss the game. I’m so sorry.”
A door opened and closed on the other end of the phone.
“I don’t care about the game, Sky. I care about you. I love you, and if you think I could have taken the field today, not knowing where you and Michelle were, you’re crazy. Everyone has been going insane, trying to find you. Your father’s been tracking your credit card, and Mitch and Skip have been searching every place they could think of. Skip got permission to extend his leave. Damn it, Skylar! Now, I’m pissed!”
I smiled as I wiped a tear away. None of this was funny. I was just so happy to hear his voice. “I’m sorry. I’ll call everyone and let them know we’re okay.”
“Angel, where are you?”
“The Marriott in downtown Austin.”
There was a long pause before he said, “You’re kidding me, right?”
I shook my head. “No. We’ve been here the whole time.”
“What room?”
“Um, we’re on the ninth floor. Room nine thirty-nine.”
Wyatt let out a chuckle and then a long sigh. “Skylar, I swear to you, nothing happened between me and that girl. I would never hurt you.”
