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So just like he has Wes, I have Sloan. They are both my best friends, but with Eli, there is something different. Of course, he’s attractive. Anyone with eyes can see that, but it's more… he stirs a different type of feeling down deep in my belly. I think I have a slight crush on my bestie. That feeling scares me, though… it's like my brain tries to tell me not to dig too deep into it.
I’m sure it will eventually go away. It has to… I don’t ever want to mess up our friendship over a silly crush.
* * *
Ugh,he has his hat on backwards when he walks out of the locker room. I can normally deal with my best friend’s hotness… until he flips that dang hat around.
Definitely crushing on my best friend.
Emma Lee approaches him, all blonde hair and perfect white teeth. Unable to help the small ache in my chest when I see him smile at her, I give them a second to talk before walking over.
“There’s my good luck charm,” he says, taking off his hat and putting it on top of my head like he always does after a win.
“Catch ya later, Emma… text me.” Eli throws his hand up in that way only boys do to say bye.
“Someone has a crush?” I tease Eli, but in all reality, I just want to know if there is something going on with them two.
“Who, me? Never!” He grabs his chest, feigning innocence as we get closer to his parents’ car.
“Psshh… says the boy who had a different girlfriend every month of ninth grade last year.”
“Well, you’re my best girl, so that’s all that matters. Plus, you know the only real girlfriend I’ll ever have is baseball,” he says, slinging his arm over my shoulders while my stomach does an involuntary dip from his words.
When we slide into the back seat of the car, Cindy speaks up, her voice sounding a bit sad. “We actually have to skip pizza tonight, guys. I’m sorry, but we need to take Quinn home.”
Eli must hear it in her voice, too. “Everything okay, Mom?”
“Oh yes, honey, sorry. I forgot we have some food at home I need to cook or it’s going to go bad.”
“No problem, but Q could just come to our house. We can play video games until it's ready,” Eli suggests, and I love that idea. The one thing I can for sure beat him in…Madden.
She hesitates before saying, “Sorry, bud, I already called Vanessa and now she’s expecting her home. But, Quinn, sweetie, you can come over tomorrow any time and stay for dinner if your parents are okay with it. Then I’m sure you’ll want to come back Saturday because Sloan and Maddie will be home from sleepaway camp.”
“Yes, sounds perfect. Thank you.”
As we pull into my driveway just a few blocks over from their own, I toss Eli’s hat into his lap. “So, Madden marathon tomorrow?”
“Yep. Come after lunch. I have morning practice tomorrow, then I’m free the rest of the day.”
“Sounds good,” I say to Eli, and then give a quick “Thank you, love you.” to his mom.
Right before I shut the door, Eli says, “And be prepared… tomorrow is the day I whoop your a—butt.”
I let out a little laugh, like “yeah, right” as I run up the front walkway to my house. The smile I’m sporting quickly diminishes when I walk through the door and see the look on my parents’ faces as they sit solemnly on the couch. My mom sniffles, and that’s when I notice she is rubbing my younger brother’s head as he lies beside our family dog on the floor.
“What’s going on?” I ask, suddenly wary and unsure if I even want to know the answer.
“Come sit, Quinnie,” my dad says calmly.
Somehow, I know it's Beau who needs me, so I go to him. The best dog a girl could ask for. I immediately put my hand on his belly and see that he is barely breathing.
“Baby girl, when Mom took you guys to the lake last week and I stayed home because of work, I noticed Beau was not himself, so I talked to your mom and decided to take him to the vet.” My dad pauses, trying not to get too choked up. “After some testing, they determined Beau has cancer, and the prognosis wasn’t very good. We planned to tell you guys this week, as we thought we had more time, but today he has just been so pitiful.”
It all hits me at once, and I start to cry as I bury my face in Beau’s fur. This would typically have our fun, loving golden retriever flipping over and begging for a belly rub, but in this moment, he barely moves.
“We’re going to take him to the vet tonight. We don’t want him to suffer any longer. You two can go with us, but you don’t have to. Whatever you think is best for you.”
I lie there reminiscing about all the memories I have with Beau. There are so many from such a young age. My parents had just brought him home when they found out they were pregnant with me. Beau and I grew up together. He’s our family, like a brother to Brayden and me. Only he was a sibling that never got mad and was always happy to see you.
