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“Fell through,” my father replied with a grimace. “They didn’t approve of our…whatever. Doesn’t matter. Fuck ’em.” It was the most flippant I’d ever seen him in my life.
“That was last week, though,” my mom chimed in. “We were planning to come no matter what.”
I was skeptical, but a quick glance at Candice had her confirming with a nod.
I narrowed my eyes. “They didn’t approve of what? You? Business practices? Me?”
My dad shrugged. “Like I said, fuck ’em.”
“We don’t deal with…people who are not forward-thinking and progressive,” my mom said primly, confirming my suspicions.
My dad cleared his throat. “And we wanted to be here to support our son.”
“Whitt,” LaForge called out. “Let’s go.”
“I’ve gotta go…” I thumbed toward the hallway. Maybe later, it would all sink in, but I was still caught off guard, and right now, I needed to keep my focus squarely on this game as much as possible. “Thanks for coming. You have seats and everything?”
“I took care of it all,” Candice said cheerily.
“Great, thanks. You all…enjoy?” I said awkwardly, then scooted down the hall, fumbling my phone from my pocket.
Me:My fucking parents are here.
Tucker:For real? That’s awesome.
Me:It’s weird.
When he replied with “lol,” I could hear his chuckle in my ear, and it made me grin, easing some of the tension in my shoulders.
Tucker:Maybe they’re trying. Idk. Is it going to throw you off your game?
Me:Fuck no, it’s just more fuel.
Me:Okay, maybe a little. The combo of them and the hecklers outside the stadium got to me a little.
Tucker:They’re over here, too. But you know what? Fuck that. They can’t touch us, baby.
Words we’d repeated to each other multiple times in the last week, but I never could seem to fully believe them.
Me:I know.
Me:I’m more concerned about you.
Tucker:Psht. I’m good.
Me:You still gonna be ‘good’ when we kick your ass?
Tucker:Yep. But that’s not gonna happen anyway. See you on the field, baby.
Candice had messaged me when I was chatting with Tucker, so I opened that message thread next.
Candice:They wanted to support you.
Me:Okay. Just surprised me.
Candice:I think they’re trying. Maybe try to meet them halfway? Or not. Up to you.
The same thing Tucker had said. But trying for what? To make up for years of disinterest? I sighed, tucking my phone away, and closed my eyes, memories of football camp, Tucker, my parents, swirling in my mind. My parents and I were never gonna be like Tucker’s family. I just couldn’t see it happening.
