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“I’m so sorry, Luca.” She puts her tea down between her legs and buries her face in her hands. “I’m such an idiot. You guys could’ve been killed trying to look for me.”
“Hey.” I wrap my arms around her and hold her tight against my chest, careful not to spill the hot tea firmly set between her thighs. Her broken ankle propped up is a reminder of the shit she’s going to have to deal with even after we get back down this fucking mountain. “I’m just glad we found you.” I don’t care about anything else. We’re fine and Willa is ok.
Willa sobs into my shoulder, and I take the cup of tea to place on the table behind me before holding her closer. I’m trying so hard not to cry right along with her.
I thought I was going to lose her, and I can’t lose anyone else. I went through so many emotions ever since my brother got sick. It’s been a constant up and down, and I can’t go through that again. Losing Willa would have knocked me out into an even deeper depression that I would have to fight my way out of. I don’t think I’d win a second time.
“I’m so stupid,” Willa cries and lifts up to wipe her face. “I put myself and you guys in danger for what? For a fucking asshole who cheats on me?”
I try not to laugh, but I’ve been telling her what a loser Vic is for years. I can’t stop the small chuckle that comes out.
“Shut up.” She glares at me. “I don’t need to hear it.” She lets out a loud groan and pushes me off of her. “Coach Renan is going to kill you both.”
“It doesn’t matter.” I shrug.
I look around to make sure the room is clear. Carter went to the bathroom. Kandace is still in the bedroom down the hall and the other girls are loudly cooking something in the kitchen.
“I’m out of here anyway,” I whisper.
Willa looks at me, questioning what I’m talking about.
“My last game with Drexton is this week. The Quakes want me to do some training with the team. I’m going to play once they clinch their playoff spot, and then I have to be available if they need to call me up. I have to be there for training.” I got the call yesterday and talked to Coach already, but I haven’t told anyone else yet.
“What about the Frozen Four?”
I shrug.
“What about graduating? You still have another year left.” Willa’s in shock but trying to keep her voice down.
It was a shock to me too. I wasn’t expecting the call to come until after the new year.
“You know I don’t do well in school.” I shrug again, but what else can I say? The decision has been made, and it was the first happy news I’d gotten since Kandace broke it off with me. “I was thinking I could eventually get my degree by taking some online classes, but I’m barely passing as it is. I’m surprised I got this far.”
“Luca,” she sighs my name, and shakes her head in disbelief.
“It sucks, but this is the dream.” I rub her knee to reassure her that I thought long and hard about this decision. “It’s what I’ve been working my whole life for. Coach thinks I have a good shot at being brought up early. I could be playing for the cup my rookie year.”
“What about Kandi? Carter said you were sleeping in her room.” Willa nudges to the hall. “You’ve been pestering her to give you a shot for what?”
“I can’t keep chasing after someone who doesn’t want me, right?” I nudge her sarcastically. Willa said that once and it couldn’t be more true advice for herself. I didn’t listen, and I’m not going to listen now. I hear someone coming down the hall, and lower my voice. “I love her, and I have to talk to her about it, but I’ll make it work any way I can.”
“What happened?” Carter comes out and points behind him.
Willa and I both look behind him, then at each other, having no idea what he’s talking about.
“Kandi looked upset.” He shrugs. “Almost knocked me down when I came out of the bathroom.”
Shit.This is not how I wanted her to find out. I wanted to talk to her about it, but I didn’t know how to bring it up.
As far as I’m concerned, this changes nothing. No matter where we end up, I’m all hers.
She only has six months left here, and I’m hoping she’ll go wherever I am. If she doesn’t want that, I’ll follow her around whenever I can. No matter what it takes, she can’t get rid of me.
Chapter 33
Kandace
I shouldn’t have been eavesdropping, but I heard Luca say something about it being his last game and I stopped short in the hallway before making myself known.
