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“No thank you,” I said, and I would have stormed out, but Phoenix wasn’t capable of storming anywhere, and I didn’t want to abandon him. But he was already pushing his frame toward the exit, faster than I’d ever seen him walk. I had to skip ahead to open the door for him.
“You okay?” Phoenix asked gently when we were back in the corridor.
My heart was racing, but I nodded. I appreciated his concern, but it occurred to me that in the scheme of things, being vilified by Addison was nothing compared to what Phoenix had been through.
I had to put things in perspective. In this case, a few hurt feelings would probably be forgotten in a few days (okay, maybe weeks), but Phoenix had months of recovery and then he might never get back to his former playing self.
“I didn’t know that Gwyneth was Addison’s mother,” I said in a hushed voice.
“Yep.” Phoenix rolled his eyes. “She’s a spoilt brat. The O’Days are very supportive of our school tennis teams. It’s amazing what money can buy.”
My eyes widened at Phoenix’s insinuation—that Addison’s position in the team was due to her family’s influence.
Phoenix took a couple of steps and stopped beside a noticeboard, signaling to a poster. “Hey, have you entered the Fall Tournament?”
I shook my head. It was a Mixed Doubles tournament to be held on Sunday of the following week. It was the day after Homecoming Dance, and it had a hefty entrance fee.
“Why not? They have some good prizes,” Phoenix said.
“Are you volunteering to be my partner?” I said, trying to make a joke.
“I wish,” Phoenix said with a laugh. “Next year, definitely. Mark it down.”
I smiled, liking that he had ambitions to play again. “You’re on,” I said, knowing that I wasn’t going to be around in a year’s time. I didn’t know where I’d be, but it definitely wasn’t here.
“What about Max?”
In an instant, like at a flick of a switch, my heart started to race—at the mere mention of Max’s name.
“What about Max?” I repeated as casually as I could.
“You could play with him.”
“I heard he isn’t playing tennis anymore,” I said.
“You know why that is?”
“How would I know?” I asked with a defensive shrug. “I don’t know anything about Max. He takes my stats at games for Coach Clay, that’s all I know.”
Phoenix’s eyes narrowed and a kind of smirk crept onto his face. “You think that’s why he does it?”
I cast him a dubious glance. “Yeah. It is,” I said, but my words lacked conviction as a random thought took hold—what if Max did like me?I crushed the false hope then and there, reminding myself that Max had refused to hit with me. There was no way he’d want to enter a tournament with me, especially one that required an astronomical entry fee.
“Can we walk?” Phoenix flinched as he took a step, standing still was making him ache. I kept at his pace. “Max isn’t playing tennis because of me.”
“You?”
Phoenix’s chest heaved as he said, “Max blames himself for my accident.” I stopped midway through the breath I was about to take, holding it as Phoenix carried on, his voice pained. “He thinks it’s his fault. He doesn’t want to play anymore because of what happened to me.”
I exhaled long and slow, trying to make sense of Phoenix’s declaration. “But how is the accident his fault?” I asked, my heartbeat still unreasonably high. “I thought you were in the car with your mom.”
“I was. It wasn’t his fault.” Phoenix sighed. “We were going to a tournament in Falls Creek, it’s about an hour away, and the Saunders were going to give me a ride. But they were running late...Max was running late. So, I said I’d get Mom to take me.”
It took me a moment to absorb it all, Max burdened by guilt and regret. I understood now why he didn’t want to play tennis, it was out of loyalty to his friend.
“Max and I have been friends since second grade. He’d do anything for me,” Phoenix said, and he stopped abruptly, pressing the weight of his arms onto his frame, “but I don’t want him to do this. I don’t want him to throw away his tennis because of me.” A tear slid down the side of his cheek, expressing a sadness that touched my heart, and I suspected I knew Max’s motive—Max didn’t want to steal Phoenix’s glory, to live the life he should’ve had.
Yes, it was totally outrageous! That he would sacrifice his own playing future to support his friend, but it was also heart wrenchingly impressive and admirable—their friendship meant everything to him. A lump formed in my throat and I struggled to swallow.
