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“Where are you going?” Toby asked.
Hazel held up her camera. “Reporter duties. We’ll meet up with you guys later.”
“Have fun,” I said.
“You too.” Lillian smirked. “Though not too much fun. We’ll text you if we need a ride later.”
I rolled my eyes as they left us in the bleachers.
“How was the drive?” Toby asked.
“Good. A bit long.”
“Agreed.”
“What would you know?” Bryan asked, sending a glare at his friend, though there was no real anger in his expression. “You slept the whole time.”
“I did not.”
“Oh sorry, you slept until the last five miles.”
While the two teased each other, I sat between Bryan and Justin. Justin was looking down on his phone, expression blank. I leaned forward until I had his attention.
“Hello,” I said softly, sensing he was completely distracted.
He startled, leaning back with a slight jump. Slowly, his dull eyes finally focused on me, clearing. They warmed when it clicked that I was the one actually sitting next to him. “Hey.”
I gave him a small, tight smile, worry filling me. “How was your ride here?”
“Long.”
Justin was already a man of few words, but this was over the top.
“Have we reverted to one-word caveman responses now?” I asked, trying to joke with him.
Justin sighed and relaxed his body. “I’m sorry, Cadence.” He waved his phone at me. “The hospital.”
“Oh. Should I ask?”
“Not right now.”
“Okay, I won’t. But I’m here.” I rested my hand on his knee and squeezed it. Justin grabbed my hand and laced our fingers together, resting them in his lap. His touch relaxed me, reassuring that he wasn’t going to disappear on me. Sitting next to him, his responses, it felt all too much like he’d slip away and I’d never see him again. I focused on the warm reassurance of his grip, loosening some of the tensions in my shoulders.
“Let’s go!” George cheered, making me jump as the bleachers got loud, people rooting for the teams.
Both teams ran out to the field to begin. I quickly found Paxon, recognizing his blond hair and the confident way he walked. He grinned, saying something to one of his teammates, looking absolutely happy and comfortable on the field. Despite his decision to not continue soccer, he truly looked like he loved the sport. The referee blew his whistle and it was like watching what freedom would look like.
Paxon flew across the field, supporting his teammates, dominating the field. Every decision he made when kicking the ball was made with confidence and if I had to wonder what no regret looked like, it would be Paxon in that moment, on that field, playing something he truly loved.
Our team held great focus that seemed to trip up their opponent. And their confidence was perfect. They knew when they made a pass, it was going to be properly received. They knew when to kick for a goal and score.
It was a good game for Paxon. He looked like he was at peak performance.
I cheered and jumped around with the rest of them. George and Toby were of course the loudest with little Cal trying his best to be heard too.
Even with all that excitement, Justin still felt absent despite sitting next to me. Every so often, he’d get a text and then he’d scowl at his phone at whatever was sent to him. I wanted to take his phone away and help him enjoy the moment, but I also knew whatever was going on was important and he needed to deal with it.
At halftime, our team was winning and everyone was confident that the other team wasn’t going to be able to recover. While the teams took their break, we broke apart too. George had to take Cal to the bathroom. Toby wanted food and dragged Bryan with him. Seth had moved over to talk with some old classmates of his, happy to have seen them.
