Andres:Baby, I’m so sorry. I wish I was with you, to hold you. I hate that I’m so far away. Be careful, and call or text me to let me know you’ve made it home safely.
Prickles:I wish you were here too. I’ll update you later.
In Brandon’s office, I find Oscar and Brandon canoodling, and it warms my heart to see the two of them together. My stomach clenches though, wishing Andres was here, missing him so acutely it’s like an open wound in my gut. Bran plays into my hand perfectly, and I decide drowning my sorrow in board games sounds better, and healthier than alcohol. On my way to Brandon’s, I let Andres know I’ll be at Brandon’s most of the night.
I’m setting up the gameRiskon Brandon’s dining table when his doorbell rings. Oscar is getting drinks ready and some snacks. World domination always makes me a little hangry.
“Uh, Jenna? Door’s for you?”
“What?” I glance up but can’t see the front door from here. I peek around the corner and find a young man at the door with bags in his hands. “I didn’t order anything.”
The delivery driver shifts the bags and stares at a slip of paper.“Never conquer lands on an empty stomach. Your future.”Brandon, Oscar and I laugh at the way his young face screws up uncomfortably as he reads the note from Andres.
“Thank you.” I go to my bag on the little table in the foyer, but the driver waves me off.
“I’ve already been given a tip.”
“Well, let me give you—”
“A very generous tip. Have a good night…conquering.” Brandon helps me grab the bags and carry them inside. I make sure the young man gets into his car and drives away before shuttingthe door. In the kitchen, they’ve already started taking out containers of food and the smells make my mouth water and my stomach growl.
“Geez,your futureknows how to order take out.” Brandon teases me with an expectant look. I shrug, not wanting to tell him who my future is. He’ll learn soon enough, I’m sure. While I initially didn’t want to say anything because I didn’t think it would last with Andres, figuring he’d get bored quickly, now I don’t because I want to keep him to myself. I don’t want to share him with the world yet. I grab my phone and my plate and sit at the dining table, my army spread out before me. I take a bite of the delicious smothered chicken and open the text thread with Andres.
Prickles:“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” Thank you for giving me a reason to dream again.
Andres 11.
My best friend Theodore Prokop sits next to me. 50 yard line behind the home team. We both watch the young men of the football team, how they interact with one another, how they listen and execute their coaches’ wishes, how they behave when shit doesn’t go their way. I’m a scout for an NFL team, but Theo is a sports agent…and also Phia Kerr’s literary agent. He’s branching out. And I’m happy for him. We’ve known each other for almost twenty years, and Theo is my family as much as my parents or brother.
“You’ve got a little drool.” I reach up to wipe the corner of his mouth, but he smacks my hand away. My hearty laugh draws attention to us, not that two former NFL players don’t draw enough as it is. I’m used to it.
“Fuck you,” he spits out, but there’s no real heat behind it. His eyes are glued to the cheerleaders. Mine are too, but for different reasons. At least, they better be.
“You aren’t looking at my woman, are you?”
He slowly turns his head to stare at me like I’m fucking stupid. The back of my neck heats in embarrassment. I’ve never been jealous a day in my life. And I know Theo. He’s hung out with Jenna and I when she comes down to visit. The two of them have some sort of meme-a-thon going on where they try to one up each other using funny memes. It makes me happy that my bestfriend and my best girl get along so well. She talks with my mom too. They text all the time, and when she came down a couple weeks ago, she and mom had lunch together and spent the day shopping.
I’m pretty sure at this point, if Jenna leaves me, I won’t just lose her, I’ll lose my best friend and my parents too. They love her, as they should. I just have to make sure I don’t ever give her a reason to leave. I won’t survive without her. She’s become everything to me. I tease her, call myself her future, but it’s true. There is no tomorrow without her.
I just hate that I’m traveling all the time. There’s really only a few months a year where I’m not actively working. Regular season, playoffs, combine, draft, rinse and repeat. It’s a cycle that never ends and I love what I do but I love Jenna more. I haven’t told her that because she’s like a vicious rabbit, ready to bite me and bolt at any moment. She’s gotten better, especially since her first visit to my place, but I still sense she’s holding back. Not all the time, but every now and then.
I miss her. I hate the distance between us. If we were together, one place, one city, perhaps she wouldn’t feel the need to hold back. She could go all in. I’ve spent the last week trying to figure out how I can do my job remotely. I’d have to still travel, but I could use her place as my home base. I’d happily give up my house in Fox Chapel and move here to be with her. My assistants have been instrumental in putting some options together, so I have a proposal to present to the team’s owners and managers. They tease me all the time for my obsession with Jenna. I think I could get away with only going into the offices in Pittsburgh once or twice a month. And in her off season we could stay in Pittsburgh. I want concrete plans in place so when I present the idea to her, she doesn’t bite me and run.
Theo’s laughter snaps me to the present and I glance at him in confusion. “Dude, you are so fucking gone for that woman. I’ve been talking to you for like three minutes and you’ve just been muttering to yourself.”
“Oh. Sorry. I’ve got a lot on my mind.” I rub the back of my neck and shift my focus to the game and the players.
“Well, try to keep the thoughts PG because you’ve got a stadium of looky-loos and you’ve got a big dick.”
I smile at my friend and dip my chin. “Thanks for noticing.”
“It’s not as big as mine, but Jenna seems pleased.”
My smile drops instantly and I scowl at Theo. “Never discuss my woman’s pleasure again.”
“Understood.” He gives me a half-ass salute and smirks as he turns back to the field. They stop for a commercial break and that’s when Theo and I do our best work. Players are not paying attention to the cameras and fans, focusing on the team and the game. We’ve joked in the past that we often feel like Jane Goodall as we observe them in their natural habitat.
Something about the noises coming from the video playing on the jumbotron catches my attention, and I stare up at the big screen and my jaw promptly drops. “Fuck.” Elijah Addelsbach and Daya Moul, larger than life, and about to get down and dirty for the entire stadium to see. Shit. I don’t know them personally, but Jenna loves them. She and her best friend Lilly orchestrated a hell of a campaign for the university using the Mic-Man and new cheerleading sensation and all their hard work, not to mention the reputation of two promising young students is going up in smoke…in technicolor and surround sound.
