“Ah.” She tilts her head sternly. “Whatever you were about to say, save the words. You also never hated him. Rival, shmival. That’s also a load of bullshit, let’s get that straight right now.” Elliot stops me from speaking again. “Tell me I’m right.”
I blow out a hot breath into the hand cupping my mouth. “Can you move your hand?” I garble. “Thank you. And fine, you’re right. My hatred of Cooper was displaced interest.”
“Infatuation,” she bickers.
“Any annoyance. A nuisance.”
My sister snorts. “A fixated passion.”
“Crush,” I relent, eyes finding the ceiling.
“Love.”
I shake my head no. “I don’t…I don’t…damnit.”
I’m not falling. I’ve landed. I love Cooper.
“You love him, too.” She smiles brightly. “I think if you look back, you’ll realize you’ve loved him for quite some time.”
“Yeah, maybe when we were kids and I didn’t know the difference between being smitten and love.”
“No, Sutton. These years. Come on. Streaming his games when you can, checking the school’s athletic website for live updates, keeping his signed playing card, hiding his high school T-shirt in the back of your closet behind your winter gear basket, only to wear it when you’re anxious.”
I feel exposed. No one was supposed to know about all that. And so what if I’ve maybe loved him for longer and didn’t realize it? I realize it, know it, now.
“H-ho-how’d you know?”
“Blondes are a lot smarter than people think.” She sassily tosses her long blonde hair. “Because you’re my best friend and I care about you. I know—and notice—more about you than you’d think. You’re one of my favorite people ever, so why wouldn’t I?”
Elliot’s words are a warm hug. A hug that I didn’t realize I needed, or have been craving. After what happened in high school and then leaving for college, I lost the people I was closest to. Once again felt cast aside like I didn’t matter. Forgotten.
That’s when I met Elliot.
“You’re my favorite, too.”
“Number three to Meave and Cooper, but?—”
“They don’t count.” Meave huffs, arms crossed in front of her chest. “Number one.” I give her shoulder a nudge. “And on the terms of friendship, I have to admit that I notice things too.”
I snag a paper towel to blot my face. The pink of my cheeks still stained from Cooper. When I’m free of potential makeup stains, I grab both of them in a hug. “I love you both.”
“We love you too,” Meave responds, “but we should probably go now. I bet he’s freaked out that he spooked you.”
Elliot leads the way out of the bathroom. We head to the hallway that goes to the locker room. Family, significant others, and friends are gathered there for our guys.
“Hey, Sutton. Hey, Elliot,” Jake greets. “I was looking for you after the game ended and people cleared out.”
“Minor emergency. Cooper mouthed—” Meave smacks Elliot in the stomach. “Cooper’s goal really got to our girl here.”
“If that was Dawson, I would have reacted the same.” Jake didn’t know anything about hockey before they started dating. Not that Dawson knows that much about soccer. “Does he get a medal or trophy for it?”
“No. The school might do something for him, but otherwise it’s bragging rights.”
“He’d probably love a blow job as his prize,” Elliot teases. Jake concurs, nodding his head. My sister pretends to belch.
I roll my eyes. “He’d much rather go down on me as his prize.” It rolls off my tongue before I can stop it.
“I knew it!” Elliot squeals after her initial shock that I even responded.
