“How is she?” I rise to my feet, searching his face for clues.
“Stay away from my sister,” he growls while piercing his eyes into mine, sending a chill spiraling through them all the way down to my toes.
“It was clearly an accident,” My voice is resolute, and I take a solid step back from Rocco. A switch has been flipped, and Rocco’s grin widens as he steps closer, closing the gap I had just created, while invading my personal space.
"You better watch your back," he sneers, his breath hot on my face. But as he raises his fist to strike, coach comes out from behind us, freezing us both in place.
“To the bench, boys.Now!”
She’s fine, I reassure myself, as I pivot, and plop down on the bench, hanging my head. I’ve taken way worse hits than that and walked them off. She’ll be right back out in a few moments. I stare down the path that leads to the locker rooms, waiting.
Please come out and be okay.
But she never returns to the field.
three
Gia
I sprawl out in the center of my queen bed, my back propped up on a pile of goose-down pillows with a bag of frozen peas strapped to my puffed knee.She’s All Thatplays on the TV again for what seems like the hundredth time. I turn the volume all the way down until the only sound that echoes in my room is the rain outside my window. I flick the remote next to me and wince.
My knee pulses with a heartbeat of its own.
The x-rays showed nothing broken. Thankfully. However, I was mid-cheer with my raised leg bent when the blunt force met my knee, and it dislocated my pelvis. Now I’m stuck home on the night of the biggest dance of the year with a giant stabilizing belt strapped around my hips. My cheer squad all called to express their concern, but they sure didn’t slow down their plans on my account. I can’t believe I’m missing the Homecoming dance. Not to mention, I didn’t get to take North up on that dance I promised him.
That one hurt the most.
For two weeks, I had washed dishes at my dad’s pizzeria to earn money for the perfect mermaid-silhouette dress. The stylish garment hangs from the back of my closet door as a taunting reminder—tonight is not going how I had envisioned it. My friends are all at the dance, wearing their dresses. I can almost see them with their hair and makeup done, and dancing with the biggest smiles on their faces. I want to be happy for them, but it stings to think I’m missing out.
Major FOMO.
Worst of all is the nagging thought in the back of my mind that North’s dancing with someone else. Clenching my eyes, I gulp another lungful of air and hold it as I struggle through the tears. Junior year is supposed to be one of my best years, but so far this year has been hellacious. One month in and I’m nearly disabled. So much for the cheer team.
What else can go wrong?
A soft knock comes from my bedroom door.
Really? I arch a suspicious brow. I wasn’t inviting something else to go wrong. How’s this happening?
“What?” My voice drips in nasal-ly inflections, but I don’t reach for a tissue. I’m so over everything.
The door pushes open, and I’m expecting my dad, or my brother, but it’s neither.
It’s North.
My eyes immediately skirt over the dirty cheerleading uniform I’d lazily dropped when I changed. My soggy shower towel still lays mid-center on the floor, as I was too disgruntled to bother to hang it up. It’s all so cringe, but I can’t even move to try to nonchalantly kick those things under my bed. My eyes bug out of my head as an inventory of all the childish stuffed animals I still had lined up on my dresser runs through my head. Can’t a girl get a warning? I force a calm smile and lock my gaze back to him.
That did absolutely nothing to calm my nerves, because while I'm laid up, looking like a spicy disaster, he is killing all the looks categories. He’s so tall and fit, he looks like a football model in his letterman jacket, and his tousled hair only makes him look more smoldering, drawing me in like a magnet. My palms are pouring out sweat, my hands growing sticky, as I try to casually wipe them on my blanket all the while my cheeks flush with anticipation.
North is here.
In my room.
To see me.
Of course, this is about what happened. More than likely it’s a welfare check, but my heart is already making wedding plans. I can’t for a second be mad at him for running into me because it was an accident. His brow lowers as his gaze glides from my pea-encapsulated knee back up to my face. “I’m sorry, Gia. I honestly didn’t see you there until it was too late.”
“It’s okay.” I sigh, hoping I will be okay.
