“Sure.”
I never used to be the kind of person who turned down extra practice with my friends. But I felt like they were silently judging me.
My shoulders slumped as I focused back on my plate and food, suddenly losing my appetite. I worked hard in practice and in class. But I was still a liability. I could take free kicks, but when we did a game simulation during practice, I froze. I needed to work on that; otherwise, I would never be an asset to the team again.
And I didn't want to sit on the bench.
I didn't want to go pro, but I also wanted to play. This wasmy life. Something I was good at, I needed to somehow find my passion and strength again.
Vibration from my pocket pulled me out of my mental turmoil, and I smiled down at the notification.
Rosalie added a new song to your shared playlist called ‘Songs You'll Pretend Not To Like’.
My heart skipped a beat as I stared at my favorite notification and swiped my thumb across the screen, curiosity winning. Her silent support meant even more than any words of encouragement.
Especially when I saw the song. It was an acoustic cover of Elle Goulding'sArmy. And I instantly knew what she meant. She wanted to let me know I wasn't alone, that even if it was just her on my side, I was in fact standing with an army.
Emotions wrapped around my throat, and I had to take a big gulp of my sparkling water to wash it off.
Our eyes connected over the table, and Rosalie offered me a small, sweet smile as I mouthed 'thank you'.
Her smile grew wilder, eyes sparkling, and I was back to my original thought of wondering why the hell I did not kiss her?
If it were anyone else, I wouldn’t think twice, but with our rocky relationship, her brother’s connection to me, and my self-esteem plummeting after my injury, it wasn't as easy.
I watched as she turned back to her conversation with Aaron and Oliver and, with a wide smile, jumped back into explaining whatever it was that got her so excited.
My stupid heart skipped a beat as she flourished, returned to her old self, and blossomed within my friendship group.
“You have a crush,” Nova accused me, leaning in close to me.
I stared at her and grimaced. “Excuse me?”
She laughed. “You're staring at Rosie. And I already knew last year you liked her, but this is way different. You actuallylikeher.”
“There are words leaving your mouth, but I have no idea what you're talking about. Unless you’re talking about your weird thing with Maddox.”
Nova snickered and rolled her eyes. We were always close with her, and she was usually fun. Even if she was a drama major and brought a lot of headaches with her fun, outgoing, and very loud personality. “That thing you think is happening is you and Rosie. And I called it a year ago, thank you very much!”
“Shut up,” I muttered, jabbing my elbow into her side. “You were already trying to make that happen before...”
Before my injury.
During my recovery.
“Yeah, because she was baking for you.”
“Has it crossed your mind that some people... I don't know, Nova, enjoy baking?” I asked with an arched brow.
Nova gasped. “Enjoy? Baking?”
“That's what I thought.” I laughed.
“Rosie loves baking,” Aaron jumped into our conversation and pointed at his sister. “She used to be very bad, and it was her mission to get good. There was a period where she baked every week, but then she gave up.”
“And you called my cupcakes bird shit,” Rosalie scrunched her nose up to the memory.
“The shape!” Aaron defended himself. “Not the taste. The taste was great.”
