Before he can continue his monologue on the joys of fox cosplay, Brooks sits beside me and nudges my shoulder with his. His expression shifts. It’s still warm, but gentler.
“Hey… Erik mentioned Laura’s fall,” he says. “We’re really sorry, man.”
Alex nods. “Yeah, that sucks. We know you worked really hard on your routine.”
“Thanks.”
“I still think she’s going to get it,” Erik says seriously.
“The judges were pretty clear. She doesn’t have the skating skills she needs.”
He shrugs. “I don’t care. When she started singing, her voice slapped me harder than Hendricks’ dick hit her during the Freshman Fun Run. I’m still recovering.”
“Please stop talking,” Alex says.
Erik ignores him. “She’s amazing. That’s all I’m saying.”
“Yeah,” I say quietly, picking up my phone. “She really is. Hopefully, you’ll all get to hear her soon.”
Brooks studies me for a beat, then nods slowly. “Good. I’d like that.”
Alex pushes off the locker and grabs his towel. “Same. If she can get Erik praising her like that, she must be good.”
“Speaking of…” Erik interrupts. “I haven’t finished my rendition. Do you guys want the rest?”
“Absolutely not,” Brooks cuts in.
Erik shrugs and heads toward the showers, mumbling about “artistic suppression.” Brooks follows him, tossing his tape into his bag. The locker room noise shifts back into the usual shuffling and half-finished conversations.
I finally get a moment to breathe.
I look down at my phone again and brush my thumb across the screen to unlock it.
The first thing I see is the message from Laura.
Princess<3:I’m okay. Just need some time.
Right. All I need to do is convince her to come to my game. That can’t be that hard…right?
I start typing.
Scotty:Come to my game Friday night?
I delete it and try again.
Scotty:Hey, Princess. I know you're going through it right now, but I need you Friday night. Big game. Could really use you in the crowd.
Delete.
Scotty:I miss you. Come to the game Friday?
Fuck, none of these feel right.
Finally, I just go with honesty.
Scotty:Come to my game on Friday night? Please? We need all the support we can get. Bring Lyss and Reign too if they want to come. I know you're hurting right now, but I miss seeing your face. Even if you're still mad at the world, come be mad at the world in the stands where I can see you.
I hit send before I can overthink it again.
