I stepped back and cupped his cheek.
“Before the game, in the locker room, Malik said we were going to win for Miriam because she was like a mom to everyone. So, we won for her.”
Tears flowed, and I didn’t bother to wipe them away. There would be a day, somewhere in the future, when I’d think of my best friend and not cry. Until then, I was going to shed every damn tear I could because I was determined to heal.
As soon as Weston came out, he greeted the parents who remained. He walked over to us, and while I was tempted to hug him, I didn’t. He’d kept his promise and had shown me he was interested without being pushy, from good-morning texts, to surprising me with coffee and flowers, to telling me I was beautiful while I was doing the dishes. If nothing ever came of us, I’d at least have a really great friend.
He placed his hand on my lower back and then moved it. “Dinner at the Ridgeview?”
“Yes, I’m starving, Coach,” Cutter said.
“I don’t know. I’m not sure you earned dinner,” Weston said, but he looked at Nova, who cracked a smile. “What do you think? Do you think Cutter should get dinner?”
Nova contemplated Weston’s question and then shook her head.
“What? Why?” Cutter asked her teasingly.
“Because you missed a lot of shots.”
Cutter rolled his eyes. “Oh man, but we won.” He pointed to the now-off scoreboard.
Nova thought about it for a minute and nodded. Everyone laughed as we walked out of the gym, state champions.
Chapter 32
Cutter
We were three weeks into the baseball season and about to have our first scrimmage or preseason game tomorrow. These types of games were nice because they didn’t count against our record. But then, if we won, it didn’t count, either, which sort of sucked.
Despite everything going on in my life, I had a lot to look forward to. Instead of teaching me how to drive, Toni had signed me up for a driver’s course, which was mandated by the state. This one wasn’t sponsored by the school, so I wasn’t limited on driving time. That meant when I was done in a few weeks, I’d be able to take the test to get my license. If all went well, I’d be able to drive myself to school and home from practice.
There were rules I had to follow. Honestly, I’d do anything that Toni or the state told me, as long as I could drive. It sucked, though; I wouldn’t be able to drive Eleni or any of my friends around for the first six months. My driver’s ed teacher said it had to do with distractions and all that. I’d be able to drive Nova, though, but I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. I think I’d be too nervous with her in the car at first.
At least I’d have a car. Toni was going to let me drive my mom’s car, which was the one I’d been practicing with anytime she took me out to drive. The scariest thing was that she took me to Boston to learn how toparallel park. I thought I was going to crap my pants a few times, but I mastered it, and when it came time to practice with my instructor, he said I did an amazing job.
While we were in Boston, we stayed at Toni’s. Her place overlooked the water and had a view of the city, and for the two days we were there, I sat out on her balcony and people-watched while bundled up in my winter coat, because the wind off the harbor was brutal.
Aside from the parking lesson, Toni took Nova and me to the aquarium and the children’s museum. The latter was meant for Nova, but I had fun there, especially with her. I think not having our mom around hurt her more than she was letting on. Each morning, I asked her how she was doing and whether she wanted to talk, but she always told me she was fine. I knew enough to know that “fine” was never a good thing.
Toni took us to her office. No one was there, but it was nice to see where she worked when she came to town. Nova loved Toni’s office and spent ten minutes spinning around in our aunt’s swivel chair, and we rode up and down the glass elevator. Watching the city come in and out of view was trippy.
One of the mini-vacation events was a tour of Fenway. The team was in Florida for spring training, which was a bummer because I would’ve loved to see a game. Toni promised we’d come back once the weather was nicer. She knew someone who worked at the stadium and could get us tickets on the Green Monster.
On our way home, Toni let me drive once we were out of the city. The state required we have so many extra hours of drive time, and Toni felt this was a great way to get those in. Plus, it was a Sunday, and there weren’t a lot of people on the road.
The sound of my cleats clanking against the concrete had to be my favorite noise. To me, it was a sign that summer was coming. Our nights were getting longer, crocuses and daffodils were beginning to bloom, and on my list of chores for this coming weekend was yard work.
Now that most of the snow had melted, Toni wanted to map out where all the new flowers would go. She intended to spruce up the yard the way my mom would’ve wanted it. All I knew was there would be a ton more yard work for me.
When I came around the corner of the school, I saw Eleni sitting on the concrete bench surrounding our flagpole. She stood as soon as she saw me, rushed over, and left me no choice but to drop my baseball bag on the ground. The sound of my metal bag sitting on the sidewalk echoed.
I picked her up, and her legs wrapped around my waist as her lips pressed against mine. Neither of us wasted any time deepening the kiss. We rarely had any alone time as it was. Not that we were alone now, but most of my teammates had already left.
Eleni moved her head back and forth. She kept her hands on my cheeks and ground against me. My dick was hard and pressed into her. In the times we’d been alone, we’d touched each other and given each other pleasure. I’d never felt my body get so warm before until Eleni had wrapped her hand around my shaft. She told me she’d read about doing this to me from one of her sister’s books, a book her parents would lose their minds over if they knew it was in the house.
The first time she let me touch her between her legs, I thought I was going to jizz in my pants. We’d been at her house in the basement family room. The upstairs door was open, but Eleni didn’t care. She straddled my legs and began rubbing against me. I was hard in seconds, but we both wanted more.
My friends always said you gotta risk it for the biscuit. I slipped my hand between her legs and felt her for the first time. It was like my body knew what to do even though my mind was nothing but a haze.
