“Somers!” Sutton yelled as I pulled myself up from the dirt. “Shit, man, you’re a beast out there. This is gonna be awesome!”
He slapped me hard across my shoulder blade as we joined some others who were heading toward the bench. Practice was over.
“I’ve still got a lot to learn,” I told him. The others we walked with laughed at my statement.
“Ya learn on the field, dude. Don’t worry, after the first game, you’ll be a pro,” Ashton added. “Sutton’s right, you’re a great addition to the team. We’re lucky to have ya.”
Their encouraging words combined with the ass whooping of a workout practice gave me was just what the doctor ordered.
Literally.
Dr. Jean said this would be my best medicine, and she was right. The only problem was, as soon as it was over, and I was alone in my truck, the intrusive thoughts returned. Navigating how to deal with Ava living in the same house, post breakup, when no one even knew, was going to be a challenge.
Especially when I knew neither of us had stopped caring for the other.
When I pulled up to the house, I noticed Ty’s car was there.
Me: Hey, I’m out front, can Becca spare you for a bit
He didn’t bother textingback, the front door opened within seconds.
“Hey, man,” he said as he hopped in my truck. “What’s going on?”
I put the truck in reverse and got out of there as quickly as I could.
“Are they all home?”
“Who? The girls? Yeah, I think so, but I didn’t see Ava. She was upstairs, I think.”
As I continued driving, Ty didn’t say much while he sat next to me. He looked out the window, occasionally glancing my way, but remained quiet.
Everyone close to me was quiet.
“Hungry? Just got done with practice and I need to eat, but I didn’t want to eat at home. Thought we could grab a bite.” As I said this, I pulled into the lot of a Mexican restaurant he and I ate at last year.
He tilted his head as he looked my way, his eyebrows pinched together. He opened his mouth, as if to ask a question, but chose not to. Nodding as he peered at the restaurant, he simply moved on to opening his door.
Thankfully, it was empty and we were seated quickly. Once we had glasses of water and were both reading our menus, Ty cleared his throat.
“So, are you going to tell my why you didn’t want to eat in your own home?” He purposely placed his menu in front of him, his phone on top of it, giving me his undivided attention. “I mean, that is why we’re here? Isn’t it? You’ve obviously got something going on, man. What’s up?”
“Hi, guys. Did you have enough time to look at the menu?”
The cute waitress next to our table definitely went to BRU. I’d seen her on campus. Her flirty voice and smile made it seem she recognized us as well. Ty kicked me under the table, no doubt to encourage me to flirt back.
“I’m ready, you?” I asked Ty.
“Yeah,” he said, the disappointment clear in his response.
We ordered nachos to start, and I got chicken and steak fajitas. Ty got two beef and bean burritos with the fixings.
We’d be here for a while.
“Well, you didn’t take her bait.” He gestured to the waitress walking away. “And you still haven’t answered my question.”
“She interrupted us.”
“She’s gone now,” he said.
