“We’re done,” he choked out.
He rolled out of the ring, grabbed his towel, and stormed toward the locker room without looking back.
I stood there in the center of the ring, my skin tingling, realizing the terrifying truth.
We couldn’t be just coworkers. There was too much fire left to ever be something as simple as that.
I showered and changed, my mind racing.
When I walked out into the hallway, I saw Cal. He was standing near some vending machines, laughing.
Lena was leaning against the wall, whispering something to him. He leaned down to hear her, his face softening. He reached out and tucked a strand of purple hair behind her ear.
A pang of jealousy so sharp it felt like a knife twist hit me in the gut.
“She’s too young for him,” I muttered.
“Dude,” a voice said from behind me.
I jumped. Evan was leaning against a doorway, arms crossed, watching me watch them. He was eating a bag of chips like he was at the movies.
“She’s twenty-one,” I said, gesturing to Lena. “He’s thirty-one. It’s gross.”
Evan snorted, a dry, amused sound. “You’re spiraling. It’s not a good look on you.”
“I can tell there’s something there,” I snapped. “And it’s weird, Evan. She’s so young.”
Evan walked up to me, popping a chip into his mouth, squinting at me like I was a puzzle with a piece missing.
“Wait,” Evan deadpanned. “Why do you know exactly how old she is? Did you Google her?”
I blinked, feeling the heat rise in my neck. “I… I asked around.”
“That’s weird,” Evan said, shaking his head. “That is borderline stalker behavior, Si. You’re stalking the Gen Z mascot.”
“I’m just looking out for him,” I lied. “I didn’t come back here to watch him make mistakes.”
“You came back here to wrestle,” Evan corrected, his tone sharpening but not unkind. “And don’t give me that ‘I’m just looking out for him’ crap. You came back because you’re pining. And honestly? It’s been almost a decade. It’s getting kind of creepy.”
“I know,” I admitted, my shoulders slumping. “I know I deserve all of it. But seeing him with someone else? Watching him be ‘Cal’ with her while I just get ‘Deadlock’? It’s a nightmare, Evan.”
Evan looked over at Cal, who was handing Lena a bottle of water. He sighed, crumpling the chip bag.
“You broke him, Silas,” Evan said, his voice dropping the humor. “Like,reallybroke him. He built himself back up by bricking over that part of himself. Do not come in here swinging a sledgehammer thinking you’re going to find the same boy you left.”
Evan clapped a hand on my shoulder.
“Come on,” Evan said, steering me away from the vending machines. “You’re crashing with me tonight. I don’t trust you to be alone right now. You’ve got that look in your eye like you’re about to write bad poetry or punch a wall.”
“So, spill it,” Evan said, tossing me a lukewarm can of Sprite from the minibar. He flopped onto the bed, kicking his boots off. “And don’t give me the PR answer. Why did youreallycome back? Because you have enough money to buy a small island. You didn’t need the check.”
I sat on the edge of the other bed, turning the can over in my hands. The condensation dripped onto the carpet.
“I missed him,” I whispered.
Thewords hung in the air.
Evan stopped chewing his lip. He sat up, his expression serious. “Yeah. I figured. But you stayed away a long time, Si.”
