“I’m so sorry we kept this from you, but—”
“Don’t apologize. And for your own father to pay her off in exchange for her silence? That man…”
Meg’s voice trails off there, but only now do I realize I left that part of the story out when I shared it with Coach.
“Wait,thatwas his response?” Coach asks. “He didn’t think to encourage you two to talk to us? He didn’t think to be of help in some way?”
I shake my head, wishing I could forget Vin Golden altogether. “No. He just wanted to make sure Kasey never talked, never spoke out about our situation if and when I decided to go pro.”
“That son of a bitch.”
“Don’t speak ill of the dead,” Meg hisses, placing a hand on Coach’s back to settle him down.
“I’m sorry, but being dead doesn’t change the facts.”
“Don’t be sorry. I agree wholeheartedly,” I say.
Coach shakes his head, and I don’t blame him for being at a loss for words. This whole thing is… a lot.
My hand warms when Blue slips hers into it, and I give it a gentle squeeze. Silently thanking her for sticking with me, thanking her for being in my corner.
Meg wipes a tear from her eye. “If you’ll excuse us, we should really give Kasey a quick call to check in on her. But we’ll meet you in the dining room in ten minutes for dessert.”
I nod as she and Coach step away. Then, I’m in Blue’s arms. She clings to me, and I can feel the relief in her touch. This weighed on her almost as heavily as it weighed on me. Not for the same reasons, I’m sure, but with how she cares about me, my wellbeing, I can imagine it wasn’t easy seeing me stress over it.
“I hate that it happened this way,” she says, “but I’m glad Coach knows. This has been a long time coming.”
I kiss the top of her hair. “I’d say you don’t know the half, but that’s a lie. You’ve been with me every step of the way with this.”
She squeezes me tighter. “Now, you’re free. No more secrets.”
I feel that down in my bones—the weight lifted off of me, the freedom to be around Coach without fear of when Pandora would drop the bomb. In a way, she did me a favor tonight, although I know that wasn’t her goal. She meant to destroy my relationship with Coach. While I still can’t wait to snuff this bitch out, I’m finding it hard to be upset right now.
Coach knows the truth, thiscityknows the truth, and somehow… I survived.
*
@QweenPandora:
Oh, to have been a fly on the wall tonight. Let’s do a quick poll.
Who here thinks Coach Wells lost his shit and plans to give #KingMidas hell?
Now, raise your hand if you think Coach took a more mature and reasonable route.
I suppose only time will tell, but you already know I’ll be here to keep you informed.
Later, peeps :)
—P
Chapter Nine
Blue
I lay my head against the seat, clutching West’s hand as the city whizzes by outside my window.
His talk with Coach went better than either of us could’ve ever imagined, so despite Pandora’s best efforts tonight, I’m counting this as a win.
