He laughs and shoots me a look. “How come? It’s just a Cardinals shirt, Carrie. You’re acting like it’ll give you hives, or something.”
I shake my head. “I didn’t order a fangirl costume. I already spend more than enough time hanging out with Donovan—people see me wearing this, they’ll start getting ideas.”
“Is that such a big deal?”
Something in the way Adam says it makes me turn. He’s got the weirdest look on his face, and it takes me a moment to collect my thoughts.
“It’s the biggest deal. There are few things worse in this world than Donny fangirls.”
“Your conversations must get pretty heated when you guys hang out.” Adam laughs. “Though Don seems more relaxed these days.”
I decide to leave it there. Adam doesn’t need to know exactlywhyDon feels more relaxed lately.
“He told me about his sister, by the way,” Adam adds.
My eyebrows go up. “Really?”
Holy shit.I frown. Adam knows? That makes sense, I reason to myself. He’s one of Don’s best friends, so I guess my student is on the right track—opening up, being more vulnerable. It bothers me, though—I realize now that I liked being the only one to know his secret. I suddenly feel deflated.I’m a terrible person.
“It’s great he’s finally starting to open up.” The words are like cotton wool in my mouth. “Did he tell the others?”
“No, I got him at a low point.”
I raise an eyebrow. “AndI’mevil?”
“How dare you! I’m the perfect guy.” He smiles.
“Well, youarea Campus Driver, after all,” I quip.
We’ve arrived at the arena, and I’m suddenly on edge. It’s just a game, I remind myself. No big deal. I’m just doing a friend a favor. A friend called Donovan Wolinski.This is so fucking surreal.
I follow Adam’s lead, and to my surprise, we skirt around the building, moving against the crowd.
“VIP entrance,” he explains.
He rings the bell and waves at the security guards, jerking his chin at me.
“She’s with Donovan.”
“I’m not—”
He grabs my wrist. “This way.”
He leads me down the hall, shaking hands as he goes, exchanging quips as we work our way through the maze. I keep my eyes firmly on his back—this is the sort of place a girl could get lost.
When finally we arrive on the court, the air around us is electric. I’ve seen videos of this place, but now that I’m actually here in person, I can hardly believe it. It’s huge, and I suddenly feel tiny, foreign to it all—like an outsider.What am I doing here?
Our seats are so close to the action, we might as well be directly under the net. I scan the crowds. The place is crammed, the atmosphere charged. I already knew basketball games drew in the fans, but this is something else. The bleachers are packed, teeming with students, camera guys, photographers. The sheer scale of it all is insane.
As the throng thickens, Adam and I continue chatting. He really is such a great guy, and I’m glad he’s here beside me. I’m pretty sure I would’ve just bailed otherwise. There’s something about him that puts me right at ease, and that’s new for me.
Music comes blaring through the speakers, and a gaggle of girls in SHU uniforms come spilling out onto the court.
“Wow. They’re snatched.” I shake my head. “You know, I see all those reels about gym girls and their clean diets, and I think, ‘Fuck my life.’ Then I grab a burger and fries, and I instantly feel better.”
“Lewis was basically born ripped. He was tall as a kid anyway, but then his dad made him start working weekends and school vacations.” Adam shakes his head. “That asshole had biceps before my voice even broke. I was like—how’s that fair?”
“Absolute disgrace, dude.”
