“Smart idea, actually.” They already waited this long, why wait any longer?
“Sounds good to me,” Wyatt added.
“I bet as soon as you tell the girls, they’ll jump right in to help plan,” Landon supplied as well.
As mom started talking about the wedding, an important thought suddenly came to mind. I sliced a hand through the air and interrupted them mid-conversation.
“Wait!” Four sets of eyes landed on me. “I’m going to be the flower boy, right?”
27
MATEO
Tell Emmie good luck from all of us!
She’s going to crush it!
I smiled at the onslaught of messages in the family group chat. The girls were beyond stoked for Emmie at regionals today. I was pretty sure they already blew up her phone, but it was sweet they did in the big chat as well. A chat they’ve been trying to get Emmie to be a part of since last week when they came.
I shifted the ice pack on my shoulder as I sent a reply back, then I switched over to my message thread with Emmie—our only way of communicating the last three days, thanks to an away game. I missed waking up to her this morning, but I knew she needed the normalcy of staying at her own place, since today was such a big day for her.
Mateo: Are you at the rink already?
I moved on the couch, wincing slightly at the cold burn from the ice strapped to my right shoulder as I tried to get comfortable. It was only ten o’clock, and I just got back from physical therapy, so I was just going to hang out before I headed over to AcklesArena.
Propping my feet on the coffee table, I flicked through the TV stations to find the one that would air the skating competition. It was still a good two hours away, but I wanted to see if they would talk about Emmie.
My phone buzzed in my lap a minute later.
Emmie: Yeah, I’m here. About to start stretching.
I knew she was stressed about the day. She was putting in more hours at the rink, and I could see the weight of the pressure on her shoulders. I understood exactly where she was coming from, but I was doing my best to keep things lighthearted and stress-free.
Mateo: I’m gonna need proof, you know.
The little text bubble popped up as Emmie typed out a response.
Emmie: Are you trying to get me to send you dirty pictures before I skate?
Mateo: Wow, Emmie, you have a dirty mind. Wasn’t where I was going at all.
I grinned, practically seeing her eyeball through the phone as it showed she read my message.
Mateo: I mean, I wouldn’t say no to that…
I would never ask her to send me anything like that, especially right before her big skating competition, but I knew the teasing and joking would help get her mind off of everything. Or at least, I was hoping it would.
A few minutes passed before she responded again but this time with a picture. I’ve never clicked on something so fast in my life. The sight of her took my breath away. It was a simple selfie angled from above, but she looked downright beautiful.
Her nose was scrunched up, drawing my eyes to the dusting of freckles across it and her cheeks. She had makeup on, but I liked that she didn’t hide under it. Her green eyes popped, thanks to eyeshadow and a dark swipe of eyeliner.The lips I craved were painted a bright red, and I instantly wanted to smudge it.
Her hair was pulled into some intricate bun-like style, small strands falling out in a purposeful way. From what I looked up about figure skaters, they typically had their hair pulled back to keep it out of the way while they skated. I didn’t know how she did it, but it looked great.
My eyes traveled to her outfit, lips twitching at the sweatpants and sweatshirt combo. I figured she wouldn’t be in her performance outfit quite yet, but I really liked the comfy look. I wasted no time saving it to my phone.
Mateo: I love the matching dark gray sweats.
Emmie: Think I should wear this on the ice?
