“Hey,” I greeted.
“It is you,” he breathed.
“Nice to meet you.” I extended my hand toward him.
“Johnny. I’m Johnny.” He clasped his hand in mine and shook it. “I thought it was you, but I wasn’t sure, and my buddies bet me that I wouldn’t come over and say hi,” he rambled.
“Where’re your friends?” I asked. Johnny let my hand go to point across the gym at a group of four boys huddled around each other, staring at us.
They were clearly in high school and just starting to workout, their arms long and gangly. More than likely wanting to get in shape before the school year started and to impress girls. The good ole high school days.
“Do you guys want a picture?” The kid had the balls to come up to me, so it would’ve been rude of me not to offer, even if I looked like a sweaty mess.
I learned from my brother and his friends that taking a moment to greet a fan went a long way. They taught me that I wouldn’t be where I am without my fans, and I could show my gratitude by taking pictures. Of course there were times I couldn’t, but I tried my best.
“You would do that?”
“Sure.” With a hand on his shoulder, I steered us toward his friends, weaving around workout equipment. His friends froze mid-conversation as we drew closer. They weren’t expecting me to actually come over and talk.
“Mateo Boone,” they said at once. I flashed them a grin.
“Johnny here said you guys would like a picture.” The four of them scrambled for their phones, mumbling about how awesome this was.
It was still surreal and crazy that I had people who wanted pictures with me. Growing up, it was always Wyatt. But now it was me… It still took some getting used to.
For the next few minutes, I posed and took picture after picture. I knew within minutes they’d be up on social media, so I needed to get out of here soon before people started to show. It’s happened before.
They started pampering me with questions as soon as we were done.
“Is it true you could have been drafted at eighteen?”
“Do you constantly have super models on your arm?”
“Where’s your championship ring?”
The questions went on without pause, none of them giving me a second to answer. Their eyes were wide and curious, their voices almost feverish as if they couldn’t get the words out fast enough.
I wanted to give them what they wanted, but with their voices getting excitable, we were starting to draw attention from other gym goers. Even if people didn’t know who I was, the moment they saw a good amount of people talking and pointing… It didn’t take long for them to figure out there was a famous person in the building.
Going unnoticed was about to end.
“Sorry, boys, but I need to get going,” I interrupted, starting to back away, only to hear voices behind me.
“Mateo Boone?” I closed my eyes with a wince. So much for getting out of here unnoticed. Even though I wanted to leave, I wasn’t about to be a dick. Plastering a smile on my face, I turned and greeted the small crowd behind me.
Thirty minutes later,I finally slid behind the wheel of my car, shoving my gym bag in the passenger seat. My sigh filled the enclosed space as I shut my eyes and rolled my neck to try and relieve some of the tension.
My cheeks ached from all the pictures I took moments ago. I hadn’t noticed just how full the gym was until a good twenty people surrounded me. I’m not sure they all knew exactly who I was, but that didn’t seem to stop them from wanting a picture.
The next time I saw Perry, he was in for an earful, especially since I got groped by a group of older women dressed in matching track suits. Who knew they’d have wandering hands.
After a moment of getting my bearings, I started my car and pulled away from the curb. I headed in the direction of my favorite smoothie place around the corner when my phone started to ring.
Seeing Trevor Hall’s name on the screen, I hit connect. My brother’s teammate’s voice instantly filled my car as I navigated around traffic, but I smiled to myself because I also considered the guy a brother.
“Hey,”he greeted.
“Hey, what’s up?”
