Page 75 of Love, Literature, and the Linebacker

I check my phone again. Five minutes late becomes ten. Ten becomes twenty. That’s not like her.

“She okay?” Darnell asks, glancing toward the entrance.

“I don’t know,” I reply. A dull unease settles low in my stomach. Lucy’s usually early. Or right on time. Never this late.

Darnell shifts his weight, rubbing the back of his neck. “Listen, man… I owe you an apology.”

That gets my attention. I look up. “For what?”

He exhales slowly. “I’m really sorry Lucy overheard that conversation about her.”

“What conversation?”

“When she stayed over,” he admits.

Something cold slides through my veins. I look down at my phone again. Twenty-one minutes now. “Overheard what, exactly?”

Darnell grimaces. “We were talking about what happens if the pro thing works out and if you’ll have time for a girlfriend. I didn’t realize she heard us until one of the girls mentioned the bathroom door shutting.”

My jaw locks, teeth pressing together. Since last night, Lucy has been quieter in every conversation since.

“Why would you even talk about that?” I ask.

He shrugs, not defensive, just honest. “It came up. We didn’t think she was within earshot.”

“So, she was just… standing there the whole time?”

“No,” he says quickly. “I’m not saying she was listening in on purpose. But you’ve gotta admit that you’ve been different lately.”

I let out a breath through my nose. “Different how?”

“You don’t hang around like you used to. You’re always checking your phone. Waiting for her to text. You disappear early. You skip stuff.”

I open my mouth to argue, then stop. Because he’s not wrong.

This has nothing to do with Lucy pulling me away from the team. This has to do with how much I love her. I’ve focused on the team for four years straight. The first time I make room for something outside football, some of the guys act like I’ve betrayed them.

“I’m happy,” I say finally. The word feels solid. Real. “I love Lucy. Things are good. I don’t get why it’s a big deal.”

“I know,” Darnell says gently. “And I’m glad for you. I really am. But don’t push everyone else away because you think Lucy can’t handle being around us.”

My shoulders tense. “That’s not what I’m doing.”

The truth is, Lucy can handle herself. I’m the one who doesn’t want her around Greg and Meredith.

“Lucy may not like the same things we do,” Darnell continues. “That doesn’t mean she’s fragile.”

I stare out across the parking lot, headlights flashing as cars pull in and out. “She just doesn’t like the same things. Parties. Drinking. Noise.”

“And that’s fine,” he says. “But don’t decide for her what she can handle.”

I nod slowly. “I need to let her make that call.”

“She’s stronger than you think,” he says.

Darnell heads off toward Marcus and Derek, leaving me alone with my thoughts. I replay the past week in my head. Lucy’s quiet pauses, the way she watches me like she’s bracing for something to fall apart. If she heard that conversation… yeah. That would do it.

I pull my phone out again, thumb hovering over her name.