Page 107 of Made Better Together

“This is Wally from the general manager’s office, and we’re here to share good news. We’d like to offer you a practice squad contract for the rest of the season.”

The pride on his face screams, “You made it, son.”

I’m in the NFL. The practice squad, but I’ll take it.

30

EDEN

When I text with Connor about his big news Wednesday afternoon, I take it as a sign. Time to make my own situation official.

Sitting down in front of my computer, I log on to the central medical application portal and go one by one through the schools.

“Withdraw application.”

“Withdraw application.”

“Withdraw application.”

…....

Through all twenty schools.

Oh my God. It’s done.

I’d already been at peace with the decision, but now a new emotion rises. Pride. I took ownership of this crossroads, and I followed through on my choice.

Sitting with the moment for a beat, joy comes into play too.

Because not only do I know what I’m not going to do, I’ve decided what I want as well.

Picking up my phone, I type out a new email.

Hi Milo and Grace, could we schedule a meeting for this week? I’d like to start talking about my post-college plans in more detail.

Pressing send, I vault myself into my future.

The little extra time added back in my schedule with med school applications off the table gets applied to my “homework” from Bree.

In the first book she gave me, a young professor and his teaching assistant secretly start having “scenes” together after running into each other at a sex club. Their activities escalate to the point where he has her wear a vibrator during his classes that only he controls.

“I decide if you come or not today, Victoria,” he says to her. “Only me. And you better pay attention to every single word I say in my lecture, or I’ll prolong the lesson. But you will, right? Because you’re my good girl?”

Hot.

In the second book, a single mom is forced to marry a mafioso to pay off her ex’s debts—fast forward to the part where he introduces her to his mansion’s red room, and they both fall in heavy lust with each other. Eventually he declares his love for “my wife” when she almost dies in an attack on him.

The scenarios may be hard to relate to Connor and me, but I’m thoroughly into the spice scenes.

The way the man takes over all decisions.

The way the woman is freed of expectations beyond his commands.

The way he cherishes her during and after.

There are plenty of differences between the stories–the orgasm denial laced throughout the first book isn’t in the mafia one, for instance. It makes me curious to learn more about all the potential dynamics, and I start digging into articles and websites that come up in basic online searches.

“I’m finished with these,” I say to her on Friday morning, as I place the two borrowed books on the coffee table.