Epilogue Sienna
Epilogue
Sienna
They made it. The Dolphins are playing in the national-championship game, and while I’m thrilled for them, I’m also a nervous wreck. All of us are, and by all of us I’m talking about me, my parents, Everleigh, and Nico’s mom, Claudia. We’ve been on the edge of our seats since we got here. No snacks are being eaten, no drinks beyond water. It’s freezing outside, and we’re all bundled up—and we’re a collective bundle of nervous energy. It’s awful.
But also exhilarating. I want this win so badly for both my brother and Gavin. This game is important to them. Feels like the most important game of their careers, and everything is riding on this win. If they lose?
I can barely stomach the thought, but that won’t ruin their potential. Quite a few of them are predicted to make it into the NFL draft. Gavin is currently a top pick. So is Coop. Nico and Jonesie too. I want it for all of them, even though I realize they might not all get drafted.
That’s a worry for another day. Right now, I need to focus on this game and hope that all the positive vibes we’ve been casting out into the universe have worked. I have manifested the shit out of this. I visualized them winning. Constantly talk about them winning, though after a while Gavin made me stop. Too worried that my saying they’ll win could jinx them.
Athletes are incredibly superstitious.
“I can’t take it.” Everleigh covers her eyes with her gloved hands, though two fingers are spread so one eye is still visible. She reminds me of that one emoji.
“Drop your hands. It’s not that big of a deal.” Don’t I sound easy breezy? It’s a facade because I definitely don’t feel that way. My stomach is twisted into knots, and I worry I might throw up.
Ever removes her hands, wringing them constantly, and I avert my head, unable to look at her or the field. Instead, I scan the sea of faces filling the stadium. Sense the excitement filling the air. We’re leading on the scoreboard, and there are only five minutes left on the clock. We’re in the fourth quarter, but I can’t relax. Things can and usually do change at a moment’s notice. There will be no reason to celebrate early. I’m waiting until that clock hits zero before I can finally relax.
We just scored a field goal, which means the opposing team comes jogging out onto the field, and I rest my hands under my thighs, hating how agitated I feel. My mother pats me on the arm, and I glance over at her, smiling softly.
“They’re going to win,” she whispers. “I can feel it. Mother’s intuition. It’s rarely failed me before.”
“It’s true,” Dad adds, his attention never straying from the field as he shovels popcorn in his mouth. He’s the only one who’s able to eat during the game. The rest of us just groan when he tries to push whatever it is he’s snacking on at us. “Hey, wait a minute. Joy, isn’t that the boy who was on the wrestling team with Coop?”
I sit up straighter, focusing on where Dad is looking. Guess he didn’t have his eyes trained on the field. Because I see exactly who he’s talking about—Ryland walking up the steps toward the top of the stands, holding hands with a very pretty and very tall brunette.
“Who are you talking about?” Mom squints as she looks around.
“It’s Ryland,” I murmur, relieved he’s found someone else to focus on. Obsess over. He left me alone after that night at the party, and I’d even started to think he wasn’t that bad. But then I remember that one afternoon a few weeks back when Coop and I were at the store picking up snacks before we headed to his house and we spotted Ryland. He made some snide remark about me and Gavin being together, surprising me that he would be so bold. My brother was ready to tackle him in the middle of the supermarket, and I had to remind him that he couldn’t cause a scene. That he could risk his position on the football team if he did something stupid, and that seemed to get through to him. Thank God.
Yeah. Ryland doesn’t deserve my sympathy. I don’t need to make any excuses for him. I still feel awful for kind of using him, but he also got a little weird on me.
Okay, a lot weird. But now he’s someone else’s problem, and I can’t worry about him, especially not right now.
“I remember that boy!” Mom tries to find him, but he’s already gone, most likely in his seat. “I wish we could’ve talked to him.”
I am so glad we weren’t able to talk to Ryland. That sounds like my own personal nightmare.
There’s a group of girls who look around my age sitting not too far away from where we’re at, and when I glance in their direction, I catch a couple of them taking photos of me. This has happened on occasion after everyone found out that Gavin and I are together, and while it made me uneasy at first, I guess I’ve gotten used to it? Women used to come gawk at me at work, too, and Matty would waste his energy trying to run them off all the time. Until he finally came up with the bright idea of putting up a sign in the window. It says Get a photo and autograph with Gavin Maddox’s girlfriend! Only fifty bucks!
No one really comes in and tries to take my picture or harass me anymore. Not that they harassed me, but they would ask lots of questions. Some of them personal. One time a girl asked for Gavin’s dick size. She brought in a ruler and everything.
Embarrassing.
I’ve been working a lot, though. Saving up my money for my future ice cream empire, as Gavin calls it. He calls me the ice cream queen, and I think that’s cute, even though I sometimes think my business idea is silly. Gavin never makes me feel that way, though. That man 100 percent believes in me. Just like I believe in him.
We resume our focus on the game, and I tear off my glove so I can nibble on a hangnail. A gross habit that I seem to fall back into every time I get nervous while watching a game. Gavin isn’t even on the field. My gaze drops to where he stands on the sidelines, Nico right beside him. Gavin’s got his hands on his hips, and his helmet is off, the cold breeze rushing through the bowl-shaped stadium making his hair ruffle, and I wish I was down there with him, offering him comfort.
But then again, I’m glad I’m not down there because when he’s this tense, he’s almost impossible to comfort.
“Coop is doing so well, considering he’s playing a different position,” Mom says after our defensive line, which includes my brother, keeps blocking the opposing team from gaining much yardage. They’re barely moving down the field, and I can tell the players are frustrated.
“He is,” I agree, and Everleigh nods. Coop filled in for an injured defensive lineman for the last couple of playoff games, and he’s playing better than ever.
They settle into position, and the play goes into motion, the players scrambling all over the field, the QB about to get sacked by one of our linemen when he throws the ball. He hits the ground, but the ball soars into the air, landing right in my brother’s hands.
“Oh my God!” I leap to my feet first, everyone else following me, and we’re jumping up and down as Coop runs down the field, heading for the Dolphins’ end zone.
“Look at how fast he is.” Pride fills Mom’s voice. “That’s our boy, Jerry!”
Coop makes it into the end zone despite the two guys on his tail trying to drag him down, which is near impossible, considering how big he is. The referee throws his arms up in the air, signaling it’s a touchdown, and half the stadium loses it. The joyous roar of the crowd is impossibly loud, and I’m hugging my mom and dad before turning to Ever, and I hug her and Claudia too. We’re smiling and laughing, and some of us are even crying, and during it all, my dad continues to shove popcorn into his mouth.
“Guess we’re celebrating tonight” is the only thing he has to say, which has Mom shaking her head.
“Oh, Jerry.” She wipes the tears away from her cheeks. “Our boy is a star!”
He is. They all are. And I can’t wait to rush the field in a couple of minutes and celebrate with the team. With Gavin. They did it.
And I couldn’t be prouder.
I’m on the field and it’s absolute mayhem. People are everywhere. Confetti still flutters in the air and is covering most of the field. Everywhere I look I see Dolphins team members celebrating with their family and friends. I got separated from my parents once we came down here, and I haven’t seen them or Coop. Haven’t found Gavin either. I’m starting to panic, and my head feels like it’s on a swivel, looking left, then right. Then left again. Where are they?
“Sienna!”
I jerk my head toward the sound of my brother’s voice, and I see him standing there flanked by our parents. I run over to them and give Coop a hug, clinging to him for a moment before I tip my head back. He has the biggest grin on his face that I’ve ever seen, and he gives me a little shake.
“We did it.”
“You did it,” I tell him, beaming with pride. “That play was great.”
“The ball just landed in my hands.” He shrugs, always modest. “I got lucky.”
“You did not. It was an amazing catch. And you ran it into the end zone with those two guys clinging to you, and you looked like you couldn’t be bothered.”
“They were a nuisance more than anything else.”
I start to laugh. Mom and Dad do, too, and when I glance to my right, I do a double take when I see who’s standing there.
Mr. QB himself. Gav. I hear women shouting at him right now, his nickname on repeat.
“Gavin.” I let go of Coop and head straight for my boyfriend, closing my eyes when he pulls me into his arms and crushes me to him, resting his cheek on top of my head. We hold on to each other and don’t speak for a moment, absorbing each other before I finally pull away slightly so I can look into his eyes. “You did it.”
“We did it.” He’s smiling at me, his eyes sparkling with joy and triumph and so much love. “Your brother is the MVP.”
“He’s acting so nonchalant about it.”
“Please. He secured the win.” Gavin dips his head, his mouth finding mine in the sweetest, softest kiss. “We won.”
“I know.” I’m smiling, giddy with excitement and pride. “I’m so happy for you, Gavin. So proud.”
“Thanks, baby.” His smile is soft. Intimate. I remember wishing he would look at me like this. Just once. And now he does all the time.
“Wait!” I take a step back, his arms falling away, and unzip my jacket to show him the T-shirt I made myself using Destiny’s Cricut. My roommate is a fanatical crafter. “Check out my shirt.”
His gaze drops to the front of my chest, reading what it says, and I am beaming. Trying my hardest not to laugh.
“Gavin’s number one fan.” His gaze lifts to mine. “Wait a minute. Didn’t I joke with you about being president of my fan club?”
Nodding, I take a step closer to him, grateful he’s got his arms back around me. “And I never forgot what you said. Now look at us.”
“I love it.” His expression turns serious. “I love you, Sienna. I appreciate you so damn much. I can’t believe you tolerated my ass for this long.”
“I love you too,” I tell him, reaching up to touch his face. “Despite what you think and what you’ve been told in the past, you’re easy to love.”
He hasn’t spoken to his father again since that fateful dinner, but he’s been texting with his mom a lot, and they even got together for lunch a few days ago. Just the two of them. He told me after they met up that he wants me to go with him next time. That he wants to introduce the two most important women in his life to each other, and because I’m a giant sap, I cried when he said that.
God, I love this man. So much.
He kisses me again. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, baby. And don’t you ever forget it.”
“So.” I’m grinning. “Now we wait for the draft?”
“Yeah.” He grimaces. “Don’t know if my heart can take it.”
“I’ll protect it.” I rest my hand upon the center of his chest, feeling nothing but his protective gear. “I’ve got you.”
“I’ve got you, too, Freckles.” He delivers another kiss on my lips, lingering for a moment before he finally pulls away. “We’re going to do this, huh?”
“Do what?” I’m frowning.
“Us. You and me.” He kisses my forehead. “Forever.”
“Yes,” I breathe, nodding again and again. “We definitely will.”
We hear our friends calling our names, and we both turn to find Nico and Everleigh headed toward us. I remain at Gavin’s side, absorbing his strength and his love, my heart so full it feels like it could burst. Does life get any better than this?
With Gavin Maddox by my side, I’m thinking yes.
Yes, it does.