40 lounge glances
The bus ride should've knocked me out.
Five hours, cramped seats, half the team asleep or pretending to be, music bleeding faintly through someone's headphones two rows back-but I didn't sleep.
Not really. I just sat there with my head against the window, watching the scenery blur past and thinking about something I wasn't fully ready to name yet.
Vegas hits different when you finally pull in.
It's not subtle about it either-lights even before it's dark, everything louder, brighter, like the whole place is trying too hard on purpose and somehow getting away with it.
The second we step off the bus, Declan stretches like he's been personally wronged by sitting down for that long.
"Finally," he says, rolling his shoulders. "Civilization."
"This is not civilization," I mutter, grabbing my bag from underneath.
"It's better," he shoots back instantly, grinning. "We're in Vegas, baby."
Of course he says it like that.
Like he's been waiting the entire drive for that exact moment.
I shake my head, but there's a small, automatic smile there anyway, because Declan in a new city is always the same-louder, faster, like everything just got dialed up a level.
The team moves in a loose pack toward the hotel, energy picking up again now that we're off the bus, voices overlapping, someone already arguing about food like we didn't just stop twice on the way here.
Inside, it's controlled chaos.
Bags dropping. Keys being handed out. Coach trying to keep things structured while everyone pretends to listen.
I'm halfway to the front desk when it happens.
Not anything big, not anything obvious, just-
I look up.
And there she is.
Across the lobby, standing with Jess and Riley near the elevators, like they've been there long enough to settle into the space while we're just arriving.
Jess is talking, animated as always, hands moving like she needs them to keep up with her thoughts.
Riley's leaning slightly against her suitcase, calm, steady, watching everything without looking like she is.
And Madi-
She's not doing anything.
Not talking, not moving much, just standing there with her arms loosely crossed, weight shifted onto one leg like she's completely comfortable in her own space.
Wearing my jersey.
Again.
But this time, there's no eye roll attached to it. No sarcastic comment waiting to happen. No performance. Just... her.
It hits somewhere low and sharp before I can stop it.
She looks up like she felt it too.
Our eyes meet across the lobby, and for a second, everything else drops out. The noise, the movement, Declan saying something next to me that I don't quite catch-it all fades into the background in that quiet, disorienting way that happens when something matters more than it should.
She doesn't look away immediately. Neither do I.
It lingers. Long enough to feel intentional. Long enough to feel like something we're not even trying to hide anymore.
"Wow," Declan says beside me, way too observant for his own good. "That was subtle."
I drag my gaze away, picking up my key from the counter like nothing just happened. "Shut up."
"I didn't say anything," he replies easily.
"You implied everything."
He grins, falling into step next to me as we move toward the elevators.
"Look, I'm just saying," he starts, lowering his voice like he's about to share something important, which usually means it's the opposite, "if that's how we're starting, this trip is going to be very interesting."
"It's a game," I say.
"Sure," he agrees immediately. "And I'm the most disciplined athlete on this team."
I don't respond to that. Because there's no point.
We get closer, the distance between our group and theirs closing naturally until it doesn't feel like two separate things anymore. Jess notices us first, of course she does.
"Oh, look who finally made it," she says, turning fully toward us like she's been waiting.
Declan matches her energy instantly. "You say that like we weren't the main event."
"You say that like you matter," she shoots back.
"Wow," he says, placing a hand over his chest. "That was hurtful."
Riley huffs out a quiet laugh, shaking her head slightly. And Madi-
She doesn't jump in right away. She just looks at me. Closer now. Close enough that I can see the shift more clearly, the way something about her is softer without losing any of the sharpness that makes her-her.
"Long drive?" she asks finally.
"Bus," I say. "Worse."
She nods slightly, like she expected that.
"Five hours in a car with them," she says, tilting her head subtly toward Jess and Riley. "Also worse."
Jess gasps. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me."
"I carried this entire trip on my back," Jess insists.
"You almost crashed us trying to change the song," Riley adds calmly.
"That was one time."
"It was three."
Declan laughs under his breath, clearly enjoying this way too much.
"Yeah," he says, glancing between them. "This is going to be fun."
I don't miss the way he says it, like he's already five steps ahead of something I haven't caught onto yet.
I ignore it. Because right now, there's something more immediate.
Madi shifts her weight slightly, adjusting the sleeve of the jersey like she's not thinking about it, but my eyes catch it anyway. The way it hangs on her. The way she's not making a thing out of it this time.
It shouldn't matter, but it does. And I don't have a good explanation for why.
"Game's at six," I say, because it's the first normal thing that comes to mind.
"I know," she says.
Of course she does.
There's a beat there.
Jess breaks it immediately, because of course she does. "Okay, we're going to our room before I start a fight with someone in this lobby."
"You'd lose," Declan says.
"I would not."
"You absolutely would."
Riley steps in before that escalates. "We'll see you guys later."
They start to move, Jess already mid-argument with Declan, Riley pulling her along before she can turn it into a full situation.
Madi lingers half a second longer.
"See you," she says.
"Yeah," I answer.
She turns, following them toward the elevators.
And this time, when I watch her go-
I don't pretend I'm not doing it.
Declan bumps his shoulder lightly into mine.
"You're in trouble," he says casually.
"I'm not."
He grins. "Whatever you say."
But he doesn't push it further. He doesn't need to.
Because for the first time since this whole thing started-
I'm not entirely sure I believe myself either.