Chapter 33 Callan
CALLAN
“Morning, beautiful.” I lean against Astrid’s locker on Friday morning as I hand over the cappuccino and cake.
“How long are you going to keep this up?” Astrid fights a smile as she lifts the lid on the paper cup and inhales the coffee.
“As long as it takes to win you back.”
“I’ll be fat as a fool if you keep this up, and you won’t want me anymore,” she teases.
“I will always want you,” I say as Riley and a few of the guys pass by. They stick their fingers in their mouths and make gagging sounds.
“You’ve turned into a total pussy, Irish.” Chris slaps me on the back.
“Happens to the best of us,” Thor adds, grinning at Astrid. “Your cheeks are so red you look like you’re on fire, baby girl.”
I thump him, hard, in the arm. “Fuck off and leave my girl alone.”
“Not your girl yet,” he quips, backing away.
I flip him the bird, and he turns around, running to catch up with the others.
“That was so embarrassing.” Astrid leans her forehead against her locker.
A chuckle tumbles from my mouth. “If public declarations are the way to your heart, I can spout them all day long, beautiful.” I can’t help taking it further because humor has been seriously lacking all week.
News of Joe’s accident sent shockwaves around school and the community.
Everything’s been muted as we waited to hear his prognosis.
“That’s a surefire way to never get back in my good graces,” she says, slamming her locker shut.
After scooping up her bag, I fall into line beside her as we head to English, the only class we share together. “No public declarations of undying love. Got it.”
She rolls her eyes before taking a huge bite of maple cake.
Her eyes close briefly, and she moans softly, and I want to grab her into the nearest empty room and smother her in kisses.
But I’m trying to be good, giving her time to think about it, while I try everything to convince her to give me a second chance.
“I take it you heard the latest on Joe.”
She nods. “Renee told me. I’m glad he’s out of the woods but sad he’s in a coma and likely to be for some time. She said he’ll most likely be paralyzed from the waist down. He won’t ever play football again, and he can kiss his scholarship goodbye.”
“He should’ve thought about that before getting into his car drunk.” Not sure how reliable the intel is, but the most recent gossip says he was way over the limit and had drugs in his bloodstream too.
“He should have,” Astrid agrees before popping the last of the cake in her mouth. After swallowing, she looks around and lowers her voice. “It’s lucky for the guys he was smashed and his brakes failed. Otherwise, they might’ve been blamed for it.”
“They were given a warning, but I think that’s the end of it.
” We all gave separate statements to Sheriff Longwood, but the message was the same: Joe had taken Astrid upstairs when she wasn’t in a position to consent, and we walked in on him taking advantage of her.
Doubt the sheriff would’ve overlooked the beating the guys gave him if there hadn’t been extenuating circumstances or so many witnesses.
And Joe got off lightly because the guys wanted to teach him a lesson, not seriously injure him.
A black eye and some cuts and bruises didn’t cause that accident.
“I hope so. I’d feel responsible if they were charged with anything.”
“It was not your fault, Astrid.”
She slows down, pressing her back to the wall and chewing on her lip.
Worry creases her brow, and I know what’s coming before she says it.
“If I hadn’t concocted a stupid plan, I wouldn’t have been in that room with Joe, and the guys wouldn’t have beaten him up.
He wouldn’t have needed to leave in a hurry and driven home. ”
“Do not take this on. He made the decision to drive. He only lives half a mile from Thor’s gaff, for fuck’s sake. He could easily have walked. And you don’t know he wouldn’t have gotten drunk, taken drugs, and still driven home even if what transpired between you didn’t happen.”
Throwing caution to the wind, I thread my fingers in hers, welcoming the comfort her warm, soft hands bring.
“The accident is not your fault. It might not even be Joe’s.
His brakes were faulty, and even if he’d been sober, he might still have lost control of the car and plowed into that tree.
” I squeeze her hands. “It was an accident, and no one knows what might or might not have happened if things played out differently that night. Please don’t take this burden on. It’s not yours to shoulder.”
“Cal is right.”
I inwardly groan when Gwen’s annoying face appears in my line of sight.
She’s sure changed her tune. All week she’s been whispering in Astrid’s ear about how I’m the anti-Christ or the devil or some shite.
I’m starting to dislike Astrid’s best friend, which could be a problem seeing as she is her best friend.
“I know you’re both right.” Astrid pushes off the wall. “I can’t help feeling guilty though.”
I want to remind her we still don’t know what Joe was up to in the room that night, but Astrid doesn’t want to think about it now.
It’s like the accident has exonerated Joe in her mind.
I will never understand the female brain.
I feel bad for the guy if he ends up paralyzed and can’t play ball anymore.
That’s literally my worst nightmare. But I still can’t forget how he tried to take advantage of the girl I’ve fallen for.
I’m at my locker at the end of the day, sorting through my books before I head to the changing room to get ready for the match, when Travis Garner approaches me with his minions.
I’ve been expecting this. All week, tension has been high between the soccer and football teams because of Hemsworth.
I knew it was only a matter of time before things escalated.
“What do you want?” I ask in a calm voice as I slam my locker shut and swing my duffel bag over my shoulder.
“You know what we want.” He cracks his knuckles as his teammates gather closer.
I bark out a laugh. “You have issues with my team, yet you confront me when I’m alone. That says it all.” Fucking cowards, the lot of them.
“Callan didn’t put the beatdown on Hemsworth,” Riley says as a few of my teammates come up behind me with the best timing.
“Joe is in a fucking coma because of you.” Garner steps right up to me with his nostrils flaring. “He’s not ever gonna play ball again. I know this started because of you and—”
“Say one bad word about Astrid, and I’ll rearrange your fucking face.” I push up against him, my body pumped and primed.
“You are not in possession of all the facts, Travis.” Thor separates us with his hands, shoving both our chests and pushing us back.
“And we all know what happens if we get into it with one another.” He drags his gaze around all the guys.
I’m sure their coach has spoken to them this week just like ours has.
They’re aware of the beef between both teams, and we’ve been warned not to go there.
“What the fuck does that mean?” Travis growls.
“You should talk to Astrid,” Thor says.
“No.” I stab Garner with a sharp look. “Astrid has been through enough.” Garner’s brows knit together. “If you want the truth, I’ll talk to you but only you.” I’m not setting myself up to be ambushed. I don’t expect him to go for it, so I’m surprised when he nods.
“I’ll be waiting at the diner after the game.”
A neutral public venue is a good idea. “I’ll be there.”
“Good game, Hunt,” one of the guys from school calls out when I enter the diner a few hours later.
It was a tough match, and we only managed to secure a draw, which frustrated me, but we gave it our all.
Of all the games we’ve played so far this season, the Giants were the toughest opponents.
Their striker is lethal, and our defense worked overtime to stop several attempts on goal.
To be fair, we’re lucky we got the draw. It could easily have been a loss.
“Thanks, man.” I jerk my head in acknowledgement but don’t stop, heading for the booth tucked at the end where Garner is waiting. I glance around as I make my way towards him, pleasantly surprised that he kept to his word and came without his mates.
I slide into the booth across from Travis, and our eyes meet. An empty coffee cup sits in front of him.
“What can I get you, Callan?” Emma asks when she approaches our table.
“Just a water, thanks.”
“Refill, hon?” she asks Travis, but he shakes his head.
“One water coming right up.” She walks off, and I swing my eyes back around to my rival.
“You’re late,” he grits out. “Was just about to leave.”
“I had to talk with Astrid after the match to ensure she was okay with me telling you this.”
He quirks a brow. “And?”
Leaning my forearms on the table, I move my face in closer to his.
“What I’m about to say needs to be kept between us.
We don’t want everyone at school gossiping about this.
” The guys know to keep their mouths shut, and Astrid’s friends aren’t blabbing to anyone either, so what happened in Thor’s guest room has been contained, and that’s the way I want it to stay.
“The guys want an explanation.” He leans back, regarding me coolly as Emma reappears with my water.
I wait until she’s gone before speaking. “You can tell them you know the truth and it’s aboveboard. They’ll listen to their QB.”
A muscle pops in his jaw as he stares at me.
If he doesn’t promise, the deal is off. Astrid is trying to put a brave face on it, but she’s upset at what may or may not have happened in that bedroom.
Maybe we won’t ever know, and that’s a bitter pill for her to swallow.
I won’t do anything to make it worse for her.
I’m here to try to smooth things over for the team, but I won’t do that at Astrid’s expense.
As it is, I’m taking a leap of faith trusting Garner will keep his word even if he makes that promise.
“I think you’ll want to keep it quiet anyway for Joe’s sake as much as Astrid’s. ”
“Okay,” he says a few beats later, rubbing at his lips.
“I mean it, Garner. Astrid is already traumatized enough. It can go no further.”
“I said okay, and I never break my word.”
My gut says he’s on the level, so I tell him everything that happened that night, purposely leaning in close and keeping my voice low so no one overhears, watching as his face pales the more I explain.
“Jesus.” He scrubs his hands down his face when I finish talking.
“I’ve known Joe all my life, and I’d like to defend him, to say he would never do something like that, but he’s been acting really fucking odd these past couple months.
” I drink my water as I listen. “He has some weird obsession with Astrid, and he hates your fucking guts.”
“That’s not news to me, and the feeling is mutual.
He did something to her.” My jaw pulls tight with barely restrained anger.
At least ten minutes are unaccounted for, and Joe Hemsworth did not bring Astrid upstairs to talk to her in that room.
“I know he did, but Astrid doesn’t remember.
It’s possible she was passed out or her mind has blanked it out to protect her. ”
“I’m sorry that happened to Astrid and for what I insinuated earlier.
I was jumping to all the wrong conclusions,” he says, surprising me again.
“Astrid is cool, and he never deserved her.” He drums his fingers lightly on the table.
“What I say next is for your ears only. It doesn’t go any further. ”
I nod. “Understood.”
“He cheated on her the entire time they were together. I argued with him about it, ’cause it wasn’t right. He excused it because she wouldn’t put out, but he went down a lot in my estimation. You don’t cheat on any girl, period, especially not one like Astrid.”
I can tell he’s genuine, and I’m actually starting to like the guy. “He was an idiot, and I’m glad she doesn’t know that. It’d hurt her so much.”
“If you’re into Astrid, why are you messing around with Ana?”
“I’m not, mate. Don’t know what she’s told you, but I’m not interested in her. That shit here last week was all her, and she did it on purpose to hurt Astrid and fuck up my chances of getting her back.”
“She says she’s been fucking you for weeks.”
That manipulative bitch. “Lies. I swear. I haven’t laid a finger on her.”
He eyeballs me, drilling me with a probing look like he’s trying to extract the truth from my head. He clears his throat. “I believe you.”
My brows climb to my hairline. Didn’t see that coming.
Thought for sure he’d believe his ex over me, but it’s clear I have completely misjudged him, so I lay it all out on the table.
“I can’t stand Ana. She is everything I despise in girls.
I honestly don’t know how you went out with her for so long. ”
“I thought I loved her, so I made excuses for all the bullshit and drama, but these last few weeks have opened my eyes.”
“I’ve known girls like her before. She’s poison, mate, and if I was you, I’d be celebrating dodging a bullet.”
He slowly nods before throwing his head back and laughing.
“What’s so funny?”
Amusement flickers in his eyes as he eyeballs me. “This, us. Fuck.” He rolls his eyes. “You’re not who I expected, and I think I could like you, bro.”
“I’m not into blokes,” I deadpan.
His grin expands. “Fuck you, Hunt.”
And just like that, the quarterback and the striker become best mates.