31. Strike Three
THIRTY-ONE
STRIKE THREE
RYAN
The second Isa disappears into the building, I let it out.
“FUCK!” I shout, slamming my hands against the steering wheel. I drop my head to the leather and breathe through the rising emotions.
She dumped me.
Fucking dumped me.
And worse than that?
I confessed that I loved her, and she looked horrified. Didn’t even say a damn thing back.
Wait, that’s not true. She told me not to say it.
I’m such a fucking chump. I thought she loved me. I could’ve sworn I’d seen it in her eyes and smiles. And there were so many times I would’ve bet money she almost let it slip.
But I suppose I just ruined her entire life. I guess love isn’t strong enough for that.
I grab my phone and shoot off a text to the guys.
Ryan
Meet me at the Malibu house
And bring all the alcohol
Hunter
Dude, it’s barely even 10 and I’m not even fully awake
Cooper
Should you really be drinking with a concussion?
Austin
Uh
Has no one else seen the internet this morning?
Cooper
No?
Wait a sec
Hunter
Oh
Fuck
Cooper
NO
How’s Isa???
Austin
I’m gonna go out on a limb and say she’s not well if Fletch is out here concussed and asking for alcohol at 10am
Ryan
She dumped me
Cooper
Shit
Hunter
Be there in an hour
Austin
Less than that
Cooper
I’ve got the booze
If there’s one thing I can count on in life, it’s these guys to have my back when I need it.
I’m slumped over on the sofa at my beach house when the front door is thrown open. I don’t even make a move, knowing it’s the guys. This is why they have the code to the gate and the front door.
Their footsteps echo across the hardwood floor as they weave their way through the house.
“Fletch! Where you at, bud?” Austin calls out.
“Living room,” I reply, voice devoid of emotion. My eyes continue to trace the grain pattern on the wood coffee table on a loop.
All three guys pile through the archway that connects the living room to the kitchen, arms loaded with paper grocery bags. They tip the bags out over the table, spilling a selection of snacks over the surface. A variety of potato chips, chocolate, pints of ice cream.
Cooper drops into the space beside me and holds an opened bottle of beer in my direction while Austin and Hunter head back into the kitchen to grab drinks of their own.
I reach for the bottle, but he pulls it away before my hand connects.
“I’ll be cutting you off after two drinks.
You already shouldn’t be drinking while concussed, but we’re going to make an exception. ”
I give him a nod, and he lets me take the bottle from him this time. “Understood.”
The other two pile back into the space, finding seats on the sofa and the floor.
“You two idiots aren’t allowed to have more than three,” Cooper directs at the other two.
“We have a game tomorrow and we’re already playing a man down with Fletch out.
Coach would murder all of us if we showed up hungover. ”
“Sir, yes, sir!” Austin answers with a mock salute.
“Whatever you say, dad,” Hunter says with an eye roll, taking a deep swig of his beer.
Everyone’s silent for several minutes, drinking their beers, but I can tell it’s killing them not to ask.
“Wanna talk about it?” Cooper finally asks, breaking the silence.
I fall back into the sofa, looking up at the ceiling and release a deep breath. “No.” A beat. “Yes. I don’t even know where to start.”
“Why not just start from the beginning,” Hunter suggests.
I squeeze my eyes shut, forcing the rising emotions away.
“Well, it seems someone caught us leaving the game together last night. Liz called Isa to break the news to us this morning, but by then it was too late for us to do anything about it. The photos were everywhere.” I shake my head, silently chastising myself again for how careless I was.
It’s all my fault. “Anyway, her boss called her in first thing this morning and she was fired. And then she dumped me.”
“I mean this in the kindest way possible,” Hunter starts, holding his hands up in a sign of innocence, “but what else did you guys expect? Your whole relationship was playing with fire and praying you wouldn’t get busted.
You both knew her job was at risk if you were caught…
” He trails off when I turn my head to glare at him.
“This coming from the man in love with his childhood best friend, but who’s too chickenshit to tell her,” I snap.
He matches my glare before he rises from his spot on the floor and walks right out the back door.
Fuck. I shouldn’t have said that. It was a low blow but I’m feeling sensitive after this morning, and he’s hit a nerve.
“Fletch…” Austin says, voice uneven and hesitant. He wants to pull me out of whatever hole has turned me into a raging asshole but doesn’t want to be on the receiving end of my ire.
“I know, I know. That was uncalled for. I’ll talk to him,” I say, dragging my ass up off the couch and following him outside.
I find him at the edge of the patio, leaning against the fence and looking out over the ocean.
I mirror his position and blow out a defeated breath. “Hunt, I’m sorry.”
He doesn’t say anything for a while, but shrugs so I know he heard me. We’re both silent as we watch the waves crash over the beach and people watch.
“I’ve tried,” he finally says.
“Tried what?”
“To tell her. Fuck, I’ve almost said it so many times.
” He sighs, taking a deep sip of his drink.
“But she’s got a boyfriend right now. They even fucking live together.
Plus, I was always friends with her brother too.
I know he would have some choice words to say if he found out how I felt about his little sister. ”
“Listen, I’m just dealing with my own shit and lashing out. I didn’t mean to poke at your own wounds.” I clap a hand down on his shoulder. “But at least not saying it is better than what I did.”
He eyes me warily. “Oh, no. What did you do?”
“Confessed I loved her as she was breaking things off.”
He sucks in a breath through his teeth. “Oh, Fletch, no.”
I rub the back of my neck. “Yeah, not my finest moment. Who knows though, maybe everything with Emily will work out as it should,” I suggest, returning the subject back to Hunter’s situation.
He huffs out a sad laugh. “Maybe.”
“Or, maybe you’ll meet your soulmate,” I say with a shrug.
“Doubtful.”
Cooper upheld his promise and cut us all off at his imposed limits. I wish I could have another beer and fully drown my sorrows, but he’s right. I probably shouldn’t have even had the first two with the concussion, but two is better than nothing.
“So, what’s your plan now?” Austin asks as we dig into the Chinese takeout we had delivered—another thing that isn’t on our list of approved pre-game sustenance, but what Coach doesn’t know won’t kill him.
“What do you mean?” I ask around a bite of my egg roll.
“Are you guys done for good? Are you going to try to grovel for her? Girls love that groveling shit,” he says.
I sigh, dropping my fork down. “I don’t know.”
“Are you even going to try to get her back?” Hunter asks.
“I don’t know,” I say, tugging at my hair. “I think I need to give her some time to cool off and then we’ll see where things go from there.”
“How much time?”
I rub my index fingers in circles over my temples.
“I don’t know. God, you’re giving me a headache with this interrogation.
” I push back abruptly from the table. “I’m going to bed,” I say, leaving them and climbing the stairs to my bedroom.
I feel bad leaving them to clean up dinner, but I also need to just sit in a dark room and get away from the questions.
I truly don’t know what I’m going to do.
I’m going to give her the time she needs, but from there I don’t know what will happen.
She’s the one who broke us up. The ball is in her court to reach out.
If I reach out before she’s ready, she’s just stubborn enough that I’d probably lose her forever.
I still can’t believe what a complete idiot I was.
Last night, getting us caught. This morning when I told her I loved her for the first time.
“Stupid, stupid, stupid.”
I’ll be lucky if she even wants to speak to again after this.