POV Koa
Half An Hour Earlier
I sat in the hard plastic chair in my coach’s office next to Aunt Leilani and Uncle Matthew. It was loud in here. Stuffy. Made it hard to breathe.
I knew I should be listening. They were talking about my future after all.
The scholarship that would determine if I could go to USC and play football or not.
They were talking about the injury I was still rehabbing and if I was worth the wait.
It was important, so fucking important, and I should care.
I should want them to tell me I still had the spot I’d fought so hard to get.
But as much as I tried, I just couldn’t focus. My mind was completely on Riot. I should be there for him as he fought to get custody of the kids. Instead, I was here, planning for a future where I left Riot and went across the country to play fucking football.
I nearly laughed out loud at the absurdity of it all.
It was so unfair how different our lives were, that we were in this position where I could potentially have everything I’d ever dreamed of, but at the cost of leaving my best friend.
Would it be worth it? But how could I split my heart in two, my soul?
“Koa,” my aunt snapped quietly, “Coach Faulkner was speaking to you.”
I blinked rapidly, remembering where I was. “Oh, sorry. What did you say?”
Aunt Leilani sighed in annoyance, but the coach smiled warmly. “It’s okay, son. I just asked what you thought about all this?”
I didn’t even know what he was talking about, but it didn’t matter because my decision had already been made, regardless of what they said.