Chapter 12 #2
“Thanks, Andi Girl.” Dayton winks, his flirtatious energy making a reappearance. “Let’s go then.”
“Go where exactly?” I question, following behind him nonetheless.
“You need some time outdoors, and I have somewhere to be. It just so happens those two things coincide. Come on, hop to it, Butterfly.” He tosses his bag in the back seat of a lifted Jeep Wrangler, then holds the passenger door open in invitation.
I raise an eyebrow at the random nickname, but he only smiles in answer, patiently waiting for me to climb inside.
“I can’t be gone too long,” I state once he’s situated behind the wheel.
“You won’t be.”
Knowing I’m in safe and capable hands, I lean my head against the window and watch the scenery breeze past us.
Dayton doesn’t bombard me with questions or attempt to make small talk.
We simply coexist, sharing the quiet drive across town without any chatter.
Twenty minutes later, he pulls into the parking lot of Chaplain County High School–home of the Hornets.
We loop around the side, coming to a stop at the entrance of a sports complex.
I climb out cautiously, gazing at the freshly built stadium in surprise.
I have no experience to pull from, but this level of grandeur seems more on par with collegiate teams.
“Take this. You’ve been shivering since we were in the courtyard.” I eye the sweatshirt Dayton’s offering, wondering where it came from since he’s still wearing his own. “It’s clean. I keep an extra in the car.”
I nod and slip it on, happy to have a barrier against the chilly morning air.
He takes off at a brisk pace, forcing me to lengthen my strides if I want to keep up with him.
It’s dark, but the closer we move towards the football field, the better I can see.
Voices trickle between the bleachers, making my steps slow with apprehension.
We exit the pathway, coming face-to-face with a large group of boys.
“Yo, Coach D! Who’s the hotty?”
“Three laps, Gabe! Get to runnin’,” Dayton snaps harshly. The boy groans but takes off a second later. “Anyone else got something disrespectful to say?”
“No, Coach,” they answer in unison.
“Good. This is Andi. She’s going to be assisting me today.
Unless you want to look stupid in front of a beautiful woman, I suggest you give it your all.
” I shake my head in dismay, knowing that Dayton is going to embarrass them every chance he gets.
Something tells me he’s the type to use humility as a teaching tool. “Let’s start with suicides.”
He lines them up, then blows the whistle.
They sprint back and forth, pausing intermittently before he signals it’s time to go again.
I’m only watching, and it exhausts me. I have no idea if Dayton’s spiel is serving as motivation, but their stamina is rather impressive.
One guy stops to vomit, then wipes his mouth and keeps on trucking.
After that, I stick to the sidelines, not wanting an up-close view of anyone else getting sick.
“Feel free to take a seat,” Dayton offers, pointing at the bleachers behind me. “There’s a protein bar and a bottle of water inside my gym bag. It’s yours if you want it.”
I shuffle over, hissing when the cool metal bench brushes against my exposed flesh.
Propping my feet on the row below me, I tuck my hands inside the borrowed sweatshirt and hug my knees.
I blank my thoughts and focus on the monotonous drills they cycle through, grateful to have a short reprieve.
When my stomach starts to growl, I check Dayton’s bag for the food he mentioned.
Buried beneath a change of clothes, I find a single protein bar.
Grabbing it, I glance at said man, curious as to why he would offer me something if he only had one.
He wouldn’t have brought it with him if he didn’t intend to eat it, yet he’s willing to forfeit his breakfast so I don’t go hungry.
I stare at the bar in my hand–at the plain, generic packaging, my fingers trembling as I toy with the seam of the wrapper.
It’s just a stupid snack, but the meaning behind his innocent offer still packs a punch.
He’s been kinder to me, even when his approach is brash, than Tobias ever thought of being over the past six years.
I think his betrayal was especially painful because I never saw it coming.
It never occurred to me that he was playing a part.
I’d have bet my life on the two of us burning Veritas to the ground together, and even now, I struggle to rationalize who it was I fell in love with.
I’ve considered every option–if he was nothing more than a mirage I crafted, my desperate mind giving him attributes that never existed.
Or maybe he was everything I thought he was, but the pressure of filling his father’s footsteps became too much.
Tobias was always fickle when it came to following orders, so it’d make sense for him to jump at the opportunity Kennedy’s declining health presented.
If he were the one in charge, he wouldn’t have to do anyone else’s bidding.
It doesn’t hurt as bad if I pretend it was never real, because how can you love someone the way he portrayed to love me and then violate them in the most heinous of ways?
I’d rather he had faked every moment we spent together than accept that as a possibility.
I fold the paper back and take a bite, my eyes stinging with unshed tears. I hate what he’s done to me. To us. Not him and me–but myself and the parting gift he left me with.