Chapter 16 ZAYDEN #2
‘Mason’s not always going to be around, Zayden,’ Anthony drawls, and I clench my fists so hard, my nails bite into my palms.
‘Oi!’ Mason snaps, shaking me. ‘Snap out of it. If you want to beat him, play hard. Don’t sink down to his level. You’re on thin ice enough as it is.’
I press my hands tighter as I force myself to walk away. The next set starts and I do my best to stay focused, but my mind keeps repeating his words. Is he spreading those rumours about her? I’m going to kill him.
We make it through unscathed, then it’s their turn to defend us. Anthony speeds right for me and we crash together in a sickening thump. I fall hard onto my shoulder and release a sharp breath as pain skitters up my shoulder and down my arm.
‘Get the fuck off me!’ I growl, elbowing him in the ribs. He wheezes, rolling off me, the weight of him splintering through me. Tears prick at my eyes at the sensation of it, and I grit my teeth.
I’m injured. It’s obvious straight away, but I do my best to control my features and get to my feet.
‘You good?’ Parker asks me, looking concerned.
‘Yep,’ I say.
Mason appears behind him, his eyes immediately darting to my shoulder. ‘That was a hard hit.’
‘I’m all good.’
I jog back into position, ignoring the ache radiating through my shoulder. I’ve dislocated it before, it doesn’t feel like that, but I suspect I’ve bruised or strained it. I should sit the rest of the game out, but my pride and anger won’t allow it.
The moment Anthony grabs the ball and attempts to make a run for it, I pummel into him so hard that I brutally drive him into the ground.
He shouts in pain as my knee connects with his head.
It may look like an accident, it may not, but I definitely lifted my knee when I shouldn’t have.
His nose crunches on impact and the blood is immediate as it spills down his face.
‘You spread a lie about her again, I’ll make that feel like a massage,’ I snarl, low enough for only him to hear.
The back of my shirt is scrunched as I’m yanked off him by one of his other team members. Mason and Parker are quick to step between us, sensing that a fight’s about to unfold.
‘I’m willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, Zayden,’ the ref snaps at me. ‘If I see a tackle like that again, you’re off.’
Keeping my mouth shut, I nod. I have a clean record when it comes to tackles, which is what’s saving me right now, but next time, I won’t be so lucky.
The buzzer goes off and I glance up in surprise.
The last half seemed to slip by in a blink.
We secured the win, but I don’t feel good about my performance.
I hate that I get so angry, so quickly. Maybe I need to go to a course or something.
Mason has managed to regulate his emotions. I need to take a page from his book.
The first sip of alcohol calms me and the events from earlier fade from my mind as we make the short trip to the post-game after-party.
It’s being hosted at some random house, by a guy everyone seems to know, who volunteered to host. Apparently he used to be the mascot for the team three years ago. Before my time, anyway.
The music is thumping, vibrating the floor as I weave between people.
‘Good game, man!’ a random guy says, slapping his hand on my shoulder.
‘Thanks!’ I grin back, feeling a little floaty from the combination of the beer and the pain medication I took.
I don’t think I’m meant to mix the two, but I never turn down a party, and I don’t want anyone on the team knowing how much Anthony hurt me in that tackle.
I don’t want to be benched for any games.
Over the next week, I’m going to ice my shoulder to ensure the inflammation goes down.
I’m positive it’s just a strain, so I’m sure it won’t affect me too much.
This is normal after a game. Randoms coming up to me, talking to me, congratulating the team.
It’s nice that so many of our fellow students support the team.
Pulling out my phone, I glance down at the time and see that I have no new messages.
Nora is meant to be here, but I haven’t seen her anywhere.
‘Zay!’ Christian calls out, throwing a beer at me.
I catch it and keep strolling, scanning the area. A gentle hand caresses my back and I turn, leaning down already, and freeze when a pair of dark eyes blink back at me.
‘Hey gorgeous,’ Leasa greets me, her signature glossy lips stretched into a smirk. ‘I’ve been hoping to bump into you. Good game out there today. You’re looking hotter than ever lately.’
‘Hey,’ I say a little dully, disappointed that it’s her and not Nora. ‘You seem to be everywhere I go.’
‘Maybe it’s fate,’ she smiles, moving her hand from my back to my arm. My eyes dart down to it.
‘Or maybe you’re tracking me.’
‘Would I do that?’ she asks, raising a brow.
‘You tell me.’
I’ve searched for the app on my phone but can’t seem to locate it.
Leasa is very tech-savvy, majoring in IT security, so she knows how to hack into phones and all sorts of other things.
I barely even know how to post a photo on Instagram.
It would be easy for her to pull one over on me.
She used to know things: if a girl had liked my photo, if someone had added me who she didn’t like.
It was like she constantly went through my phone without physically doing it.
It didn’t bother me at the time, I had nothing to hide, but now that we aren’t together, it is a major invasion of my privacy and I don’t know how to get rid of her.
I’ve had a new phone since breaking up with her and I’m convinced she still has some sort of spyware on it, my laptop too.
The more I think about it, the more it freaks me out.
I really should get someone to look through all my electronics and see if they can do something to check whether she’s hacking me, and how to block her access.
‘I miss you, Zay. Is that so bad?’ she tilts her head, eyes boring into mine as she inches a little closer.
I can smell the raspberry vodka on her breath.
Everything about her is painstakingly familiar, and if anything, it makes me want to get the hell away from her.
There’s nothing comforting about her to me anymore.
It’s very much over, and she needs to understand that I’m not always just going to be here whenever she feels like she wants me around again.
‘Leasa,’ I exhale, removing her hand from me. ‘This is over. I know it, you know it, let’s stop wasting each other’s time.’
‘Is this because of that Nora girl?’ she asks, narrowing her eyes and lifting her chin.
‘You don’t need to put blame on anyone else. This was done well before anything started with her and you know that.’
‘So there is something with her?’ she presses, and that familiar heat swirls in her eyes. The look of pure, untamed rage, glittering beneath the surface, threatening to consume her.
My eyes close for a brief moment and I step away from her. ‘Talking to you is useless, and frankly, exhausting.’ Her mouth drops open, and I turn my back on her and walk away.
My eyes connect with a girl I recognise, but I can’t quite remember where from.
She stands ahead of me, her phone poised, and it looks like she’s taking a photo or a video of me.
She makes no reaction to me facing her and leans back on the wall, half-turning from me.
I narrow my eyes, watching her for a moment.
I have a recollection of seeing her before, and she doesn’t look like the type of person Leasa would associate with.
Shrugging it off, I continue making my way through the room.
Now I’m becoming paranoid over every small thing.
The encounter with Leasa has left me feeling flat and I don’t entirely know why. It might also be because I can’t find Nora anywhere, and she isn’t returning my messages, even though it says she is active.
At this point, I’m weaving through the party, craning my neck, trying and failing to find Nora, and feeling a little pathetic that my whole night seems to revolve around this.
I’m always the life of the party, in among it with everyone, but lately, it seems like there’s only one thing occupying my mind.
‘Mad tackle out there today!’ another random says, bumping into my shoulder so hard, I see stars. I flex my jaw, smiling through the grimace.
‘Thanks, man.’
The guy continues talking as if I’m not walking away from him. He is yapping all about the game, and usually I love talking about anything football related, but I can’t bring myself to be bothered right now.
I’m distracted. My mind keeps rolling back to the conversation on the field with Anthony, and anger ripples through me, fresh and poignant, making me want to throw my fist at something.
Then my mind keeps spiralling towards Leasa, and her obsession with me, and it’s a constant loop of negativity soaking through my mind, and I can’t seem to snap out of it.
I need Nora.
The front door opens and I snap my head to look so fast, I fear I might have pulled a muscle in my neck. Nora, Cami and Anya enter, looking flushed and giggly, indicating that they have definitely had some drinks prior to arriving.
She’s wearing her hair in that half-up, half-down style I like, and the moment I see it, it’s like someone has put the party on mute.
Everything quietens around me as I approach her.
Nora’s eyes find mine halfway across the room and everything between us seems to slow.
She tilts her head, just a little, like she’s been waiting for me, too.
I don’t say anything right away when I reach her.
I just look at her, and for the first time all night, I feel like I can breathe again.
‘Oh,’ my sister says as I startle her. ‘Hello, Zay. You appeared out of thin air.’
‘Hey,’ I say, directing my gaze straight to Nora.
‘Hey,’ Nora smiles.
‘Ladies,’ I say, before reaching for Nora’s hand and dragging her with me.