Chapter 42
Aftermath
Jake
This is an emotional, sad post today. Our not-so-favorite ex-second-string quarterback is in the wind.
Authorities are looking for him everywhere and an investigation is pending.
His expulsion is in effect immediately. Have you seen him?
If so, call the tip line listed below. I witnessed the last moments of his assault on Dani "Georgia" Constantine and it was brutal.
She's in the hospital, and no one has seen her or Jake in three days.
Is she going to be okay? Is Jake's mind going to be able to focus on only football in one month?
Let's nail the bastard!
I look at the alert on my phone, take a deep breath and let it out slowly.
Only one month until the first game of our highly anticipated season, and I could give two fucks about anything but Dani.
Maybe I should step down. I don't know. Coach has been understanding, but his patience is wearing thin.
He said I need to report to practice tomorrow but if she doesn't wake up by then, my ass will be in this chair until she does.
The doctors say this is a normal reaction for someone assaulted.
It’s her body’s way of coping with the brutality of this terrible situation we now find ourselves in.
She should be waking up any day now. I've only left her side once, and that was only because my father made me.
That was so that I could "wash my nasty ass," to use his words exactly.
Well, almost exactly. I still had Dani's blood all over me at the time.
It was awful, but I couldn't make myself leave to get cleaned up until my parents got here.
My father is an ex-navy seal. He may be a pencil pusher for the navy now, but if anyone could keep her safe, it's him. Only with him would I leave her.
I had so much misplaced anger towards Jaxon.
I wasn't mad that he didn't go to class that day.
The rage stemmed from the fact that he waited so long to tell me.
I almost punched him right in the face when he came to see her.
He's my brother, my best friend but he should’ve told me.
He didn't back away from me, and it was in that moment that I realized he wouldn't try to retaliate against me once I punched him.
After seeing how broken he was over what happened helped me see things clearer.
I was mad at Jaxon because I couldn't get to Benji.
I was focusing my anger on the wrong person.
All the boys are my brothers, but Jaxon and I are the closest. We think alike and he gets me.
I've apologized to him a million times since his initial visit, and he keeps telling me that if I keep being a pussy, he will kick my ass to make me stop.
Dani and Jaxon have become super close, and at first, it bothered me.
I haven't told that to another soul, but after Jenna cheated on me with my old best friend, my heart broke.
They weren't my people. If it had been Dani and Jaxon instead, I don't think I would survive it.
I keep telling myself that it won't happen, I have to trust again, and it has gotten easier.
I still hate when she puts wants to wear his damn shirt, though.
All that misplaced anger has shifted back to the one that deserves it all.
We’ll have our vengeance. I can't believe Benji did this to my girl.
She is the sweetest person I've ever known.
Dani cares about people and about doing the right thing and she's stronger than she even knows.
I've watched her come out of her shell and I love that she doesn't show her most genuine self to everyone, only me.
I'm addicted to getting to know the real her, and she makes me fall deeper in love with her every day.
I can't stop thinking about how many times Dani tried to tell me that Benji was crazy, and I didn't listen.
I was too damn stubborn, and I "knew" him better than anybody else.
I thought he was dumb, but he is an intelligent, smooth criminal.
I thought he was a coward, and while he is a coward because he beat a woman, my woman, he's bold and not scared of anything.
He's a cunning, master manipulator. He wants people to cower in fear before him and wants them to follow him blindly.
He values allegiance over anything and he can't stand that Dani is mine.
A wave of fury hits me. Dani will never be his.
She is too good for the both of us, but I thank God every day that she can't see my faults the way I do and that she loves me clear down to her very soul.
I'll spend the rest of my life proving that I deserve her.
She's more important to me than anything else.
I was her first, and I know she'll be my last.
I don't roll my eyes at myself anymore. The sugary words flow easily throughout my mind and mouth.
All this love shit used to make me nauseous, but instead now, it gives me hope.
Hope that at my worst, she'll still love me through my pain.
I'm better because she’s in my life. It's hard to believe we haven't known each other that long.
She's my other half, the yin to my yang.
I've never been obsessed with anything but football until my Dani.
Granny Betsy Jean and Mrs. Betty Ann arrived last night.
They are distraught and want to take her home and I can't blame them one bit, but it's Dani's decision.
I'll go where she goes. I can't stay here without her. With Benji still on the loose, I need to protect her no matter what. He could easily evade authorities and he’s already proven he’s crazy enough to follow Dani, he could even follow her to Georgia.
My parents will stand beside me no matter what, even if it means I go to school somewhere in Georgia and major in sports medicine or something sports related.
I’ll give my NFL dreams away and never look back.
The lump in my throat doesn't form as it used to when I think about a future with no football.
The opportunity to become a legend can slip away, and I won't die. I’ll happily live an everyday domesticated life with my Dani.
I don't need fame or fortune. All I need is her.
I look down at her and she looks at peace.
I miss her so much. Why is it taking her so long to wake up?
I get so angry at the sight of her bruised and battered face.
Her left eye is swollen shut, and the other one will only be able to open a fraction when she finally wakes up.
The bastard broke her perfect nose. She'll need surgery in a few days for that, they are waiting for her to wake up and the swelling to go down. Once she’s on the mend, I’ll go looking for him. This is far from over.
My heart squeezes in my chest. Is she waking up? Her breathing is labored and her eye is opening and closing at an accelerated rate. The monitors she’s hooked up to start going haywire, and someone calls over the intercom yelling, "CODE BLUE!"
Oh God, please, no! Please, don't take her! Why is this happening? They said she was going to be okay! No!! God! NO!!! A team of doctors and nurses rush in and start looking her over. They bring in the crash cart, and I know she's gone. They are going to restart her heart.
My brothers were in the waiting room and they heard the commotion.
They come running but at the insistence of one of the doctors, we all were made to wait outside the room.
“Dani! Dani!” They can't make me leave. I've got to be with her.
What if this is her last moment on earth?
I can't let her die alone. "Dani!" I scream her name repeatedly until my father gets to me and wraps me up in his arms. He's never been an overly emotional man, but he's always been the only one that could calm me down.
I've always thought my Dad hung the moon. The one I trusted to make everything okay. But how can this ever be okay? What if she’s not ok?