Chapter 44
Chapter Forty-Four
SAM
“Are we gonna talk about the fact that your left shoulder is bothering you now, or are we gonna wait until you hear it from Jamie?” Wyatt asked quietly as I came to the end of my cool-down.
I’d pointlessly lied to Naomi earlier when I said we’d have to wait and see how I felt when the adrenaline died out, and I think she knew that. I hadn’t appreciated that Wyatt would also probably pick up on it as well. I’d hoped I was going to get away with it for at least the rest of the day.
I sighed and rolled my shoulder again. It still ached in a way that didn’t feel great.
“I think what we need to talk about is how we’re gonna build this season from here because we both know, and let’s be real, Naomi does too, this shoulder is taking me out for at least a few weeks.”
Wyatt nodded. “Let’s find out what the problem is first. But you’re right, we should plan accordingly and reduce your schedule to try to minimise the chance of recurrence. I think I know the answer, but what are your musts for this season?”
I didn’t even have to think about it. “French, Wimbledon, and Olympics mixed. I get three more chances to play with Naomi, and I don’t want to ruin them.
And she deserves two shots at a gold medal-winning run.
I want to win it with her. If I can do it on my own as well, great.
But I want to do it with her by my side more than anything. ”
The voice that still lived in the back of my head, the one that sounded like my dad, scolded me for not even thinking about protecting my singles game, the points that I’d undoubtedly lose, and my world ranking.
I was better at ignoring it and better at not hating it so much, both of which felt like progress and wouldn’t be possible without the best and worst hour of my week: therapy.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought. Okay, we’ll figure it out. This might mean you come as a package deal until the summer, which is great for me. You just brace yourself to tell Mimi you’ve fucked your shoulder.”
I groaned. “I was hoping you could cushion that blow on my behalf.”
“Absolutely not, dude. Plus, like you said, she definitely already knows. You’re not being subtle with the way you keep rolling it out. You come at her with all the facts, and she’ll be fine. Probably. I don’t know. This is new territory.”
My legs came to a stop, and I climbed off the bike.
“I’ll go find out what the damage is.”
The good news was, it didn’t look like I’d torn anything, but I’d definitely strained something, and the primary advice for the immediate future was rest. It was about the best outcome I could’ve got. It meant I wouldn’t be out for too much of the season, but we’d still need to manage my workload.
When Wyatt and I got home, Naomi’s shout of ‘here’ came from close to the door, and we found her lying on the sofa looking at her phone like it had personally offended her.
“You okay?” Wyatt asked.
“The internet is on one right now. I forgot I couldn’t sneeze without someone having a say about it.”
“Why are you even reading about yourself?” he asked with a sigh. In the nine months I’d been in Naomi’s orbit, she’d been very good at not reading anything about herself. This was the first time I’d known her to slip up in that time.
Naomi raised a shoulder and dropped her phone at her side.
“I don’t know, it just happened. I clicked a link which led to another link, and now here we are.”
“Well, stop it, I guess,” Wyatt offered weakly, forcing a bark of a laugh out of Naomi.
“Thanks for that.”
“I’m here to help. Where’s the other one?”
“Outside sunbathing and listening to her book.”
A wicked smile came across Wyatt’s face, reminding me that sometimes he was just someone’s kid brother.
“Excellent,” he said before he wandered down the hall towards the back door.
I went to join Naomi, lifting her legs and resettling them on my lap. “Sorry people are being shitty, and that I didn’t withdraw us.”
“Not your fault. You physically couldn’t have done it. Don’t worry about it, I’ll be fine. Come on then, tell me. What’s wrong with you?”
A breath of a laugh escaped me at her question. “Well, if you want to vent your frustration, you can with me.”
She cut in. “That’s what being a powerhouse tennis player and therapy are for, but I appreciate it. Now…?”
“Muscle strain. Not the best, but it could’ve been worse. Will get the full rundown on the recovery process tomorrow. Silver lining is, I get to go home after we’re done here.”
My fingers started rubbing her calf, and she sighed, the weight of her legs getting heavier in my lap. “What a shitty way to get extra time with you.”
“Might go all out and surprise you for Valentine’s Day.”
Naomi rolled her eyes fondly, a soft smile on her lips. “Can it be the kind of surprise where I get some warning?”
I gently squeezed her ankle. “Of course it can, Mimi.”
It was only after I said it that I realised this was the first time I’d called her that. She noticed, too, because the tips of her ears turned pink.
I squeezed her ankle again. “Now, put your phone away and come beat me at Scrabble.”
She handed me her phone. I put it in my pocket before we moved over to the coffee table that still had a Scrabble board laid out, and she split up the tiles.