CHAPTER FOURTEEN
MASON
I told myself I wasn’t going to think about it.
That lasted about six minutes.
Coach was talking about film review on the court, pacing in front of us with that same tired intensity he always had when something was coming up that actually mattered.
Scouts. Pressure. Noise.
The usual.
I was listening.
Sort of.
But my brain kept drifting back to one thing I didn’t like that I remembered too clearly:
Caleb.
Standing too close.
Coffee in Rowan’s hand.
Her not stepping away.
That was the part that stuck.
Not him.
Not even the conversation.
Just her not moving.
Like it didn’t matter.
“Reed,” Coach said sharply.
I snapped back. “Yeah.”
“You with us?”
“Yes.”
He studied me for a second too long.
Then nodded once like he didn’t fully believe me but didn’t care enough to stop everything.
Film started.
Lights dimmed slightly.
Footage rolled.
Normally I’d lock in immediately.
Today everything blurred at the edges.
“Your off-ball reads are late here,” Coach said, pausing the screen.
I leaned forward. “I know.”
“No,” he said. “You don’t. You’re reacting, not anticipating.”
Jace muttered beside me. “He’s doing the thing again.”
I shot him a look.
He smiled like it meant nothing.
It meant everything.
After film, I didn’t leave immediately.
I stayed behind longer than usual, tying my shoes slower than necessary, pretending I had something to fix.
I didn’t.
The arena was mostly empty now.
That quiet after practice that feels heavier than noise.
My phone buzzed.
I didn’t check it at first.
Then again.
I checked.
Rowan.
you always this intense after practice or did something happen?
I stared at it.
Then typed:
nothing happened
Three dots.
you’re lying
I exhaled through my nose.
Of course she noticed.
That was the problem.
She always noticed.
you were watching me earlier
I paused.
Too long.
Then:
I wasn’t
A lie.
Bad one.
Three dots again.
Then:
you’re a terrible liar, reed
That should’ve annoyed me.
It didn’t.
It just made something tighter in my chest.
Before I could answer, Jace appeared beside me, grabbing his bag off the bench.
“You going to stand there texting her all night or are we leaving?”
“I’m leaving.”
“You’re definitely not.”
I locked my phone and stood up.
We were halfway out of the arena when I saw them again.
Not planned.
Not expected.
Just there.
Rowan.
And Caleb.
Outside the glass doors near the corridor exit.
Talking.
Close enough that it didn’t look important.
But my body reacted before my brain did.
Jace noticed instantly.
“Oh,” he said slowly. “There it is.”
“There’s what.”
“That face.”
“I don’t have a face.”
“You absolutely do.”
I didn’t stop walking.
But I was looking.
Caleb said something.
Rowan laughed.
Small.
Quick.
Not exaggerated.
Real.
That was worse than anything else.
Because it wasn’t performative.
It wasn’t for show.
It was easy.
Jace kept talking. “You know what’s funny?”
“No.”
“You’ve been ignoring her for three days.”
“I haven’t.”
“And now you’re watching her like you’re about to lose something.”
I stopped walking.
Just slightly.
Not enough to be obvious.
But enough that Jace noticed.
“Keep moving,” I said.
He laughed under his breath. “Yeah, sure.”
We kept going.
But I wasn’t listening anymore.
Because Rowan shifted slightly toward Caleb again.
And something in my head went quiet in a way I didn’t like.
Not calm.
Not peace.
Just… focus narrowing.
Too much focus.
“Reed,” Jace said, lowering his voice now. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what.”
“Don’t turn this into a thing.”
I didn’t answer.
Because I didn’t know what “this” even was yet.
Later that night, I was alone in my apartment.
Too quiet again.
Phone on the table.
Buzzing occasionally like it had opinions.
I didn’t touch it.
I didn’t need to.
Because I already knew what it was.
Rowan again.
And I was already thinking about replying before I even opened it.
That was new.
That was the part I didn’t like.
I finally picked it up.
Opened the message.
you’re staring at people again, reed
it’s becoming a habit
I stared at it for a while.
Then typed:
stop watching me
Three dots.
Longer pause this time.
Then:
make me
I froze slightly.
Just for a second.
Then locked the phone.
Put it face down.
Stared at it anyway.
Because now it wasn’t just distraction anymore.
It was interaction.
And worse—
it felt like she knew exactly what she was doing.