Chapter 54
Rhys
I’m sorry
Mel stared hard at the text that had come in during the mid-morning rush.
They hadn’t seen it until just now, and they weren’t even sure how to respond to it.
What could he be sorry for? That he hadn’t called the night before?
It was fine. It’s not like they’d been waiting for his call or anything.
He’d probably gone out with the team to celebrate their win.
He didn’t owe Mel a single thing.
They thought about texting him as they left the coffee shop, but maybe this required a phone call instead. Oh no, the horror. They smiled a little as they tapped on his name and waited for it to connect.
It rang and rang, and Mel wondered if he would answer.
They weren’t completely sure what time the game was today.
Maybe he was in the dugout and wouldn’t have his phone on him.
Great. That meant they would have to obsess over his apology the rest of the day.
That was going to do wonders for their mental state.
They had two interviews to conduct this afternoon.
Hopefully they’d be able to find a counselor who would be a good fit for the center.
At least the directors approved the hiring of one.
They had to do something. Some of these kids needed more than Mel could offer them.
They hated to feel like they were letting anyone down.
Especially kids who might not have anyone else in their corner.
They had taken a deep breath, when the phone stopped ringing. “Mel? You didn’t have to call me.”
“Where are you?” They heard birds chattering and, they thought, vehicles in the background. Or maybe that was the wind. “On the field already?”
He was silent. “No,” he finally said. “Waiting for a car to get here. It’s a later game today, so I thought I’d…I don’t know, it’s stupid.”
“I doubt it is.”
“I just thought I’d check out a few places I remember growing up. See if anything’s changed. It’s probably a mistake, but…”
“Why would that be a mistake?” Mel asked. “Sounds like it could be fun.”
Rhys snorted out a laugh. It sounded almost bitter. “I don’t know if I could say that. There aren’t too many places around here which bring that word to mind.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Mel said. “About your text, it’s okay you didn’t call me. If you were out celebrating with your team, I totally understand.”
“I could have still texted,” he said after a long moment of silence. “It would have been the considerate thing to do.”
“You don’t owe me anything, though.” They did not want him feeling bad about this.
“I’ve got to go. The car is here.”
“All right, Rhys. Good luck.”
They stared at their phone for another moment then tossed it onto their passenger seat. Denny and Sonia were coming out of the coffee shop. They needed to get whatever these feelings were under control and then they needed to take care of these interviews. That was the important thing right now.
The back car door opened and Denny flopped into the seat. Sonia climbed in next to them. “Are you going to go?” Denny asked.
“Just waiting for you two,” Mel said and started the car.
They thought about what Rhys said as they were driving toward the center, the twins’ conversation buzzing around them.
What did he have to be sorry for? Just not letting them know he was busy the night before?
It wasn’t a big deal. Sure they missed getting to talk to him, but that was their problem, not his.
It would be the considerate thing to do. That sounded a lot like I’m not that selfish. Did he really think that way about himself?
They pulled into the parking lot at the center and once more pushed those thoughts away. They had other things to focus on right now. Like the fact Liam, once again, hovered outside the door. They still had not managed to talk him into coming inside.
They left the door open, figuratively at least.
Right now, they did it literally as well, as they arched an eyebrow at him. He took a step back.
“Where’s the short guy?” he asked. “He hasn’t come by in a few days.”
Mel held in their snicker at his description of Rhys. It was apt, though they weren’t sure he’d appreciate it. “Ohio.”
Liam’s nose wrinkled. “Why?”
Mel did laugh, they couldn’t help it. They’d heard similar feelings about their neighboring state before. “Because they’re playing a team there. He’ll be back by Monday.”
“But is he actually going to come here again?”
“Of course he is,” Denny said before Mel could respond. “He promised to teach me more about catching.”
“Because adults never break their promises,” he said, his voice practically a snarl. “Can you really be that naive?”
“Rhys won’t break his,” Denny said, but Mel thought their voice shook just a bit.
“If you believe that, you’re dumber than I thought.”
“That’s enough,” Mel said. “I understand you’ve been hurt by others, Liam, but that doesn’t give you the right to lash out at someone who didn’t do anything to you.”
His gaze dropped to the ground, but his eyes had been shimmering. With tears? Maybe. He wouldn’t look up at them.
“Of course you’d stick up for them,” he said, his voice low. “Families always band together against me. Even when I don’t do anything wrong, and I still get moved. And yet the ones who did this,” he said, waving his hand at the center, “get to stay where they are. I knew it would be the same here.”
“We aren’t against you, Liam,” Sonia said. “But, that was a mean thing to say to Denny. Even if they could be more understanding about your point of view.”
His eyes did come up then, but he turned away. “I shouldn’t have come here.” He took off across the parking lot, quickly putting distance between them.
Mel ran a hand over their face. That hadn’t gone too well. Hopefully that wasn’t a sign of how this interview would go. They’d better get in there and get ready for it.
They could think about Rhys, and what might be going on with him, later.