.09

54.2K 1.8K 1.4K
                                    


I had skipped my midnight snack time with my dad for only the second time since my mom passed away when I wasn't away at school.  The first time was due to me staying in the hospital overnight after I'd suffered a concussion after passing out on our basketball court at home.  Cause of concussion?  Ball to the head.  It was a wonder I didn't boycott the entire sport altogether, the danger magnet I was. 

Maybe Eli was right- I was a ball chaser, just not in the way he had been implying. 

The extra sleep I'd earned did nothing to assuage my tiredness, considering the nightmare I'd had that had taken up all of my energy to begin with.  I could still hear the screams and groans of the metal in my head, the crunch of car upon car, the iris searing lights ingrained in the back of my mind like I'd never be able to forget them...

My father was rolled up to the kitchen table, clear eyed and slurping down milk leftover from his cereal when he spotted me. 

"I know, I know.  I'm sorry, I was exhausted and ended up passing out before midnight."

"You really had me worried.  I would have gone in to check on you if I hadn't heard you snoring loudly from outside the door."

I squinted my eyes in a faux glare, saying, "I do not snore."

He guffawed a deep belly laugh which brought a smile upon my face and motioned for me to join him for breakfast.  

It was eerily silent while I tried to come up with what to ask him, but I was terrified that someone would be listening on the other side of the swinging doors that led to the dining room, just like the night before.  Thankfully, my dad broke the silence first. 

"I'm sorry about Jared and Sara last night.  I told Kara that allowing Sara and Jared stay the night together here after the history between you two wasn't a good idea, and that I didn't approve, but at the end of the day this house is just as much hers as it is ours.  The way she parents her child isn't up to me."

Oh.  So he was going that direction.  In all honesty, I'd completely forgotten about that drama with my ex and my cousin, even as the devils themselves strolled hand in hand into the kitchen, hair rumpled from sleep and her draped in his clothing. 

Why did Jared even spend the night again?  This wasn't his house.  I folded my arms across myself, mad that I hadn't thrown on a sweatshirt over my tank top that I'd had on the night before, when Eli had seen me...

Holy shit.  He had seen me in this tank top, the one where my boobs were basically a flashing red sign that said, "BOOBS!  I HAVE BIG BOOBS!"

I shook my head as I shoved down the unfairness of the entire situation. 

"No, I don't care about that, I wanted to talk to you about...Eli.  Why are you coaching him again? And why is he staying here?  I'm telling you, that guy is-"

"I'm going to stop you right there, sweetheart.  I know that you two don't really see eye to eye, but his talent is more than promising.  If I can get him to start thinking about actually being part of a team and not just thinking of the game as a single person sport, then I think he has a real shot at being one of the greats.  He will be staying here at the guest house every other weekend, and when those weekends roll around, I expect you to ride here with him, without argument."

My eyes almost bugged out of my head. 

"And just leave my car at school, with no way to escape?"

Sara and Jared took their seats at the table with their cereal, acting like they weren't paying attention to their conversation but it was obvious that they were enthralled.  My father and I hardly fought, so this was entertainment for them. 

SwishWhere stories live. Discover now