What happens when the star baseball player hits a home run into the art studio window?
*****
All Sadie Lane Garner needed to make herself happy was a canvas and paintbrush.
With copious projects due and little studio time, she volunteers to clean t...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
─── • ───
"YOU LITERALLY HAVE your own coffee. Why must you drink mine?" I asked Reva as she lifted my cup to her lips and sipped. She nodded in approval, then set it back down where it belonged in front of me.
"Yours tastes better," she said.
"Is that so?" Laughter reverberated from me, and she nodded.
We had art history soon but stopped for our usual drink before heading to class. Despite getting a good night's rest, my head pounded like someone had whacked it with a hammer and I figured it was because of midterms rapidly approaching. Our teachers didn't let us forget we had copious assignments due in such little time. My mind and body yearned for the weekend.
Reva's phone pinged with a text, and she hastily picked it up.
"Who's that?"
I swore I saw nervousness flicker in her eyes. "Remember that girl's number I got from the beach bonfire?" I told her, yes, and she continued. "We've been texting every day since. She asked if I wanted to go to dinner on Friday."
My eyes widened and a squeal mixed with giggling escaped my lips, but I quickly reeled in my excitement. "No way!"
"Yes, way. I haven't been on an actual date in so long, not since Logan and—"
I grabbed her arm, silently letting her know I understood how she was feeling and that she didn't have to go on. Her last relationship didn't end on great terms, and we rarely revisited those memories because of how much havoc they wreaked on her life.
It took many late nights, tear-filled conversations, and Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream containers for her to open up to me, which led to me opening up about my relationship insecurities.
She released a shaky breath. "I'm so nervous."
I took her hand. "I know you are. But I have full faith that this will be great for you! Even if nothing serious comes out of it, at least you'll have a nice evening."
She cast a weary smile and sipped her coffee.
Reva was one of the most head-strong, intelligent women I knew, and every time I witnessed how Logan affected her self-confidence, it broke my heart. She would go silent, recoil back inside her head. Nobody deserves to be cheated on—let alone find out by surprising your boyfriend at home for the holidays only to find another girl in his bed.
"Time to head over." She stood, changing the subject, and we walked toward our lecture building. I asked if she was okay and she replied with a curt nod, so I didn't press any further about her date. I figured she'd tell me when she wasn't feeling down.
When class was over, Reva went back to our apartment and I left for the studio, hoping the earlier I went, the better chance I'd have of not running into Elijah. I was lucky he wasn't anywhere in the room and when I looked out the studio windows, I saw his team on the field practicing. I scanned the well-kept area from left to right, but none of the players had their jerseys on so I couldn't tell from this distance.
