Game Theory × NH

045 | rhodium

× Mercury

"I did it."

I looked up from my phone and saw Matt sitting beside me. His cheeks were flushed and he stared out in front of him with his chocolate brown eyes like he just murdered someone and was now realizing it.

"How'd they take it?" I asked.

"Well, actually," he explained. "Reece made a douchebag comment and Andrew asked if I'd have sex with him, but it was all banter."

I nudged my shoulder with his. "I'm proud of you."

Earlier that day, Matt had texting me saying he was going to tell the team he was gay. He had asked if I had ideas on how he should do it, and I responded saying the most effective way was to just tell them straight-up. He had agreed.

But then he came up to me before practice saying he couldn't do it and that he was too worried what they would think. I explained that telling them one by one would work just the same, maybe even better because it would be a little more personal.

And now we were here, sitting on the bench waiting for Coach to arrive to start practice, our team on the field stretched, new information on their teammate going through their mind.

"I told you they wouldn't have a problem with it," I said with a smile.

"Don't say that yet," Matt warned. "I told them after we were in the locker room. Wait until after when everyone is taking showers and changing."

Before I could respond, my phone started to ring in my hand. Matt saw who was calling and told me to take it and that we would talk later, before standing up and joining the team on the field.

"Lynn! You're never going to believe what I just heard," Jamie said through the other end. I wanted to laugh. University gossip never seemed to go away even if you were on the other side of the planet. "Coach Sharp scheduled an early practice before classes today because of the big game this weekend, and she told everyone some shocking news-"

"She's pregnant!" I shouted.

My teammates closest to me looked over, confusion on their faces. I gave them a look and spun around in my seat so my back faced them for my privacy.

Jamie sighed into the phone with aspiration. "Coach isn't, but Lucy is! She's twelve weeks pregnant and was kicked off the team! I talked to her a few minutes ago. But that's not the half of it, guess who the father is."

My heart sank. I didn't need to make a guess, I didn't need to say the name out loud to get confirmation that I was right. I saw it happen right in front of me. I wrapped an arm around my stomach and leaned forward in my seat, feeling suddenly ill. I couldn't help but think back to UCLA and to the time I walked in on Lucy and Bradley in bed together. If she was twelve weeks in, then the time line made sense and I almost threw up right then and there.

"Is he..." I trailed off, swallowing the bile in my throat. "Is he with Lucy?"

"What do you think?" Jamie said bitterly. "He want's nothing to do with her. Won't even respond to her texts let alone look at her. It's disgusting how he can just throw away someone like this. It's his own damn fault he didn't wrap it up!"

I should have been happy to hear that Lucy was knocked up by my kind-of-boyfriend at the time. I should have been thrilled that she was off the team to care for the child and lose any chance she had to getting anywhere in the soccer industry. But I wasn't. Quite the opposite, really.