Page 50 of Strong Side

Your hits weren’t connecting as they should be. Clean it up. Don’t be an embarrassment.

I told you Rockwell Campos wasn’t going to do you any favors.

You have no chance of upholding the Aldrich legacy with a partner that does nothing but weigh you down.

That match was a fucking disgrace. The two of you should be ashamed. We will discuss this later.

As I read each text, the grip on my phone tightens to the point that I worry it will shatter in my hand. I can feel my vision tunneling and my chest tightening. My eyesbegin to well with tears as I recognize the all too familiar signs. “No, no, no. Not here. Not now.”

Not wanting to do this here, I quickly turn off my phone and shove it to the bottom of my bag before throwing on my clothes. With my bag slung over my shoulder and my body fighting for air, I all but run out of the locker room. As soon as I round the corner I run square into the man who has quickly become my solace. But he can’t see me like this.

I can’t let him see me like this.

“Hey, thanks a lot for making me do—whoa, Clay. What’s going on? What’s the matter?” I hear the panic in his voice, but I can’t stay here. I need to get home.

As he reaches to cup my face in his hands, I dodge his grasp. “Nothing. I-I.” My voice catches as it becomes harder to breathe. “I need to go.”

I step around him and speed to my car, ignoring his calls for me to come back.

By some miracle, I manage to make it back to my apartment building. Feeling like the drive might have calmed me down for a moment, I realize I’m sorrily mistaken when I see the very cause of my impending panic attack standing in front of my building. One hand tucked into the pant of his suit, the other holding the phone to his ear.

“D-Dad?” I shake my head in disbelief as I walk up to him. “What-what are you doing here?”

He rolls his eyes and removes the phone from his ear. “Clayton, I’ve been trying to call you.”

Fuck. “I haven’t been able to check my phone. It’s-it’s dead.”

Lies.

My fingers start to become numb as I flex them into fists at my side. If he sees me fall apart, I’ll never hear the end of it. Aldrich men are stronger than this. We don’t let the pressure get to us. We stand tall in the face of adversity.

“Care to explain what the hell happened out on that court?”

“You’re here? You came to my game?” It’s pathetic that the simple act of my own father driving a few hours to watch his only son play a sport he loves surprises me, yet here we are. But of course, this is the one game he chose to show up to.

“I had a meeting this afternoon with some investors in town. They knew you played for the school and had a game today, so they suggested we go watch it as a show of goodwill toward me. When it became clear all you were going to do was embarrass me, I was able to get them to leave early, and I came straight here.”

And there it is. His being here had nothing to do with me. This trip was all about him.

Everything isalwaysabout him.

He pins me with his most disappointed glare, and I can feel chills begin to sweep over my body while a bead of sweat travels down my spine at his disapproval.

I need to get upstairs. He can’t see me like this.

No onecan see me like this.

I open my mouth to respond, but I can’t get any words to come out. My dad continues to ramble on, but I don’t hear a single thing he says because, over his shoulder, I watch as Rocky’s car comes to a screeching halt in front of my building.

This cannot be happening.

Rocky cannot see this happening.

Before Rocky even closes the door of his car, I’m already in my building sprinting for the elevator with my dad calling after me just like Rocky did outside of the locker room.

But I know that all Rocky wanted to do was make sure I was okay; all my Dad wanted to do was ensure that I felt less and less okay.

As I finally reach the door to my apartment, I manage to unlock it before my vision fades to black, and I collapse right in the doorway.

---