Page 82 of Stumped

“Can we pre-celebrate?”

Snorting, I kiss him, my fingers pushing through his hair. He returns the kiss, the tension in his body ebbing away. Then after much coaxing, and finally feeding him, I get Elias to eat his dinner. He’s still nervous, but he’s doing a better job of not letting everyone see it. By the time I help the staff put everything away, most of the guests are locked away in their bedrooms.

I lay in bed as the five a.m. light tries to sneak into the bedroom while Elias finishes getting ready. Downstairs, everyone’s bleary-eyed, but awake to see Bash, Samar and Eliasoff. Kuriakose loads up the car as coffee is consumed followed by a round of hugs and well wishes before the boys drag themselves to the car. Once Elias hugs his siblings, they stumble back into the house, leaving me alone with him.

“I’ll miss you,” he whispers, arms wrapped around me, lips pressed against my forehead.

I grip the sides of his T-shirt and sway in place. “Believe in yourself. Good luck tomorrow.”

“Don’t need luck when I’ve got you.” He takes a step back and grins. His nerves are visible in the set of his shoulders, but his eyes are bright and confident. “Love you, peaches,” he says and hops into the car seconds before Kuriakose pulls away.

Twenty-Seven. She’s not a brand negotiation

Elias

We’ve just turned onto the highway when my phone rings. Vera’s picture fills the screen and I smile. I took it a few days after returning to the team and she’s straddling me in only my Renegades jersey. Her hair is a mess from all the grabbing and tugging I did hours before, but her smile is infectious and it makes my heart leap.

“Missing me already?”

“Are you fucking kidding me, Elias?”

I pull the phone away at her volume and my friends wince. Blinking, I straighten up and press the device to my ear again. “What did I do?”

“Love you, peaches,” she says in a pretty good imitation of me. “Seriously? That’s how you tell me?”

Frowning, I start to shake my head like she can see me, then freeze.Oh fuck.

“Exactly! What the fuck!”

“Fuck, peaches, I’m sorry. I don’t…I didn’t mean to…”

“Oh now you want to take it back.Typical.” She’s still cursing as I tap the edge of the phone to my forehead and groan at my stupidity. I was doing such a good job of not accidentally saying it before she was ready and I went and said it anyway.

“I’m coming back.”

Kuriakose looks back in confusion and Bash shakes his head, showing me the time on his phone. Because of how big the team is and for safety reasons, we’re split into three separate flights. Bash, Samar and I, along with a coach and a few other players are on the third trip that leaves in two hours. If I miss this, I miss the match tomorrow. I don’t want to, but for Vera, I would.

“Absolutely fucking not. You have a game.”

“Match, baby.”

“I don’t fucking care!”

My friends hiss and lean away dramatically, because she’s so loud. “I’m sorry, Vera,” I say finally and she goes silent. She’s breathing loudly, even if she’s not saying anything. “I meant it and I don’t wanna take it back.”

She sucks in a breath and I close my eyes, ears straining to hear every sound. “Good. I’m not happy with you for doing it like that, though.”

“I know, peaches. You’re not ready either.”

“I didn’t say that.”

My eyes pop open and stare at my shoes. “What?”

“I’m notnotready. I don’t like that you walked away after saying it.”

“Can I say it again?”

“Not on the phone, no. Next time, look into my eyes.”

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