Page 17 of Blindsided By Fake Love

“Well, you know what they always say: When life throws you an unexpected curve, make some lemonade.” Groans can be heard around the room. No one says that. “Well, actually, no one says it, but I think it’s a good philosophy to live by.”

“Wise indeed.” Coach chuckles. “Thanks again. Have a great time in Texas.”

“Thanks,” Milo says. “Did I ever tell you about the time—”

“Talk soon,” Coach says, ending the call before he can tell us one of his many stories. “Where were we…oh yeah. Play It Forward and getting signed permission slips back to legal. Do it sooner rather than later.”

“This week, we’re playing NOLA Gold.” Coach gets a teasing glint in his eye before turning to me. “Anyone else planning on getting married this weekend?”

Scrubbing my face with my hand, I groan while the room erupts with amused murmurs. “I’m never gonna live this down.”

“Not while I’m your coach,” Hudson razzes. “But on a more serious note, team, you have some homework to do. Gold is a great team and some serious competition. Let’s focus on getting a win.” He points at me and smirks. “See you tomorrow, boys!”

Grabbing my duffle, I shake my head and chuckle. Guess I better get used to being the butt of jokes for a while.

WhenIpullupto Jack’s house, he’s sitting on the porch waiting. The expression on his face has me taking a deep breath and getting prepared to deal with teenage angst.

“Jack!” He stands up and rolls his eyes so hard I’m waiting for them to fall out of an ear. A ton of teenage angst. “You said you’re a fan of animals, right?”

Jack walks over to the car, his shoulders slouched. “Yeah.” His tone tells me he’s less than thrilled about anything I could potentially want to do today. He gets in the car and fastens his seatbelt.

“Super! I have an incredible afternoon planned for you.” My cheeks pull up as he rolls his eyes again. Is eye-rolling an Olympic sport I don’t know about now?

“Super?” He quirks a brow, and the corner of his lip pulls up, which is the result I was hoping for. “Aging yourself there.”

I shrug. “Maybe you think I’m cool, but I’m really not.” This time, both corners lift, and I nudge him. “So, how are things at school? Any new crushes you want to tell me about?”

Immediately, the smile fades, and his eyes shutter. I have definitely struck a nerve. Rather than dig deeper, I change tactics.

“Did you watch the game last week?” Silence greets me. Okay—not sports today.

We drive in silence for a bit while I try to figure out a new game plan.

“Do you think I could get some advice?”

Jack’s brows shoot up, and he points to his chest. “From me?”

“No. The person in the backseat.” When Jack glances over his shoulder, confusion lining his face, I chortle. “Yes, you!”

A reluctant twitch tugs at the corner of his mouth. “You’re weird.”

“When you get older, you won’t think being weird is such a bad thing.” Some more eye-rolling. Teenagers. “But seriously, I need some help.”

When silence greets me, I glance over to see him staring out the window. I can see his emotions hovering under the surface. Rather than ignore this opportunity, I choose to take his silence as consent.

“There’s this girl I like, but I’m not sure if she’s interested in me or not.” Jack scoffs. “What? I can’t have these problems?”

“You’re a professional athlete,” Jack says, and I see his shoulders droop from the corner of my eye. “Everyone likes you.”

Ahhh, so that’s what’s going on. “That is definitely not true. You’d be surprised at how many peopledon’tlike mebecauseI’m a professional athlete.”

“Really?” Surprise laces Jack’s voice; his eyebrows shoot toward his hairline. “I thought that meant you were automatically popular.”

“Popularity is code for what other people think about you. It doesn’t dictate how well-liked you are. Or, more importantly, whether or not you’re a good human being.”

I turn to Jack, who’s sitting in silence, his brow furrowed, and I wait. Working with kids, I’ve learned that there are some who will talk your head off and others that you need to let get uncomfortable enough to fill the silence.

Jack is the latter.

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