Page 95 of On Merit Alone
“More or less.”
“What was it?”
“To be alone,” I croaked. It wasn't my imagination that he went stiff around me. He didn't interrupt me though. “It’s okay. I came to terms with it a long time ago. I was meant to be alone. Or else why would the world take everything away from me? I accepted that destiny a long time ago, but I’m still a little selfish. So I held onto basketball to help me through it and to keep me company on the hardest nights. It’s worked alright so far.”
He was quiet. Quiet for so long, I thought he wasn’t going to answer. Until he did.
“Merit?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m sorry if you take this the wrong way, sweetheart. You can be mad at me about it later,” he said. Cupping my jaw he leaned down to crowd my space. I breathed him in. Took in every part of those serious eyes as he beamed me with one of his most serious looks. “But I am going to ruin that destiny.”
“Why?”
“Because I am never leaving you alone again.”
And then he kissed me. Long and slow and deep. More powerful than before. More urgent. Every pull of his lips seemed like a promise he was all too eager to make. Every caress a declaration.
I let myself enjoy the feel of him for now. His pretty words and strong shoulders to cry on. I let myself feel it all now, feel it deep. Because who knew when it was going to be over, and I could never feel it again?
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Ira
“Why didn’tIsaac want to come?” my sister asked as we took our seats. “I’m sure Mom would have watched Liv.”
Neil scoffed as he scooted in after his wife. “That’s not even necessary. Leah would never want to go to a sporting event. He could have come all on his own.”
I shook my head, finally sitting now that I saw those two were settled. “Isaac is a snob. He didn’t come because I told him we were sitting near the court instead of the club box.”
They both snickered. Iris looked at me though. “Whyarewe sitting down here by the way? Don’t get me wrong, I love it, but you usually don’t like to be spotted.”
I shrugged. “They’ve been playing well lately. I thought it would be fun to be close to the action.”
Lie. Ididwant to be spotted. Specifically by a certain someone who, for all intents and purposes, had been avoiding me.
I wasn't necessarily surprised that after the close night me and Merit spent together telling secrets and sharing pasts, that she got spooked and hid. She’d gotten spooked over way less. It did sting a little more though. I knew she only ran because she was scared andafter learning so much about her, she was scared for good reason. But I had promised her things the other night. Things that she obviously didn’t believe if she was scared to even face me.
But I wasn’t scared, and I could hunt her down. So I would. And I'd do it in just the way I promised her. I’d be there for her. Starting with being there at her games.
Where she could see me.
My sister, who was sitting to my left, looked at me. “It, by chance, doesn’t have anything to do with someone on the team, does it?”
I narrowed a look down at her. “Why would it?”
Her shoulder lifted. “Oh, I don't know. I just heard from Mom and Dad that you’re in love now, so I was wondering if it’s who I think it is.”
I rolled my eyes.
“I’m not in love—” The patter of my heart as I caught a glimpse of the girl with long braids shooting her warmups begged to differ. “—And who the hell do you think it is? I haven’t said a thing to you.”
“And don’t you think that’s a crime, baby brother!” she exclaimed, exasperated by me already. A laugh slipped out of me at her dramatics. She pulled out her phone, tapping away at something while I watched Merit run through her team drills. Pass, shoot, move. She was so focused. I could watch her all day. Too bad my vision of her was obstructed by the glowing screen of a phone in my face. I took it while Iris continued. “This is who you’re in love with… says the internet.”
On the screen there was a webpage with some sort of photo collage. I almost immediately dismissed it, until I noticed that it was me in a lot of the photos. And that wasn’t the most shocking part. Also pictured were various photos of Merit. Her and I cut out separately going up for jump shots but pasted in as if we were back-to-back. Me leaned over her on the sidelines of that one game. Me withmy head thrown back laughing at something she said.When had someone even taken that? What the hell was this? I asked Iris that much.
“It’s a Merit and Ira stan account, duh!” she said, excited. “‘Stan’ is a combination of ‘stalker’ and ‘fan’. There’s a theory going around that you like her. And Mom and Dad said the girl they saw had braids.”
