Page 11 of The Change Up
To feel all the feels.
Anger and disappointment for not hitting my goal for the semester.
Anxiety and nerves about having to cover a new topic.
Then, on the other hand, a small part of me feels excited about having to push myself to write a new topic.
Dread for having to spend my semester traveling with the baseball team—and Cody Jacobs.
Moisture is escaping my eyes like a waterfall, and I fight to keep the sob from erupting as it builds pressure in my chest. I can feel the mascara streaking my cheeks, and I know I’m going to have to do some major damage control before I leave this bathroom.
But at this moment, I don’t even care.
I’m Chloe Mariano, I always have it together. The girl who always has the shoulder for her friends to cry on. But right now, I just want to curl up in a ball and mope. I want to be the hot mess. The girl who doesn’t have it all figured out and gets to fly by the seat of her pants.
Voices filter in the space as I quietly grab a handful of tissue paper to start erasing the black streaks that have no doubt wiped away all of my foundation. Remind me to never skip the waterproof mascara.
After a few minutes of listening to the girls and their gossip, footsteps begin to retreat and I hear the door open with their exit. I could have gone out there, but I didn’t want to see the look of judgment over my mascara-streaked face.
Sticking my head out, I take a quick peek around to make sure the coast is clear. Seeing that I’m the only one in the bathroom I rush through the process of washing my hands. Digging through my purse, I find my emergency supply of makeup remover wipes and begin fixing my streaked mascara.
Finally, at a point where I feel ready to face the few students on campus, I exit the bathroom to begin my journey to the student parking lot.
I guess I’ll be putting my book on hold for a little while longer. And on top of that, I can’t even properly sulk because there’s an ice storm coming. Pulling up the text from my dad, I scan over the list of supplies he sent me. Time to pull up my big girl panties and embark on the madness of winter storm preparation shopping.
This is not how this morning was supposed to go.
Can this day get any fucking worse?
I swear there’s nothing like Mother Nature to fuck up your plans. Jesus, this is Texas, why is an ice storm even happening?
Right now the team should be on a bus heading for Arlington for the Showdown Tournament. Instead, we’re busy preparing for a damn ice storm.
Thank God the university and our landlord value athletics because they’ve been dropping off supplies to the Baseball House all afternoon since we were supposed to be gone all weekend. A few grocery bags of food, two cases of water, a large space heater, and a cell phone bank were delivered. Hudson went out and found a generator and filled up a large can of gasoline. He said if he was getting iced in, there was no way he was going to not be playing video games. Nerd.
Is the team spoiled? Maybe. But here’s the thing, I don’t care. I’ll take advantage of all the handouts becausewhy not?
“Jacobs, wanna go grab a pizza before we’re stuck in this fucking house for the weekend?” Hudson asks from where we’rechilling in our living room. We’ve been playing Xbox for the last hour.
Tossing my controller on the coffee table, I stretch my arms over my head. “Yeah, man. Wanna order Cousin Jimmy’s?”
Cousin Jimmy’s is a CTU staple. This place is the only takeout on campus that stays open until four in the morning. They have the greasiest pizza that is the shit for late-night munchies or hangovers. And they’re cheap as hell. You can get an extra-large pizza, ten breadsticks, and two large drinks for ten dollars. Who the hell can pass that up?
“You order, I’ve got to take a shit,” Hudson says as he gets up from his spot on the sectional.
“Less information, Hud.”
Glancing around, I can’t find my phone. Standing, I start searching the floor and the cushions. This couch swallows everything. Tossing the cushions on the floor, I finally find my phone tucked in the back corner.
I close out of the million alerts from the weather app letting me know that there’s an ice storm approaching. No shit, I get it. I don’t need a reminder every fifteen minutes.
Pulling up the Cousin Jimmy’s app, I type out our pizza order. Three Cousin Jimmy’s specials for the whole house. The four of us will crush this order in no time.
“Twenty minutes,” I shout, hoping Hudson can hear me. I should send him a message, no doubt he’s on his phone using it as his newspaper like everyone else.
When Hudson and I make it back to the house, Niko and Ty are both home sprawled on the couch waiting for us. Carrying the food straight into the living room, I set the boxes down on the coffee table. Tossing the guys a few napkins, we sit around and eat our food like heathens. All of us are depressed over the shitty circumstances we found ourselves in today.
All week we’ve been hyping ourselves up because baseball was officially supposed to be back, and now we are left with shitty weather and a major adrenaline crash. I watch as Hudson and Ty duel it out inCall of Dutyin between slices of pizza they are inhaling. Maybe I should have ordered another special? I didn’t realize the guys would scarf down the food like savages.
