Page 147 of My Merry Mistake
“You guys, you guys,” Eloise says, “they’re just friends.”
A chorus of “Yeah, okay,” and “Oh, I bet they are” rings out, and I shift in my seat.
“We really are friends.” I say this with conviction, but my skin tingles at the memory of his body pressed against mine, his hands tangled in my hair, and the way his lips moved against my own.
“He’s a good friend to have,” Lisa says. “Last year, when Krush was injured, he showed up every few days to hang out with him. Rehab is super hard on these guys. It’s lonely, and I think Finn saved him from getting really depressed.”
“These guys are not themselves when they can’t play,” Monica says.
“These guys arehuge babieswhen they can’t play,” Kari says, and the others laugh.
I picture Finn showing up the same way for me. Getting me out of the house. Taking me to the tutoring club. Getting the tree, then coming back to decorate it. What was he saving me from by doing that? I doubt I would’ve made good use of my time off without his help.
“I still can’t get over how he saved that tutoring club,” Kari says.
“Thatwas really sweet,” Monica adds.
“Wait, what do you mean?” I turn around.
“Okay,” Kari scoots forward in her seat like she has a story she can’t wait to share. “So you know how the guys get fan mail all the time—there was this one kid, a die-hard fan, who wrote almost every day asking for help saving this tutoring club where he went after school. I think he thinks the guys are like superheroes or something—it really was so sweet.” She beams, like she loves this story.
“He said that the club helped his family because his dad was sick or deployed or something”—she flicks her hands in the air—“and his mom worked a lot of hours. He was scared they’d have nowhere to go if the club closed.”
The image of Grace and her brothers appears in my mind.
“Right, but the club didn’t have enough money to keep going,” Kari says. “So Finn gets wind of this and decides to fund it. He donates money every month to keep them open.”
He . . . what?
“He’s also convinced a bunch of the guys to go volunteer there, and he’s brought most of those kids to games,” Monica says.
“You’re kidding,” I breathe.
Kari shakes her head. “Nope. That place would no longer exist if not for Finn Holbrook.”
“I didn’t know about any of that,” I say slowly. “I’ve actually been there.”
“Well, Brookie saved it,” Lisa says.
“Brookie.” Monica giggles. “Everyone’s favorite.”
I think about the way the people at the tutoring club responded when they saw Finn. Not just the kids, but the adults too. No wonder they all love him so much.
I go still, and Eloise leans in. “See? I told you he was a good guy.”
“I knew he was a good guy,” I say, mostly to myself.
I just didn’t know he might actually be good for me.
His words rush back.
I got you.
And I believe him. My mind is frantic, an overloaded processing system that can’t sort through the information fast enough. And then, it’s like a switch flips in my head, or a searchlight stops scanning the clouds and lands on one specific spot.
I believe him, and Iwantto take the risk. Even though it’s scary. Even though it might end. Because . . .
“I love him.” The words are out, barely a whisper, and I can’t take them back.
