Page 120 of What Are The Odds?
It really was. I’d felt the crowd there with us. Every gasp. Every cheer.
"It doesn’t have to be a competition,” Grace rebutted.
“Everything’s a competition, Hughesy. It’s a fact of life. One thing is always better than another.”
“Just like I’m a better player than you,” Ryan teased.
“Ouch,” Will snickered, picking up his beer.
“In your dreams,” Tripp snapped back.
“Have you seen my stats?” Ryan argued.
“Stats don’t always tell the whole story,” Tripp countered. “Care to weigh in, Cap?”
Laughing, I shook my head. “Don’t drag me into this.”
“Fine. Will?”
Will coughed. “You play different positions. Too hard to compare.”
“Cop out,” I mumbled.
“So what is it, Hughesy?” Ryan asked, coming back full circle. “Would you rather watch an AFL game or watch Levi play?”
Now this I wanted to know the answer to. Grace opened her mouth then closed it again. She was hesitating much too long for my liking.
Stella came to Grace’s defence. “That’s not fair. That’s like asking her to choose between here and home.”
“Well, that’s easy,” Ryan said. “This is the best country in the world.”
Ava snickered. “What an American thing to say.”
Tripp crossed his arms over his chest. “What’s better about Australia?”
Ava shook her head. “We’re so not opening that can of worms.”
Ryan smirked. “Because you know it’s a lost argument?”
“No, because there isn’t an argument.”
I ran my fingers up and down Grace’s leg, eliciting a shiver. She relaxed against me, an amused smile playing at her lips while Ryan, Tripp and Ava debated.
“You chose to come here," Tripp pointed out.
“Yeah. As an exchange,” Ava agreed. “To see a different part of the world. But the plan has always been to go home. You know, where the sun shines, and we don’t have to tip, and we drive on the proper side of the road.”
Tripp gasped. “Hughesy, are you telling me you’re planning to abandon us after graduation?”
Grace’s entire body went rigid. Or maybe it was mine. I anxiously looked at Will, begging him to get us out of this conversation. He set down his beer.
“You’ve got to graduate first, Tripp.”
That drew a laugh from everyone. Except Grace. She slipped off my lap, her feet hitting the floor.
“I’ll be right back.”
I watched her walk off, staring at my name and number on her back. The conversation continued, our friends completely oblivious to the sore spot they’d just touched on. This was only going to happen more and more. The closer we got to graduation, the more people would ask what happened next. Heck, I wanted to know myself. I stood, following Grace where she’d just headed outside. That question must’ve knocked her if she was willing to be out here. It was cold, even by my standard. She was standing at the edge of the parking lot, back straight as she stared at nothing.
