Page 16 of Escape Velocity
Callum sighs. “Mason. I’m just trying to be friendly, alright?”
Mason crosses his arms. “Fine. Just don’t do it around me.”
For the briefest of moments, there’s a sad look in Callum’s eyes, like he’s maybe gunning on being friends with Mason. Like a year away from him made Callum change his ways and want to make nice and be buddy-buddy with Mason again just like in elementary school. But Mason isn’t one to forgive and forget, especially not after being abandoned.
Callum used to defend and protect him. But when they got into high school, Callum became the exact person that he would defend Mason against.
Mason doesn’t think he can ever forgive Callum for that. No matter how many run-ins he has with him, it still stings.
“Don’t mind him, Callum. Every rose has its thorn,” Jenna says, getting up and putting her hand on Callum’s shoulder.
Mason tenses at the affection for Callum from Jenna. He tenses at any affection that girls gave to Callum.
Callum laughs at this.
“It was nice to see you, Jenna. See you around,” Callum says, a sheepish smile on his face. He skirts his gaze over to Mason, who’s still crossing his arms and has his lips tightened.
“Mason,” Callum says, nodding his head once in acknowledgement. Then he turns and walks back out of the dining hall, like he wasn’t planning on going in it in the first place until he saw Jenna.
“You’re a real piece of work,” Jenna says, then takes a sip of her water.
Mason rolls his eyes. “You know how he was. He always looked down on me and what I liked in high school. It’s gonna take a lot more than some fake niceties before he can thaw this icy heart,” Mason says, thumping on his chest.
Jenna chuckles. “I know. I just hope that maybe he has changed. Maybe he’s learned the error of his ways,” she says hopefully. Mason looks at her with an apprehensive eyebrow raised. She closes her mouth and looks down at the ground.
“Well, remember—you have to write about him. So maybe… just pretend for a little bit of time that he’s your friend. Maybe it’ll make it easier to write about,” she says.
Mason sighs.
Maybe Jenna is right. He has so many dams and barricades in the way of his writing.
He needs to get onThe Goldberg, and if he keeps acting like a scorned lover, then it will likely never happen.
He has to get into the school spirit, go to the Hornets game, and pretend like he wants to be there.
It will go against everything he’s felt for the past four years. And it will take a huge blow to his ego, but it has to be done.
He has to hope to see Callum win.
5
MASON
It’sa chilly September night after a week of sweltering heat.
The crowd bubbles with excitement. A sea of maroon and gold, with cardboard cutouts of hornets and various player numbers.
Mason knows that football is popular. High school made that clear. But college football is a whole other beast. He has to pay to get a ticket, and it seems like there're hundreds of people here, all to see Callum most likely.
Even in college, Callum is practically royalty. The gargantuan poster of him on the quad is a clear insignia of his popularity.
Jenna’s words from the dining hall still ring in Mason’s head.
The more he tries to devalue Callum, the worse he feels about writing the piece. He’s tried to distract himself whenever he feels his fists clench at the thought or sight of Callum instead of letting himself ruminate over him. He has to focus on his studies, and he has to make sure he can get intoThe Goldberg, that much is certain.
Now that he’s in the stands with a pen and notepad in hand, his mental exercise seems to have benefitted him.
Jenna was originally supposed to come, but she’s a tough love friend. She didn’t want to hold Mason’s hand. She wanted him to go alone.
