Page 15 of Interference
“Brett,” she whispers, but I shake my head.
“The last thing I want to do is cause you pain, and I’m clearly doing that by being here. Just know if you need me, I’m only a phone call away.”
Turning, I start to walk away.
“Wait!” she calls out, making me stop.
I close my eyes as I feel her approach me from behind.
“Are you busy?” she asks.
“No.”
I need to get to practice, but that can wait. Especially if it means she will tell me why she keeps yo-yoing emotionally.
She shakes her head as she frowns. “Wait, you have practice.”
Part of me likes that she knows that.
“I can skip,” I say without hesitation.
It’s not like I’m on the ice anyway.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes,” I say with determination.
Her shoulders draw up as she takes a deep breath. “Will you go back to my place with me? There’s something I need to talk to you about.”
“Do you want to ride with me?”
She shakes her head slowly. “No, I’ll need my car later.”
“Okay, I’ll follow you. Do you need to grab your bag?”
She shakes her head again. “No, I didn’t bring it.”
Weird, she always has her bag when she comes to the rink. We all do. How else would we carry around all of our gear?
Maybe she skated earlier and just stopped by to talk to the coaching staff? She usually practices at this time, though.
Annnd now I sound like a stalker.
Ignoring my thoughts, I give her my attention. I follow her out to the parking lot and get in my car. As I follow her to her apartment, my mind races. I’ve known Emery for three years, and I’ve never seen her like this. Not once has she ever taken her anger out on me like she has recently.
Something’s wrong. There has to be something wrong.
Yeah, but what?
Is she hurt? Did she get some kind of injury and she’s worried about what it means?
No, if that were the case, she would have come to me sooner. She was there when I got hurt, and I would like to think she would know that she can lean on me if it was that.
Did she get bad news about the trials coming up?
As soon as that thought enters my mind, I push it to the side. It can’t be that. Emery is a fucking shoo-in for the Olympics. She’s one of the hardest workers I’ve ever met. She has everything it takes to make it and bring home the gold. The committee would be stupid not to ask her to join.
What if it’s nothing to do with skating?
