We hear muffled cheers from the crowd. I’m not sure who scored, but I hope it was us.
“Can you wait here?” Her smile is filled with concern for me and for Jake. I know I need to let her go to help him; that’s why she’s here.
I’m up against the wall, trying to grip the cement bricks for support. I nod because I don’t have the strength to say anything else.
“Is this Daniella?” one of the medics asks, popping his head through the doorway.
“Yes,” Nate’s mom speaks for me.
“He’s asking for her. He won’t let us work on him until she’s back here.”
Nate’s mom drops her head and shakes it as if she can’t win with either of us. She just got me to calm down and convinced me to stay out here.
I’m instantly filled with hope. If he’s asking for me, he must be okay. I quickly wipe my tear-streaked cheeks and try to pull myself together for him.
Jake is being restrained by two of the team trainers. He’s trying to sit up while they hold him down. I can tell he’s in pain. God, I hate Jackson. Is a win really that important?
As soon as I enter the room, his eyes meet mine, and he calms down enough to allow them to regain control.
“Daniella,” he says my name breathlessly as he pulls the oxygen mask away from his nose and mouth. “Who’s winning?” I can tell he’s having trouble breathing, but I can’t help laughing at his question.
“I don’t know. I ran back here to be with you.”
He smiles a deep, satisfied smile laced with a tiny bit of cockiness and a tiny bit of shock. It’s a gorgeous smile that reveals his incredible dimples.
“Jake, we need you to lie back,” the team doc says.
“I’ve gotta go out there. I can play. I just needed to catch my breath.” He tries to sit back up, removing the mask again.
“Let us decide that,” Nate’s mom says firmly as she steps in.
Knowing better than to argue with her, he finally gives in and lies back. He starts to breath in deeply, allowing the oxygen to help refill his lungs.
His eyes study me, and he pulls the mask away, trying to sit up again. “Were you crying?” His voice is filled with concern.
“No,” I answer quickly. He has enough to worry about.
Nate’s mom gives a small chuckle under her breath and smiles at me while she works on Jake.
He gives me questioning eyes while one of the medics places the oxygen mask back over his nose and mouth. They gently guide him to lie back, but his eyes never leave mine.
I want to grab his hand, touch him, let him know I’m here. However, there is no room for me; he’s surrounded by people checking him out to make sure there is no major re-injury. Instead, our eyes never leave each other. That is my one connection to him, and neither of us dares break it.
“Okay, Jake,” the team doc finally speaks. “I think you just had the wind knocked out of you. It doesn’t look like the ribs were displaced, and there’s no sign of further damage. It just hurt like a bitch because he slammed right into the break, but I guess my tape job held up.” He gives him a warm smile. “You got lucky, but you really should sit out the rest of the game.”
Jake pulls his mask off, struggling to sit up until he finally does. “Come on, Doc; I need to play. There can’t be a lot of time left. Please,” he pleads. I don’t think I have ever heard this kind of desperation in his voice before.
It catches the team doc by surprise, too, and he looks to Nate’s mom, who pulls the oxygen mask off completely. “Take a deep breath, Jake.”
He obeys. He already seems a hundred times better.
My heart begins to steady with relief.
“Give us one more,” Doc says, placing his stethoscope on Jake’s back. He looks to Nate’s mom with a smile, and they both nod.
“I’m not sure how, but you sound good to us,” Nate’s mom says.
“And since there’s not much time left, let’s do it.” The team doc slaps him on the shoulder.
I don’t think I have ever seen a smile filled with such pure joy grace Jake’s face. It eases whatever concerns I have.
“I just need a second,” he says to the room, and everyone is nice enough to clear out into the hallway. Then he grabs my hand and interlaces his fingers with mine. He knows there is limited time left in the game, so I’m shocked he’s doing this.
“Dani, I’ve gotta go do something.” He smiles and gestures toward the court with his head. “But I need to tell you what I should have told you years ago and then weeks ago and then minutes ago, but I’m telling you now. I know you said you need time, but I need you to know that I love you. And if nothing else, when I went down on the court, I realized I didn’t want you to be by my side; I needed you to be here. It made me realize what is truly important.
“I know now that my love for you doesn’t take away my love for Marcus. It doesn’t change how much he meant to me, how much he will always mean to me. But I can’t hide it anymore. I love you. I have always loved you. I will always love you. I’m going to go win this game … and then I’m going to show you just how much you mean to me like I should have done the first day I met you.”
“Well, we were five.” I give him a smile that I hope he reads as ‘I feel the same way.’
He returns my smile with a small laugh as he brushes his thumb across my cheek then places a loose strand of hair behind my ear. It’s as if time is frozen until I realize it isn’t. He needs to get back out there.
“Go. Win. I’ll be here,” I say with a quick squeeze of his hand before I drop it then watch as he runs back to the court.
I run behind to follow him. His parents are waiting at the doorway, and they sigh with relief as soon he reemerges. The girls on the squad have the same relieved look when their eyes land on me. The crowd goes wild as soon as they see him, the roar deafening. Jake is already in his play-to-win zone, and he barely has a reaction.
I anxiously glance at the scoreboard as I rejoin the girls on the sideline mid-cheer. There’s one minute left, and it’s a three-point game.
Before I know it, Jake is back on the court.
The Jaguars have the ball, and there is no Jackson in sight. He had to leave the court since he was ejected from the game.
Their player shoots and scores, and now it’s a one-point game.
Cam takes the ball back down the court. He passes to Jake, and I hold my breath without even realizing I’m doing it. Jake makes a move, and the other team fouls him, so he gets to take two free throws.
He’s at the line. The Jaguar fans are slamming their feet down on the ground and shouting out to distract him. Jake is used to it, though. In fact, he thrives on it.
His first shot is beautiful, and it goes right in. We are back up by two.
He bounces the ball twice then takes his second shot. Swish. We are up by three.
The Jaguars quickly take the ball back down, but by some divine force, Dax blocks their shot and steals the ball. He throws a long pass to Nate, who is running back to our side of the court, and Nate passes to Vizzi.
There are forty seconds left in the game, so we can run the clock down before we have to take a shot. The boys know this, and I see them having a conversation with looks and head nods as they quickly pass the ball to one another. Their non-verbal communication comes from years of playing together. Vizzi is right there with them, channeling Marcus. Without Jackson, our boys are faster than the other team, and we are playing them like a fiddle.
Jake gives the signal when the shot clock is at five, and they are off.
Cam gets the ball and passes to Nate, who is lined up to take a perfect three-pointer. He shoots, and the ball soars through the air. It looks like it’s going in. It rolls around the rim as if it’s toying with all of our emotions, and then it drops through the net.
Our side of the crowd goes nuts.
We are up by six with ten seconds left.
Our boys relax for one second as the Jaguars take the ball down. It’s
obvious they aren’t ready to give up yet. They take a three pointer and nail it. Their side erupts, but there are only five seconds left on the clock.
Cam takes the ball back down to our side. He quickly passes to Jake, and as soon as the ball is in his hand, he knows he has this; I see it all over his face.
The Jaguars are all over him, and they foul him again, desperately trying to buy themselves time, but too bad for them our best player has the ball.
It’s a three-point game, and Jake is literally standing on the line to end it once and for all. If he misses, they could have a shot. If he makes them both, we win.
The Jaguar fans are so loud I can barely hear the thoughts in my head, but a peace washes over Jake’s face. He’s unfazed.
Marcus is with him. It’s as if they are both taking these shots together.
He bounces the ball twice like he always does, and then the ball flies through the air …
Swish. One point.
He bounces the ball twice again. I have seen him do this a million times, but this time is different. It’s as if he knows this is it, the last shot he will ever take in high school. And it’s a perfect shot, perfect form, it flies right through the basket. Swish.
Our side of the crowd explodes. The Jaguars get the ball back with one second left on the clock and heave a Hail Mary almost the entire length of the court, but it’s not even close to going in, and even if it did, it wouldn’t matter. The Jaguars know it as they hang their heads down with defeat.
The buzzer erupts when the clock hits zero.
We won.
We won!
The rest of the team and the crowd swarm the court. I lose sight of Jake, but I know he’s in the middle of it, and I hope he’s taking it all in.
Everyone is hugging, screaming, crying. We are all overcome with emotions. We have been through so much these last few weeks, and this is the turning point for all of us.
I see Luke and Marcus’s mom and dad hugging the coach. The players are all including them in the celebration. For a small second, it’s as if Marcus is out there with them.
Mel reaches out and hugs me. “We won!” she shouts over the crowd.
“I know,” I say, returning her embrace. Things probably won’t ever be the same, but I will take these baby steps.
Em and Hanna join us, and we have a group huddle hug, our arms all intertwined.
“Can I borrow her for a sec?” I hear his voice then feel his hand on my shoulder. I love everything about this moment; except, I don’t want to hurt Mel any more than we already have.
My eyes dart to hers, and she just nods and smiles at both of us. A sigh of relief floats through me.
“That was a great game, Jake.” “Congrats.” “Awesome game,” people say as they pat him on the back and fist bump him when they walk by.
His eyes are locked on mine, his fingers laced with mine, as he pulls me away from my friends. Even though we are surrounded by people, it’s as if it is just the two of us. We both waited so long and suppressed so many feelings. We have been together in secret, but never this out in the open. It feels right, though.
“Now, where were we?” he asks with a smile that reveals his deep dimples. He cradles my jaw as he leans down to kiss me.
It’s an incredible kiss. We are surrounded by people celebrating, but it’s as though this is our own tiny victory. We no longer care who sees us or if they think it’s wrong or right. We are following our hearts finally, and that is all that matters.
“I love you, Daniella,” Jake whispers in my ear. “I always have.” He pulls back so our eyes lock, his hands still cradling my face.
“I love you, too, Jake. Always have.” I smile and stand up on my tiptoes to kiss him again.
He wraps his strong arms around me and lifts me off the ground with a small wince, but he powers through. It’s like we are one as he playfully spins us around.
As soon as we stop spinning, he gives me a sly smile. “So, you are into me?”
“Maybe,” I say with a shrug then kiss him so deeply it fills any crevice of doubt he may ever have.
The End.
Acknowledgements
I want to thank all of the readers who took a chance on an indie author and who have stuck by me, reached out, and asked for more. Thank you for your support and your kind words. It truly makes my day whenever I hear from you!
I also want to thank a few people who have been endless confidants—from encouraging words to reading original drafts. Your honest opinions mean the world to me and truly made this book so much stronger. Thank you to my mom, Rick, Dema, Ratha, Katie, Catherine, and Melissa. You have no idea how much your support and honesty mean to me.
Thank you to Alizon and Kris for your comments in the sidelines throughout the editing process. I always love them.
And thank you for reading this book. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I loved writing it. I’ve had this story in my head for a long time, and I’m so glad I got to finally share it with you.
About the Author
These are usually in third-person, but I thought I would change it up a little.
I grew up in Florida, so I write from experience about the excruciating heat. I now live in New York with my husband and two children, and every winter, I wonder why. (Not the husband and two children part, but the weather.)
My day job is as a television producer, but I have always loved writing and creating characters, and what started as a hobby has turned into a real passion. I’m so grateful to self-publishing, which has made something I didn’t even dare dream a real possibility. Even now, four books later, I still can’t believe it.
I love reading and writing YA, mostly because it still allows me to think like a fifteen-year-old.
I also really love hearing from you—good, bad, whatever—so please visit my Facebook page and leave a comment (if you want):
https://www.facebook.com/adriennetorrisiauthor/
Other books by Adrienne Torrisi:
Accidental Crush Series:
Accidental Crush
Accidental Love
Unbreakable
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