powwow with his assistants. “Uh, Coach?” The three looked at me. “May I go to the training room for a protein bar? Turns out I forgot to eat today.” I shrugged.
His shoulders lowered with what looked like relief. “So that’s why you played like shit today. Of course you can go.”
“Thanks.”
I headed to the training room but turned around when he added, “Don’t let it happen again.”
I nodded.
Tina’s eyebrows flew up when I told her why I was there. “ Lucia sent you to get food?”
I hoisted myself onto one of the padded exam tables. “Ironic, isn’t it?”
“How’s she doing with her eating?” Tina’s dark blond ponytail swayed when she opened a drawer full of bars. I chose peanut butter-chocolate.
“Pretty good, I think.” I unwrapped the bar. “I watched her eat salmon, veggies, and rice a couple weeks ago at a restaurant.”
My nose wrinkled at the bar’s soy-protein smell, but I forced myself to take a bite. Once I chewed and swallowed, I realized how hungry I was. I polished off the bar in about two minutes, swigging water from my bottle between bites.
“So why’d you forget to eat today?” Tina busied herself with arranging the protein bars into neat rows in the drawer, but I knew her eagle eye still assessed me.
“It was stupid. I got caught up doing bio and chem labs.”
She shut the drawer and studied me. “You know, loss of appetite could be a symptom of depression.”
What? “I’m not depressed. I’ve just been busy.”
“Okay.” She patted my knee. “I heard…”
I braced myself.
“I heard you were going through a tough time.” She patted my knee again, and I held my breath. “Breakups can be painful.”
My nose burned. Don’t cry . “Who told you about Jaylon?”
“That doesn’t matter.” She shrugged. “Athletic trainers, we hear things. I know you two dated for a while, so I wondered how you were doing. Want to talk about it?”
I hopped off the table. “No. I’m fine.” I rocketed from the room before yet another person witnessed my breakdown over my breakup. “Thanks, Tina,” I said from the door. Time to stink up the gym some more .
Following a quick shower after practice, I was almost fully clothed when Lucia entered the locker room. She tossed her shoes into her locker as I zipped up my boots. I watched a completely nude Nina saunter to the showers—she’d obviously been hitting the tanning bed. Shaking my head, I grabbed my backpack. “Have a good night, Rez.”
“Wait, don’t leave.” She unlaced her ankle braces. “I wanted to see if you’d come over for dinner. Will you wait for me to get dressed?”
The hopeful look in her eyes made me pause. “I have to write a lab report tonight.”
“Please? Dane’s playing at Ball State…” As the university’s name rolled off her tongue, she started snickering like the freshman she was. “And I don’t have anyone to eat with. No one to, you know, support me at mealtime.” She tilted her head and peered up at me.
What an obvious ploy to get me to come over. We both knew damn well she was recovering like a champ. My eyes narrowed.
“Please, Maddie?”
My dad’s ring tone blasted from my backpack, and I sighed. “Fine. I’ll wait for you in the hallway.”
“¡Gracias, amiga!”
What a manipulator. I jogged to the hallway to the beat of “Superfreak” by Rick James—my dad’s favorite artist—and managed to answer the call before it went to voice mail. “Hey, Dad.”
“Finally I catch you. Have you been avoiding me?”
I grimaced. “Sorry.”
“I thought today’s college students relied too much on their parents—calling them five times a day, asking them to write papers. But you I never hear from.”
My dad taught history at Cuyahoga Community College and often complained about overinvolved parents. “How many calls have you gotten from parents wanting you to change their kid’s grades?”
“Hmm, about five so far. But it’s only
His shoulders lowered with what looked like relief. “So that’s why you played like shit today. Of course you can go.”
“Thanks.”
I headed to the training room but turned around when he added, “Don’t let it happen again.”
I nodded.
Tina’s eyebrows flew up when I told her why I was there. “ Lucia sent you to get food?”
I hoisted myself onto one of the padded exam tables. “Ironic, isn’t it?”
“How’s she doing with her eating?” Tina’s dark blond ponytail swayed when she opened a drawer full of bars. I chose peanut butter-chocolate.
“Pretty good, I think.” I unwrapped the bar. “I watched her eat salmon, veggies, and rice a couple weeks ago at a restaurant.”
My nose wrinkled at the bar’s soy-protein smell, but I forced myself to take a bite. Once I chewed and swallowed, I realized how hungry I was. I polished off the bar in about two minutes, swigging water from my bottle between bites.
“So why’d you forget to eat today?” Tina busied herself with arranging the protein bars into neat rows in the drawer, but I knew her eagle eye still assessed me.
“It was stupid. I got caught up doing bio and chem labs.”
She shut the drawer and studied me. “You know, loss of appetite could be a symptom of depression.”
What? “I’m not depressed. I’ve just been busy.”
“Okay.” She patted my knee. “I heard…”
I braced myself.
“I heard you were going through a tough time.” She patted my knee again, and I held my breath. “Breakups can be painful.”
My nose burned. Don’t cry . “Who told you about Jaylon?”
“That doesn’t matter.” She shrugged. “Athletic trainers, we hear things. I know you two dated for a while, so I wondered how you were doing. Want to talk about it?”
I hopped off the table. “No. I’m fine.” I rocketed from the room before yet another person witnessed my breakdown over my breakup. “Thanks, Tina,” I said from the door. Time to stink up the gym some more .
Following a quick shower after practice, I was almost fully clothed when Lucia entered the locker room. She tossed her shoes into her locker as I zipped up my boots. I watched a completely nude Nina saunter to the showers—she’d obviously been hitting the tanning bed. Shaking my head, I grabbed my backpack. “Have a good night, Rez.”
“Wait, don’t leave.” She unlaced her ankle braces. “I wanted to see if you’d come over for dinner. Will you wait for me to get dressed?”
The hopeful look in her eyes made me pause. “I have to write a lab report tonight.”
“Please? Dane’s playing at Ball State…” As the university’s name rolled off her tongue, she started snickering like the freshman she was. “And I don’t have anyone to eat with. No one to, you know, support me at mealtime.” She tilted her head and peered up at me.
What an obvious ploy to get me to come over. We both knew damn well she was recovering like a champ. My eyes narrowed.
“Please, Maddie?”
My dad’s ring tone blasted from my backpack, and I sighed. “Fine. I’ll wait for you in the hallway.”
“¡Gracias, amiga!”
What a manipulator. I jogged to the hallway to the beat of “Superfreak” by Rick James—my dad’s favorite artist—and managed to answer the call before it went to voice mail. “Hey, Dad.”
“Finally I catch you. Have you been avoiding me?”
I grimaced. “Sorry.”
“I thought today’s college students relied too much on their parents—calling them five times a day, asking them to write papers. But you I never hear from.”
My dad taught history at Cuyahoga Community College and often complained about overinvolved parents. “How many calls have you gotten from parents wanting you to change their kid’s grades?”
“Hmm, about five so far. But it’s only
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