Page 83 of Call the Shots (For The Arena #1)
JUNE
JUST A REALLY WEIRD, NEW BEGINNING
With Sémajuste, the team never worked harder yet it was never quieter. Study sessions were canceled, the locker room was silent, and most of them talked to me privately about what happened because they felt like they couldn’t talk to anyone else.
I texted our group chat about a required team activity at the student center. Usually, they came early in groups of fives, laughing and joking together, but I sat on one of the benches, alone.
“Hey!” Cleo hurried over and enveloped me in a hug. We were doing that a lot more. “Denali and Elijah aren’t coming.”
“What? Why?”
“Denali just said he has to be there for him.” She rubbed her temples. “I don’t know. It didn’t sound like they were planning on coming.”
Bear arrived with some of the guys from RV to finally begin our slot at the bowling alley. I bought crappy nachos and stacked candy boxes, trying to coax the team to start the tournament. A couple of them joined. Most were on their phones.
Montoya shuffled out of the shadows, his hands in his pockets, taking a seat away from everyone.
“Montoya!” I waved at him. “Come sit with me.”
He gave me a long look and shuffled over. “Do you know why Denali isn’t here?”
“Um, Elijah had a thing?—”
“It’s because of me. Denali already didn’t like me because I can’t throw a punch, and now it’s because of Elijah.”
What was Montoya talking about? The summer had been busy, I didn’t spend a lot of time with Denali because he was usually working for the team, but I didn’t notice him actively disliking Montoya.
“Of course Denali likes you?—”
“No, he doesn’t. I’m the one who got Elijah in trouble.”
“Montoya…”
“I’m sorry—” He shifted into himself, eyes planted on his hands. “I was already scared about the season, and now this, I—I don’t know what I’m going to do when you and Bear graduate. The other guys barely tolerate me. Now it’s going to be so much worse.”
Montoya sounded so convinced too, it hurt to listen to. I touched his arm. “Do you know what Bear and I call you?”
“No,” he mumbled.
“We call you our kid.”
“No, you don’t?—”
“Yeah, we do. In private. We know you didn’t mean for anything bad to happen to King. Sometimes, people make mistakes, and we hurt each other. That’s kind of being human.”
“You never made a mistake like this.”
“I’ve made a lot of them—I’ve hurt people when I didn’t mean to.
I said things I didn’t mean.” I took a deep breath.
“You’re still one of my favorite people, Montoya.
That hasn’t changed. I know you’re anxious about the season, I know you’re anxious about your place on the team, but I promise, I’m not.
You’ll find your footing, I believe in you. ”
I pulled him into a hug and Montoya hugged me back, squeezing me tight enough to cut off my breathing. I scanned the room until my eyes landed on Bear. I silently urged him over, pointing at Montoya.
“Montoya!” Bear hauled him up. “You’re bowling with me, come on.”
I could’ve kissed him. I meant everything I said but I knew it didn’t mean as much as it would coming from a teammate, especially Bear. Bear talked to him in a low voice while he punched their names into the scoreboard. I was so grateful. Montoya couldn’t be isolated from everyone, like Elijah was.
Ugh. That was a whole thing we’d have to deal with.
“Here they come,” Cleo remarked, and I glanced over my shoulder.
My heart leaped. My best friends were coming through the bowling entrance, Miles at the front, with Ryan, Kassie, Adam, Piper, and King and Willow in tow.
I turned to Cleo and she shrugged. “I told Miles to bring something to liven up the party.”
The hockey players stretched back, craning their necks. “Dad!”
“Everybody excited for the big day?” Miles asked, his voice booming over the bowling alley.
“I haven’t told them yet,” Cleo replied, amused. When everyone turned to her, she folded her hands together. “The whole team is invited to our wedding?—”
“That’s a mistake,” Nick chortled.
Some of the guys punched him on the shoulder, shoving him off his chair to speak over him, the team was obviously excited about getting their invitation. Their excitement tapered off with King’s arrival, but Bear came up and clapped him on the back, clearly bringing him in.
“What is this, a fucking morgue?” Adam demanded. “Where’s the music?”
The bowling alley had their volume down for a Wednesday, but Adam didn’t let that bother him. He cranked up the volume on his phone and mussed my hair before typing his name on the list for bowling.
“I have a speaker, I keep it for the bars I work at.” Willow shuffled through her backpack. “We’re using this if I get to pick the music.”
The iciness of the night was broken and I could see the guys individually coming up to King. King, bless his heart, nodded through the conversations with vaguely confused looks directed at Willow. He definitely didn’t remember them.
“Paychecks hit!” Sully shouted.
Heads jerked up from around our team until phones were practically thrown out of their pockets.
“ Damn, ” Fridge groaned. “I love having a real coach . ”
“It’s a Sémajuste payday.” Nick stopped. “It’s a Sémapayday!”
We were finally on track for a real night together. I breathed out in relief and took the candy bar from Bear when he offered it. The night wasn’t as easy as I wanted it to be, but I’d take the awkwardness over everyone being apart.
King relaxed on the corner seat beside me. “Hey.”
“How do the stitches feel?”
“Good—I stitched myself the first time, so these are way better.” A grin crossed his face when he saw my grossed-out expression. “Were you serious about the go-kart double date thing? I want to tell Willow.”
“Mm-hmm, it’ll be like a living, interactive video game for Bear, he’ll love it.”
I didn’t think King got my joke, but he grinned anyway.
“Is everything okay with Coach Lawson?” I asked, careful to keep my voice low.
“Oh, yeah.” He pointed at his forehead. “Training accident.”
“When are you telling him about you and Willow?”
“Day after the seniors’ dinner. In a public, well-lit restaurant. If Coach wants to hit me for dating his daughter, maybe he won’t do it in front of witnesses.”
I laughed. “Are you and Willow matching for seniors’ night?”
“She thinks it’ll make us too obvious.” He shrugged. “Are you bringing Bear?”
“I’m not going.”
“What do you mean? You always go to end-of-the-summer dinners.”
“I’m not with football anymore, King.”
“Yeah, you are.” He frowned. “You still have your spot on the trips, you’re still going to the games with us. It doesn’t matter that—” King studied me for a moment. “You’re not coming?”
“I’ll be there for the home games.”
“But…?”
Gingerly, I shook my head, and King blinked in surprise, struggling with what to say. We were quiet. The only quiet ones while the hockey team yelled over Willow’s strike.
“I didn’t know this was our last—” King rubbed the back of his neck. “What are you doing instead?”
“Law school?—”
“ Law school? Holy shit. Doesn’t that take like…a lot of studying and time?”
“The years were going to pass anyway.” I shrugged. “Now I’ll be investing in who I want to be. I know law school will be a lot of work, but I also know it’ll be worthwhile when I get my diploma. I’m honestly really excited.”
He sighed. “I know I haven’t been the best at being a friend?—”
“You’re fine?—”
“I’ve been out of it?—”
I stopped him. “You’re out of it because you’re doing that thing that most people don’t have to question or doubt or be scared of, you’re falling in love.”
His eyes flickered to Willow and he nodded.
“You know if you needed a kidney, I’d give it to you on a silver platter, but you don’t. You needed space and I didn’t give you that,” I admitted. “I’m sorry about the fake relationship starting again, that was dumb.”
“I’m sorry about lying to get out of Montero’s birthday party.”
“You—what? Montoya’s party? ” I clamped my mouth shut. “Nevermind. Water under the bridge.”
Nick held up bowling balls to his groin and called them his bowling nuts while Ryan broke the score machine and accidentally reverted it to an older version where it called everybody’s moves a strike. I settled back, watching the guys laugh together again, so pleased Cleo pushed everyone here.
King nudged me with his shoe. “I’m going to miss you.”
“It’s not the end,” I promised. “Just a really weird, new beginning.”
“Oh—I almost forgot!” Cleo took a huge cardboard box from Miles. “We have the Gladiator bands!”
I went to help Miles pass them out, I didn’t think I’d get to be here for them. They were woven bracelets that the Gladiators got every year, and tradition stood to give them to whoever they were seeing.
Bear stretched back from his place with the guys. “June? Did you get yours?”
“Oh, I don’t get one.”
He stared for long seconds. “ Huh? ”
I was just a PR intern—we only ordered enough for the team, but I realized what he meant when Bear stood up, his eyebrows drawn in concern. Bear was asking if I got one because of him .
“What do you mean you don’t get one?” he asked.
“Bear, it’s your turn to bowl—” Nick snapped his fingers. “Don’t go over to her— Bear! It’s your turn! It’s a long fucking list— BEAR! ”
Bear ignored him, coming my way while the blush spilled across my cheeks. I picked one from the box. “I didn’t mean it like that?—”
“How’d you mean it?”
Nick groaned and picked up a random bowling ball. “If you leave during your turn, I’m playing for you, and I’m throwing it in the gutter!”
Bear wrapped his arm around me, pulling me towards the chairs away from everybody, sitting me on his lap. I wasn’t used to getting handled like that, the blush darkened while Bear swept my hair behind my shoulder.
“We’re in public, you can’t just pull me around like this,” I whispered.
“I’m really sorry about the shit party. I’d never want to hurt any of your friends?—”
“You already said sorry, Bear. It’s okay.”
“I don’t want you to be mad at me.”
The blush burned. “I’m not mad at you.”
He slipped the Gladiator band into my hand, his lips ghosting my neck, his slow breaths pebbling my skin with goosebumps. I shuddered when he made contact, scraping his teeth along my throat. Apparently, I wasn’t fast enough because he took my hand to slip on the bracelet. “Whose is this?”
“Yours,” I said softly.
“Uh-huh. You have your band, I have my leash.” He nuzzled my neck with kisses, pulling me closer. “That’s how it's supposed to be.”