Page 110 of I Don't Need Your Love

“Carly!” Ryder flings his arms around me and hugs me tight. “We did it.Youdid it!”

“I…can’t believe it,” I whisper.

“All your hard work.” He presses his lips to my cheek. “You’re so amazing, Carly. Please, please can I kiss you now?”

I laugh before gripping the back of his head and pressing my lips to his. Some of our teammates “ooh” and “ahh.”

Then we meet up with our friends and family. My parents hug me over and over again, letting me know how proud they are of me. Dad even has tears in his eyes! He tells me how proud he is of me and how he can’t wait to see the day my dreams come true. Because all he wants is for me to be happy (even though I’m still under promise to go to college for a backup plan).

Blake grins at me. “Did you really put that routine together, little sis?”

I lift my chin. “You bet your butt I did.”

He chuckles as he closes his arms around me. “That was the sickest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”

“Thanks, Blake.”

Then my friends hug the living daylights out of me. While I’m made into a human pancake, I notice Ryder putting on a braveface as he exchanges hugs with my parents. His eyes dart around the room, as though he’s searching for his parents. But even he knows that’s futile.

Then he and Blake do one of the handshakes they did all the time when they were kids.

Naya’s mom offers to take us all out to celebrate. She chooses a super fancy restaurant that makes my parents a little uneasy, but she assures them a million times that she doesn’t mind. Actually, she’s glad to do this for us kids. We have a great time getting to know Naya and her mom better. Ms. Jani is a tough cookie, but it’s obvious she loves Naya very much. Naya looks like this is the best day of her life.

All the while, though, I sense a despondent cloud over Ryder’s head. I wish I knew what I could say or do to help him, but maybe I can’t? I have to understand that I can’t fix everyone’s problems. Maybe the only thing I can do is be there for him, and be the best girlfriend I can be. And when he’s ready to open up and share that part of himself with me, I’ll be there.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Ryder

Carly and I are sitting on a couch in the rec room a few hours after we get back from the competition. The team’s spirit has been high all afternoon, and I’ve been trying to be as happy as them. But it’s hard.

My amazing girlfriend and I were supposed to play games here, but we ended up sitting on the couch for over an hour, just being together. My arms are wrapped around her and she rests her head on my shoulder.

“You’re quiet,” she observes.

“Sorry. Just thinking.”

She raises her head to look at me. “I noticed you seemed a little down at the competition.”

Swallowing, I nod. “Yeah. I didn’t want to drag the team down, but I was upset about something. I’m still upset.”

She sits up. “Do you want to talk about it?”

I hesitate.

She places her hand on my cheek. “Is it your parents? I didn’t see them at the competition.”

Sighing deeply, I shake my head. “No. They didn’t come.”

She waits for me to say more, her hand stroking the back of my head.

I take her hand. “It’s hard for me to talk about them,” I say in a low voice. “It hurts too much.”

She nods in understanding.

“But I want to tell you. There’s a lot about me that you don’t understand. Some of it will explain why I pushed you away when we were little and hung out with Blake all the time.”

“Ryder, you don’t have to explain anything if it’s too hard. I just want to be there for you and help you go through whatever hardships you’re going through.”