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vladi

“ W ake up sunshine! Time for breakfast!!”

My head is fucking pounding and the chipper ass voice telling me to get up sets my teeth on edge.

I grunt, willing the darkness to claim me once more.

“Come on, Vladster,” he shakes my shoulder, trying to rouse me. “We gotta get up and pack before we go to breakfast so we can get back to Milwaukee for preseason workouts.”

Goddammit, I have a headache. After Maggie left last night, I drank.

And drank. And then I drank some more. This is the one thing you’re allowed to do at weddings, yes?

But now I feel like shit. Utter. Shit. And not just from the alcohol.

My hangover is nothing compared to the stabbing pain gripping my chest over what I did to her.

What I couldn’t do for her . I can’t bear to face her.

I can’t take seeing her so sad, so angry.

I can’t look her in the eye and tell her I don’t love her.

I fucking do love her. I just don’t know that I should.

And she was right. I’m scared. I’m scared of loving her.

Scared of losing her. Scared of not being enough.

The fear is engrained in me like it’s part of my DNA.

The weight of that reality crushes my chest until I can barely breathe.

I don’t know how to not be this way. How do you overcome the one fear you’ve had your entire life?

I bury my head in the pillow hoping he will leave. “I’m not going to breakfast, Bougie. Stop fucking talking and let me sleep.”

“No can do, my sweet goalie pie. Captain’s orders.

Zack said if you’re not packed and downstairs for breakfast in fifteen minutes, I’m allowed to perform my favorite selection from High School Musical 2 .

So…would you like to hear Bet On It, Fabulous , or I Gotta Go My Own Way ?

Personally, with the golf course on property, I recommend Bet On It since I can perform the song with full choreography. ”

Geezus, this kid . “Fuck no. I’ll get up.”

“You sure? I have my karaoke tracks all cued up on my phone.”

“No,” I say, stumbling out of bed to throw my belongings in a bag and shower. Wait...this isn’t Bougie’s room. This is my room.

My gaze darts around the nearly empty, clean space, looking for any signs of her. My heart sinks. “Bougie, where the fuck is Maggie?”

He walks over to me, placing a hand on my shoulder. “She’s gone. She caught a flight back this morning. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.”

I narrow my brows as I run a hand through my hair, my chest tight, my breaths short. “I thought we were all flying back together today. Did…” I swallow thickly, “did something happen? Is she okay? Why did she go back early? And what the fuck are you doing in my room?!”

He throws his hands up, something almost like understanding in his eyes. “Hey, hey, hey…calm down. You had a lot to drink, and when I brought you back, Maggie was leaving, so I offered to stay and make sure you were okay. I was a complete gentleman though and put up the wall of pillows. ”

I glare at him, this time hoping he gets that I’m not in the mood for teasing.

“Okay, okay. Take a breath, man, I’m just joking. She’s fine. Maggie just wanted to go home early.”

My stomach sours, the remnants of last night threatening to crawl their way out. “Because of me?”

He gives me a clenched half-smile. “She didn’t say.

But, by the way she was crying, I’m guessing it might have something to do with you.

” He taps his chin, popping his lips. “Now that I think about it, maybe I Gotta Go My Own Way would be the better song choice. This feels similar to Troy and Gabriella’s third act breakup. ”

My jaw ticks as I stare him down, a glimpse of fear flashing in his eyes as if he’s unsure if he should poke the bear. He shouldn’t . But also, fuck, I don’t know what’s happening, so I let him speak without punching him. For now.

“What happened, Vladi? You two seemed like you were having a great time at the reception. Aaand I happened to walk by a certain janitor’s closet and heard some pretty interesting noises coming from behind the door.

” He wiggles his eyebrows in a gesture I’m not familiar with.

“Did you know my room is right next to yours? Don’t think I haven’t heard you two in here. ”

My eyes widen. “You heard us?”

“Who at this resort didn’t hear you two? I’m not upset about it. I’m impressed at your stamina, to be quite honest. But when you two finally get your shit figured out and live together, you might want to invest in some soundproofing. You two are not quiet when you’re smashing”

“Smashing?”

“You know, doing the deed, rizz and hit, Netflix and chill, getting it on?—”

“Enough,” I cut him off, not needing to hear any more of these crude sayings. “I understand. But you heard us and said nothing? ”

“It’s not like it just comes up in conversation. ‘Hey Vladi, heard you and Maggie goin’ at it all night…that sounded fun!’” He forces a cough, no longer able to look me in the eye. “What you two have…I’m not ashamed to admit it, I’m fucking jealous, bruh.”

I freeze, my brows narrowing. He has to be joking now. “You. You are jealous of me?”

“Of course I am! You’re an amazing goalie, everyone in the league respects you, you’re a good friend, apparently you’re great at fucking, and that girl is crazy about you. She’s so far gone for you, Vladi. So. Far. Gone. I wish I had a girl notice me the way she notices you.”

My mind spins. I clearly had too much alcohol last night because this cannot be Bougie speaking like this to me . “You have a different girl chasing after you every night. Why would you be jealous of me?”

He turns to the window, staring out into the blue morning sky. “My life’s not all it’s cracked up to be…” his voice trails off. “So, yeah, I’m super jealous you have a woman pining over your every move. But I gotta ask…why are you so hesitant to be with her?”

I grunt, shoving more clothes into my suitcase. “My life is also not all it’s cracked up to be.”

“Well, like I said the other day, if I were you, I would not let that one get away. Maggie is your person, Vladi. Let me say it again, in case you didn’t hear me. She is your person. If it were me, I’d do whatever it takes to keep her.”

I stand frozen in place, stunned at the wisdom coming out of this kid. I did not think like this at twenty-two . I swallow hard, hesitant to say the words about to come out of my mouth. “Thank you, Jordan. I’ll…I’ll think about it.”

His eyes go wide as a smile bursts across his face. “Vladamir…did you just call me Jordan? Maybe I’m your person instead of Maggie! ”

“Okay that was a mistake. Get away from me.”

He clobbers me with a hug and a pat on the back. “Nope, nope, nope…you called me Jordan and there’re no take backs. Now give me a hug, you big Russian.”

I sigh, reluctantly tapping his back in return, then quickly pull away from this ridiculous display of emotion.

“Now, unless you want to hear my selections from the best Disney Channel Original Movie ever made, I suggest you get your bag packed so we can go to breakfast before the flight.”