Chapter 6

Bella

My eyes flick around the living room as I twiddle my thumbs, looking for something to do. Drew’s been gone for so long that I’m starting to feel claustrophobic in this room, since I don’t feel like I have the right to go anywhere else. I’ve watched every episode of Baseball Wives , losing several brain cells in the process, but hoping that would give us something to talk about since we’re going to be stuck with each other for the foreseeable future.

Or at least I thought we were going to be stuck with each other, but he’s been gone so long, I’m starting to get worried.

The snow is thick and heavy against the glass. It’s only early afternoon, so I have nothing to worry about, and Drew is a big boy. He’ll be fine out there. I have no idea what stores would be crazy enough to be open in this weather, but Drew’s tenacious. He’ll find one. That’s probably why he’s taking so long. He’s probably walking all over Hope, looking for the one open store, so he has an excuse for being out there instead of in here, talking about my cooch.

And yes, after replaying the moment in my head a thousand times and denying it to myself for the first hour of being alone, I can’t fool myself.

Drew saw everything, and his reaction was to leave me for the cold. He’d rather freeze to death than look at me. Talk about humiliation.

I didn’t want to talk about it either, but we needed to talk about it to agree never to talk about it again. We’re stuck together for at least another few days, and I’ll still see him around campus. I don’t want things to get more awkward than they already are.

I take one more look out the window, and there’s still no sign of Drew. So, it’s still just me and the TV. There’s literally nothing else I can do except watch Baseball Wives on repeat until he gets here, and I’m getting particularly tired of this one chick who’s definitely only trying to get herself a baseball husband, but none of the guys are stupid enough to take her on.

Placing a pillow on the coffee table, I rest my leg on top of it, hoping a different view might give me a new perspective on things. In the move, my cast accidently knocks a controller off the table, smacking my other leg and landing on the floor next to me.

The TV screen goes dark for a second, switching to a cartoon go-karting game. I pick up the controller, pressing a few buttons, hoping it will change back to the reality show, but it doesn’t work.

The screen stays on with an ape bouncing along in a 4x4 that looks a lot like Drew’s G Wagon. A countdown begins, and cars whoosh in front of the ape, but he stays still.

Pursing my lips, I look at the TV and then the controller. I haven’t played on a console in years, but how hard could it be? I might as well play a game or two. It’s got to be better than another episode of fake baseball drama. The guy they’ve got pretending to look for love is so unbelievable; it’s almost comical. Besides, there’s only so much base stealing I can watch in one day, and who knows, maybe playing a few races will take my mind off the cooch talk I need to have with Drew.

Unsurprisingly, I lost the first few races, but I’m getting better by the fifth race. As I drive over a bridge, a mushroom man drives beside me, and he tries to veer me off the road by pushing me to the side, but I don’t let him. I use my giant wheels to make him lose balance and fall off the other side into the ditch.

“Take that,” I mutter, getting far too into the game when suddenly, a message pops up at the bottom of the screen.

JMill21: Someone’s in a bad mood today. Did you really have to push me off and waste a life?

I stare down at my controller, narrowing my eyes at the buttons. Nothing resembles a keyboard, so how the heck am I supposed to type back?

JMill21: Where’s your mic?

There’s a mic on these things? I can’t see one anywhere. Taking a chance, I click a few buttons until a keyboard pops up, and just as I’m about to write a message to the stranger to let them know I’m not Drew, I stop myself. A smirk rises up my cheeks. Why not mess with some of Drew’s friends while he’s gone? It’s the least I could do for him after he left me here all day to do nothing but think about how much he hated seeing me naked.

It takes me at least three minutes, but I manage to type out a message.

McD45 : No mic. I’m sick and have no voice.

McD45? Really? That’s Drew’s username? Sounds like a fast-food chain.

JMill21: How? Isn’t it like 70 degrees in Tampa?

I sit up straighter, feeling a little more watched than before. The mere mention of Tampa means that this isn’t some random gamer. This has got to be someone Drew knows in real life.

McD45 : I’m not there.

JMill21: Don’t tell me you got stuck in the snowstorm? I told you to get the flight with Coach Summers.

JMill21: You better not be eating all my batch cooking.

JMill21: You alive? Okay, fine, you can eat my food. Just pay me back.

Sweat prickles at the back of my neck, and as I read the username one more time, I realize I’m talking to Jacob Miller, one of Drew’s roommates. My fingers back away from the controller because it feels a little too hot. A little too real. I can’t fake being Drew to him, but the persistent messages mean I’ve got to say something.

McD45 : No problem. Will pay you back.

What else can I say? I’m talking to the Jacob Miller, and I need to nip this conversation in the bud before he suspects something.

JMill21: So, you’re stuck in Hope with no family?

I consider mentioning that I’m here, but don’t because surely that would only raise suspicion.

McD45 : Yup. Just me.

JMill21: That sucks. Your mom is going to be so upset.

Sadness for the little boy watching Home Alone while being home alone flashes through my mind, and I wonder if his mom still works every Christmas Eve. Sponsorship deals are great, but Drew won’t be earning the big bucks until he gets to the NFL, and I doubt he has much money left over after servicing his G Wagon.

McD45 : It’s not great, but there’s nothing else I can do.

JMill21: You’re not missing much. Family’s overrated.

Don’t take the bait.

My fingers itch over the controls. Jacob obviously wants to talk about something, and I should close it down, but I can’t help it; I’m bored and intrigued. Jacob Miller is always portrayed as this perfectly put-together guy. He’s got that Tom Brady robot vibe, so knowing he has problems like the rest of us is intriguing.

No. I shouldn’t ask. It’s private, and he doesn’t know he’s talking to me. I should shut this conversation down.

But then again, Drew’s still not home, and I have nothing else to do.

JMill21: Never thought I’d despise coming home for Christmas so much.

I bite my bottom lip. That’s just asking for trouble. My thumbs fiddle with the controller, contemplating my next move.

Don’t do it.

Don’t do it.

Don’t invade Drew and Jacob’s privacy.

JMill21: Should have stayed there with you.

Screw it.

That little voice in my head has never been all that right, anyway. Something’s clearly bothering him, and who knows, maybe all Jacob needs is some womanly advice masked behind his roommate.

McD45 : Doesn’t sound good, Bro. What’s happened?

JMill21: Bro? Have you been slaying the eggnog again? I thought you gave up the stuff after last time.

Oh, how I wish I could find out what happened with Drew and eggnog, but I’ve got to stay believable.

McD45 : What else is there to drink in a snowstorm? But this isn’t about me. What happened?

JMill1: Not much. My parents decided to go to my ex’s house for holiday drinks last night.

McD45 : Do your parents hate you? Because that’s the only reason mine would go to my ex’s at Christmas.

Sabrina dances through my mind, wondering if Drew still speaks to her on the sly.

JMill21: Don’t you remember? We’re neighbors. They can’t exactly not go when the whole street is invited. It would be too obvious that they didn’t go because of me, which would raise more questions.

McD45 : Oh. Was she there?

JMill21: Yup.

JMill21: My parents lied. Told me she was alone and pining for me, but I knew it was a lie. My room faces hers, and I saw her new boyfriend.

Ouch. No one wants to see their ex move on, even if it’s Jimmy Johnson and some old lady from World of Warcraft.

JMill21: He looks like Captain America. Blond hair, barreled chest, and a jaw the size of a gator.

McD45 : How do you know it’s her new boyfriend? Could be a cousin.

JMill1: Dude, I was with her for three years. I met all her cousins. Besides, you don’t kiss your cousin the way she was kissing this guy against her car.

McD45 : Sorry, man. When was the last time you spoke to her?

JMill1: Over a year ago. Kind of hard to talk to her when she purposely picked a school thousands of miles away.

McD45 : Does she know you’re home?

JMill1: Nope. I told my parents to tell everyone that I was still in Hope the minute I saw her car in the drive. She’s been going on runs, and I’ve been trying to avoid her.

My brows furrow because this doesn’t sound like the Jacob Miller I’ve always heard about. No longer strong and commanding, he sounds like he’s crumbling over a girl.

McD45 : Maybe you should talk to her.

JMill21: Not sure that would help anything, given the guy won’t give her an ounce of space.

McD45 : Sucks, man

Sucks man? My dog can give better advice than that. I need to channel my inner Dr. Phil and try again.

McD45 : Don’t know what to say, man. Maybe you should try to move on. If she’s got a new boyfriend, pining after her sounds like voluntary torture.

JMill21: Wow

There’s a long pause, and I think I might have done something wrong.

JMill21: That’s really all you got? You think I should just get over my childhood crush?

McD45: Why not? If she’s making out with other guys, you don’t want to look like a chump waiting around for her to change her mind when that might never happen.

McD45: There are plenty of girls at St. Michael’s that want to date you. Don’t they always say the best way to get over someone is to get under someone new?

JMill1: That’s rich coming from you.

McD45 : What’s that supposed to mean?

JMill1: I said what I said. You’ve been obsessed with the same girl since high school, and you’re trying to get me to dump the girl I’m almost certain is the one.

My heart rate increases. The beat is so loud that I can hear it. Drew obsessed? Who is he talking about? My mind reels off options, and I have no idea who it is, but it doesn’t seem plausible. He can’t even admit that Brianna is his girlfriend because he’s the kind of guy that likes to keep his options open.

McD45 : What are you talking about?

JMill1: typing…

My thumbs play with the controller’s buttons as I eagerly await Jacob’s response. Curiosity has gotten the better of me, and I need to know who this girl is. Could it be Sabrina? He denied they were serious earlier, but that could have been to throw me off the scent. I don’t even know if they still talk.

Just as the response bubble pops up, the front door creaks open. I gasp, throwing the controller across the room. I barely miss the TV with my terrible aim, but somehow, the move flicks the TV back to Baseball Wives before Drew can see anything.

Maybe God is watching over me. I just wish he hadn’t taken a bathroom break when I slipped in the snow.

As his heavy boot steps into the room, I hold my breath, unsure of what I intend to say.