30. Hunter

HUNTER

E ven with a full night of sleep, practice is still a bitch. Every catch feels sluggish, every block a chore. I’m dropping passes that normally would land in my hands as if they’re magnetized.

It’s going to take more time to recover, but I’m frustrated with how uncooperative my body is being. Jake keeps frowning at me, and the rest of the offensive team keep slapping my back as if it’ll help me make it through practice.

“Holt,” Coach says once he finally calls an end to the torture. “A word.”

I trudge over to him on the sidelines.

“You okay, son?”

“Yes, sir. Just a rough night.”

Coach nods. “The boss wants to see you in his office.”

“Now? ”

“Now.”

Shit. Is Evren re-thinking my contract because of all the headlines related to me? I wait for the anxiety to hit, but I’m too tired to care.

I find Evren standing by the floor-to-ceiling windows in his massive, black-and-gray office, overlooking the field. I knock on the door, cluing him in on my presence since his back is to the door.

He turns to face me. “Come in and close the door behind you,” he says, taking a seat at his desk.

I do as he requests and take a seat across from him. “You wanted to see me?”

“Yes, I wanted to check in on you.”

“You did?” I ask, surprised.

“I’ve been following the news and saw how you played just now.”

“I just need some sleep and recovery time, but I’ll be better by game day.”

“I’m not worried about that,” Evren says, dismissing my words with a wave of his hand. “I’m worried about how you as a person are handling everything.”

“Not well,” I admit. It’s the truth. Even if Ella and I aren’t broken up, it doesn’t mean that it hasn’t been rough to be away from her and deal with all this other bullshit. “It’s been an intense couple weeks with the media.”

“I can’t imagine. You know, I’ve respected Stella since the moment I met her. She has this ability to make someone feel at ease just by being around her. ”

I nod, not sure where this is heading.

“I didn’t get to where I am now by not being observant,” he continues, straightening some papers on his desk. “I know the Stella I met at the team BBQ is different to the one who came to my home a couple months ago.”

My breath freezes in my lungs. I clench my jaw and force myself to say as steadily as I can, “I never would’ve pegged you for a conspiracy theorist.”

Evren gives me a long look. “Don’t worry, I’m not looking for confirmation.”

“Then what are you looking for?”

“Nothing. I guess I’m just saying that I’m here in case you need to talk or can help in any way.”

“I didn’t think you liked me much,” I say.

“At first, I didn’t. But you changed my mind once I got to know you on and off the field.”

“Because of Stella.”

He nods in acknowledgement, and I think about Elodie. I know she told me to take care of myself, but I can’t help but also take care of her. An offer for help from someone like Evren isn’t something I can pass up on.

“There is actually something you could help me with,” I say.

Evren remains silent and waits for me to continue.

“Let’s say I have a friend,” I say, “a very important friend. She’s an amazing baker and I think her having a pop-up shop in the stadiums on game days would be beneficial to you.”

“And have I tried these baked goods?”

I give him a long look. “You have.”

“In that case, I think a pop-up bakery sounds like a great idea.” He stands and holds out his hand. “You’ve got yourself a deal.”

“Yeah?” I shake his hand in disbelief. “Just like that?”

“Sometimes, things in life are really that simple, especially if it helps you get back to playing your best.”

“It won’t hurt, that’s for sure.”

Evren chuckles and we exchange numbers to finalize the idea more. When I head into the locker room, I expect it to be empty. But my friends are there, waiting for me.

“What’s up?” I ask, heading to my locker.

“You played like shit,” Marcus says.

“Been going through a lot,” I say defensively.

“I really thought you and Stella were going to get married,” D-Rock says.

“Me, too,” Trey says.

“What happened?” Quincy asks. “We all saw her video, but she didn’t go into details.”

“The scrutiny put a strain on us,” I say, hating that I have to lie to them. “It also brought up a lot of pain from her relationship with Jax. She’s an amazing person, just not the right one for me. We really are better off as friends. ”

“But,” Jake says, “friends don’t have the chemistry you two had.”

“It is what it is,” I say, turning my back on them.

Someone claps three times in quick succession. I spin around and Quincy grins at me. “All right, boys. Breakups suck, but we’re a family, and families help each other.”

“Amen,” Marcus says.

I glare at him, and he grins.

“Operation get Stellar back together is now live,” Jake says. “Ideas anyone?”

“We could have him serenade her live on TV,” Trey says.

“He’d scare her away,” Quincy says, “with that voice of his.”

“What if he rented out all the billboards in New York City,” D-Rock says, “and put a special message on it just for her.”

“Ohhh, I like that one.” Jake points to him.

“What about,” Marcus says, “getting one of those skywriting planes and having it fly over her next concert?”

“Now that’s romantic,” Quincy says. “I say we do all the ideas. Hammer it home how much she means to him.”

“You guys,” I say. “I appreciate the gesture, but we’re not going to get back together.”

“You two were perfect for each other,” Marcus says. “ We all agree that this is best. You were happy, and so was she.”

“Okay, more ideas,” Jake says before I can respond.

“What if we all do a song and dance at our next game for her?” Trey proposes.

“What is it with you and singing?” D-Rock jokes.

“It’s her passion,” Trey says defensively. “You’d be doing something that means a lot to her.”

“Fair point,” Jake says. “I like it.”

“We will not be doing anything,” I say.

“We will,” Quincy says. “We know what’s best for you.”

They all continue their brainstorming, and when they start talking about kidnapping her, I draw the line and take out my phone and call Stella.

“Hey,” she says. “What’s up?”

I pan to the guys. “I need you to tell them we’re not getting back together.”

Stella laughs. “We’re not getting back together.”

“But why not?” Marcus whines. “We love you and can’t lose you.”

“Aww, I love you, too,” Stella says. “But I do need your help with two things.”

The guys all quiet down and listen.

“First, take care of Hunter for me. His perfect match is out there, and he deserves to find her.”

“But what about the love you have for each other?” Jake asks. “You don’t just give it up.”

I wince, because Jake’s right. What I have with Elodie isn’t something anyone would give up without a fight. He keeps glaring at me, as if trying to tell me to fight for her with his look.

“Aww, Jake,” Stella says. “I didn’t realize you were such a hopeless romantic.”

“What’s the other thing you need from us?” Quincy asks, looking between me and Stella with a strange expression on his face.

“For you to come to a charity event soon. I’ll let you all know the dates when it’s finalized.”

“What the hell?” Marcus asks. “A charity event?”

“Trust me,” Stella says, “you do not want to miss it.”

All the guys look at each other in confusion, and Stella just laughs. “You all are great friends to Hunter, and I’m so happy he has you. But you don’t have to get us back together.”

What is Stella doing? She’s being too obvious about everything. I glare at her and she winks. “See you all very soon.” She blows us a kiss and then disconnects.

“Raise your hand if you’re confused,” Marcus says.

Everyone raises their hand, including me.

“That was not what I expected her to say,” D-Rock says, frowning.

“I feel like I need a code to dissect that,” Trey says.

“Same,” Quincy says, before giving me a long look. “Looks like we’re going to be going to a charity event at an undisclosed time and location.”

The guys all nod and say their goodbyes, until only Jake and Quincy remain .

“Get dressed,” Jake says. “We’re coming over.”

“Why?”

“Because I have a feeling you have some explaining to do,” Quincy says.

“I really don’t.”

They both cross their arms and give me dirty looks.

“Okay, fine,” I say. “Knock yourself out and come over, then.”

The entire drive to my place, I debate what I should say. My loyalties are torn between my best friends and my girlfriend. Once I arrive, I greet Minnie with a hug. She’s been mopey since we stopped videoing Elodie. And I don’t blame her; I feel the same way.

Jake and Quincy are right on my heels and give Minnie some love before ushering me into the living room.

“What’s really going on?” Jake asks.

“Yeah,” Quincy says. “Stella was acting weird and emphasizing different words. Is she in trouble? Is she being held hostage by her management? Do we need to start a Free Stella campaign?”

“No, it’s nothing like that,” I say. “Really, I promise. She’s okay.”

“Then what’s going on?” Jake says. “You don’t go from madly loving someone to just wanting to be friends.”

“Wait one minute,” I say and head to my office to grab two NDAs. Andrew, my manager, insisted I have every woman I hook up with sign one before we got together. It’s protected me more times than not. When I return to the kitchen, I find Jake and Quincy whispering to each other.

“Here.” I hand them each an NDA. “I need you to sign this before I can talk.”

“Seriously?” Jake’s eyebrows hit his hairline.

I nod and cross my arms, waiting.

They sign without hesitation once they realize I’m serious.

“Okay,” I say, “so here’s the whole story.” I fill them in on Elodie and Stella and how and why we first started dating. Their faces go from surprised to incredulous the further I get into the story, but it feels good to clue in my best friends with what’s going on. To have more people in my corner to help me through everything.

After Jake and Quincy leave, I call my dad. It’s a call I’ve been putting off for too long. He still hasn’t reached out except to comment about my games. I’ve left him on read, but it doesn’t make it better, this in-between and not knowing where I stand with him.

“This is a surprise,” he says, answering on the first ring.

“Yeah, I know we don’t talk much on the phone.” Or at all.

“Are you ready for the Super Bowl? ”

“As much as we can be.”

“In your last game?—”

“Stop, just stop,” I say. “All we talk about is football, but a lot of shit is going on with me and I just… I want to know why you haven’t reached out. To check in on me.”

“Why would I need to check in on you?” he asks incredulously. “You’re a grown adult who did this all to yourself. I told you dating Stella would only lead to disaster.”

“You did. So, what? You’re punishing me for not breaking up with her sooner?”

“She’s distracting you from your game. You need to be focused on your career and not?—"

“You’re doing it again. Only talking about football. If I quit tomorrow, would we even have a relationship?”

Silence stretches between us.

I huff. I guess his silence is answer enough. “I think it’s best if you don’t contact me anymore. I need you to be my dad, not whatever this is.” All I want is my dad to care about me as a person and not my stats. It’s painful for him to confirm that he doesn’t care about me, not really. Not in the way I want or need.

“You can’t be serious. I made you who you are today; you can’t just cut off all contact between us.”

“I’m grateful for all you’ve done, but it’s best if we reevaluate what kind of relationship we have. Until then, I won’t be answering your texts or calls. ”

“You ungrateful?—”

I hang up and stare at the black screen in shock. I fully expect him to call me back, to continue his rant, but a small part of me hopes he calls back and apologizes.

But nothing happens. My screen remains black.

Numb, I place my phone on the side of my bed and lie down. There’s relief in knowing where I finally stand with him, as well as grief. Grief for the relationship I thought we had, for the dad I never had.