“The bus, Tate!” Millie shrieked in horror.
“My mom can drive us.”My mom.Pain sliced through me as I remembered last night and the hurtful things I had said.
“Go wake her up!” Millie pushed me out of the room and ran toward the kitchen.
Running into my mom’s room, I didn’t think to knock. I just threw the door open, saw her sleeping figure under the covers, and bolted across the small space. “Mom, we’re late! Oh, we overslept! Mom, you have to drive us,” I said, quickly shaking her.
She didn’t budge, which was unusual, even after a night of drinking. Not even a groan telling me to fuck off. So I shook her again, my eyes adjusting to the lack of light in her room from the blackout curtains when I picked up on something being off. Her body was ice cold beneath my touch. It wasn’t winter, her fan wasn’t on, and she was heavily bundled up in her blankets.
“Mom! Wake up! We are so late!” I screamed again. “Please wake up!”
I pulled the covers back and saw her curled up on her side. Yanking her toward me, her head slumped to the side like a ragdoll. A chill skated down my spine, raising the hairs on my arms. Something was wrong. I scanned her face and latched onto her green eyes, the ones we both shared. They stared back at me, completely void of life.
“Mom!”
CHAPTER 4
GRIFFIN
PRESENT
Drops of sweat rolled down the back of my neck, sinking into the thick fabric of my uniform. I wiped a hand down my face, squinting through the bright rays of the spring sun beating down on the field, which made it nearly impossible to see clearly.
We were nearing the end of the preseason training, which always brought on a special kind of unease and excitement. The crowd sat on the edge of the metal bleachers as the batter rounded the bases. A cloud of dust was left in his wake as he slid into home plate, scoring the first home run of the game. Cheers erupted around the field as the crowd roared. We all piled our way into the dugout, shouting our congratulations, and wiping the sweat from our brows while greedily inhaling water.
One of my best friends, Hunter, fist-bumped his twin brother, Graham, and then made his way over to me.
“Another win!” I clapped him on the back, and he nodded his gratitude before slumping down on the bench.
“Feels good to be up there. It’s everything I dreamed it would be.” He bent forward over his knees, his dark eyes surveying thecrowd. “Almost feels too good to be true.” His gaze settled on me, and I shook my head.
He always worried I pulled strings to get him and Graham on the team, but in reality, we had all worked hard and gotten what we deserved. He just needed to believe it.
“We deserve to be here—all of us do.”
“You’re sure your dad didn’t throw some money at them?” He glanced around to make sure we were still alone. God forbid anyone overheard this conversation and began to question if I’d really earned my position on this team.
I’d spent hours on the field, pushing myself to become better. No one was perfect. There was always room for improvement in this game and a new technique to employ.
The work never ended, and because I knew that—understood that—I was able to stand here today.
This wasn’t the life my dad had wanted for me. I had wanted him to be my biggest fan as a kid, to always be in the front row of every game, to wear those obnoxious baseball dad shirts, and even hold up the signs that had my name and number on them. But as I got older, I saw who he was, and it sure as hell wasn’t my biggest fan. He wanted more for me. Wanted me to have a life off this field.Outside of baseball.
He wanted his only son to follow in his footsteps at the law firm he’d started in his early twenties, and being a lawyer was the last thing on my mind. Being stuck in an office all day or inside of a courtroom…just the mere thought made my skin crawl.
I lived and breathed baseball, and when I chose it over him and the promising career he wanted for me, things between us changed drastically. No longer did he support any of my dreams. Instead, he stayed at the office even later and didn’t even bother coming to one of my high school games, let alone college games.
He made it clear where he stood, but I stillwasn’t changing my mind. My happiness mattered, and this field, this sport, made me happy.
Shaking my head, I looked at Hunter, his dark brown eyes assessing my features. “He wants nothing to do with this life. I chose my path. He doesn’t support it.”
Hunter and Graham found it hard to believe my dad, or any dad, could just turn his back on me. They didn’t understand the childhood I grew up with. But when I chose the college that offered the best baseball team and not the best law program, my fate was sealed. A tear ripped through our relationship. I was beginning to believe it was irreparable, and I had stopped caring.
“He’ll come around,” Hunter tried assuring me. I didn’t say anything because I didn’t believe him. He had always chosen work over me and my mom.
If only he had shared the same dream, maybe he’d be on the bleachers today instead of hiding away in an office, ruled by the demands of clients, never truly happy.
“I’ll believe it when I see it,” I grunted.
