Page 33 of Ruin The Friendship
I groan, looking around the locker room. It’s fairly empty as of now, with only Trigg, Levine, and a few of the other guys milling around.
“I have to tell you something,” I whisper, leaning back. “But not here.”
I trust Trigg not to tell a soul even if he could hear me with his headphones in, but I don’t trust Levine farther than I can throw him.
“What?” Calvin’s eyes grow wide as he leans in.
“Not. Here.” I stand, taking my phone with me since I’ll need to call Lydia shortly, anyway. I lead him into the hall and peek into the athletic trainer’s office, finding it empty. “Here.”
I gesture for him to enter, and he raises his brows. “Is it that serious?”
“Yes.” I run a hand through my hair. I put some gel in it, but that’s not lasting long at all.
“Alright, chill.” Calvin holds up his hands and enters the small room, leaning against the table as I shut the door behind us. “Well?”
I let out a long exhale. “Lydia’s pregnant.”
His eyes go wide. “You’re kidding.”
“No. It’s a long story, but no.”
“You got Lydia pregnant?Graff, what the hell! When did you sleep together? I don’t know whether to fist-bump you or smack you upside the head. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”
“What?” I whisper-shout, not wanting to draw attention to us. “No! We haven’t slept together. It’s not mine.”
“Why do you sound so disappointed?”
I shrug. I don’t think I’m ready to elaborate on that.
“Who’s the dad if it isn’t you?”
“Some guy she went on a few dates with this summer. He ghosted her after they slept together.”
The irritation I have for the guy burns in my core again.
“Asshole,” Calvin mutters.
“Right?” I shake my head. “Not the point. I’m worried about her. I haven’t seen her since we left last night, and she hurt her wrist, and I’m stressed.”
“You’re also in love with her.”
I don’t confirm or deny because I’ve realized that I don’t want to be stuck in the friend zone with her. Not anymore.
“What are you going to do about it, then?” Calvin asks.
“I don’t know. I need to think about it.”
“You want more with her?”
I press the heel of my palm into my eyes as I nod. “You of all people know I do. I have for a long time. But I took what I could with her and always hoped maybe someday she’d want me back. What if she doesn’t want me back, man?”
“She will. You two would be perfect together.”
“But this is a crazy time in her life. I mean, she’s having a baby. What if she thinks I’m doing this because I feel bad for her?”
So many thoughts are swirling in my mind, but most of all, I can’t stop thinking about how badly I want this, how badly I want her. I want to be a part of the baby’s life. Any piece of her is something I want.
I want to be there for her, now more than ever, and in a completely different way than before. I want to be her partner, her lover, the father to her baby. I want to be the man Jude wouldn’t step up to be.
