Page 21 of Rain Delay

I also envied how there was still a part of me that had so much pride for him and his successes.

I wasn’t just branding an athlete. I was documenting a man who turned his entire existence into a weapon.

I was documenting a man who grew into a stranger. I didn’t know who he was anymore. I had to learn who he was just like everyone else. The Wyatt I fell in love with five years ago seemed hidden. It felt like that version of him was buried deep inside of him. Almost like he didn’t want that version of himself to resurface.

This was a Wyatt I didn’t know if I wanted to get to know.

Because I missed the Wyatt he once was.

Chapter 8

Wyatt

Eighteen Years Old

I DIDN’T TELL HER I WAS COMING HOME.

It had been a few months since I had been able to visit my family. My baseball schedule was running me ragged. I was surprised when Coach gave me the all-good to even take a few days off.

We were deep in our pre-season training. Our first game was just a few weeks away, and there was still lots to do.

But for Eliana?

I always made time for her.

I always made sure that I would make time to see her. To spend just a few days with her.

And when given that time, I was going to take full advantage of it. That’s the one thing I looked forward to the most when I came home.

I wasn’t even coming home to see my parents. I was making this trip solely to see Ellie. She was the only person I wanted to see.

I pulled onto her street just as the sun was starting to dip, casting everything in a golden light. The neighborhood looked the exact same from when I left last time. It was home.

Parking in front of her house, I grabbed the bag out of my passenger seat and took the steps up to her front door two at a time. I wrapped my knuckles against the door a couple of times before taking a step back.

The door flew open and there she was. She was frozen, like her brain hadn’t caught up yet.

“Wyatt?” A big smile plastered across her lips.

“Hi, beautiful,” I said. “Surprise.”

She let out a sound somewhere between a laugh and a gasp before she launched herself at me.

I barely had time to react before her arms wrapped around my neck and legs around my waist.

“Are you serious right now!?” she laughed into my shoulder.

I tighten my hold on her. “What, you don’t like surprises?”

“I love this one,” she says, gripping my shoulders before she pressed her lips against mine. This kiss felt like it had been centuries since we last saw each other. Which, when you’re us and doing this whole long distance thing, it truly did feel like that.

When she pulls away, she just shakes her head. “I hate you,” she laughs.

“You don’t. Otherwise you wouldn’t be stuck to me like Velcro right now.” I chuckle, setting her down as I walk inside of her house.

“How long are you here?”

“Weekend. Coach is letting me steal some days away, and I wanted to spend them with you.”