Game On by Michelle Smith

Author:Michelle Smith
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Published: 2016-11-27T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

Eric

Dad and Momma head out of town first thing Sunday morning, leaving me on my own except for the Winthrops’ nightly patrols. It’s safe to say that I now know what parole feels like. I never thought the house could actually be this quiet. It’s crazy how loud your own head is when everyone else is gone.

And by Tuesday morning, I hate it.

When I walk outside to leave for school, Mr. Johnson’s truck cab is already gone, along with Bri’s car. I have no clue how the girl handles being in the house by herself so much—I’m on Day Three, and I’m ready to climb the walls.

So I go to school. I go to practice. I go through the motions, and I stick to what I’m supposed to do, because it’s easy. It’s dependable. But when practice is over and the sun’s gone for the day, the thought of spending another night entirely by myself is enough to drive me insane.

While engines roar as the other guys tear out of the lot, I drop my bag into my truck and glance over at the soccer field. But my attention isn’t on the girls darting across the green—it’s on the blond guy heading that direction.

I scan the parking lot for Coach, but his truck is already gone, too. I’m not a bodyguard. I’m definitely not Bri’s boyfriend. I’ve got zero dogs in this fight. I should go home and keep myself out of her business. But all I can think about is the way we stood on this field last week and talked about that guy, about the way she’s been walked all over for doing what she should’ve done a long time ago. She may have said that I don’t need to fight her fights for her, but damn it, someone needs to run some kind of interference here.

By the time I make it to the field, Matt’s already hanging over the fence, in the same spot I stood just a few days ago. I step up beside him. Lean onto the fence, the cold metal digging into my bare arms. He says nothing—just stares at the field, at the girl who’s oblivious to her audience.

Minutes pass before he clears his throat. “I’m gonna need for you to leave her alone, Perry.”

He’s one to talk. Not bothering to look at him, I say, “I’m gonna need for you to mind your own damn business. And learn how to take no for an answer, while you’re at it. Bri doesn’t want you.”

“So it’s Bri now?”

I glance over. “What?”

He shrugs a shoulder. “Every other time you’ve talked about her, it’s been my neighbor or the girl. Now it’s Bri.” He eyes me. “You really think she wants you?”

No. Not exactly. She has no reason to want me. But for some reason, his words are a kick to the gut.

“You’re a nobody,” he continues. “A waste of space. A douchebag with a smart mouth and nothing to back it up. What would she want with someone like you?”

My jaw stiffens.

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