Bliss
“India, let’s go!” I yell down the hall to her room. She’s been saying she’s ready for the last thirty minutes, but still hasn’t come out yet.
Patrick is on the couch picking his nails as he shakes his head, smiling. He’s in yellow shorts, white short-sleeve button up, and tan fedora hat. “You know she takes forever, not everyone can do their hair with a rake of their fingers like you.”
I ignore him, it’s not my fault that I have great hair.
I tug on the child size basketball jersey I had ordered weeks ago with Cuba’s name and number on the back. The school didn’t sell women’s jerseys, so I settled for a youth size and it turned out to fit perfectly. I pair it with light distressed jeans and some silver glittery flats that I found in the back of my closet.
Cuba thinks I have a session with Ryan and would be late to his game, but I cancelled last night. I think we both learned lessons from a week ago. Even if I didn’t admit mine, I’ll never choose a session over him again.
“How’s my make-up look?” I turn to Patrick. “I tried to not over do it.”
He makes a face. “It looks good, you’ll be a walking strobe light with all that highlighter.”
I flip him off just as India walks into the living room. It’s weird not seeing her in her uniform, and I feel guilty that she gave it up for me. Even though she claims that she was going to quit anyway, and the captain had it coming. Whatever she says, I still feel bad but also happy to have her in my life.
Black jeans hug her curves and a blue school basketball t-shirt is knotted at her side, showing a sliver of her flat caramel stomach.
“Are you really wearing those?” I nod down to her black wedges.
“Yeah.” She shrugs as if I asked the stupidest question. “Not all of us have a sexy ass boyfriend, I’m trying to catch me one too.”
Patrick laughs. “No respectable male would want to be your boyfriend.”
Indi taps her index finger to her lips like she’s thinking. “Wait, isn’t that what the last guy told you?” She smiles sweetly at him.
He glares at her but goes back to picking at his nails.
“Can we just get along tonight?” I ask. “Go to the game, eat hot dogs, and drink beer.”
They both make a face.
“Yes, to the beer, no to the hot dogs,” they say in unison.
I don’t reply when my phone vibrates in my hand. “Our ride is here,” I tell them, grabbing my purse.
Our ride is none other than my dad. He asked if I was going to the game tonight, and when I said yes, he was all over it. Straight up groupie, he is. So, I let him tag along. He has no idea that we’d just broken up and gotten back together, which makes me happy I didn’t go home crying to them. They would have never forgiven him, I’m their princess after all.
My dad is sitting in his sleek pearl Lexus when we get in, he’s typing away on his phone with a smile.
“Mom?” I ask shutting the door behind me.
He nods. “Yeah, I want to take her out after the game.”
“Look at that,” India pipes up. “Romance doesn’t die after a certain age, after all.”
Dad lifts an eyebrow. “And what age is that, India?”
She smiles and shrugs. “Just nice to see a man of your graceful age still want to woo your woman.”
I roll my eyes. “Please stop.”
“Yeah, please don’t disrespect such a fine man,” Patrick coos.
My dad just laughs, he always does when he’s around my friends. The things that come out of their mouth make me blush. And that’s how the rest of the car ride to the arena goes with my best friends talking with no filter.
I pull India to the side as we walk in. “Did you text Cam?”
She rolls her eyes and nods. “Yeah, don’t worry he’ll see you.”
I’m not worried, it’s just feels like we still have some things to work out between us, and I want to make him happy. I want us to be happy.
Smiling, I nod, and we hurry to catch up to my dad and Patrick. I couldn’t wait until I saw his face.
Cuba
The locker room is crazy right now. We still are hyped from the last game and the energy is amazing. Cam has his phone connected to some Bluetooth speakers blasting Kendrick Lamar. Ash and JR are trying to dance in the middle of the room. Half of us are not even ready, including myself.
This will be the first game at home without my best friend, and I thought it would feel horrible, but it doesn’t. It feels like he’s right here with us, how we remembered him.
I’m still bummed that Bliss said she wouldn’t make it on time because of fucking Ryan Ellis. But I didn’t say anything, I kept my mouth shut, she said she’ll just be late. I can’t deal with that, but I have no choice.
Tugging my t-shirt off, I replace it with my jersey and the same with my pants, while nodding my head to the beat of the song that’s playing. I open my locker door and smile at the picture I taped in there weeks ago. Bliss is camera shy, so I had to beg her to take a picture with me. It’s not a perfect picture, we’re in some lounge clothes chilling on my couch, and she’s looking at me like I’m her everything and I’m looking at her like she’s the air I breathe. She wouldn’t look at the camera, so I wouldn’t either. Anyway, the next day I went to the store and had a copy printed off, and now it hangs in my locker like I’m in high school.
Pulling my sneakers out, I close the door and flop down in my chair as Cam sits next to me.
“You ready?” he asks, pulling his sneakers on.
“Born ready, bruh.” I tie my laces and rock back to grab my phone in my duffle bag.
Swiping my thumb over the screen, I’m a little annoyed not to see a text to tell me good luck. I debate texting her, but don’t, and toss my phone back on my bag. She probably lost track of time.
The locker room door swings open. “Turn that shit music off,” Coach Jay barks, and Cam cuts the speakers off, putting his phone away.
“All right, let’s not get cocky. This team beat us last year,” he starts.
“But we have Cuba back,” JR interrupts him.
Coach waves him off. “He’s one hell of a player but he’s only one person. We need to come at them as a team.”
We nod, and he continues, “Keep your eyes on that freshman, Mack, he’s hard to block, so Cam, I need you and Ash on his ass, force him to make those three’s he claims he can make but we’ve never seen.”
Some of us laugh because freshmen love to start the season talking about all the shit they can do but can’t really do, like this Mack kid, he doesn’t know any better.
Coach looks at his watch. “All right, say your little prayers and let’s go boys.”
Coach never likes to pray, and he doesn’t make us if we don’t want to. There’s a few of us with different religions so we do our own thing.
I hear the crowd before I see them as I run out of the locker room. The announcer is already calling the players of the visiting team. The lights start to shine at us the moment we step onto the court. Cam and Ash are beside me, I always get called last. JR is announced first and down the line the rest of starters it goes.
Cam turns to me before he is called. “Look over and up.” He nods to the stands on the other side of the court.
Between the flashes of cameras going off, I have no idea what he’s talking about until my name is called by the announcer and I jog onto the court. I look over and up and, holy shit. I can pick her out of a crowd anyway. Her halo of blonde hair is in waves and, fuck me, she’s sexy as hell in my jersey, hugging the curve of her breasts and showing off a peek of her stomach.
She played me, knowing she would be here the whole time. God, I love this woman.
Smiling, I kiss two of my fingers and pull them back with my invisible bow. I draw, aim, and release.
This time when my cupid’s arrow flies, it lands right where it was meant to be. Her heart.