Total pages in book: 177
Estimated words: 163209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 816(@200wpm)___ 653(@250wpm)___ 544(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 163209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 816(@200wpm)___ 653(@250wpm)___ 544(@300wpm)
It took half the night before he realized how much work the Trojans were putting in on Jean’s behalf. Derek and Derrick brought over a gaggle of friends they’d made over the years, excited to show off their infamous teammate, and Jeremy heard Tanner hyping him up at one of the freshmen’s meet-and-greets. Ashton made sure to introduce his sister, a senior at Oregon State, and she flagged down several of her backliner teammates to inspect Jean up close. A couple players who’d studied French in high school or were currently taking it sneaked over to practice with Jean, and Jean gave them his undivided attention.
Finding reasons to celebrate their teammates and opponents was the well-known Trojan way, but the sincerity of the team’s unabashed enthusiasm and Jean’s reserved demeanor did worlds for his image. Over the course of the night, conversations slowly shifted from prying curiosity and indelicate gossip toward cautious sympathy: on top of everything else that had gone wrong this summer, news had gotten around that USC was overrun with paparazzi. That they’d had to bar the campus gates just a week into the school year was utterly ridiculous.
Despite the evening’s awful start, Jeremy considered the banquet a rousing success. Jean was less enthused, judging by his sour, “I will not speak to anyone else for a week,” when they finally made it back to the hotel lobby that night.
Cat laughed and looped an arm through his. “You did good! I think they like you.”
“I do not need them to.”
“Isn’t it nice, though?” Cat asked, trying and failing to drag Jean toward the elevators. “After how cruel everyone was this spring and summer, isn’t it nice to finally see those rumors get ignored in favor of the real you?”
“They did not meet the real me, since you will not let me tell them how irrelevant they are on the court.”
“Jean, treating other people with respect is just a part of life,” Laila said. “If you say they cannot know you when you are being polite, what does that say about us? Are we forever strangers to these teams, or do they just see the best parts of us that encourage them to be the best parts of themselves?”
Jean waved her off, but Laila refused to give up. “What good does ridiculing someone do? Giving someone advice that will improve their overall performance or keep them from repeating a mistake is helpful. Harassing someone for messing up when we all have off days gets us nowhere. Or will you tell me you can’t pinpoint your mistakes without someone riding you?”
“It is part of the process.”
Cat weighed that in silence before asking, “Do you want to hit me? When I get outstepped at practice, when my passes get intercepted, if I can’t stop my marks from taking a shot at goal, I mean. Do you want to break your racquet over my back?”
Jean looked taken aback. “No.”
“But don’t you want me to improve?”
“Yes, but—” Maybe he was imagining it: Cat’s upturned face covered with bruises, blood drying at the corner of her mouth. He reached for her, testing her head for nonexistent lumps, and Jeremy’s heart ached. Cat’s gaze went soft, and she tugged Jean’s hand around where she could kiss his palm. Jean finally said, “Not you. Not like that.”
“So even you know it’s not necessary,” Laila said.
Jean looked away and said nothing. Rather than push him to admit it himself, Cat tried tugging him toward the elevators once more. Jean immediately dug in his heels and said, “No. I will not ride that thing. I am going to take the stairs.”
“We’ll meet you up there,” Jeremy told the girls.
Laila caught hold of Cat’s sleeve, and the girls exchanged a long look. Cat peeled her heels off and hooked the straps over her fingers. “Which way is the stairwell?” she asked. As soon as Jean gestured, she set off with a cheery, “Race you to the top!”
Jeremy started to follow, but Laila snagged his back pocket. To Jean she said, “See you in a bit,” before hauling Jeremy behind her toward the elevator. There was no chance of getting a car alone with a half-dozen teams sharing this hotel tonight, but they were the only two to get off on the eighth floor.
Despite stopping five times to let other athletes off, they beat Cat and Jean to the room. Laila sat on the edge of Jeremy’s bed while he wrestled his tie loose. When he cast it aside, Laila held out her arms, and Jeremy stepped into her fierce embrace. Without twelve other teams to distract him or Jean to keep an eye on, it was inevitable he’d slide back down memory lane. Jeremy tangled his fingers in Laila’s dark hair and stared past her at the far wall.