by K. A. Linde
She couldn’t help herself though. She walked into Pace’s room one last time and surveyed the space. Everything was exactly how she had left it. It all smelled like him. She even choked up a bit, seeing the fluffy pillows she had lain on all semester and remembering all the dirty things that had gone on in this room. She felt nostalgic for the past, for the simplicity of it all, and then she walked out of the room before she could bury herself into the bed one more time.
“What was that?” Bryna asked.
“Nothing,” Stacia said quickly.
“Did you just go into his room?”
“Just wanted to double-check that I didn’t leave anything in there.” She frowned at the ground. “I slept in there for most of the semester.”
Bryna frowned. “You going to be okay?”
“Yeah. You don’t have to keep asking me that,” Stacia said. “I’m going to be fine.”
“Okay.” Bryna held her hands up. “I’ll miss having you at the house.”
“You’ll like going back to walking around naked and having sex all over the house though.”
Bryna pointed her finger at Stacia. “Touché.”
Once they finished moving everything into the new apartment with Whitney, Stacia sat down on their shared couch in front of their shared television with her feet on their shared rug, and she sighed with relief. She hadn’t known how much she’d needed this and how much she’d missed it until she had it again.
It didn’t matter that both she and Whitney were leaving soon to spend winter break with their families—Stacia in Los Angeles and Whitney in Portland. All that mattered was that things were back on the right track.
Bryna, Trihn, Stacia, and Maya came back on New Year’s Eve to celebrate ringing in the New Year in style. Unfortunately for all of them, they were manless. The playoff game was set for New Year’s Day, so Eric and Drayton were already in sunny Atlanta, preparing for that. Damon was performing in Chicago and would be busy all night. And Stacia was single at the present moment.
But, regardless, they had an amazing time. It was probably easier for Stacia not to be surrounded by happy, smiling couples when her love life had once again gone down the drain.
And no one said anything when, the next day, Pace ran the ball in on a QB sneak to win the playoff game, sending LV State to the national championship. He was playing like none of them had ever seen. The entire team was wearing all-black uniforms, in mourning for Boomer, with badges with Boomer’s number on it, but Pace was the one playing with a fiery vengeance.
The national championship game was the following week, and even though the girls had all agreed that they weren’t going to go, Bryna showed up at Stacia’s apartment the Thursday before the game. She flashed national championship tickets at Stacia.
“No,” Stacia said, walking away from the door.
“It’s our last game as undergrads,” Bryna said. “You can’t tell me that you don’t want to be there.”
“I don’t want to be there. And I have another year. So, you can go without me,” Stacia told her.
“No, we can’t.”
“Why? Why do I have to go?”
“Because we’re a team,” Bryna said. “You’re not going for Pace. You’re going for us. For your girls. So, buck up, throw some shit in a bag, and get your ass in my Aston Martin.”
Stacia laughed. “You’re insane. You know that, right?”
“Of course. I’m well aware. But my daddy got us the private jet, the penthouse suite at the hotel across the street from the stadium, and box tickets. So, we’re going to go and sit our hot asses in air-conditioned comfort with lots and lots of booze and enjoy our boys whooping ass.”
And, when Bryna put it like that, it was hard to argue. They might have been used to sideline seats, but if the alternative was a life of luxury, Stacia could get on board with that.
By the time they got into their air-conditioned box seats, Stacia was thanking God that she wasn’t on the sidelines. Just the walk across the street from the hotel had sent her pin-straight hair into a frenzy. Tampa was a humid swamp of a place. Coming from the desert, she was not used to this.
Champagne was flowing through their booth, and Stacia felt like she was being converted. This was the best way to watch a football game. She loved her sidelines. She even aspired to work those sidelines, but damn if the booth wasn’t a slice of heaven.
Watching her team win the national championship for the second time in her college career was even better.
Commentators had worried that LV State would be off their game without their starting running back. But everyone had picked up the slack in Boomer’s absence. They were playing for him. And, afterward, the trophy was dedicated to him.
The girls watched from a television in the booth as speech after speech was made. They were each at least a bottle deep in champagne by then, and Maya turned on music to dance around in the booth. Trihn joined her at some point in the middle of the speeches while Bryna and Stacia stayed glued to the TV. They had started this together. It was nice to end it together, too.
Then, the TV suddenly switched to Pace’s face. A pretty brunette reporter was speaking into the microphone over the din of the celebrations on the field.
“I’m here right now with quarterback Pace Larson. How does it feel to secure this important victory for your team?”
Pace had on a NCAA championship hat on his head, and Stacia was practically swooning, looking at him.
“It feels amazing. Of course, we would have liked to have Boomer here for this moment.”
“Of course. I heard that you’re dedicating the trophy to TJ Boomer. Is that correct?”
“Yes,” Pace said. “The uniforms, the badges, the trophy, the season. We wouldn’t have made it this far without him. It’s only fair to go the rest of the way in his honor.”
Bryna snorted. “As if he were a good person.”
“Bri!” Stacia cried.
“What? Not to speak ill of the dead, but he was a shitty person. And you know it. His death is sad and tragic. Of course Pace can’t talk about that on TV, but I wish Boomer had been as amazing as his brother made him seem at the funeral.”
“He was probably that amazing…to Shawn,” Stacia said quietly.
They had missed the reporter’s next question, but Pace started going on about the game some more.
“Maybe. I’m not glad that he’s dead,” Bryna said. “I just mean…this season has been dedicated to him even though he was an asshole all season.”
“And he paid the ultimate sacrifice for it.”
“You’re right,” Bryna said softly. “You’re right.”
They both turned their attention back to the interview.
“But also for my girl, Stacia,” Pace said.
Stacia’s eyes rounded, and she shot up. “What?”
“That’s very sweet. I’m sure, if she’s watching you right now, she feels like the luckiest girl alive.” The reporter smiled brightly at Pace, but he didn’t even seem to notice.
“Did he just talk about you on live TV?” Bryna asked.
Stacia nodded. “Yeah.”
“Shit.”
“Have you made any decisions yet about if you are coming back for one more season with the Gamblers?” the reporter asked.
Pace stared straight into the camera and said the words he had been waiting to say his entire life, “As of this moment, I’m going to elect to leave school a year early and enter the NFL draft.”
“WILL YOU STOP BOUNCING around the apartment in a panic?” Whitney asked.
Stacia stopped moving and glanced over at her roommate. “Sorry.”
“It’s fine. But why are you so anxious? We only just got our assignments this week for sports broadcast. Shouldn’t you be happy that you’re covering gymnastics?”
“What?” Stacia asked, distracted. “Oh, I am. I can’t believe you’re taking that with me.”
“It sounded fun once you mentioned it even though I don’t have
a strong background in sports, like you do.”
“You’ll do great.”
Whitney did great in everything.
“You’re not still freaking out about the conversation with your advisor are you? Because you totally deserve to be in journalism.”
“What?” Stacia asked. “Oh, no.”
She had finally sat down with her advisor and asked her point blank how she had gotten into the major. After a moment of surprise, her advisor had said that Stacia had been selected because of her strong writing sample and enthusiasm. It had shocked the shit out of Stacia at the time. She had actually gotten in on her own merit and been doubting herself all along for no reason.
“So, what’s with the jitters?”
Stacia bit her lip. “I heard from some of the guys on campus that today is signing day.”
“Signing day?” Whitney asked. “Like, football recruits for next year? Isn’t that a little early?”
“No, I mean, like…Pace is signing with an agent today.”
“Oh. And that’s bad?”
“Not necessarily,” she said. As long as he didn’t do anything stupid.
And she knew that she had walked away and she shouldn’t be stressing for him, but she was. She couldn’t help it. This was important to her. Especially after what had happened with Jude over Thanksgiving.
Whitney put her hands on Stacia’s shoulders. “Calm down. I know this is more about Pace than about signing day. And I’m pretty bad at this stuff. Way worse than Bryna, so call her for moral support. But, if you’re that worried, why don’t you just call Pace?”
Stacia stopped fidgeting. She hadn’t even thought about that. What the hell would she say? After walking out, she hadn’t talked to him in months. Would it be hypocritical to interject herself back in his life when she didn’t even know what she wanted from him at this moment?
“I can’t,” she said finally, slumping. “I should just work on my homework and try not to think about it.”
“Okay. Well, I’d be up for a quick coffee run if you wanted to get out and stop this pacing.”
Stacia laughed. “Thanks, Whit. Rain check.”
Stacia sank down onto the couch and pulled her laptop back toward her. She had her first assignment on the background of the LV State gymnastics team, and she needed to start on the research for it. She knew that she was a two-draft-minimum writer, and procrastinating was not so good for her GPA.
As she was reading up on the program, she got a text from Bryna.
I received an obscure text from Pace, asking me to meet him on campus at seven. Do you know anything about this?
No. He didn’t say what it was?
Nope. Totally bizarre. Just thought I’d check.
Stacia frowned down at her text message, and then everything clicked.
Signing day. I heard from a few other people that he’s signing with an agent. I guess he wants you to be there?
You don’t think…Jude?
Stacia didn’t want to consider that option, but why else would Pace want Bryna to be there? It seemed strange that he would want her to be there with Jude, too. But maybe there was another reason?
That would be my guess.
Just then, another text dinged in, and it was from Pace.
I debated on whether or not I should send this to you, but you said you wanted to be involved with the process. Can you meet me at the sports complex at seven?
Stacia shot off a text to Bryna that she had just gotten the message from Pace, too, and instead of responding, Bryna called her.
“So, are you going to go?” Bryna asked.
“Do you think I should?”
“What’s it going to hurt?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen him since the funeral. But I did tell him before that I wanted to be there when he signed with an agent. And I practically made him promise to let me be involved.”
“Then…do you want to go with me?”
Stacia sighed. “Yeah. Meet you there?”
An hour later, Bryna and Stacia both arrived outside of the sports complex. They walked into the building together and found Pace standing against the wall in the lobby with giant Bose headphones on. When they approached him, he seemed stunned to see them standing there. He removed the headphones and couldn’t take his eyes off of Stacia.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey. What’s all this about?” Stacia asked.
“I didn’t think you would come.”
Stacia tried to hold back her smile as her inner pervert took that way out of context.
“Oh my God,” Bryna said, noticing Stacia’s reaction. “Keep it in your pants, you two. Now, what are we doing here?”
“Signing some paperwork. Come with me,” Pace said.
“Is this about Jude?” Bryna demanded as they rushed to keep up with his long legs.
“Yes.”
“Fan-fucking-tastic.”
“Well, why am I here?” Stacia asked.
“You were the one who met with him. I thought you’d want to be here for this.”
“You’re really going to sign with him?” Stacia asked in disbelief. “After everything?”
“Come in and find out.”
Pace wrenched a door open, and the girls entered the room. It was a pretty sizable conference room in the school colors—black, gold, and silver. The room seemed to have been set up specifically for this purpose with a desk and chair that Pace sat in, facing the door, and a camera was set up in a corner.
Stacia nudged Bryna over to a few chairs lined up against the wall, and they sank into them.
“What do you think he’s about to do?” Stacia asked.
Bryna shook her head. “I don’t know. But it feels dirty…like something I’d do.”
“Fuck.”
A few short minutes later, the door opened again, and Coach Galloway appeared in the doorway in a full-fledged suit. He was laughing at something someone had said behind him. He held the door open wider, and in walked Jude Rose.
Jude strode right up to Pace and held his hand out. “Pace! Good to see you again!” he said.
Pace stood and decisively shook Jude’s hand. “I’m sure. I hope you don’t mind that I invited family and friends along for the signing.”
Jude hadn’t even seemed to notice that anyone other than Coach Galloway and Pace were present. Then, as if waking up from a trance, Jude’s eyes slid to the far wall where Stacia and Bryna were standing. Stacia didn’t know what Bryna was feeling right then, laying eyes on Jude for the first time in three years, but she didn’t even flinch while Stacia was practically shaking with a mix of anger and revulsion.
Shock registered on Jude’s face for only a fraction of a second before it morphed into an easy mask. “Of course not. Anyone you want here is welcome with me.”
“Good. That’s good to hear. Then, let me introduce you,” Pace said with a smile. “This is my sister, Bryna.”
Bryna didn’t move.
“Come on, Bri, meet Jude Rose. He’s a sports agent in Los Angeles. Best in the business,” Pace said.
“How flattering,” Jude said.
He was such a phenomenal actor. Nothing broke free from his facade as he turned to face them now. Bryna stepped forward, and Jude extended his hand.
“Nice to meet you…Bri.”
Bryna glanced down at his hand and then up into his smug face. “Go to hell.”
Jude’s face broke then, but Bryna didn’t see it. Only Stacia witnessed that moment of temporary loss.
“What’s all this now?” Coach Galloway asked.
“Just introductions,” Pace said. “And this is my…friend Stacia. You’ve never met her before, have you?”
Jude looked over at Pace very closely. His mask slipped as he tried to figure out what was going on. “I believe we have met.”
“Enlighten me,” Pace insisted.
“She was dating Marshall Matthews last year at the draft. I represent Marshall, and she was there.”<
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Pace paused for a second. “Right.”
“Nice to see you again, Stacia,” Jude said.
“I can hardly say the same.”
“Anyway,” Jude said, ignoring her barb, “let’s get down to business. Lots to read, lots to sign.”
He dropped his briefcase down on the desk and retrieved paperwork from the top. It was labeled with Pace’s name on the front. He removed two more copies, one of which he handed to Coach Galloway and the other to Pace.
“I know you’ve seen most of the specifics already, but I always encourage everyone to read it over once more before signing,” Jude said. He was in his element.
Whatever setback Pace had been attempting to elicit from Jude by having Bryna and Stacia there hadn’t worked.
Stacia felt frozen. She wanted to tell Pace that this was insane. Jude might be the best, but that didn’t mean he was the best for Pace’s future. She moved forward, like she was going to say something, but Bryna put her hand on her arm.
“Don’t. Nothing you can say will stop him,” Bryna said with disappointment in her voice.
Pace took the envelope from Jude and removed the document. He read for about a minute before dropping it back on the desk. “I have a few issues,” he said.
“Issues?” Jude asked.
“What issues?” Coach Galloway asked. “We went through this all this week. The contract is fair. The three percent fee is totally normal. You want someone like this on your side.”
“That’s the thing. I do want someone like this on my side.” He looked up into Jude’s face. “Just not you.”
The room was silent for a few seconds before Bryna started laughing, and Jude looked ready to explode.
“I just flew in from LA. What do you mean, you don’t want to sign? We’ve been talking all week about signing,” Jude ground out.
“This isn’t the way it’s done,” Coach Galloway said. “You’re only hurting yourself.”
“I just find it hilarious that you thought I would ever sign with you,” Pace said to Jude. “I mean, I don’t know what’s worse—that you slept with my sister or that you illegally contacted my girlfriend over Thanksgiving to try to persuade me to sign with you.”