Running Forever

by Emily Camp

  “Light,” the coach barked, bringing Garrett’s attention back on the field. “Get your head in the game.”

  Garrett nodded, though the game hadn’t started yet, being focused on warm up was just as important as being focused on the game itself. He jogged to the middle of the field as the team huddled. As much as he wanted to listen to and focus on the pep talk Ezra was chanting, he couldn’t help but think about Bree sitting up there beside Spencer, all smiles.

  Garrett wanted to be the only one who made her smile like that, at least, not share the task with Spencer. After all, she was his girlfriend. The mother of his babies. His future. He didn’t want Spencer to come in and mess that up now that he finally got her back.

  When they broke the huddle and the fans cheered, he made the mistake of looking up again. Bree’s face was angled up toward Spencer, her smile wide, and her shoulders shook with giggles. Garrett shook his head and closed his eyes before looking back at the field, where Ezra and Hudson strutted toward the middle for the coin toss. Everyone else jogged to the sideline.

  Garrett ran behind the group and glanced back up at the crowd. Even in a sea of red sweatshirts and tee shirts and red painted bellies and faces, she still stood out. Spencer had his normal crooked cocky grin on his face as he leaned into Bree, his hand on her knee. Bree was having his baby, not Spencer’s. He needed to keep his hands off her.

  “Offense, you’re up,” coach shouted.

  Garrett shoved the helmet on his head and ran out to the field. Right now, he wished he was a tackle instead of running back, because then he could take his frustration out on the other team, pretend they were Spencer.

  But looking ahead at the other team towering over them in their navy and gold uniforms, it seemed like he was David going against Goliath. Garrett knew from playing them last year that a lot of that team went on to play for D1 schools after their sophomore year. He tried to focus on putting all his energy into this game, instead of the weight of everything going on with Bree.

  “Bree, head’s up,” Spencer tossed a kernel of popcorn her way. She didn’t try to catch it in her mouth, it bounced off her chest and fell to the bleachers. “Lighten up.” He nudged her with his shoulder.

  Bree tensed as she looked back down at the field. The other team was huge. The fight song began to play and, on the sidelines, cheerleaders bounced. When Spencer first showed up, she welcomed his carefree banter, but now. after a stressful first quarter. she wished he’d stop trying so hard to get her to laugh.

  “Sorry, I’m kind of distracted.”

  “You and baby daddy really did get back together?” Spencer asked.

  Bree’s only response was a nod. She held her hoodie tighter against her when the wind blew; the air was getting cooler on Saturday mornings. The teams lined up again. Carly said something to Spencer in the same tone an annoyed sister would. Spencer replied in his normal cocky tone. Bree barely registered any of it. She was focused on Garrett.

  Even before Parker had mentioned Garrett’s game was off, Bree noticed how he wasn’t running as quickly, or he didn’t have fast reflexes like he normally did. Though the guys on the other team were good, she knew Garrett was better than how he was playing. This made her nervous; she resisted chewing her nails because she knew Parker would tell her not to. The crowd around them booed as Garrett was tackled, yet again. The shirtless guys with painted chests shouted curses down at the game.

  Bree stiffened when Spencer’s arm went around her shoulders. Last year at a football game, this would have been normal for them, but a lot has changed since then. She shifted from him, scooting closer to Carly, who she wasn’t sure was much better because Parker’s hand slid up and down Carly’s arm, grazing Bree’s as well now. Finally, she stood up, it wasn’t anything odd to do in the middle of the stands. People all around her were standing.

  The play started up again, Garrett caught the ball, then seemed to turn in slow motion. She shouted along with the other fans for him to go.

  Her heart stopped when he flipped over the guy who was in front of him and went down, headfirst, on the field. She shouted, but it didn’t sound like anything came out with the noise from the fans, as navy and gold blurs piled on top of him. He was already down, why did they have to tackle him? The whistle blew. The shouts around her were distant as if she was drowning.

  The pile-up rose from the field. Players jogged back to their sidelines, except that one last remaining red player right on the thirty-yard line, flat on his back. She couldn’t tell from here if he was even moving. Everything froze. Even her tears didn’t come, as she waited for him to stand up. He’d done this many times before; he just needed a minute to regain his bearings.

  But the wait never ended. She stared, waiting for his foot to twitch or something to give some indication that he was still alive. He didn’t move as the refs, coaches, and medical staff knelt by him.

  “Garrett,” she covered her mouth with her hands.

  Someone held her shoulders tight, but she wasn’t sure who. It could have been Parker, Spencer, Carly, or even a complete stranger. The only thing she could focus on was Garrett. When the ambulance rolled onto the field, her feet moved before she could process what was happening as she stumbled down the bleachers knocking into fans on the way. She was jerked back by her arm when she got to the sidelines and started toward the field.

  “You can’t go down there, Bree,” her brother’s voice couldn’t reason with her.

  “Garrett,” she cried, reaching and writhing in his grasp.

  Parker pulled her into a bear hug. “We’ll get you to the hospital.”

  Hospital? Her mind whirred. This wasn’t happening. It was just a bad dream that she couldn’t wake up from.

  “He has to be okay,” Bree’s heart hammered in her chest, tears poured from her eyes as she watched Garrett being placed on a stretcher then wheeled into the ambulance. The flashing lights blurring her reasoning.

  She tried to wiggle free from Parker, she needed to be there. She needed to see he was going to be all right.

  “He’ll be okay. Just calm down,” Parker said.

  But Bree didn’t calm, sobs belted out of her. Parker and Spencer practically dragged her to the car. Their arms firm around her, but they weren’t comforting at all. The only arms she wanted around her were Garrett’s. Spencer slid in the back seat beside her.

  Carly turned around from the passenger side. “Bree, you have to calm down. It’s not good for the baby,” Carly’s eyes widened and she slapped her hand over her mouth.

  “What baby?” Parker’s knuckles turned white around the steering wheel.

  Spencer, who had been attempting to comfort her with an arm around her shoulders, scooted away.

  Bree glared at Carly.

  “What baby?” Parker was louder that time.

  “It doesn’t matter,” Carly flipped forward again.

  “You’re not talking about Bailey, are you?” Parker’s voice was a low rumble.

  “Forget it,” Carly said.

  “Bree, are you pregnant?” Parker turned toward her. If she wasn’t so worried about Garrett, the disappointment on Parker’s face would have made her stomach turn.

  “We’re not talking about this now.” Carly tugged on Parker’s arm. “We need to get to the hospital.”

  “How could you let this happen again?” Parker’s brow wrinkled.

  Bree turned away from him. How could he be concerned about that when Garrett might be seriously hurt?

  Chapter 17

  Bree rushed into the emergency room in a daze. Carly offered a comforting arm, but it did little to help. Parker and Carly ended up in a fight over the pregnancy. Bree hated being the reason they weren’t currently speaking to one another. She had no clue where Spencer went when they entered the big building. Bree stood behind Parker as he asked the receptionist about Garrett.

  “Are you family?” she squinted her beady eyes up at him. Her hair was in a tight ponytail, only making her eyes that
much smaller.

  “He’s my sister’s boyfriend,” Parker pointed back at Bree.

  The lady frowned at him, “I’m sorry, I can’t tell you anything.”

  “He’s the father of her child,” Carly’s voice came out a screech.

  Bree was glad for them right now. She wasn’t sure she could even speak if she wanted to, let alone argue. If something happened to Garrett, she wasn’t sure what she would do.

  “I’m sorry.” The lady leaned around Carly and looked at Bree, “If you’re not his wife, I can’t tell you anything.”

  Bree wished now she would have married him. At least she’d be able to know something.

  “This is bull,” Parker ran his hand over his disheveled hair.

  “Have you heard from Robin or Randy? Are they on their way?” Carly turned toward Bree.

  Bree glanced down at her phone. “Yeah, they are.” But it could be another twenty minutes or so before they got there.

  “Okay, let’s stay calm,” Carly said. “We can sit down and wait on them. You should rest.”

  Parker clenched his jaw.

  “I’m sorry,” Bree said. The reality of Parker knowing finally set in. He was the closest thing she had to a parent, other than Garrett’s mom and dad. She didn’t want him to hate her like her dad did.

  “That doesn’t matter right now,” Parker’s continence softened and Bree felt some relief. “Let’s worry about Garrett getting better so Bailey and the baby won’t be fatherless.”

  Carly smiled at Parker and it made Bree a little bit better about Carly and him, but she didn’t like hearing the word fatherless when it came to her children.

  “Do you need something to eat or drink?” Parker asked when they found a set of unoccupied chairs.

  “Yes, she does,” Carly answered for her, taking Parker by the hand. “We’ll go get you something at least semi-healthy from the vending machine.”

  “I’m not …”

  “It doesn’t matter if you’re hungry. You’re eating for two,” Carly nodded.

  Bree looked to the side, hoping the wrong person wasn’t standing around. “Garrett’s parents don’t know yet.”

  “Sorry,” Carly scrunch up her nose and leaned forward. “We’ll be back.”

  Bree stared ahead as Carly and Parker walk away. The sounds from the television were white noise to her mind. She folded her hands in her lap and closed her eyes. All she could think about was the other day, when Garrett asked her to marry him again. She loved him and she loved the idea of them; how he wanted to be a family, he had a plan. What his mom and dad had was a dream to her, as well. A cute little house, a few good kids, and a future.

  When she opened her eyes, she was startled to see the knees of Spencer’s faded jeans in front of her. She titled her face up. He looked down at her, his lips in a flat line and his gray eyes like a storm.

  “Spence …”

  He held his hands out, palms up. “I always knew you and baby daddy were meant to be together.” The plastic squeaked as he eased in the chair beside her.

  “You know I’ve always loved Garrett.”

  “Yeah,” he leaned forward and reached into his back pocket. “I care about you. A lot. And I realize that if I care about you, this is the only fair thing to do.”

  He held out the envelope Bree recognized from his side table.

  “Spencer,” she shook her head and pushed his hand away. It was the wrong time for any of this.

  “You need to read it.”

  Her heart was in her throat as she took the letter from him. The white envelope curled up in the corners. She took it from his hands. Her name was scrawled on the front of it.

  “Spencer, I care about you, too, but not like …” She sat the letter in her lap.

  “Just read it.” He stood up and walked away.

  She wasn’t sure what he could say that would make her change her mind. Did she lead him on? All those times they flirted and bantered, she thought he was just playing along. After all, he always had a new girl in his apartment and none of them were ever Bree.

  “We’re here to see Garrett Light.” The voice brought her attention to the desk. Bree was so relieved to see Robin and Randy she could have cried again.

  She stuffed the envelope in the hoodie pocket and jumped to them.

  Randy’s large arm was draped around Robin’s petite frame.

  “Robin.” The name almost came out a cry.

  They turned and Robin opened her arms for Bree. Bree fell into them without hesitation. Robin felt like home, like she really was Bree’s mom. Her soft soapy scent and gentle hold on Bree made her feel like it was going to be all right.

  “It was horrible watching …,” Bree said, “And I’m not family … they … they wouldn’t tell me …”

  “It’s okay. We’re here now. You can go back with us.” Robin hugged her tighter. This felt wrong like she should be the one comforting Robin, not the other way around.

  Forgetting the note in her pocket, and the food Carly and Parker went after, she headed down the long, sterile hallway with Garrett’s parents.

  The doctor walked out of the room just as they came to it. “Mr. and Mrs. Light?” he asked as he tucked a pen in the pocket on the front of his jacket.

  “That’s us.” Randy’s voice was gruff and it scared Bree. She’d rarely ever seen him worried.

  “He’s up, but a little groggy. We’re waiting on the results from the scans.”

  “Is he going to be okay?” Robin asked the same thing Bree was thinking.

  “Seems to be, but we’ll know more when we get the scans back.”

  “Thank you,” Randy said.

  “He also may have some short-term memory loss, but nothing big. Just might not remember things from the last couple days.”

  Bree bit her bottom lip and twisted her hands in front of her.

  “Thank you so much,” Robin said, as they pushed open the door.

  Bree didn’t let her cry escape at the sight of Garrett lying on the bed. His hair was matted to his head, his skin was pale, and his eyes were only half open when he turned toward them. “Hey,” his voice came out scratchy, and he smiled at Bree.

  “You took a bad hit there.” His dad walked further into the room, leaned beside the chart on the wall with Garrett’s information.

  “Yeah,” Garrett laughed, though he didn’t move. His hands stayed on either side of him. Bree ignored the IV sticking out of the arm opposite her.

  “It’s not funny,” Bree didn’t mean for the words to come out a squeak.

  Garrett smiled at her again under his pale skin. “Were you worried about me?”

  She crossed her arms over her middle. “Yes.”

  “Gare, I agree with Bree.” Robin’s hands fell on Bree’s shoulders. “You gave us a good scare.”

  “You weren’t moving,” Bree pursed her lips.

  “That’s because they told me not to,” he grimaced as he readjusted.

  She didn’t know whether to be angry or hug him.

  “Take it easy,” Randy said.

  “Do you need anything?” Robin asked, always on the ready to take care of everyone.

  “No,” Garrett slid over. The seats on the bed shifted with him. “You can sit here,” he motioned for Bree.

  She looked at Robin for a second, though didn’t know why. It wasn’t like she needed her permission to sit beside him, she just wanted to know it was okay if she did.

  “Go ahead,” Robin eased into the only chair in the room.

  Bree hesitated before she sat down beside Garrett. He stretched his arm around her waist. “This makes the injury worth it,” he pulled her close; she didn’t want to hold back too much because she didn’t want him to hurt himself.

  “What happened out there?” Randy folded his arms in front of him.

  Garrett sighed then clicked his tongue. “I don’t remember. I mean, I remember being on the ground and coach telling me not to move, but … did we win?”


  “I haven’t heard,” Bree said. It wasn’t like checking on social media was her top priority.

  “End of third quarter when we got here,” his dad said. “You were losing.”

  Garrett frowned and looked down at his lap. He moved his hand up and down Bree’s side. “Sounds like it wasn’t worth getting sacked over.”

  Bree was relieved when no one else laughed at his joke. “It could be serious.”

  “I feel okay.” He moved closer, “And I’m really liking this concern from you.” He lowered his voice sounding raspy and too intimate for in front of his parents. Bree felt her cheeks flush and she looked down, unable to make eye contact with either Randy or Robin.

  Garrett seethed and Bree’s heart stopped all over again. “Are you all right?” she asked, the same time his mom jumped to her feet.

  Garrett lifted his hand to his head. Bree cringed at the IV tube dangling from his elbow. “Yeah, I’m fine,” he took another look around the room. “Where’s Bailey?”

  “Maggie and Isaac have her.”

  Garrett attempted a whistle, but it came out just a soft puff of air. “Leaving Zeke alone with his crush?”

  “Seriously?” Bree whipped her head around toward him. “How can you be sitting here joking?”

  Garrett rubbed her side. She wished it helped. “You’re too serious. I’m not dead.”

  “We were worried about you,” his mom spoke softly.

  “I didn’t do it on purpose.”

  “Let’s just concentrate on getting you well from here,” Randy said.

  Garrett coughed. “I’m going to be fine.”

  “How can you know?” Bree forced her tears back.

  “He’ll be okay,” Randy grasped her shoulder. “We should pray.”

  Bree didn’t move, but Randy and Robin gathered closer to Garrett. She didn’t pay attention to the prayer as Randy talked. She shoved her hands in the front pocket of her hoodie, the envelope immediately bringing her thoughts back to Spencer. Now was not the time for her to be thinking of Spencer, when she was here with Garrett, exactly where she needed to be. Why did he think this was a good time to give that to her?