|11| Game Night

I flicked the gum from my mouth into the small bin beside my study desk and raised my fist weakly.

“He shoots. He scores.”

Penny laughed without looking up from the tub of ice cream balanced on her knee. It was chocolate chip cookie dough, already half gone.

“This is what happens when you grow up surrounded by boys,” I added, preemptively defensive.

“No further explanation needed, Lisa,” she said, shoveling in another spoonful. “I see you.”

I leaned back against my pillows, staring at the ceiling. The dorm room smelled faintly of laundry detergent and sugar. Outside, the late afternoon sun slanted through the windows, warm and lazy, as if even the day had decided to take a break.

“This is the laziest Saturday I’ve ever had,” I said.

Penny hummed in agreement, licking chocolate from her thumb. “This is so good. Are you sure you don’t want some?”

“I’m sure,” I said, as my eyelids drooped. Exhaustion clung to me in layers. Newton Prep had a way of draining you without ever raising its voice.

In the past two weeks, I had learned how to do things I never imagined doing back home. I had gotten a part-time job at a small restaurant just outside campus, learned how to carry three plates at once without trembling, learned how to smile at strangers who spoke too quickly and too confidently. Penny had celebrated my job like I’d been crowned queen of Spain. Mostly because it meant free churros and ice cream. I always promised to bring some back before she let me leave for work, which made me feel less like a roommate and more like a tired parent bargaining with a sugar-obsessed child.

We sprawled in silence for a while. I missed home in quiet waves. Mum’s voice. Beck’s endless commentary and evil Mickey. I missed the certainty of belonging somewhere without trying. We had our fair share of phone calls, but it didn’t make up for the emptiness I felt without them.

A knock sounded at the door.

I startled, pushing myself upright and crossing the room. When I opened it, Sally stood there, already smiling like she’d won something.

“Sally?” I blinked, glancing at the clock. “It’s five.”

“Exactly,” she chimed, as if that explained everything.

“What’s the occasion?”

“You’re coming to the game with us.” She grabbed my hands and bounced on her toes.

“Us?” I asked, already wary.

“Shane and me.”

I gently pulled my hands back. “I can’t. I have assignments.”

“I’ll ditch Shane if he makes you uncomfortable.” she offered immediately.

The words landed harder than she meant them to. Guilt pricked at me, sharp and persistent, especially when her mouth turned down just slightly.

“No, it’s fine,” I said at last, dragging the word out. “I’ll get ready.”

She squealed and threw her arms around me in a hug that knocked the air out of my lungs. “Best girls’ night ever.”

She followed me inside like she belonged there.

Penny looked up from her calculus book. “Hi.”

“Sally,” I said quickly. “This is Penny, my roommate.”

Sally studied her for a beat, then plopped onto Penny’s bed without invitation. “So, what are you doing?”

I took that as my escape cue and dove into the closet, changing into black tights and an oversized Beatles shirt. I tied my hair back with a ribbon and stepped out just as Penny disappeared into the closet herself.

“Wait, what’s happening?” I asked.

Sally appeared beside me, innocent as a lamb. “I just explained to your roommate how emotionally devastating it would be if she didn’t join us.”

“You guilt-tripped her, didn’t you?”

Penny emerged wearing a lilac sweater and brown leather slacks. “She told me if the world ended tonight, I would be stuck with a calculus textbook under my nose.”

“I guess that was very effective,” I broke out into bouts of laughter.

“Come on, nerds,” Sally called from the doorway.

Sally reached for Penny's hand and mine as she walked us out, a light laugh coming out of her lips, "We are going to have so much fun," She promised as Shane's helpless face came into view.

"You guys ready to go?" Shane raised his brow at Sally.

"Yes. I'm placing my bet on the tigers. You are giving me your cyber truck after they win, okay?" she poked him.

“You wish, silly Sal.”

‘I told you to stop calling me that.”

“Then stop being silly.”

I was still trying to wrap my head around an eighteen-year-old owning a cyber truck that I failed to notice the tension that was building up in the atmosphere.

Penny cleared her throat, breaking their stare off, "Who are the tigers?"

Sally gasped, and Shane stifled a laugh, "You don't know who the tigers are?"

Penny scratched her forehead, "Am I supposed to?"

"Heck yeah! They are like the next big thing to happen after Starbucks." Sally said.

"Starbucks, really?" Shane chuckled.

She ignored him, "They are the best lacrosse team in Europe. They are up against Crest Falls High tonight."

We walked together toward the field as dusk settled in, the lawns perfectly trimmed, the lights already blazing ahead. The crowd thickened near the entrance. Noise pressed in from all sides. 

 “I'll get us some drinks?” Shane walked off toward the concession stand.

“Yeah make yourself useful.” Sally shouted.

I nudged her. “You should be nicer to him.”

Her face contorted in disgust. “Ew... Why should I be nice to that wicked human being?”

"He's your brother."

"I'm yet to confirm that through a DNA test. That boy is an idiot. I doubt we're related."

"He literally has your face."

"That doesn't change anything, Lisa."

This was ridiculous. No one needed to look at Shane twice to know that he was Sally's twin. I quietly berated myself for not minding my business. 

The game began with an explosion of sound. Cheers. Whistles.

The announcer’s voice boomed across the field, distorted slightly by the speakers.

“And now, Newton Prep’s starting lineup—”

The crowd surged to its feet. The sound hit me like a physical force, rolling through the stands, vibrating in my bones.

“Oh my God,” Sally gasped, clutching my arm. “Oh, my God. Oh, my God.”

I winced. “You’re crushing me.”

“I don’t care,” she said breathlessly. “Lisa, it’s him.”

“Who?” Penny asked, shading her eyes.

Sally’s nails dug deeper into my sleeve. “Dean Richardson.”

The name slid through me like a forgotten melody.

The announcer continued. “Number one. Captain of the Tigers. Dean Richardson.”

Something inside my chest stalled.

The players jogged out onto the field. Their cleats bit into the grass, and their helmets were tucked under their arms. I followed Sally’s frantic pointing without thinking.

And then I saw him... The handsome stranger.

For a moment, the world narrowed to a single, terrible point.