Playing Rough

Epilogue

Epilogue

 ► NINE YEARS LATER

[ M I C H A E L   G R I F F I N ]

I put my feet up on the coffee table as I scrolled through the countless channels on the TV. My mind was restless, more so than usual. I fidgeted slightly as I flew past ESPN, shaking my head in disapproval.

I did not want to think about sports. Football, in particular. I was not going to get nervous like I did every damn time I had to play against him. Nope.

Besides, there was no reason to be nervous, right? I had known him for practically my entire life, I had mapped out every ridge on his gigantic body and started living rent-free in his heart.

Great, now all I could think about was his body.

I let out a frustrated groan and switched the TV off, plopping the remote beside me on the couch. Speaking of the culprit, where was he? It was a late Thursday evening and Bryan Clay was nowhere in sight. Had he been that caught up in practice? Did he get hurt? Why didn't he text me? I scoffed, my arm itching at the thought of texting him. God, I am so clingy.

Sometimes I felt like I hadn't changed much since high school. Sure, I had grown up, graduated college, and waltzed right into the NFL after playing in Division I, but one thing remained constant. My total and absolute gushiness when it came to Bry. Who, unlike me, had the most dramatic change in personality since we were kids. 

It had been nine years since we rekindled our friendship and became something more. Shortly after finishing high school, we ran into a very rocky road when it came to our futures. Bryan always looked forward to getting the hell away from East Aredale, too many stale, hurtful, and piercing memories were buried beneath the turf in those towns. Yet suddenly, reluctance kicked in and we found ourselves scared of what was yet to come. 

You could say Bry and I were similar. At one point, I thought so as well, but as time progressed we realized just how obnoxiously different we were. We had different aspirations, different dreams for what we wanted to accomplish, yet we struggled to split apart. When I had gotten a scholarship from a Division I college, I was ecstatic but more so afraid. Afraid of splitting up, being thousands of miles away from each other and to this day, I still felt queasy about that.

I was so head over heels for Bryan, I would have probably sacrificed my entire life just to be close to him. That sentiment still held, even as an established sportsman. Still, I focused on myself, went away to college, only to find him laying on my bed when I moved into the dormitory.