The Perfect Game (GxG) (cliffhanger/completed)

Five: The Weekend

Nani Cazetti

"Wake up, kiddo, some girl just called, like, a million times, so I finally answered your phone." My Pap usually booming voice is soft, knowing I went to a party just thirty minutes after the ref called game. My cell phone lands on my chest, "She said something 'bout an art project." He's dressed. Holy shit, where did my Pap go?

I scramble out of bed, tripping and landing face first on the floor because my foot gets caught in the tangled sheets, "uh, thanks, Pap." He starts to leave, and I realize I need to keep him away from the booze for as long as possible, "Wait, Pap, can I get a ride there?" I gaze up at him with puppy dog eyes, and my hands clamped together, "please?"

"Sure, kiddo, where does she live?"

Uh. Good question, "Let me ask...She never told me." I search for my phone and find it across the room, calling her back I start getting butterflies.

"Hey Cazetti!" Her voice sounds different over the phone, not bad different, she just sounds, more, I don't know, professional.

"Uh, whoa, um, hi." I'm stuttering, why am I stuttering? "My pap and I were wondering, uh, where, like, where do you live?" I look up to see Pap leaning against the door frame, he's wearing jeans, his high school baseball jersey, and a backwards baseball cap with sunglasses flipped to the back. Maybe he's back. I sigh deep and the breath in gives an unusual smell. He even showered.

"Oh, shit," she laughs, such a cute laugh, "write this down or whatever."

I put her on speaker phone.

"Hold on." It sounds like she's searching through papers from a distance, "Oh, okay," she comes back, "it's, uh, 3600 Tranner Drive...Did you get that?" Her voice is far off, like she's away from the phone again. I wonder what she's wearing, how's her hair done? What kind of car does she drive? How does she decorat- "Hello?"

"Yeah, got it," I mutter as I punch the address into Google Maps. She is exactly seventeen miles from here. Glad I didn't choose to walk. "Pap, it's a twenty minute drive, do you want me to just drive the truck and you can relax here?"

He shakes his head and tightens his grip on the truck keys, smiling, "Hell no, kiddo." Pap looks miserable, like he wants a drink, "But, really, I wanna know what kind of girl this is. I haven't seen you hang around any girls besides that bitch Hallie for a while." Shrugging, he looks at me, "I was kind of hoping we could, y'know, hang out today. Just you and me, ya'know, like old times," like when mom was still around, is what his downward glance said, "but it's a project, and I don't want you or her to fail. So, like, it's okay, ya'know?"

I want to cry. "Dad-" my throat closes up, and I wrap him in bear hug instead of saying what I was trying to say.

"Love you, too, NiNi, love you too." He runs his hand through my hair and kisses the top of my head.

"Hello?" She repeats, intruding on the small father-daughter time we were having.

"Uh, yeah, sorry," I frown, looking up at Pap, "I'll be there in like thirty minutes, okay?" I feel a smile spread across my face, and immediately feel guilty for it.

"Okay! See you soon, Ca-" And she's gone.

"For the record, I didn't hang up." I say quickly to Pap.

"Obviously." He smirks, "now come on, let's get you to this kids house."

-Later-

"It was awkward." I explain as I decide which couch I want to lounge on. They all look so comfy. "Your house is, like, out of Country Living or something by the way." We're in the main floor living room, papers and art supplies occupy the large coffee table, her Mac delicately placed on the closest couch. A chandelier hung from the high ceiling in the middle of the room, I don't trust chandeliers. I decide the farthest couch is safest and most comfy looking.