I'll Be There

25 | i didn't know my own strength

It was the last Friday of the year, and Olivia was sitting cross-legged on the couch with a styrofoam takeout container in her lap. Next to her, Spencer slouched low in his seat, letting the weight of his head fall against her arm.

When he thought she wasn't looking, he quickly pulled a french fry from under one of her chicken tenders.

Staring pensively ahead, she caught him from the corner of her eye and slapped his hand away. His own container had been sitting empty on the coffee table for the past ten minutes.

"You've gone through similar situations before," she mused. "What is it about this time that's throwing you off?"

"I didn't think I'd have to prove my worth again. I've been on the team for six years now. They know me. They know what I can do."

Continuing to stare forward, Olivia kept her tone pointed. "First of all, never question your worth. You're invaluable. Always will be." Then turning to him, she softened, "and you're coming back from a major injury, Spencer. You broke both of your arms."

"But they're fixed now," he held his healed limbs out in front of him.

"And we want them to stay that way. Your body needs time," she pointed a half bitten fry at him.

"It's been almost a year."

"You're still just as an incredible player as you were then."

"How'd you know how I was playing a year ago," he smirked, waiting for the answer he knew was coming.

"Because I was watching you," she bit back her smile, rolling her eyes at his smugness. "And you were killing it out there. I know you still have more in you. You only ever keep getting better and better," she shrugged before taking an overzealous bite from a chicken tender.

"Maybe you should have a talk with the coaching staff for me," he laughed quietly, sliding a hand under her thigh. As his fingers crawled up her skin, she stretched her leg out so that he could hug it to his side.

It wasn't lost on her that he was being extra clingy these last couple days.

As a matter of fact, after realizing that he wasn't as confident in his comeback as she had thought, she had become extra intentional about paying him more attention. He had a tendency to act like everything was okay, and quite frankly, she was disappointed in herself for not catching on sooner.

"Have you talked to Deion about this?"

"Yeah, we talk. He's been helping me get my head back straight."

"What'd he say?"

"He says that I just gotta stay focused. That it's not about how much time I get, but what I do with that time to help my team."

"Smart man," Olivia nodded.

When she first met Deion, his outgoing personality surprised her. It had been early in Spencer's first season when, one day, she went to pick him up from practice, and the jubilant running back talked her boyfriend's ear off all the way to the car door. There had been pleasantries and introductions, but she had paid him little mind, positive that he would eventually overwhelm Spencer, and that they'd inevitably clash. But years later, he continued to prove her wrong.

Spencer sighed. "I already know all that. I just gotta do what I can to help my team during the playoffs, and then go harder for next season."

"Well if you already know that you can't magically speed up the process, why are you so moody today?" she wiped her greasy fingers with a napkin, crumpling it up and throwing it into the container once she was finished.