"It's right here," Liv answers him as she backs away and points to the counter full of beer.
"What's up Spencer?" Noah asks and I nod as my eyes stay glued onto Olivia.
"Is that red velvet?" Noah admires the cake as he walks over. "My favorite."
"That might be the best you've ever tasted," Liv cuts in as my eyes stay put.
"I was going to play a quick game of pool. So I'll have to come back for that." He replies as he grabs the bottle and leaves.
"I see you brought a date," I mouth sarcastically.
"Not!" She responds sharply as she reaches into her bag. "He literally brought my laptop charger, Spencer. He lives close to the beach house, so I just figured he can come by and bring it while I'm here."
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I look over at the charger she flashes. "So you were at his house?"
"Of course not! But if I was, it would've been for work purposes only." She replies seriously and I sigh. "But to answer your question, I left it in our workspace. He accidentally grabbed it, thinking it was his."
I, inwardly, take a breathe in relief. No part of me wants to believe my girlfriend brought a date to my house, but lately things have just been so weird between us that I really don't know what to believe.
"That's my fault, Liv" I say sincerely. "And I don't care about Noah or anybody else. I just care about you. I care about us. —Why is this so complicated, Liv? This shit is ridiculous. You need space— we don't talk— we don't come near each other. It's just confusing as hell to me. Is it not confusing to you?"
"Confusing or not, I would never disrespect you like that. I don't want Noah or any other guy. I want you. And I know that may be difficult for you to see because I asked for space, but you've always been it for me, Spencer."
"Then what are we doing right now, baby?"
Her head rolls back as she avoids making eye contact with me.
"I just need you to trust me. I need you to know that I want what's best for you— for us. And know that when the time is right, we'll get back to being ourselves!"
"Right!" I say as my heart sinks to my stomach in frustration. ________________
Three Weeks Later
The locker room claps and I smile as Coach Boone hands me the game ball.
"When I first started this season, I had no idea I'd be on the field in the third round of the playoffs. This shit has been hard. And I would've given up, if I didn't have my brothers behind me." I say and they all cheer. "But this game ball doesn't belong to me. In fact, it belongs to two people.— our interim head Coach and our one-handed-starting QB, JB!"
