to live for the hope of it all.

Chapter 26

October 13th, 2023

"Call me friend but keep me closer,
And I'll call you when the party's over..."

Bailey

Beckett's head is in my lap.

I wasn't sure what to expect when he didn't answer my question, but it certainly wasn't this. Something was wrong, behind him just being tired, and I was worried.

From where he lay, I could feel his tense shoulders and stiff arms, and my heart ached for him. He was laying on his back, with his nose facing my stomach as he breathed deeply. Releasing a breath, I decided to wait on eating. I wasn't too hungry, and I didn't want to make Beckett uncomfortable by moving.

I struggled with where to put my hands for a while, but when Beckett adjusted and his nose grazed my t-shirt, I gave in. I slowly settled one hand on his chest, and then ran my other one through his hair to softly scratch at his head. I waited for him to tense up or ask me to stop, but instead I felt him hum and relax into it.

Warmness flooded my heart knowing I was able to help him out in some way. And then warmness flooded my cheeks when he brought his hand to cover mine on his chest and held it there.

Willing my heart to calm down, I relaxed into the seat and kept scratching his head. His hair was so soft where it kneaded through my fingers, and I hoped my hand wasn't shaking bad enough that he'd notice.

When he took a deep breath and exhaled, I felt his breath through my shirt and on my stomach. My body shivered, and then it hummed, suddenly this four hour drive didn't seem so bad anymore.

Caleb had the playlist we'd made playing softly in the background, and I could tell he did it out of kindness for his cousin. My heart lurched everytime he threw a worried glance back at Beckett in the rearview mirror. When he saw Beckett and I, I expected a teasing smile, but instead he smiled softly at his cousin before turning back to the road.

I must have fallen asleep at some point, because the next thing I know, Wren was nudging my shoulder.

"Bay, we're here," she whispered. I turned to see her holding my door open, and then I shifted back to the warmth on me. Rubbing my hand across his chest, I spoke softly.

"Beckett."

No response.

"Beckett, we're here," I tried again. He groaned and slowly opened his eyes to meet mine. My heart froze at the vulnerability I saw in them. I cleared my throat and he slowly sat up. My hand fell from his hair and I instantly missed his warmth. I turned, reading to follow Wren, when I caught her soft smile.

"Not a word," I mumbled as I passed.

"Yes ma'am," she laughed. We turned to grab our bags, only to find that both boys had already grabbed them from the other side and were waiting for us to follow them to check-in. Beckett nodded his head towards the lobby and we fell into step behind them.

Caleb did the talking with the front desk lady, and then he handed Wren our room key.

"My parents arranged it so we're the rooms next to each other. We're 311 and y'all are 312," he said.

"Okay, thank you," I told him.

We rode the elevator in silence up to our rooms, only stopping to talk when we reached our doors. Beckett hadn't spoken, but I noticed how he flinched under the hotel lighting. The bruise on his jaw was turning into a dark blue and purple now, with a small cut in the center.

My heart had dropped when he was hit earlier. He had already been swaying on his feet the whole game, not bad, but he had. But when he got hit, and didn't get up right away, I was scared for him. I can't describe the wave of relief that ran through me when he stood. But the bruise on his face just took me back to that moment, and I itched to rub my fingers along his jaw.

"We're meeting with Coach Rivers at 7am. We can swing back by here for y'all when we finish. It shouldn't be too long, so we can text y'all when we're heading back this way," Caleb said, handing us our bags, along with my food.

"Okay, thanks," Wren said, turning to unlock our door before walking in. I moved to follow, but quickly turned around.

"Goodnight, see y'all tomorrow."

"See you," Caleb replied, already halfway in. Beckett waited behind and smiled softly at me before following Caleb in.

"Goodnight, Bailey."

Locking the door behind me, I turned to get clothes out of my bag.

"I'll heat your food up for you while you shower." Wren said, moving to grab the bag.

"I adore you, Wren."

"Yeah, yeah." She mocked, shooing me to the bathroom. Shutting the door behind me, I pulled up my messages with my grandfather to let him know we made it to the hotel before shutting my phone off and turning the shower on.

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