I Loved You First

Chapter 11: Eloise

AUGUST

We make our plates and move to the table on the back porch, balmy August air made pleasant by the overhead fans. Mom and Dad often stay inside to eat together on nights like this, giving them a moment of peace to catch up while all of Eli and Emett's energy is focused on Will.

The four of us eat outside, laughing at how slow Eli eats while Emett can't sit still long enough to eat.

I don't often let myself go there because I'm very aware of how young we are, but lately in moments like this it's hard not to imagine a future with Will. The ten year age gap between me and Emett along with my maternal nature toward my little brothers makes it feel almost like playing house at times. Like this may be a glimpse into what a family with Will would feel like one day and it feels nice. Like, really nice. Natural, even.

I squeeze my eyes shut.

Sweet baby Jane, listen to me talking like my ovaries are about to combust.

I'm seventeen. And I don't even think I want kids until I'm at least thirty, but this is what he does to me. This!

While yes, I am only seventeen, lately I suspect my heart might be much older. I think it's always been a bit ahead of the curve due to us meeting at such a young age, but this summer it became hard to deny that it's progressing at a more rapid pace.

I've always had little girl fantasies of marrying Will, but they're different now, more vivid and real. They aren't just about a Father of the Bride Annie Banks style wedding anymore, now they're about the kind of life we'd have together after the Father of the Bride Annie Banks style wedding.

Listen, I'm not crazy. I don't want to get married right out of high school or anything like that. It's just that I know, in the deepest parts of me, that I'd like to hang out with the guy every second, of every day, of every year of my life. I'd take a bad day with Will over the best day with anyone else and I think that's what true, life altering love must be.

While we wait for Eli to finish his dinner, Will's phone rings. He keeps the ringer on all the time these days since coaches call often and unexpectedly. "Do you mind if I take this? I don't recognize the number." There's a tinge of nervousness in his voice.

"Of course, go." I motion him to go to the garden and for Eli and Emett to keep quiet.

I stack the plates and utensils to take inside and feel my stomach tighten as I watch him begin to pace the way he does when he's talking to a coach.

"I'll take those." I hear dad say from the open sliding glass door. "Where'd Wills go?"

I nod toward the garden while handing him the stack of plates. "He got a call. I think it's a college coach."

Dad peeks out the door toward Will. "Good for him! Could be the one."

Dear Lord, I hope he's right.

Will paces on the phone for another fifteen minutes - a long, drawn out fifteen minutes - and I can't take my eyes off of him. I'm analyzing every move, every smile, every nod in anticipation until he finally drops the phone to his side.

He rubs a hand over his hair, looks up at me, and when our eyes meet, I know. It was them. That was the call he's been waiting for.

"Was it?" I ask hesitantly, hoping I'm right.

He nods. "It was Harvard." The widest smile spreads across his handsome face. "They want me, Elle. They want me to play for them."

I squeal and my hands shoot up to my face while my legs do the little jog in place thing they do when I'm excited before I lunge for him, wrapping my arms around his neck.