Downfall of the nation's hero

Chapter 13

When I am discharged from the hospital, Ellie is already there to pick me up and drive me back to the campus. I'm glad it's going to be her, and not Fox. His dynamics with me have been off ever since the leak, but Elizabeth Rhoades, our team's assistant coach, has continued being the sweetheart she is—always willing to help and always willing to listen.

"Hey, Audra!" She waves at me when she sees me walk out of the hospital. "Ready to go home?"

I put on a smile that doesn't need to be that forced and make my way to her car. She opens the passenger seat door for me and I carefully jump in. We both then buckle up and the car gets going.

"I hope they were nice to you." She jokes. "Because I know the director of the hospital, so they would be in big trouble if they weren't."

I laugh at that, which makes my arm hurt a bit. "No need, they were amazing."

She nods in satisfaction. "Glad to hear that."

"Did anything new happen while I was gone?" I get curious, and knowing how much Ellie loves spilling the tea, I'm hoping for some spicy news.

Ellie gives me a knowing smirk. "That's why you're my favorite, Audra Matonis." She winks at me. "You bet I got some tea for you! Where do I even start?" Ellie pretends to think for a minute to raise the tension. "Okay, so let's take it from the beginning." She says finally. "As you probably expected, Monica Wilson got kicked out of the team once we found out what happened. Her parents tried threatening us with a lawsuit, but when we suggested suing Monica for what she had done, they dropped the tough act and just accepted it."

I didn't exactly want to hear about Monica. It's a good thing it was resolved even without my presence, but still. People like her don't deserve the attention they're given. It only motivates them to do more damage in the future.

When Ellie notices my quiet reaction, she decides to continue. "Also, Ren has been insufferable lately. One would have thought that she would actually be calmer without you being around."

Okay, now I'm listening.

"I see." Ellie smirks at me when she notices how I jumped when she mentioned her. "I don't know what's going on between the two of you, honestly. One day, you're trying to kill each other, and the next day, this whole intensity just vanishes. So yeah, I was shocked when Ren decided to join our program even though she knew you were also coming to Minnesota. Most of us were. You rarely get two of the best recruits on the same team, especially when they hate each other."

"I don't hate her." I say it out loud. I've been trying to convince myself for the past few weeks that I do, in fact, despise her, but that couldn't be further away from the truth. And I don't think I ever truly hated her. I just think I disliked what she symbolized for me - Choosing to represent Lithuania instead of the USA turned the whole America on me.

Ellie shrugs. "I mean, your first game together pretty much says otherwise."

"I don't hate her, Ellie." I say much more firmly now.

She smiles. "I think she doesn't hate you as well." Then she puts on a fake frown. "Because ever since you got admitted to the hospital, she's been acting like a bitch. Especially after she and Sophie visited you."

It makes me swallow the unpleasant feeling in my throat. "That might have been my fault."

Ellie's eyebrows shoot up. "What are you implying, Audra?"

Fuck. "I may or may not said something stupid while I was under the influence of the anesthesia...."

I can't believe I blew my cover this quickly. "I'm all ears." Ellie nudges me to continue the story.