Socially Stupid

Chapter 26

"Hey man," Jake said. He walked into the trainer's office with Andrew's stuff. "How are you feeling?"

Andrew groaned a little, sitting up in the chair. "Terrible," he said.

"Where are your parents?" Jake asked, setting down the bags. He took a seat next to his friend.

"They're trying to get back into town," Andrew said, looking at his phone. "They were at my sister's dance competition like two hours away. They were supposed to stay the night out there."

"Bummer," Jake said. "What did the trainer say?"

"They want me to go to the hospital to get it checked out," Andrew said. "They think it's just a sprain, but they want someone to look at it."

"Dude, I can take you there right now," Jake offered. "Just tell your parents to meet us there."

Andrew nodded. "Ok," he said, texting his parents. "I... Actually need to talk to you about something anyway."

"About what?" Jake said. "If it's about what Coach said in the locker room, I can give you a summary."

"No... It's about... Adrienne," Andrew said carefully.

"Oh shit," Jake said. "Did she dump you?"

"No..." Andrew shook his head. "Just help me get up on these crutches and let's get out of here."

Jake nodded and helped his friend up, grabbing the crutches. He picked up Andrew's bag and walked out.

When they got to the front entrance, the only person left standing out there was Nathan.

"Nate?" Jake said slightly confused. "Why are you still here?"

"I want to talk to Andrew," Nathan said. "My sister... I'm sorry."

"Wait, did you know?" Andrew said. He started to feel tense.

"Yes. I'm sorry..." Nathan said. "I can explain..."

"Explain what, Man," Andrew shook his head."Shit, it all makes sense now... Why you were saying the weirdest shit about her."

"What are you talking about?" Jake asked.

Nathan ignored him. "Look, Man... I wanted her to be the one to tell you the truth," he said. "I was so close to spilling it out but I couldn't. I couldn't do that to her."

"You made me feel and look like an idiot, Nate," Andrew said, hobbling closer to Nathan. "You're supposed to have my back."

"My sister comes first," Nathan said sternly.

"Yo, let's back it up," Jake said, pulling his friend back.

Andrew hobbled forward again, giving Nate a push with one of his arms. "Jake, our good friend, Nate here was keeping a secret from us."

"Andrew, stop," Nate said, holding his arms out and backing away.

"About what?" Jake asked.

"Jake, you need to get him out of here," Nathan said.

Jake shook his head. "Come on, Andrew," he said. "We need to get you to the hospital."

"No, this discussion isn't over." Andrew said, dropping his bag. "You always do the right thing, Nate. Why didn't you tell me the truth?"

"Andrew, there's nothing left to say here," Nathan said. "I was protecting my sister. I'm sorry. She's just a freshman. She doesn't know what she's doing."

"Andrew, let's get out of here," Jake tried again.

"This is done," Nathan said, turning around to walk down another hallway. "You and I can talk about this later."