the anatomy of love [BxB] COMPLETED

7

Coach Nels gives them Sunday off from practice as long as they all hit the gym for an hour. Jackson doesn't see that as a day off, but it's two hours shorter than usual, so he'll take it.

Jackson wakes up early so as not to see anyone from the team. Apparently everyone else had that idea, so he ends up on a treadmill between Caleb and Theo, because that's how shitty his life is right now. He runs hard for twenty minutes, then gets off. Caleb got off halfway through that, and Theo thankfully stays on for longer.

Jackson sees Caleb hitting the weights out of the corner of his eye. He takes a deep breath, goes over there, and picks up a pair of twenty pounders and sits on the opposite end of the bench that Caleb is sitting on.

For a few minutes they don't say anything.

Then Jackson figures he'll be the bigger person this time. "Look, Caleb, I'm sorry. You're just trying to look out for me. That's what best friends are for."

Caleb sets down his weights and looks at Jackson with a seriousness that rivals that of Elena, then he breaks out in a grin.

"Aw man, come here. I hate fighting with you over guys you like." A few teammates give Caleb a curious look. Caleb doesn't seem to notice, and this just makes Jackson feel more grateful for his best friend and how he's really been taking him for granted lately.

They hug it out, chat a little about the upcoming soccer game, and just like that, the tension between them sputters out like a dying flame. Jackson can barely even remember how he could have gotten so worked up over Caleb.

As they leave the gym together, Caleb places a hand on his shoulder. "I'll always support you, okay? I even support you getting those guys, even though I know I couldn't do it, and not because I'm straight. You do you, man."

"Thanks, Caleb. And ... I guess I support you and Lauren too. Even though it'll make me a third wheel."

"Me and Lauren! I wish. We're just friends. Seriously."

"Caleb, you're never serious."

They smile at each other because it's not really true, but it's a nice sentiment, and Jackson closes the gym door behind him like it's the door to the past, and he doesn't even glance back once as they walk to their apartment together.

☆★☆

Unfortunately, Caleb forgiving him doesn't automatically mean Lauren does too. She's a girl, and although girls have always loved him for reasons he will absolutely not get into, they are always trickier when it comes to arguments.

Jackson finds Lauren studying in her room, the door half open. He knocks anyway. Lauren swivels around in her chair, and her smile falters when she sees it's Jackson.

"Oh. Hi."

"Hey Lauren." Jackson notices her screen is on Facebook, so she's probably not too busy. With a surge of false confidence he walks in and sits on her bed. "Can we talk?"

"Sure," Lauren says.

"I wanted to apologize. For leaving you guys at the pub and not telling you. It was really shitty of me. I know you guys are just trying to look out for me."

"Honestly, I forgave you a long time ago."

"You did?" Jackson did not expect this. And he's rarely surprised.

"Yeah. I was just hungover and you left me alone with Caleb, which is fine, but I invited both of you out, so it felt sort of like a rejection."

"So why were you ignoring me?"