For The Love Of The Game

AARON'S POV

Aaron slammed the front door as he walked outside. He just couldn't grasp what had just happened. Finally after keeping it inside for so long he had told his dad that he didn't want to go to UCLA. It went almost as bad as he thought it would. The only difference was that it was worse. He had never pictured that his dad would go off on Lacey. Just thinking about his dad calling Lacey a 'two-bit' made his blood boil. That may be his dad but Aaron couldn't stand to have someone talk about her that way. Taking a deep breath, he walked down the front porch steps. Aaron suddenly realized that he didn't know where Lacey had run off to. Looking around frantically Aaron knew that she had to be upset, and he didn't blame her. Relief spread through him when he saw her sitting on the edge of the fountain. Slowly, he walked closer to her.

She had her back to him and she was looking up at the sky. Aaron stopped behind her. "Hey," he said quietly.

She turned her head to look at him. "Hey," she said giving him a smile.

Walking over to sit by her, Aaron grabbed one of her hands in his. He held it for a minute, examining it. Aaron had never noticed it before but her hands seemed so fragile. As it layed in his, he could tell how much bigger his were than hers. Lightly he ran his fingers over it, feeling the softness of it. Aaron thought about it. Looking at her hands he could feel their softness, how small they were, and the fragilness; but the girl he had just seen was anything but. She was strong and proud, and she truly cared about him. He held her hand in both of his, in a way he felt like he had let her down. His dad had just yelled at her, had called her names, and he hadn't really done anything.

"Lace.....I'm sorry. I can't believe that my dad said those things to you. He had no right to and-" Lacey cut him off.

"Aaron it's fine. Really. We knew that your dad was going to take this hard."

"Yeah, but that is no excuse for him saying those things to you. I knew he would be mad at me, but you had nothing to do with this." He looked down at Lacey's hand in his.

"Aaron," she said using her other hand to bring his eyes up to meet hers, "your dad's whole world has just been turned upside down. He's not only angry but confused. He really thought that this was your dream. He doesn't want to believe that this is what you really want, so he's pinning it on me. And in a way, I guess I am kind of to blame." She looked back up at the stars.

Aaron's eyes went wide. What was she saying? "What? No you're not."

Lacey turned and looked at him. "Would you have confronted your dad if it wasn't for me? Would you have applied at Rockhill?" She paused, letting her words sink in. "No you wouldn't have. I don't regret this though. I don't like the fact that it caused you and your dad to fight, but it was either fight now or you would both hate each other down the road."

Aaron stared at her. She was right and he knew it. But regardless he didn't want her blaming herself for what happened in there. "It's still not your fault. And I want you to know that I don't care what my dad says, I'm not going to quit seeing you."

At this Lacey's smile grew. "The thought never even crossed my mind."

Aaron pulled her closer to him. "I never would have been able to go through that without you."

"I'm so proud of you. You stood up for yourself and you told him exactly how you feel."

Feeling her wrap her arms around his waist and squeeze made him smile. Aaron knew that she really was his anchor. Without her he wouldn't have been able to face his dad or do anything else. He knew that in finding Lacey he had found the key to opening up the other part of himself. Thinking about everything that had happened between them in the last couple of months was crazy. They had barely known each other, and in just this short amount of time Aaron was attached. There wasn't anyone else that he wanted. All he wanted was this beautiful girl in his arms. It was in that moment, sitting on the fountain holding her, that he realized he loved her. He loved her more than anything else in the entire world. Leaning down he kissed the top of her head and rested his cheek there. Even after the huge fight that had just played out inside, sitting there with Lacey in his arms, Aaron felt happy.