Page 71 of The Sky Between Us

Dad’s features set, his mouth formed a thin line and a vein on his forehead throbbed. I didn’t want Sky there as this was the first time the guys were playing a home game against Harvard. Plus, it was my first-time seeing Jake and watching a soccer game. But most importantly, I could not guarantee what left Jake’s mouth.

“Maybe next time,” I offered a beat later, not taking my eyes off my father. His face fell and gratefulness filled his eyes.

“If they win this one, they will go into the final. Then we can go with them to the final and watch it?” I went on as my eyes slid to Sky, who was ready to throw a fit. His dark eyes grew watery and his lips trembled.

God, I hated saying ‘no’ to him, but it was to protect him.

“Dad,” he whined, looking at my father.

“Next time, buddy. This is an important game and you are going on an open day to the San Francisco Elite Academy.”

Sky’s eyes lit up, as dad finally agreed to let him go check out one of the top soccer academies in the city, and to sign up. We already knew if he kept up his passion at the age of 13, he would already be in an elite program. Money wasn’t an obstacle and my dad wanted the best for him. Despite Sky’s obsession with LA Galaxy as the closest good team to him, dad slowly introduced him to European team’s such as Barcelona as in the past years the FC Barcelona’s High-Performance Academy was named the best place for aspiring professionals to train. Dad wanted him there. If it was up to him, I’m sure he would move to Europe to sign him up there, but at the end of the day Sky wasn’t his son, he was mine and the final decision came from me.

“I can go after,” he said after a long silence. “The game isn’t until the afternoon, I can make it.”

“You have a full day there,” my mom jumped in, placing a calming hand on his shoulder. “But next time.”

“Not. Fair.” He crossed his little arms in front of his chest and pouted.

It took all my effort to not hug him and tell him he could come, because I knew this was for the best, but his face was breaking my heart.

“Anyone else want pie?” I find myself asking, despite the fact that I still had pie left on my plate. I just needed a change of topic. “No? I’ll clean up.”

Standing up, I cleared both of the pies from the table and escaped to the kitchen to catch my breath. Motherhood wasn’t easy, especially not when done in secret.

Thanksgiving was painfully slow. Not because anything in particular, but my mind was racing hundreds of miles per hour, thoughts changed in my head and I was barely present during dinner. Last week was spent by learning and practicing Kellerman’s tactics and coming up with ideas for blocking it. Elliot and I were dedicating a lot of time for that, and I was torn. I wanted to tell my best friend everything because keeping it in was causing my head to explode. I couldn’t jeopardize the win for my selfish motives. At the same time, it wasn’t my secret to tell. It was up to Hazel if she wanted to share this, and I knew Elliot wasn’t her favorite person. Plus, I started working on alternative plans in case LA Galaxy didn’t work out. I wasn’t going to put all my eggs in one basket, and I needed to keep an open mind, research other teams, and find ones that would be a great fit for me. I could fit their profile.

The dark circles under my eyes were proof of my lack of sleep, which my mother didn’t fail to mention. For once I wished Camilla provided a distraction from me, but she was on her best behavior with her therapist and food journal. She ended up eating turkey and some mashed potatoes, but no pie. It was definitely progress and I was proud of her.

“How is Hazel doing?” Dad asked me, causing my sister’s eyes to shine in excitement. “Is she home for Thanksgiving?”

“She is,” I nodded. “They had an amazing half-time performance this week, and she killed it.”

“Seems like a nice girl,” my mother chimed in with a smile, before exchanging a glance with my father.

Here we fucking go.

“We are just concerned that she doesn’t have future plans. You are always so organized, a real planner, and she isn’t. We don’t want her to steer you away from your path,” my father explained.

Like I didn’t know. Hazel liked to stick her head in the sand, but with time, she was becoming more rational and she started thinking. I knew it wasn’t easy for her, but I loved her and I believed she was going to figure it out and find her way.

“Just be careful,” my mother went on. “You don’t want to end up with an unwanted pregnancy and a kid on your shoulders at such a young age. You have dreams, Aiden.”

“She strikes you as a person who is going to get pregnant deliberately just to chain me down?” I arched a brow, as I did my best to keep my face emotionless.

They exchanged another glance, which meant yes.

“Girls can smell success and they would do anything to tie you to them forever. You don’t know how easy it is…”

“That’s enough!” I raised my voice and stared at them with a hard glance. “She is my girlfriend and my choice, and you don’t get to talk about her like that. You don’t even know her. So first, get your facts straight and then trash someone I chose.”

“We just don’t want you to make a mistake,” mom explained quietly. “You are talented, and your whole future is ahead of you. No need to further complicate it with a child yet.”

Like it or not, my future already had a kid written in it. And I didn’t mind it, not for a single second. Sky was a great kid and I formed a connection with him from the first moment. No matter what happens between Hazel and me, I would always remain kind and polite to him if our paths ever crossed again. After all, the world of soccer was small.

I just haven’t considered how others would react when they find out my girlfriend had a son at such a young age. Gossip would spread and Hazel hated the spotlight. Not like I was headed to be a star, so I didn’t have to worry about it. But I had to be ignorant to not even play with the idea of how fame would play out for us. She still liked the shadows, while I was ready for my spotlight. We were doomed.

Sunday morning I decided to take the drive back to San Francisco, as I couldn’t sit still or enjoy being home anymore. Not after the disastrous Thursday night, but I did make an effort to please my parents. Going back to campus was a better option. I asked to get the late shift at Starbucks and earn some extra money that I was in need of, so I considered it a win-win. Blasting music for three hours straight also helped my soul, despite spending the last hour on the phone with Hazel. This was our first time having a long phone conversation and I had to admit, I liked it. Her voice sounded all excited and happy, which was nice to hear. She chatted about their hike, they’ve gone every day to a hike and she shared pictures with me, but hearing her storytelling just made my heart burst. We ended up agreeing for her to sleep over after my shift before hanging up.

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