Page 28 of Offside Rule

Without meaning to, I found myself smiling widely. No one knew me better than my mother, so I wasn’t surprised she had read me like an open book.

“Her name is Arianna,” I said, and didn’t miss the instant smile on her face.

TWENTY

XAVIER

Sweat soaked my back and rolled down my forehead, my eyes glued to the artificial grass. I couldn’t decipher what was being said around me. I was trapped in a bubble so quiet it made goosebumps rise on my skin in awareness. When I finally looked around me, the first thing I noticed was Vane’s defeated stare, and the way his fingers dug into his scalp as he paced nervously in front of me.

This couldn’t be our reality. No. We had been two points ahead. We’d had the win in our hands, but it’d slipped through our fingers. We had celebrated too soon, and all we’d gotten was our win stolen from us.

We’d lost.

We’d fucking lost.

My jaw ticked, and my hearing seemed to return as a combination of cheers and boos surrounded me. While the boos were directed at the celebrating team by our fans, it felt like it was all for us.

I couldn’t look into the tribunes. I didn’t want to face everyone’s defeated expressions, let alone our coach.

We had lost, and there was nothing we could do.

“We’ll win next time,” Micah said to himself, but Vane reacted immediately.

Next time— a couple of our teammates had played in the Euro for the last time in their careers. So even if Micah had wanted to encourage the team, it hadn’t worked.

“Nexttime, I won’t be here, you asshole,” Vane said. “This was my last chance to prove to my parents that this isn’t just a silly dream, it’s a career.” He crouched, threading a hand through his hair. “And now, I’ll be forced into the family business.”

I don’t know what had gotten into me, but the next thing I knew, I had stepped in front of him. “Get the fuck up.”

Vane glanced at me, unsure of what I was going to do, but he did listen to me, and stood tall.

“Stop feeling sorry for yourself, and do whatever the fuck you want. You earn enough not to care about your family, or their business, for that matter.”

He shook his head. “You know it’s more than that.”

And I did. I knew that when he told his parents about his future plans, they made him sign a goddamn contract. He’d agreed that if his team wasn’t going to win this year’s championship, he was going to be part of their family business.

But I also knew if he wanted to get out of that contract, there would be a way to. There are good lawyers out there, and the son of a bitch could afford them.

“Good match, everyone,” I said, almost breaking teeth as I clenched my jaw.

They had played wonderfully—we all had. The synchrony was insane, and we had communicated better than ever. We would’ve held that trophy if I hadn’t let them get excited so early. There had only been ten minutes left, and we had been two points ahead. So, when I saw them playing with huge grins ontheir faces, instead of forcing them to wipe them off, I had joined them. I had taken the win when it hadn’t even been ours yet.

Even Isaac had been more level-headed than me. He’d assisted half of our goals, and while that made me proud, it also made me realize that maybe I wasn’t meant to be the captain of any team.

As I made my way off the field, a hand on my shoulder stopped me. When I looked back, Isaac was standing there, unsure what to do with the hand he had just removed from my body.

“Don’t blame yourself for it,” he said.

I squinted, wondering how the hell he’d read my mind. But I guessed it was all written on my face. I nodded, lingering on the spot for a moment before walking away.

We’d lost. I couldn’t believe we had actually lost.

As I turned back toward the changing rooms, I came eye to eye withher. I stopped in my tracks, blinking to make sure I’d gotten it right. With how defeated I felt, I could’ve imagined anything to make myself feel better.

Still, she remained there. She didn’t look sad, nor disappointed. Arianna was simply there, ready to offer me comfort if I needed it.

“Arianna?” My voice came out so small as my steps carried me over to her. When I got closer and rounded the mass of people coming in and out, my eyes zeroed in on Giulia.

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