Page 109 of Lose You to Find Me

My lips twitch upward. “I’m actually kind of glad you said that.”

Confusion twists his expression.

I grab the paper that I took off the corkboard by the student center out of my bag and slide it over to him, watching as he scans the bolded lettering across the front.

“You thought of me when you saw a job posting for the university?”

I tap the bottom. “It’s for coaching. Wells came up to me a while ago saying he thought I should consider it, but I had way too much on my plate to even entertain the idea. Then I started wondering if I should reach out to someone in HR because they’re willing to pay for grad school during my employment.”

Matt looks up at me. “Why didn’t you reach out then? If they could take some of that stress off your shoulders, then it’s worth a conversation.”

“I’m actually going to be taking a break after this semester to. Right now, I want my attention to go to the store and family stuff. Dad was right. I don’t really need this degree. If I change my mind, I’ll come back to it, but I have other things to focus on. Adding coaching into my schedule would have been impossible when I’ve barely had time to even get my schoolwork done as it is now. It’s not in the cards for me.”

Matt frowns. “That sucks, man. So you’re leaving the university in May?” He acts like I won’t be minutes away.

“Don’t miss me yet. I’ll obviously be here, and you know where my apartment is. But yeah. It’s time for me to step back and stop trying to do it all, like you guys keep telling me.”

It’s about damn time I accepted that taking care of myself doesn’t mean I’m showing weakness. I know my support system will ensure I don’t keep burning both ends of the stick like I was, and I’m good with that. Happy to have people who I can turn to.

Took me long enough.

He huffs out a sigh and nods, eyes going down to the posting again. “So you thinkI’dbe good for this? I’ve never been much for leadership.”

That’s because he’s never had to be. “You know the same things I do, and you said yourself the current coach is a joke. What better way to change that than tobethe change the team needs? You’re in grad school too. You’d be just as well off getting the financial help. Plus if you’re on staff, then maybe things with you and Rachel won’t seem so damning.”

He stands a little taller at the mention of her. “You’ve really thought this out, huh?”

I lift a shoulder. “I’m looking out for a buddy. You should call them or pop by the office if you’re interested. But, Matt?” His brows go up as he meets my eyes. “You’d make a great coach. This is your chance to prove that. I know how you miss that life.”

His eyes go back to the paper. “I have to admit, part of the fun with Rach was the chase.”

I don’t say anything.

His nostrils twitch. “That got old though,” he murmurs.

All I do is nod and pat him on the arm. “I bet. But this is your opportunity to do something about that. If you two want to make it work, here’s a way to do it.”

He grabs the paper and folds it, tucking it into his back pocket. “Your dad would have done something like that. I ever tell you about the time he got me an interview at the grocery store to be a bag boy when I was fifteen?”

I hadn’t known that, but I smile. “Sounds like something he’d do. He wanted to help anyone who needed it. Why didn’t they give you the job?”

Matt flinches. “They might have remembered me from an incident a couple of years before then.”

“What was the incident?”

He looks sheepish. “Shoplifting. It wasonepack of gum and a candy bar. I was dared to do it. Turns out the cameras actually worked. The douchebags who dared me to steal that shit said they were dummy cameras to scare people from stealing.”

Shaking my head, I ask, “Did my dad ever ask you about the job after the interview?”

Matt snickers. “Yep. When I admitted why they wouldn’t hire me, he said, ‘You better pull your head out of your ass, son. You’ve got too much potential to screw yourself over by doing dumb shit.’”

I can practically hear Dad saying that, which makes something in my chest lighten under the pressure that’s been sitting on it for a while. “He was right.”

“Yeah. He was.” I can tell he’s thinking about Rachel when he mumbles, “Still is.”

We’re quiet for a long moment.

“Thanks for this,” my friend finally says, patting his back pocket. “I think I’ll reach out to them this afternoon. It’s probably time I do what your dad says and make something of myself.”

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