Page 67 of The First Play

“A painful divorce and a whole lot of heartache. Don’t put yourself through it.” Her voice is bitter as she storms out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her.

Dad flinches but stands tall, glaring out the window. I watch his nostrils flare, that muscle in his jaw ticking, before staring morosely at the floor.

Coach Watkins doesn’t want me after all.

Well, he’s still willing to take you… if you want to ride the bench. But that’s not good enough for Dad, and… shit, maybe it’s not good enough for me either.

“You love football. I know you do.”

I swallow, unwilling to respond to my father’s quiet statement.

“And I know you love this girl, too, but she’ll still be here when you get back… and football won’t. This is your shot, Zander. Please, don’t fuck it up.”

Shoving my hands into my pockets, I clench my teeth and force myself to breathe.

“I’ll call Coach Jones back soon. I just need a drink first,” Dad mutters.

“I don’t want that school,” I stubbornly mumble. “I’m not moving there.”

“Zander, you don’t have a choice!” he snaps. “I get that this Sienna girl is everything to you right now and you can’t stand the thought of living apart from her. But you can’t throw your life away for some romantic notion. If you’re really meant to be together, then you can handle the distance.”

I grit my teeth, hating every one of his words.

After a thick beat, Dad lets out a heavy sigh.

For the first time since I walked in the door, his tone drops to one of sympathy. “I get that you’re disappointed, and I’m sorry it’s not working out the way you wanted. But please, son… I’m begging you… go and explore the world. Find out who you are. Experience life as an independent man.” I glance up in time to see his eyes glass with pain. “Don’t make the same mistakes I did.”

My forehead bunches into a sharp frown.

“Don’t get me wrong.” He reaches out to pat my arm. “I love Monica. She’s my daughter—of course I love her. But my life would have turned out very differently if she hadn’t come along when she did. I probably would have broken up with your mother before graduating from college, and we both would have discovered ourselves and figured out that we weren’t the right fit.”

“Siennaisthe right fit,” I grit out.

“How do you know that when you haven’t experienced anything else? She’s your first, right?”

I swallow, then nod.

“And she might be your last,” he tries to appease me. “But… I just want you to be sure. I want you to get out of this town and have some adventures. I want you to discover all this world has to offer and truly know what you want before you get locked in the way I did.”

I scoff and shake my head.

“I’m just trying to save you from a lot of pain and heartache. That’s all I’m doing.”

“You think leaving her won’t be painful?” I glare at him.

Dad’s expression buckles, his eyes glassing over again. “Try having two kids with her first. Try molding your whole life around her only to discover that you’re making each other miserable. Try looking back on your life and realizing how many opportunities you let pass you by. You live with that regret for a while… and then we can talk about pain, okay?”

He slaps my shoulder, then stalks out of my room.

I glare at his back until my door clicks shut behind him and all that I’m left with is a thrumming silence that wants to bury me.

CHAPTER 26

SIENNA

It’s been a rough few months. Zander’s parents have really restricted his movements, and I’m hardly getting to see him at all. His father has him training any chance he can get… and Zander’s letting him boss him around. I hate it, but the few times I’ve said something, my boyfriend has cut the conversation short and changed the subject.

The fact that he didn’t get into Brighton was a kick in the balls. He ended up signing with Kelsey U, and although he forced a smile for the cameras on signing day, I could tell he wasn’t super excited. I guess he’s relieved somewhere was willing to take him, but shouldn’t he be totally pumped?

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