Page 20 of Love is a Game

Pen lets out a bitter laugh, shaking her head.

“Yes, I do.” I reach forward, tracing my finger down the bridge of her perfectly straight nose.

I stop at the thin, faint scar above her upper lip.

“This is the evidence. You remember how it happened?”

“Of course.” She smirks, just a little. “The WWE finals. Brady—sorry, ‘Johnny Nitro’—was out. It was ‘Lita’ versus ‘Punk’. And you said: “Let’s make the trampoline the ring.”

I nod. “Exactly.”

It’s true—and I’m ready to admit to everything right now if it stops Pen’s heart-wrenching tears.

“But not only that—I came up with some stupid rule to make things harder for you. I said you couldn’t do your ‘finisher’ unless you took an elbow drop from me first.”

Pen’s eyes narrow. “Hmm, I kind of remember that…”

I rub the back of my neck. “Yeah, I wanted to win so bad, I didn’t think about what could go wrong. You jumped at the wrong angle, and I…my elbow…” I gesture toward her face. “I clipped you, and you hit the metal frame face-first.”

Penelope blinks, her hand instinctively grazing her nose.

“Your mom came running from next door like she had a sixth sense.” I grimace at the memory. “She didn’t even look at me, just got you sitting up, tilting your head, making me go grab a bag of frozen peas.”

Penelope stares blankly, then shakes her head, disappointed. “It’s nice of you to try, Tuck. But I never said she was neglectful. That’s like Mothering 101. Of course, she came to my aid and took me to the ER. It doesn’t mean—”

“Hang on,” I interrupt. “That’s not the part you need to hear.”

Pen angles her head, hopeful.

“A week or so later, she came to meet my parents after dinner,” I share. “I listened in from the stairs, but then they explained to me later anyway.”

“Explained what?” Pen frowns.

“Someone reported your black eye and got child services involved. And your mom was terrified. She was so desperate to protect you, Pen. She broke down, saying she couldn’t lose you. That you were everything to her. You were her life.”

Pen’s dark eyes widen, rims tinged red. “Are you sure?”

“Positive. Because days later, we had to go to where she worked, the lawyer’s office in Newcombe, to give statements. Since my parents were your teachers and neighbors, they were considered important witnesses. And I had to explain exactly what happened; how you got injured.”

I pause, searching her face. “I know you don’t feel like you have a lot of happy memories of her. But I’m telling you, Pen, she loved you. If you’d seen her that day, you’d know it too.”

Pen sets her glass down on the coffee table before burying her head in her hands.

“God, I had no idea what she was going through. When I was younger, I knew too much—every fight, every argument about Dad’s affairs, his drinking, spending the rent money. I couldn’t escape it. But when we moved here, everything changed. Mom kept it all to herself.”

I lean forward, rubbing Pen’s hunched shoulders. She turns to look at me, her eyes glistening.

“How come you never told me that?”

“She asked me not to, Pen. And as an adult, I get why she was so scared. Think about it. The years with your dad—the instability, always being on the road. Maybe there were earlier reports of neglect, maybe that’s why you moved so much. Maybe that’s why she finally left him. To protect you.”

Pen wipes her eyes and exhales sharply.

“There’s more,” I say. “Not long after that, she pulled me aside for a serious talk about respecting girls. What that meant. What itreallymeant. I was so embarrassed, I didn’t even jerk off for a month after. Felt like she could see every dirty thought I ever had about you.”

Pen’s head jerks up, eyes wide. “Whaaaat?! She did that?! Wait, what dirty thoughts?”

I shake my head. “Nope. Not doing this.”

---