Page 21 of Drew
Before I can say another word, Chloe rushes out of the room. Not having time to guess what she’s doing, I finish putting a few more things into my carry-on. She returns with a fist full of cash and stuffs it into my hand. “Here. It’s the tip money I’ve been saving.”
“Chloe, you don’t have to do this.” I start pushing it back in her direction, and she gives me a look that tells me not to mess with her.
“You’ll pay me back. I insist. It’s only about two hundred dollars.”
Not knowing what I’ll need in terms of money for a place to stay or a ride home, I stuff it into my purse. “You’re the best,” I whisper with one last squeeze. “I’ll let you know when I know more.”
I gather the textbooks I’ll need for the remainder of my classes and squeeze those into my suitcase. I return to the living room where Drew hasn’t budged from the couch. My heart breaks at how distraught he looks. He’s so lost in thought he doesn’t even look up when Chloe and I approach. God.What’s going on in that brilliant mind of his?
I drop my bags and approach him carefully, so I don’t startle him. When I reach out to take his hand, he turns his attention to me. “Have you heard back from Coach?”
I pull out his phone from my pocket and see that it shows no notifications. Shaking my head, I sigh. “Not yet. Let’s get you to your place, so we’ll be ready when he calls. Hopefully, he’ll get us on a flight in a few hours.” I squeeze his hand in reassurance to let him know he’s not going through this alone.
Drew pulls in a fortifying breath as he stands, his hand still linked in mine. “You ready?” He looks around the room and spots my suitcase next to my backpack.
“Yeah.” I nod as we walk toward my things.
Chloe reaches out and pats Drew on the shoulder as we pass. “Please let me know if you need anything…” She looks from me to him. “I’m only a phone call away.”
Drew thanks her, and I stop to pull her in for a hug. “Thanks for all your help,” I whisper. “I’ll be in touch.”
When we get to Drew’s apartment, it’s still as if he’s on auto pilot. He unlocks the door and together, we walk to his living room. At first, I’m hesitant, not knowing what he needs. But when he asks, “Will you help me?” I jump into action.
I quickly follow him to his bedroom, which mainly consists of a king-sized bed that’s neatly made, a desk, and a dresser. There are textbooks on a bookshelf as well as scattered across his desk. “What books do you need to keep on top of your classes?” I ask to give myself something to do.
“Just the ones on my desk. Everything else, along with my laptop, is already in my backpack.” He walks to his closet and gets what looks like a team-issued travel bag. It’s a large duffel bag with the team’s logo as well as Jacobs embroidered into the end. He plops onto his bed and turns to his dresser to grab some clothes for himself.
As soon as I get what textbooks he pointed out into his bag, I ask, “What else can I do to help?”
“Just be here… please.” He sounds broken as if he’s still fighting for control of his emotions.
I notice he stuffs shirts, jeans, sweats, basketball shorts as well as a team hoodie into his bag. When I notice he’s missing some essentials, I remind him, “Uh… what about socks and underwear?” As soon as the words come out, heat floods my cheeks.
Did I just ask him that?
But when I see his numb expression, the heat quickly disperses because there’s nothing to be embarrassed about.
“Oh, right. I forgot.” He nods in agreement as he opens his top drawer and stuffs several pairs of each into his bag.
When he stops and just stares at the bag on his bed, I prompt, “Toiletries?”
Without a word, he walks to what I assume is a bathroom off his bedroom and disappears.
I look around his tidy room and realize Drew’s almost obsessively clean. I’m not sure what I expected, but a pristine room wasn’t it. As I take in the simplicity, a phone buzzes in my pocket.
Hoping it’s not the hospital to tell us bad news, I pull it from my pocket and see Coach B’s name flash across the screen.
“Hello?”
“Abby?” Coach B greets.
“Yes. It’s me. Any word on a flight for Drew?”
Coach takes in a deep breath, that doesn’t sound promising. Shit, please don’t let there be a problem. “The earliest I could get is six tomorrow morning.”
Fuck. “We can drive there in less time than that,” I voice my thoughts aloud, with barely any filter.
“I was thinking the same thing. Are you sure you’re up to taking him? He doesn’t need to be alone at a time like this. After everything with his sister, he can’t be in the greatest head space.”
