Page 66 of In the Net
26
HARPER
The next day, my throat is still sore.
Even though I’ve never been too into sports, I’ve been able to enjoy a couple games while I’ve been a student here. I have to admit, it was a pretty cool experience watching the Black Bears win the college championship last year, when the entire town and campus came alive and was buzzing with so much energy you’d think we had a hometown NFL team in its first Super Bowl.
But yesterday’s hockey game was exciting on a different level.
It was a close, viciously competitive game for the whole time. With the way the Black Bears have started out this year, the crowd was desperate for a win, following every movement of the puck with rapt attention.
I got sucked in, cheering every time a play went our way, groaning every time something went wrong, jumping up and down and yelling for joy whenever we scored a goal. I even joined the whole arena in letting a few curses fly at the referees when they missed an obvious high-sticking call perpetrated against one of our players, Kiran Myers.
Even though the game ended in a 5-4 loss for Brumehill, the ending wasn’t even a downer. Everyone was saying that they were playing against one of the best college teams, and that their performance was so good that the game could only be taken as a positive sign, despite the narrow loss.
It’s after classes, and I’m sitting on my bed working on some homework for my Renaissance Poetry class. There’s a cup of hot tea on the bedside table to soothe my scratchy throat.
I’m even wearing the jersey I wore at the game yesterday.
What? It’s not weird.
It’s a chilly day, but it’s that kind of chilly in the house where a sweater would be too warm, but a t-shirt would be too cold. The heavy jersey over my t-shirt is just right for lounging on my bed.
It’s a purely pragmatic choice. Avoiding a utilitarian article of clothing just because Sebastian’s stupid last name is on the back of it would say more than using it out of convenience does. Right?
My phone vibrates on my bed next to my laptop. It’s Sebastian video calling me. My eyebrow quirks. That’s weird. He usually just texts.
I pick up the phone and answer the call, but as soon as I hit that green button, panic rushes through me.
When my camera turns on, he’ll see me wearing his jersey.
I’m not at a hockey game, not in public. There’s no good reason for me to be wearing this jersey right now. I mean, other than the fact that I’m chilly and it’s an extra layer, but Sebastian would never just accept that very true explanation. He’d have an absolute field day out of me wearing his jersey alone in my room.
Before the call can fully connect, I quickly flip my phone face down onto my bed.
“Uh, Harper? You there?” I hear Sebastian’s voice through the speakers, as he’s getting nothing but a blank screen.
I quickly pull the jersey off, dropping it to the floor next to my bed. Before picking my phone up, I go an extra mile and kick the jersey underneath my bed. Even having it out in view and still warm with my body heat while talking with Sebastian … it sends a weird feeling through me, and I want that feeling gone.
“Sorry,” I say, picking my phone back up. “I dropped my phone.”
A grin slides onto him. “So excited to talk to your boyfriend you temporarily lost motor function, huh?”
My eyebrows shift down. “That brittle ego of yours really would crumble into dust if you didn’t keep inventing lies to tell yourself, wouldn’t it?”
My snark only tilts his grin higher. “What are you doing the Friday two weeks from now?”
“I don’t have anything planned, I don’t think,” I answer.
“Cool. Because Bryce is coming by to visit. He’s gonna come up to see the game that Thursday, then we’re gonna throw a big party at the house Friday night. He’s going back home at the end of the weekend. Thought you might want to see him to catch up while he’s here.”
Excitement lights up my chest. He told me his visit went well, but now it sounds like they’re back on their old footing as good friends. I’m really happy for them both.
I’ve been checking Bryce’s Instagram to keep up with his recovery. I knew he was out of the hospital and doing well, but I didn’t expect he’d be doing so well to be able to take a long trip like this.
“He’s well enough to come all the way up to Cedar Shade? Already?”
Sebastian smiles like he’s proud of his friend, nodding. “Yeah. He’s recovering fast, and he’s tired of being cooped up.”
