Page 47 of The Keeper
Mack: Can we talk?
How am I supposed to answer that? Deciding to ignore the text and deal with it later, I begin to place the phone back in my bag when it dings again.
Mack: I know things are weird right now, but it’s important
I sit on a bench outside of the Mueller psychology building, soaking in some sun while deciding how to respond. Do I want to talk to Mack? My brother practically insinuated he was insane, although I’m sure there’s more to the story. Mack is a good guy with a kind heart. He cares about me, regardless of his past. If he thinks we need to talk, I should give him the benefit of the doubt.
Me: I’m just about to start a class. Can we meet after?
Mack: Sure. You done at 11?
Me: Yeah.
Mack: Any other classes today?
Me: I have a break from 11 to 1.
Mack: Can you swing by my office?
Me: Sure.
Mack: Thanks. See you in a bit.
I place my phone on silent and move quickly into the building, heading up to the third floor. When I enter my classroom, I spot Piper in the back row where we normally sit and make my way towards her. It isn’t until I’m pulling my notebook out that I can feel her gaze on me, and I realize she’s probably brimming with questions about my dad’s scene at the game yesterday.
Without looking at her, I let a soft statement cross the space between us.
“I would really appreciate it if we can just not talk about it.”
Thirty seconds pass before Piper’s hand reaches out and she squeezes mine. I don’t look at her, but I see her pull out her laptop and begin fiddling around on Facebook like she normally does. A few more minutes pass, and I hear her whisper, “Did I ever tell you about the time Gina shit her pants during a game?”
My eyes fly to hers, my shock evident on my face.
“Serious?”
Piper lets out a contained laugh. A Los Angeles native, she and her older sister, Peri, went to high school with Gina in Laguna Beach.
“No joke. It was Gina’s senior year, so I was still on the freshman team. Her family was doing some weird juice cleanse or something. Coach told her she needed to eat differently and she ignored him. Said her ‘holistic nutritionist’ guaranteed a more athletic body or some shit.”
“Please, please tell me every detail of this story,” I whisper, a crooked grin plastered on my face.
Piper’s smile keeps getting wider as she continues.
“Peri said that Gina was in the process of kicking the ball when she heard a loud fart and saw Gina freeze, then grab her ass.”
Tears are literally streaming down my face. I’ve never been one to revel in someone else’s shit, no pun intended, but Gina is such a dick sometimes that this opportunity is too good to pass up.
“She ran off the field and straight to the locker room. She took a week off of school and then had a week off for Thanksgiving. I think she was hoping no one would hear about it or everyone would forget if she was gone for long enough. But Peri said no one let her live it down for the rest of the season. Having the last name ‘Brown’ also didn’t help the situation. She likes to pretend people called her ‘Brownie’ in high school because she was ‘so sweet’, but that’s complete bullshit.”
I’m laughing full out, my face buried in my arms on my desk as my body shakes violently. When I look up, I catch a few glares from the students around us, most of them freshmen. The professor isn’t even here yet. They need to relax and let me enjoy this fleeting sense of elation.
“Oh my god,” I say, wiping my eyes and taking deep breaths. “Thank you for telling me that. You’ve completely redirected my day.”
Piper smiles at me.
“Everyone has their own shitty days,” she says. “Some just have ones more obvious than others.” And with that, she goes back to her Facebook page.
I watch her for a minute, my heart swelling with how sweet she is. I was a little worried at the start of the year when I realized I had to enroll in Psychology 101 as a senior. But General Education Requirements are actually required, hence the name, so I didn’t have an option. I was thrilled to see my young teammate when I entered the classroom that first day, and we’ve sat next to each other every Tuesday and Thursday, without fail.
