Page 1 of Make Her Bleed
ARIA
I've always loved football—the game, the players, the sound of the cheers that fill a stadium. The game can bring people from all walks of life together for a single purpose.
My dad being a football player during most of my childhood also has a lot to do with my love of the game. He considers it an honor that he has been able to play with so many teams, so many coaches, and so many other devoted players. He didn't make it to the major league, but we've never considered that a failure.
Gridiron, the minor football league, has treated him well, but it's time for him to retire, which isn't a bad thing. It means he can do what he's always wanted to do … coach a high school football team.
"Are you sure you're okay with this move, honey?" Dad asks as he pulls the moving truck up to our new house.
It's smaller than our last one—-we’ve moved around a lot for different teams in Gridiron—-but we don't need much. Mom has been gone as long as I can remember. Luckily, Grandma helped when Dad had his games, but now, Grandma is back in New Jersey with Grandpa. It’s their “retirement destination” as Grandpa said. They didn’t want to move back to their hometown—-ourhometown.
We're not in Arkansas anymore.
Royal City, Washington is a small town with roughly two thousand residents, and it's a big football town. Everyone goes nuts over it—or so Dad says. This is where I was born and where my dad was raised.
"Of course, Dad. We go where the money is, right?"
Dad smiles and squeezes my hand before parking the moving truck. I climb out with just my water bottle and my phone in hand, eyeing the exterior.
The house is nice. Navy blue shutters, a bright red door, and clean white siding make for a beautiful new beginning. The stone walkway leads to a grand wooden porch with a swing and all. It's almost like we stepped into a housewife's dream.
This doesn't seem like my dad's style.
"I know it's not as big as our old house," Dad starts, looking defeated.
"It's fine. We had to downsize, and I get that. Let's go inside."
He gives me a relieved smile and we enter the house using the key he got from the realtor.
The house is beautiful inside as well. There are dark mahogany wooden floors, clean beige walls, and gold fixtures throughout the house.
Once we're inside, I travel down the hall and check out the floor plan. I already know the gist of it. Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, an office, a kitchen, a laundry room, and a room Dad wants to turn into a theater room.
"If you want to check out your room, it’s at the end of the hall, Aria!" Dad calls from the other side of the house.
I was named after Aria Wallace, an actress Mom loved, which is a bit odd in my opinion. I've always thought it was weird to name a kid after a famous person you've never met. It's different if it's a person who impacted your life—like a family member or even just someone who inspired you from afar, but my mom didn't want to be an actress.
Still, I like that my name is a bit unique. It's not as common as Sarah or Jessica but people can still pronounce it.
I walk into the bedroom at the end of the hall and sigh.
At least it's not small. The flooring is the same as the rest of the house, and the walls are white instead of beige. Also, there's an extended windowsill which could be repurposed as a mini bookshelf.
I'm picturing where to put everything when I hear Dad call my name followed by another man's voice.
I leave my room and head back toward the main part of the house, and I find my dad talking with another man who has his back to me.
"Aria, you remember Malakai Harris, right?" Dad says as the man turns around.
Deep blue eyes, tan skin that would put a surfer to shame, dark blond hair looking soft to the touch, strong jaw chiseled by Narcissus himself, and full, kissable lips make up his features. His face is that of a man, and the few wrinkles under his eyes show he's older than my dad.
His face is handsome and familiar. He used to come around all the time when we lived in Little Rock, and they played together on the Twisters team. He was one of my dad's best friends on the team. I do remember that he never had a woman or children with him, it was always just him. I thought it was a bit strange because the other guys my dad played with always had either a girlfriend or kids with them when they came around.
Not Malakai Harris, though.
"Uncle Kai!" I greet him with a soft smile as my dad strolls over to me and squeezes my shoulder in appreciation. It takes everything in me not to throw my arms around him in excitement.
Okay, maybe I missed him a little bit.
