RUSH

Ch. 17: Bridges

-Bennett-

Class was hell, in all honesty. I kept wincing as I paced across the middle court, trying my best to instruct the children despite the jabs of pain that shot up my leg with every step. I couldn't help but glance up at the clock every so often, mourning the slowness of time itself.

There was no escaping it.

It was thirty minutes into my first class when I heard the main doors swing open. I was tiredly leaning against the wall as I watched Riley barging in and determinedly crossing the court, bearing a determined expression. She was also carrying one of the foldable chairs from the break room under her arm, which she impatiently presented to me.

"Oh... hey, what's up?" I asked, astonished to see Riley approaching me at all. After what happened the day prior, I'd expected her to avoid me altogether.

"You. Sit."

"Huh?"

She snapped open the grey metal chair and set it down beside me, stubbornly patting the cushioned seat whilst narrowing her eyes in defiance. "I can't believe you didn't call off... you stubborn asshole."

"The—the kids," I blurted out, glancing around to find them busily playing in small clusters around the room, some of them using jump ropes, while others tried to practice dribbling basketballs. I'd been planning to be more helpful, more organized, but my mind continued to drift in multiple directions at once. So, I'd settled for a "free day" where they focused on the activities they preferred.

"They're not even paying attention," she retorted before releasing a heavy sigh. "Also, about yesterday..."

"It's alright, Riley," I assured her, a momentary wave of relief flooding through me once I finally managed to settle down on the chair. "Thanks."

"Thank that tall ass dude for letting me know you were being reckless again," Riley explained before signaling towards the door. "I need to go, though. I'm supposed to take over the front desk soon."

"Oh, okay," I replied as she rushed out the door, blinking back in confusion. Huh? Tall ass dude?

I shook the thought away in favor of focusing back on the class.

It wasn't as difficult as I'd imagined explaining to the kids that I'd be sitting for the rest of class. Most of the kids just nodded in agreement and then carried on with their activities. I'd been a bit nervous that some of the parents may complain, but only three had even stuck around today, and they were all in varying states of distracted. Two were busily scrolling on their phones, and the third was reading a book.

---

"Really?" I muttered under my breath, surprised to find Mason sitting on the same bench where I'd left him four hours prior... before I ran off like a coward. Or limped off, to be more precise. He was scowling at his phone, his eyebrows furrowed into a deep glare.

A twisted part of me had hoped that Mason would be so worn out from working out that he would just... bail on me. But no suck luck.

I darted my eyes between Mason, who was scrolling through his phone, and the entrance to the staff's locker room, which was across the lobby. I considered my options carefully, inhaling a long, shaky breath to try and calm the gnawing, fluttery feeling that had taken hold and found a home in the pit of my stomach.