Plié and Clout

Chapter 62: When I Hang Up My Skates

AUGUST: fantastic. Anything specific he likes to eat when he wakes up

ROCKET: not really, he's basically a garbage disposal with food

AUGUST: not helpful

ROCKET: grilled cheese is a comfort food, pasta is a normal day-to-day comfort and pregame. I dunno, grilled cheese will probably do the trick

AUGUST: thanks dude and I'm not letting you get away with that trick you pulled this morning, I'll get you back

ROCKET: np and I keep my spare key in the truck

So I set down my phone and head back to the kitchen, first cleaning out my mug and then putting butter in a skillet and melting it. After that I set in a single piece of bread and set it in the butter, then cheese, then another piece of bread.

I let it sizzle quietly until the cheese melts the bread together, then I flip it over to get the butter on both sides. Greasy and not at all what an athlete should be eating.

I hear a creak in the door and look up. He's rubbing an eye, mid-yawn. I scan him, knowing that the season ending injury is most likely that knee. I'm a little startled to find a decently sized brace over the joint.

"I fell asleep on you, didn't I?" He asks.

"Yeah, but you're alright," I flip the sandwich again, grabbing a plate and sliding it from the pan to the plate. "It was only an hour."

"An hour?" He gapes at me. "August, you should've woken me up or something, I didn't mean to crash like that, I-"

"You're alright, Steph, I get it." I hold out the plate to him. "I was just making sandwiches."

He accepts the plate and sits down at the barstools by my island. I return my focus to the skillet, plopping in more butter and preparing a second sandwich for myself. I don't want him to feel like I made him the sandwich specifically because he'll get chivalrous on me.

"I think Rocket is hiding something from me." he blurts all of a sudden. He doesn't give me time to react before starting to talk again. "It's just, he's been acting weird around me since that night at Casey's, you remember. And he's spending so much time with someone else I feel like he doesn't want to be around me, and I get it, I'm busy all the time, but when I can hang out with him, suddenly he's got an excuse or something else he has to do. I guess it's normal to grow out of relationships, but not that fast, right?"

I flip my sandwich, trying to process that. "Rocket still cares a lot for you, Steph, you just suddenly have a lot of things on your plate. He's probably a little ticked off that things have to be different for the two of you because of what's been going on with you, the Jilly deal and all. Plus, I've been taking up your time too. It's just an adjustment."

He sighs. "Yeah, I mean, yeah, but he was talking to Nico about something, someone, today and I can't shake the feeling he doesn't trust me anymore."

I put my sandwich on a plate and then sit down next to him. "I... any theories?"

Steph chews slowly for a second, then runs a hand through his hair, debating something in his head. "I think he's in a relationship."

"What?"

"That's what it's been feeling like. Like he's got someone that he's spending all sorts of time with and keeping Nico up to date with for some reason. I just don't get why he wouldn't tell me if something like that was going on. I mean, when I first met you I couldn't wait to tell him."

"Rocket and you aren't the same person. He's going to handle things differently because he's a different guy. Also because he's got a completely different sexuality. You have to admit that things are going to be very different with Rocket's relationship than with ours. Rocket won't get to be public about it, much less be talkative about it with this group of people. He'll put himself in danger."