"𝚃𝚑𝚊𝚝'𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜, 𝚠𝚎 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚖 𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚊𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎."
~~~
𝐙𝐚𝐜𝐡'𝐬 𝐏𝐎𝐕
The mood of the locker room was energetic and I don't remember the last time Coach didn't yell at us before leaving the field after a game. It was safe to say the 34-6 score was just enough to keep him off our asses till the next practice.
"Yo, Zach! The guys and I thought it would be cool to catch some drinks after today's win at Joe's. You down?" Dwight asked, gripping both ends of a white towel around his neck.
Time was ticking and I had to leave now before visiting hours were over. Getting wasted in a hot smelly club with frats was the last thing on my mind.
I pause and close my locker soon after. "Nah man, you guys go ahead, I'm not really in a drinking mood," I answered a little too quickly. I know I sounded like a class-act dick. When Dwight's permanent goofy smile starts to fade and the guys in the back start to shrug like they already knew I would decline, I say the first thing that pops up in my head to redeem myself. "Listen I'll pick up the tab in the morning, just please don't go overboard."
"Wait, you serious?" Dwight grinned like a fucking idiot, before turning around towards the rest of the team and lifting both hands in the air. "Aye yo! Guys, Zach said double the drinks for him tonight. They're on him!"
"That's not what I—
An almost ear-piercing shout of approval rings the locker room full of players as more guys start to appear from the showers and weight room. Jesus, there were more of them. They start to repeatedly bang on the walls and slap each other's backs like animals. Even the rookies were talking about going to try and pull some chicks tonight like they even had the slightest clue of what they were doing.
"...said."
As I start to head out with my head hung, my footsteps slow down with a pull to my arm. "Hey Zach," Ezra catches up to me still in uniform and drenched in sweat, the complete opposite of me who had just showered and got dressed in some more casual clothes.
I flip my wrist to check my watch and I mentally calculate how long it will take to get back over to Jersey if I use my bike instead of my car. "Yeah, what's up?"
His eyes flip from my watch and bag then back to my face with a questioning look. "You good? Haven't seen you and the group in a while."
By group, I know he really meant Izzy. The two of them had apparently started getting close every time we hung out and ever since Sage's court case has become a priority, we've missed a couple of group lunches.
"Yeah, umm there's just a lot going on with Sage's job and group therapy evaluations coming out soon. My mind is kinda all over the place right now. It won't affect me on the field so you don't have to worry about that." I make sure to add in the last part for reassurance.
"Man, of course, it won't. You came back from an ankle injury and still put up half our points tonight. I'm just proud of you. I wanted you to know that before you left." Ezra confessed like he wanted to say more.
"Oh, thanks." I slip him a poor excuse of a smile and he just laughs. I think he's kinda taken back that I'm even showing a small display of affection at all."Have you spoken to AJ lately? It's not like him to miss a game." I ask, trying to subtly switch the topic.
"Yeah, he's got some family issues to sort with. He had a meeting with Coach about it last week."
"Oh."
What did that mean?
"It doesn't mean anything." Ezra reads me like the back of his hand. He steps several inches closer so his next words stay confidential. "Between the both of us, I heard Coach mention your name a few times in the office last night on the phone. It could mean anything but I'm pretty sure he's made a decision and my bets on you."
Ezra grips my shoulder excitedly, waiting for an answer but I can't stomach saying the words that'll just disappoint him. "Can we talk more later, I-I gotta go."
His expression falls. "Yeah...later." I hear him mutter as I walk through the double doors.
____
The drive is surprisingly shorter than I initially thought and hopefully not a result of the six traffic violations I gained along the way to rural New Jersey. As I swerved through yellow lights, in between cars and buses, I couldn't help but think about Ezra's latest confession.
If Coach had already made a decision and it was me, how could I look him in the eye and refuse the co-captain spot?
I gripped the base of my helmet, lifting it over my head in order to get a clearer view of the logo attached to the building. The remainder of nerves running rampant through my body seemed to settle and now I was lit with pure anger and not the uncontrollable kind caused by my disorder.
This time it's justified. What Sage's mother put her and Kelsey through for the past year was more than life-altering. It damaged any form of relationship the two of them had left. So much that it was weird to see them both on the same side of things. When Sage explained the whole ordeal she physically had to hold me back from driving to the same rehab center I'm standing in front of right now.
The place I had driven to pick her up after she had another mild panic attack.
And when I looked at my sister, I felt nothing but pure guilt built up in my chest. I had completely shut her out from my world when she didn't deserve it. Granted she wasn't always the best sister but I should've known something was up.
"Hello, sir. How can I help you today?"
"Visiting patient Winters," I say, getting straight to the point of the matter. The place looked the same as it did a couple of weeks ago. The thanksgiving decor was still hanging around doors, walls, and windows, and the place seemed pretty packed with visitors.
"Relation?"
I don't hesitate. "Nephew."
The receptionist looks up from her computer and pulls down her reading glasses, eyeing me up and down for a moment. I keep the same blank expression on my face in an attempt to disguise my lie. "And what is your full name, young man?"
"Zion Woods."
Yes, I thought I was pretty clever with that one.
"She'll be down in a moment. Linda will lead you to the family room." She slips me a visitor pass with my 'name' on it and I reluctantly pick it up from the desk, sticking it to the lower end of my sweatshirt.
After following the second receptionist down a few hallways and through some rooms I can conclude the center is well above average. I don't even have to see the living facilities to know this place must've cost a fortune to stay at.
When the double doors creak open, revealing a short figure I hate that I'm looking at the carbon copy of Sage and can't at all decipher how this woman birthed the single best thing that's ever happened to me.
Her hair is layered with blonde and gray strands, you could tell age was slowly catching up to her in here. Unlike the other patients I've seen roaming around, Sage's mother looked fairly healthy like she's been sober for a while. Which made complete sense for someone capable of blackmail.
"Can't say I'm surprised to see you here Zach or is it, Zachariah? I can never tell these days." Her eyes lit up with a mischievous smirk but I read her like a book. Stored away I could make out the years of hurt and regret beneath them.
My jaw clenched as I sat across from her slender figure. "It's Zion in here. Why'd you do it?"
As if she were bored a yawn blew past her lips. "I've done many things in my thirty-nine years of living so you're going to have to dig a little deeper than that, Zach."
"Abandon Niko? Why'd you abandon your son?"
Her eyes snap to mine, angry but confused. "Excuse me." She sneered. Step one, I had caught her off guard, and by the death glare I was receiving, it worked. "I never abandoned my son."
"Really, because I doubt the little man even recognizes your voice let alone how you even look." I lean forward in my seat. "It's been, what? Almost two years now?" Step two, piss her off.
"How dare you question my parenting. I didn't choose to be away from Niko. Everything I do is for him. Everything." She whispers for emphasis.
"So, blackmailing my sister. You did that for him too or was that solely for Sage? You wanted to keep her in check, under your control so while you rotted away in here she could keep filling your pockets."
A smirk creeps up on her face as she shrugs, leaning back in the wool chair. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Don't play stupid It was a part of your plan from the beginning. You wanted Sage to stay with Major Models so eventually, they'd extend the contract you signed and make you enough money to pay your way out of here. Because that's how these places work. You get sober for a while up until you've figured out the system. They won't release you until they're positive your leaving won't cost them anything."
Her mouth falls open and then snaps shut. It was clear I knew too much. She was calculating the next few words to leave her mouth carefully. But I was itching for her to say it, anything incriminating so this could finally be over.
"And what if I did? You know nothing about the sacrifices I made for Sage just for her to give it all up for what...you? I drove her to those runway shows. I got her that interview with Major Models. I spent thousands on clothes, shoes, jewelry, and makeup so she looked the part. I did that. No one else. Not even that father of hers who chose a career on another continent and came back when it was only beneficial to him. So yes, I deserve half if not all of those earnings in some way or another, and well your sister was just too easy to convince."
My temper is short lived. "You did that at the cost of your own blood. Sage, she almost..." I choke back my emotions. The events of that day constantly play in the back of my mind. If I had rejected that invitation to that party things could've gone differently. "Your daughter means the world to me and all you care about is money."
"Don't pretend that's the real reason you're here Zachariah. You know I see right through you." She shakes her head, eyes never leaving mine. "This hard front you put up is all a facade. You don't think I know you sent Sage here on Thanksgiving to see me. After all this time I was surprised my own daughter thought to come to visit on a family holiday. I had been clean for over a year and had no calls, no visits, not even a birthday card sent in the mail. Stuck in between these four walls I was completely cut out of both my children's lives. So I suppose I should thank you for making this process a lot easier."
"Get to the point." I grit through my teeth.
"The guilts eating up alive inside, isn't it? That relapse Sage had, is because of you. No matter how much you try to convince yourself Kelsey or I did this. You just prolonged it by telling her to find this thing you call closure. I'm her mother, so unfortunately there will never be closure or goodbyes until I'm six feet under or if I happen to magically disappear."
"How much do you want?"
It's sick but I can see the excitement behind her eyes "W-what?" She answers.
"I won't repeat myself."
She doesn't hesitate again. "Five hundred thousand."
Of course, she'd ask for half a million.
I nod. "To stay out of Sage's life, stop blackmailing Kelsey and admit you were unemotionally fit to sign Sage onto Major Models. "
Her body language is reluctant. "How do I know you even have this money?"
"Correct me if I'm wrong but you've done the research so you know who my father is. My trust fund opens at the end of the year. You'll get your money even if it's all that I have left."
"Deal."
I stand up from my chair, making sure to unclench my fist from under the table before I head for the exit. "I'll be in touch."
"Oh and Zach..." Her voice stops me in my tracks and I know the last thing I should do is listen to another lie leave her mouth. But my curiosity can't help it. "Make sure you're not going through all this trouble just for Sage to break your heart. It'll be a shame for all that money to go to waste." I can hear the smirk in her honeyed tone.
With my back still facing her, I ignore her comment and continue my steps toward the double doors at the opposite end of the room. Once I reach the space where I parked my bike, I pop another tablet in my mouth before I did something I absolutely regretted.
I reach for my phone in my pocket and my breath evens out at the picture of Sage puckering her lips with a peace sign lighting up the screen. The permanent crease situated between my brows soften.
The number of times I've stared at pictures of her through this device might've been unhealthy but I no longer cared. Sage Winters was the lighthouse standing still in the midst of the storm I called my life.
The image suddenly vanishes as a number appears on my screen. "Coach?" I answer the phone, confused about why he could be calling this late.
I could only hope this wasn't about the guys getting wasted at the bar tonight.
"Meet me in my office in thirty, Zach."
Then he hangs up.
End of Chapter
Oop what does Zach think he's doing? Can you guys spot the foreshadowing in this chapter?
anywho back to studying. I think I have like 200 bones to remember and I barely know 50. yay me...