| March 2 | Friday Evening |
~ Sam's POV ~
Weeks had passed and neither me nor Megan had run into Nikki again. It seemed like a small miracle, and maybe I was being too optimistic, but it seemed as if she was successfully keeping her distance the way we had expressed.
Maybe she wouldn't be a problem anymore, but I was still cautious.
"Yeah, just one order of nachos and two bottles of water," I told the concession worker.
I looked back to see Megan, Tony and Blair sitting in the bleachers talking away. The Mizzou softball team was having a tournament this weekend, and since it was slowly reaching warmer temperatures, we agreed it was time to get outside.
"That'll be eight dollars," the worker said, sliding me my order.
I paid and quickly made my way back towards my friends, careful not to drop the liquid cheese all over.
"Did I miss anything?" I wondered.
"No," Megan replied. "Our pitcher got us the third out, and now we're up to bat."
It was a close game. At the moment, we were ahead 3-to-2 but it was only the bottom of the fourth. We still had three more innings after we finished out the fourth.
"I miss playing," I expressed.
"We can join the co-ed team this summer," Blair said. "I mean, I'm shit at softball but, I heard it's a lot of fun."
"Do you even have a glove?" I asked Blair.
She tilted her head. "Well, no, but I can buy one."
I looked at Tony. "Does this sound like a good idea to you?"
"Maybe not for Blair's safety..." He laughed while kissing her on the head. "But it sure sounds fun to me!"
"I think we should do it," Megan agreed. "It'll be a lot of fun."
"You and I will have to compete for centerfield," I teased.
She smirked. "I like a little competition."
We continued watching the game that continued to stay neck and neck the entire time. Both pitchers were doing an amazing job, which made scoring near impossible.
That's when Blair touched my leg, grabbing my attention.
"Emma's here," she whispered.
"Where?"
"Three o' clock."
"What?"
"Three o' clock."
"It's six-thirty-"
"To your right, you dork!" she hissed.
I rolled my eyes and looked for Emma, and Blair was right, she was certainly here. She was here with a few girls I didn't recognize, but one of them was another Baldwin High ex-softball player.
"She's here with another softball player we graduated with," I told Blair.
"I know, I recognize her."
Now that Emma knew some of the truth, I hoped if her friend recognized me and Megan, which she would if she noticed us, Emma would have my back. She seemed to be an ally since I shed light on me and Megan's relationship, but one could only assume the worst.
Megan's hand found my knee, which immediately grabbed my attention.
"What are you and Blair scheming about over there?" she joked.
I sighed. "Nothing... it's just, Emma is over there with another one of the girls from Baldwin's softball team."
Megan's eyes found the girls and she rolled them in annoyance. I knew how she felt, or somewhat, because it wasn't my career at stake. It was hers. We were so careful, and rumors were just rumors, but we all know they could hurt someone. Especially their reputation.
"Good thing the game is almost over," she finished.
Maybe we were thinking too much into it, but I couldn't blame Megan for assuming people would assume the worst of our relationship. We both knew that our circumstances were very different, and that we really did fight the feelings for as long as possible. But people would believe what fit the most interesting narrative rather than the truth.
We ended up winning, 4-to-3, and as soon as it did we all got up and rushed towards the exit.
But with Megan walking ahead of me, the girl I graduated with recognized her. Luckily, I saw her approach Megan just in time for me to react, and apparently, so did Emma.
"Hey Sam!" She turned me away from where Megan and the girl stood talking. "Sorry, I just don't want her to see you two together and start asking me questions, because I hate lying."
I felt the anxiety in my heart deflate.
"Thanks," I responded. "I didn't know you had seen us."
"Of course, I did," she said. "You and Megan kind of, stand out, if you know what I mean."
"No, I really don't know what you mean."
"You two are hot, Sam. Like, it's ridiculous sometimes."
I rolled my eyes with a smile. "I'm glad you're still you, Emma."
"Of course, you do," she bragged.
I looked back at my girlfriend, who was still talking animatedly with her old softball player.
"How have you been?" I wondered. "It's been a while."
"Yeah it has." She folded her arms. "How come we don't hang out more?"
I shrugged. "Work has me tied down a lot of the time nowadays, and when I am off, I like to spend time with Megan."
"Still not over it."
"Over what?"
"How... different you are when you're in love." She drug out "love" a little too long, but I knew she was right.
I laughed. "Yeah, well, I can't say I'm not in love."
"Never thought I'd hear Sam Carson say the infamous "L" word."
"You're ridiculous."
"I'm just happy for you."
I looked at Emma, and she gave me a reassuring smile. That's when her friend was back at our sides.
"It's so weird seeing Coach Megan here, right?" She looked at me. "Oh, hey Sam!"
I nodded. "Hey." Then I looked at Emma. "I'll text you sometime to hang out?"
"You better!" she called as I started walking away.
Megan and I met at the car, and I could tell she was still a look shook from the encounter.
"That was nice of Emma to have your back like that," she said.
"Yeah," Blair included. "She swooped in so fast."
"She might've just saved our asses," I agreed.
We dropped Tony and Blair off at their house after grabbing a quick bite to eat, and then Megan and I headed home.
"Isn't it weird how both of our exes ended up in the same town as us?" Megan wondered. "I mean, I'm sure the universe is trying to tell us something."
"And what is it trying to tell us?"
We looked at each other once we rolled up to the stop light, but neither one of us knew what to say. That is until Megan responded after a few minutes.
"That we need to get the hell out of Columbia."
I nodded in agreement. "I'm starting to realize that."
But it made me feel like I was running. Like I was hiding some big, bad secret. And I hated feeling like our relationship was anything but perfect. I hated hiding Megan from the people I knew.
So, we would figure out what to do once she graduated, and maybe everything would finally work itself out.
* * *
My phone. It was ringing. My body attempted to pull itself out of sleep, and wasn't fast enough to catch the call. I rubbed my eyes and checked my phone screen.
Mariah – One missed call.
"Babe..." Megan complained. "Who was that?"
"Mariah..." I answered. Should I call her back?
I checked the time. She wasn't scheduled at Jinx, and even if she was, it was too late for her to be out. It was three in the morning!
That's when she called again. This time, I went to answer as I left our bedroom.
"Mariah?" I said groggily.
"Sam." Her voice was frantic. "I-I need you to come and get me."
"What?" I asked in confusion. "Where are you?"
"I-I don't know," she stammered. "I went out with some friends and... I don't know, I must've blacked out and went home with some guy... My car isn't here."
I took a deep breath and tried to wrap my head around the situation. Mariah was drunk and needed my help getting home. But, where was she? Okay, think Sam...
"Send me your location," I said. "I'm leaving now."
"Okay."
I slipped on some shoes and a coat and told Megan where I was going. Not that I really knew exactly where that was, but she didn't need to know that. Not yet.
Mariah had gotten herself into a situation, and we would deal with it once I got to her.
I followed the directions to her, realizing she was in the college part of town where most students lived. It wasn't far from me, but it surely wasn't close at three in the morning. God, I could only imagine what could've happened had I not picked up...
I pulled up in front of a house, seeing her sitting on the front steps smoking a cigarette. She had definitely gone out, but there was a look on her face that said something else.
Then she climbed into my car.
"Thanks for coming," she said. "I think my car is at The Studio."
"You're not driving," I replied. "You're still drunk off your ass."
She just looked at me.
I sat there and wondered what I should do. I could bring her home and let her crash on my couch, then bring her to her car once we got some rest. How would Megan feel about that?
I sighed. "You can sleep on my couch. I'll bring you to your car tomorrow."
She didn't say anything, but I could tell she wasn't particularly happy about the situation. But she didn't protest, because she knew I was right. She was still drunk, and there was no way I was letting her drive considering she was now my responsibility.
We got home and tried hard not to wake Megan. I grabbed Mariah some blankets and left her in the living room.
"Sam..." she called before I disappeared. "Thanks."
I nodded. "We can talk in the morning."
Then I closed the bedroom door behind me, wondering what would happen tomorrow once Megan found out about our unexpected guest.
***A/N***
Another day, another update! Hope I'm making up for all that missed time!
Vote and Comment if you liked it!
Much love,
Lauryn