It's a Match! (18 page)

“I don’t know. Things have been a bit weird with us since the visit.”

“It’s not easy keeping friendships while going to different colleges, especially friendships with someone of the opposite sex.”

“I guess. Maybe we were relying on each other too much anyway.”

“You
think
? You guys were picking each other’s dates, for Christ’s sake. And look what happens when you let that go – you meet God.”

“True. Maybe he’s met his Princess Charming over there.”

“How would you feel about that?”

“I’d be happy for him,” Sutton replied.
 

“Mm hm.”
 

“I would!” Sutton tossed the pillow next to her toward Ava and it hit her arm lightly.
 

“Sure, you would.”

“Seriously. I want him to be happy and I know I’m somehow holding him back from that.”

“Yeah … well, good. I’m glad you’ve figured that out.”
           

“Enough Cole talk. Time to gorge on ice cream.”

“Absolutely.”

CLAIRE TWIRLED HER
hair in a nervous fashion as Cole sat across from her on the bleachers. They had exchanged numbers at the makeshift tiki bar and had been texting nonstop ever since. Cole’s football practice had just ended and, though he was covered with sweat, Claire still looked at him adoringly.
 

“You were great out there,” Claire said, smiling.
 

“Thanks. I’m really glad you came.”

“Me too. So, what’s the plan?”

“Well, obviously I’ll need to rinse off real quick, but I was thinking maybe we could just walk around downtown, sightsee and all that.”

“I’d like that. I’ll be waiting right here.”

“K, I’ll see you in a few.” Cole practically skipped off toward the locker room with a huge smile. He never should have allowed Sutton to control his dating life. The second that stopped, he met Claire. And, in his eyes, she was perfect.

When Cole returned, doused in Abercrombie & Fitch cologne, Claire was talking on the phone. She said, “Okay, talk to you later,” and hung it up as he approached. “Hey you. You clean up nice.”

“And you look beautiful. I don’t think I told you how much I love your dress.”

Claire was wearing a fitted red halter dress with small white polka dots. It reminded Cole of a dress from the fifties or something, a Zooey Deschanel-type ensemble.
 

“Thanks. Second-hand store. That’s where I get most of my clothes.”

“Nice.”

“Ready to go?”

“Yes, let’s. I’ll drive.”

Claire followed Cole to the student lot and up to his car. He opened the door for her and she smiled widely. “Such a gentleman.”

“I try.” Cole climbed in, started the car, and the two headed downtown. The drive was delightful. The conversation was effortless, like they’d known each other for years. The butterflies in Cole’s stomach were a welcome change from the fear he had been constantly feeling on all of those awful dates, just waiting to see what atrocities he’d be facing next.

They parked in a lot downtown, and Cole got out and once again opened the door for Claire. She put her hand in his and they started walking.
 

“I’m really glad I met you,” Claire said.
 

“Yeah, me too. I really enjoy our time together.”

“I want you to know I’m not talking to anybody else.”

Cole was relieved, because he hadn’t expected that. He shrugged, playing it cool. “I mean, you’re welcome to do whatever you want. But I’m totally okay with that. I’m not talking to anyone else either.”

Thus began the first relationship Cole had had in years.
 

IT WAS A
randomly sunny day in Badger. Sutton and Jesse were having a picnic in the quad. Sutton laughed as Jesse told her a story about the time his little sister spilled an entire bowl of pasta on his lap while he had a date over for dinner.
 

“Tell me it wasn’t marinara sauce.”

“Of course it was. It wouldn’t be nearly as funny if it was Alfredo.”

Sutton was happy, truly happy, for the first time in a long time. Though she hadn’t really spoken to Cole lately, she had finally let someone else in. She and Jesse had agreed to be exclusive, and she was relieved her horrific dating stint was at least on pause for the moment.
 

“I make the world’s best Alfredo sauce,” Sutton gloated.
 

“Is that so? Maybe I’ll be lucky enough to get to try it sometime?”

“Of course. I’d love to cook for you.”

“I know this is somewhat taboo to do in relationships, but tell me about your most-recent ex. I’m curious.”

Sutton sighed, but it had been a long time and she was finally ready to talk about it without her eyes filling up with tears. “His name was Aiden. We only dated for a few months.”

“What went wrong?”

“I’m not entirely sure. I guess we just weren’t on the same page or something,” Sutton replied, suddenly uncomfortable talking about it.
 

“I assume you’re the one who ended it? No one would be stupid enough to break up with you.”

“Actually … he did break up with me. He just sort of … lost interest and disappeared.”

Jesse shook his head. “Some guys are crazy.”

“What about you?”

“Am I crazy?”

Sutton laughed. “No, I mean, your most recent ex.”

“Oh. Well, it’s been a long time. I dated this girl, Seana, for the first two years of high school. We were inseparable. We had been best friends our entire lives, but once we changed the nature of our relationship, she became a different person to me.”

“Yeah, Aiden did the same thing.”

“She cheated on me with my friend. The three of us grew up down the street from each other. I guess they always sort of had a thing. I subconsciously may have realized that, but I chose to ignore it.”

“It’s crazy the lies we tell ourselves in the attempt to be happy.”

“Sure is.”

Sutton looked around at the random groups of people in the quad. The formation of specific cliques fascinated her. It was like high school, where the same certain stereotypes spent their time with similar people. Sutton was always the kind of person who liked to spend time with all sorts of different people. She saw uniqueness in others, and felt that everyone had something different to offer, something different for her to learn.

Jesse reached out his hand and placed it on Sutton’s. She turned to him and smiled warmly. She was finally free of Aiden’s pesky shadow. The sun was shining and it was a new day. She couldn’t help thinking that maybe she would actually be able to love again. She probably had a far way to go though. Aiden had broken her trust and it would take a long time for her to be able to trust someone again.

She wanted to trust Jesse. She wanted to believe all the sweet things he said, and she did, to a degree. But she was going to remain cautious. She couldn’t go through another ordeal like that again.
 

“Where did you go?” Jesse asked.

“Sorry, I was just taking in the scenery.”

“Yeah, it’s beautiful out.”

“It was raining yesterday. Global warming is weird.”

“It certainly is. Did you want to go out to a movie later?”

“Yeah, I’d like that.”

Jesse stared at her for a moment. “You know, Sutton, you truly are beautiful.”

Sutton turned red and smiled awkwardly, in true Sutton fashion. It was exactly the kind of thing Aiden would have said to her in the beginning, but she wasn’t going to get in her head and mess this up. She was just going to enjoy it.
 

“Are you a robot, by any chance?” Sutton asked playfully.
 

“Not last time I checked,” Jesse replied, smiling.

COLE PACED AROUND
the locker room nervously. This was going to be his first game in the starting lineup, and his first game not spent mostly on the bench. Claire was going to be watching, so he was especially worried about how it was going to go. Hunter had come to support him as well, which he was grateful for.
 

“Huddle time!” Coach Jeffries yelled across the locker room. Cole rushed over and joined the herd of excited guys. Coach Jeffries was an extremely muscular guy, but a few inches shorter than Cole. He had been a linebacker on the varsity team at Burlington University several years before, and had been coaching the team ever since he graduated. He was one of those meathead-type guys, with a boisterous personality and a voice to match. He was a no-nonsense sort of guy. Cole respected him immensely.
 

“This is an extremely important game and I need all of you at your best. The Tigers have been our number one rival team for as long as I can remember and we only beat them about half the time. As you know, I have switched the lineup. We need to try something different. I hope you all memorized the plays, but I have new books for you guys to study in the next twenty minutes. I need you at your best. I need you to prepare mentally. I know you guys can beat them. You just need to set your mind and hearts to it. Do you think you guys can do that?”

“Yes, Coach!” the group yelled in unison.
 

“Then go look over your books. And Cole, I need to talk to you.”

Cole was instantly worried. What if Coach Jeffries decided to bench him and start someone else?

The guys grabbed their books as they disbanded. Cole stood in front of his coach with his stomach churning.

“Cole, are you ready for this?”

“I think so.”

“No thinking, just doing. I believe in you, otherwise I wouldn’t have put you in the starting lineup.”

“I won’t let you down, Coach.”

“You have a lot of promise. I knew it during the first practice. You’re a natural.”

“Thank you. That means a lot coming from you.”

“No need to thank me. Just go out there and play your best. I’m sick of losing to these guys. Did I ever tell you why we became rivals with the Tigers in the first place?”

“No.”

“Their coach used to go to school here. We were on the team together and we were very good friends. We got in a huge fight senior year—over a girl, of course. And he began coaching at Chesterfield University the next year. We’ve been competing ever since.”

“Then we will crush them.”

“That’s what I like to hear. Now go study the plays.”

“Okay, Coach.”

Cole grabbed the last book and walked toward the bench by his locker. He sat down and flipped through the book anxiously. This was one of the most important moments of his life. He wished he could talk to Sutton, but he didn’t want to mess up his concentration, seeing as things were so weird between them.
 

Fifteen minutes later, Coach Jeffries called them all together again. They did their standard pre-game chant and Cole’s heart was racing. Beads of sweat ran down his face as he followed the team to the field. The moment they stepped out of the locker room, they heard loud cheering.

Cole turned to look at the audience and saw a packed crowd on the bleachers. He noticed Claire and Hunter in the front row, and he smiled at them. They both waved and Cole noticed that Claire was beaming with pride. This was his moment. This was the game that would make or break him. He felt the pressure as he took a seat on the bench.