Say More (Book 2 in "Say" Series)

T W O

I slammed the door shut and considered that maybe I wouldn't make the grace period. My feet felt like they were trapped in mud. My eyes struggled to stay open. I squinted against the sun as I stepped out of my dorm building.

"How was practice?" I asked Yuri. I could hear the thump of basketballs and the squeak of sneakers against the court.

"Great. Would be better if Wayne learned how to, you know, play basketball." Yuri threw his voice loudly away from the phone. A roar of laughter erupted followed by a hearty "Fuck you."

"And are those my sneakers man?" Yuri sounded astonished. "He's wearing my fucking sneakers." He whispered angrily into the phone. Everyone probably thought Yuri was just joking but I could hear the tinge of frustration in his voice aimed at the freshman he'd been saddled with taking under his wing.

"Simmer simmer. You weren't exactly a phenom freshman year. You were desperate for the seniors to run drills with you." I chided him to regain his composure. While he was still largely the Yuri that I'd fallen in love with he'd definitely been wound tighter this year. It was his junior year at Duke and prospects to play for the NBA were heavy on his mind. His odds of getting drafted were good but he had to stay focused. Distractions, even from his own team were not tolerated much at all.

"I thought we agreed not to talk about," His voice dropped to a whisper, "freshman year."

"Oh, I'm not talking about the year. Just that one game where you shot in your own basket."

"I was confused by the colors. Besides, it's not just drills. This guy is like my fucking shadow." He breathed deeply before changing the subject. "Don't you have to be in class right now?" I giggled and turned onto the street that led to the academic halls. I sighed when the Starbucks sign came into view.

"I'm almost there. Just getting some coffee in my body so I can stay awake."

"Damn, babe. How about I try to come to you next time?"

"No, no. It's fine." I suppressed a yawn. "That would be too much and we'd only get to spend a few hours together," I explained this to him for the hundredth time. He knew it all too well and he desperately wanted to fix this arrangement but it was what it was. I was a basketball girlfriend and I knew as much stress as it caused, nothing compared to seeing him and stealing him away from everyone.

"Well after I get drafted by the Knicks I can be back home and see you all the time."

"Don't they lose a lot? Like always?" I scrunched up my face and pulled open the door to Starbucks, holding it open as I a guy with a tray full of coffees took his sweet time coming through the door. Hurry the fuck up, I whispered. He threw me a dirty look. At least I thought I whispered it. My brain was on the fritz.

"They won't once they get me."

"Oh, I see you. Talk your shit, babe."

He laughed as I slid in line. "I gotta go but thank you for being here this weekend. You have no idea how much it means to me."

"I know and I wouldn't have it any other way."

"I love you."

"I love you, too." I rolled my eyes at the vibrations that still went through my gut whenever he said those words. I swear it should have worn off by now but nope. Full high school titters all over again. We disconnected the call and I looked up to see that the line had not moved. I should just skip the coffee and get to class on time but after this class, I had an article to present for the student newspaper I was a part of. I decided to write about the pressures of the life of a college athlete since I was entrenched in it day-to-day with Yuri. The article was good but not great. I didn't have enough time to devote my all to it but it was finished and that's all that mattered in my book. We will see if the editor agreed. I would definitely need the coffee.