Ain't No Sunshine

Chapter Eight

Nate

AssoonasI walk into the cafe the next morning, Liv’s smile drops. She’s not facing me directly, but I know she’s seen the scowl on my face as I march toward her, ready for action.I don’t want to be here. I’d rather be on Cory’s doorstep, begging her to work this out. But the only way that’s going to happen is if I fix this first.

“Nate, you’re here,” my mom says, standing from the table and pulling me into a hug. My scowl morphs into a smile as I greet my parents and sit down.“You’re looking good. I must admit, I’ve worried no one’s feeding you at that crazy house,” she says, without her even waiting for me to say hello properly.

“We may not have staff, but we all eat,” I say and laugh as though I’m joking. Dad laughs along with me, and I know it’s because he knows I’m not. My dad was born with money, so despite being quite straight-laced now, he rebelled when he was a teen and declared he would never let money control him. To his credit, he’s the most laid back senator I’ve ever seen. I don’t even think it bothers him that I’m not following in his footsteps.

My mother, on the other hand, married into money, so some might say she’s still enjoying the life it brings. It’s safe to say she doesn’t understand why anyone would voluntarily live without it.

Dad offers me his hand, and I shake it, making sure I apply the correct amount of pressure. Handshakes are a big deal in his line of work. So we’ve both come to perfect them. “Are you ready for the game today, son?”

“Almost,” I say honestly, giving Liv a bit of a side eye. “Food would definitely help get me across the line.” I smile as I pick up the menu. “What’s everyone having? Liv and I will go order.”

We collect the orders and head to the counter. As soon as we’re out of earshot, I let her have it. “What’s going on? Why are you here, and why are you telling my parents we’re back together? You know I have a girlfriend. Is this some kind of joke? Because if it is, it’s not fucking funny.”

“Shhh! Can you keep your voice down? I’ll explain everything if you just chill the fuck out.”

I glare at her but do as she says because, for one, I want her to explain, and two, the woman in line in front of us is giving me strange looks.

“Explain away,” I whisper.

I genuinely listen to her every word, and by the time we sit back down at the table, she’s filled me in. It may be a fucked up story, but it wasn’t a long one. In short, she’s in a bind, and while I told her I don’t want to be a part of her lies, I said I’d wait until she wasn’t away with my parents before I tell them the truth. I’m not a complete asshole.

The rest of lunch is pleasant, and I’m just about to say my goodbyes when Mom chooses that moment to throw us a curveball I wasn’t expecting. “Now that you’re back together, presumably for the long hall this time, I’d like to talk to you both about making things a little more public. It would really help your dad if we could talk about some exciting family news.”

I spit out my drink as my eyes flash to Dad’s. He shrugs his shoulders and looks down at his phone, not wanting anything to do with this request. What is she even asking me?

If me being in a relationship helped Dad’s cause, I’m more than happy to talk about Cory, but this mess with Liv is another story.

My teammate, Luke, arrives at that moment to give me a lift to the game and I’ve never been so happy to see him. “I have to leave for pre-game training, Mom. But how about I call you this week to discuss it.”

She smiles up me as she reaches across the table and squeezes my hand. “Thank you, Nate. You know this means the world to us. I’m so happy the two of you have worked things out.”

My lips pull into a thin line, and I nod. Right now, that’s the best I can do.

I say my goodbyes and walk out the door. Liv follows under the guise of wanting some alone time before I leave. “I’m sorry, Nate. I really am, but I need this. Is there any way I can change your mind?” She grabs my bicep with a panicked look.

“I’m sorry, Liv. I really am.”

She sighs and pulls me into a hug. “Let me know if you change your mind.”

I reluctantly hug her back, aware of Luke watching on. Before this, we were still good friends. I need to remember that. This isn’t entirely her fault, and I don’t want to ruin our friendship. I’m not changing my mind, of that I’m sure, but I could at least be nice about it.

Luke raises his eyebrows as Liv walks away. “Who’s the hottie?”

I roll my eyes and push him in the direction of his car. “Family friend; now, let’s go,” I say, hoping he’ll drop it, and, lucky for me, he does. The last thing I need is for him to be chatting my head off about Liv when all I want to do is think about Cory and how desperate I am to see her. I want to call her, but with Luke in the car I’ll have to wait until after the game.

The water pours over my shoulders as I stare at the floor, listening to my teammates excited cheers. We’ve just won our first game of the season. Spirits are high. The guys are singing and dancing and already predicting championships. As soon as I’m out of the shower, they’ll expect me to join in. And I will. Of course, I will. On the outside, everything is fine. If I hadn’t played so shit, everyone would be none the wiser. Inside, I’m a mess. This morning’s shitshow aside, my mind is still stuck in my bedroom, watching Cory walk away.

When she left last night, I was absolutely devastated. I shouldn’t have been surprised at her reaction, but I didn’t think she’d leave before we’d worked things out. It’s completely fucking with my head.

I turn the shower off when I’ve hit the limit of appropriate time, wanting to avoid getting questions. As soon as the last drop falls, I flip the switch on happy-go-lucky Nate and throw myself head first into the madness.

When it becomes apparent that I’m not going to be reamed out by the coaches, I can at least relax about one side of my life. I honestly expected the worst but didn’t have enough brain space to care, so I just waited out the inevitable. Or not so inevitable as it may be.

I’m sure it helps that Dylan looks like absolute shit and is clearly going through something himself. Any teammates or coaches that would normally take notice seem to be focused on him. In fact, even I find myself wanting to focus on Dylan’s issue. Anything to get myself out of my head.