“What? Why?” I asked rapidly, sitting up higher in my chair.
“I don’t know who this man is, Kandy. For all I know, he could have preyed on you, tricked you into getting off campus. Things like this have happened to young girls like you. Maybe not at this university, but all over the world.”
“He’s not just some stranger! I know him—I grew up with him!”
By the way she’d narrowed her eyes, I realized I had said too much. “Grew up with him? And he touches you that way?”
I wanted to scream. Why was this happening? Why would Brody and Sophie do this? All because I wanted Cane over him? Was he that ignorant and selfish?
“You can’t tell my parents, Coach Carmen. I’m nineteen. This isn’t their business.”
Carmen scoffed. “You kids really blow my mind! Just because you’re nineteen and considered an adult by law, it doesn’t mean you know what’s good for you. You may be out here on your own, but I expect better decisions to be made. Now, if you were doing this with another Notre Dame student, that would be different. But this is a fully-grown man who came onto campus and pulled a childish stunt. It’s not right, Kandy. And your teammate has a right to be concerned about this.”
“My teammate shouldn’t be sharing pictures of me. That’s invasion of privacy.”
“She did it to protect you.”
“No, she did it to humiliate me! I know who did this, Coach Carmen! I’m not an idiot! Sophie wants to see me fall! She’s afraid I’m going to take her spot and be better than her!”
Carmen shook her head, and let out a heavy sigh. “Look, Kandy. I am supposed to tell your parents. It’s what I am told to do by the school when something like this occurs. You are right about the activities you do during your free time being your own business, but when its brought onto campus that is a completely different story.”
My leg bounced and I bit my bottom lip, tasting blood.
“But I also have the opportunity to hold off on this information with your parents,” she went on, her eyes catching mine. Her mouth formed into straight line.
“But?”
“But I will have to discuss it with the board and they don’t take these things lightly. Your scholarship will most likely be taken away and you will no longer be able to attend Notre Dame.”
“Are you serious?” My voice broke into a million pieces. I couldn’t believe this. The scholarship that I’d worked so hard for would vanish, just like that?
She pressed her lips.
“But I—I don’t understand, Coach. I work just as hard as every other girl here. I mind my own business, attend every single class, stay out of trouble as much as possible, and all of that will be taken away from me because of what I do in private?”
She sighed. “I will have to tell the president and the board. I can’t keep something like this a secret when it is brought to me from another student. Then there is a chance that I will lose my job if they hear about it and know that I knew but didn’t speak up. I can tell them to keep this confidential, but I know for a fact that this will not sit well with them. This school is all about faith, Kandy. They will feel you are undeserving of the scholarship and will revoke it regardless. There’s no difference between telling your parents now, and telling them later when they let you go. That’s just how the system works here. They like to protect their students and this school’s reputation.”
Telling my parents that Cane had visited me on campus was going to ruin everything all over again. My family was finally on steady ground and so much happier. Dad was getting promoted soon and Mom was going to be starting her own law firm within the next year. Cane had his mom and sister back and was content. He was under a lot of stress, yes, but it wasn’t because of me for once. I couldn’t ruin that or disturb the peace again.
“My parents—they don’t like this guy. That’s why I kept it under wraps. I don’t want to stop seeing him. I—I can tell him to not visit campus again, I swear. Just please don’t tell the board, Coach. I can talk to Sophie—maybe we can work something out. I’ll tell her she can keep the number one spot. She can have it—I just don’t want my parents to find out about this!”
Carmen shook her head, giving me a perplexed gaze. “Kandy, I wish I could sit on this. I really do. Trust me, if it had been me that saw you in the parking lot with him, I would have kept it to myself. You are an amazing player and I know you have a good heart, but since a teammate and another student at this campus knows, I can’t keep this to myself, sweetie. I’m sorry.”