"Too bad. You were good."
"Were? I still am," I said.
"I believe you. Too bad the army got you. You could have gone pro," he said. "Probably would, too. Drafted right out of college." I didn't know why he was talking like all this shit had passed me by already. I was young and uninjured, with practice I'd be able to maintain all my stats, maybe even improve them.
"I'm not retired yet," I said.
"You're gonna try go pro?"
"That was the plan this whole time. It hasn't changed."
"Good luck. If anyone deserves it, you do." I thanked him. "Bet whatever team you got on would just love that they got a vet."
"If I got through boot camp, pro training has nothing on me. I'm doing it, Don. You'll see," I said, believing my own conviction.
"And, you know what that means," he said, taking a swig of his beer.
"What?"
"Women," he announced, smirking. I grunted, taking a drink.
"I don't know, sounds like too much distraction," I said.
"Distraction? You'd say no to easy, free tail?"
"I'm not interested in that, Don."
"Why? You're single, what's the problem?"
"Do you remember Ron?" I asked.
"Ron," he paused, "Veronica? Your ex?" I nodded. I wished he wouldn't call her that, though. It was true, but I was hoping I could change that. "I thought it was over. You told me that broke it off with her. When was that? Last year?"
"We went out Saturday," I said.
"Are you serious? Why the hell would you do that?"
"My sister set us up. I didn't know it was going to be Ron; she didn't know it was going to be me."
"But it's over, right? You're not going back down that road?"
"It was a good road," I said, lightly.
"You can't go into the league with a girlfriend – that shit doesn’t work. With all the girls around, she'll be jealous as hell. Drive you crazy."
"Have you ever met a girl you would stop sleeping around for, Don?"
"Nope. And, I hope I never do. Did you take a couple knocks in the head over in Afghanistan? What happened to you? Don't tell me you're in love with that girl."
"I was when I left."
"Even if it seems like it, Rome, she isn’t the only one."
"I’m not trying to step on your toes," I joked.
"No need to worry about that, either. There's plenty to go around," he said.
We were different in a few ways, but this was the one thing I one hundred percent couldn't relate to. Even before Ron and I had gotten together, hanging out with a bunch of different girls really wasn't my thing. I didn't know how he did it. More was good for him, but I was more than happy with just one. When you find the right one, you don't need to keep looking, I thought.