chapter ten

 I don't know why I showed up at the homecoming football game. Maybe some part of me enjoyed the pain of watching Oliver play, but the other part of me knew that it was my responsibility to the paper. If I wasn't going to be covering the game, the responsibility would have fallen on Joseph, and Dorothy would kill me if I let the second rate second of the sports section review another football game. So while I could have gotten out of going, it was in both mine and Joseph's best interest that I make an appearance at the game.

So that's how I ended up standing next to Dorothy, camera in hand as I took pictures of our star quarterback, and the several other players on his team that were playing well.

"Are you okay?" Dorothy asks me, and I nod my head, taking another picture, before letting go of the camera. "Because you seem a little, I dunno, sad." I laugh, but there's not mirth behind my laugh, and it sounds hollow and empty. Dorothy gives me a curious look, and I shrug my shoulders, trying to figure out the best way to explain my situation to her in the simplest terms.

"Just some boy drama," I end up telling her, and she nods her head knowingly. If there was anyone would would truly be able to understand boy drama, it would definitely be Dorothy. After three boyfriends and two girlfriends, she was the first person that I would go to with any and all relationship problems, and with the amount of will they won't they relationships she's gotten involved in, she probably is the best person to give me advice in my current state.

"So, did you do it with Oliver?" she asks me bluntly as I am mid-shot, and I'm so shocked that I nearly don't get a picture of Oliver running to get our team the second touchdown of the game.

"Ew, Dottie, no," I say in response, not trying hard to conceal my disgust, and Dorothy laughs. I roll my eyes, and take another picture of the players on the field, and she bumps me with her hip, causing me to turn my attention back to her.

"I figured as much," she says, giving me a teasing look. "Hey, it was a valid question, after all, if the two of you weren't dating then I assumed you had to be doing something..." she trails off, and I shake my head adamantly, causing her to giggle. "He's cute though, I wouldn't blame you."

"Hey, stay in your lane," I tell her, and she laughs, shaking her head. She runs a hand through her hair, and her eyes land on a certain Santiago Gonzales. I grin, and nudge her with my hip, causing her to frown as she looks back over at me.

"Top ten things we don't need to talk about, and all of them right now are him," she reminds me playfully, but I can hear the hurt in her words. "Anyways, why don't you tell me all about Oliver Tate and his pretty eyes and fluffy hair and sickeningly sweet smile?"

Before we can joke anymore, a sickening crack can be heard from the field, and the next thing I know, Oliver is on the ground, and everyone is giving him a wide berth of space.

I can hear my heartbeat in my ears, and it feels like my heart drops into my feet. My stomach drops to my feet, and it takes everything in me not to fall to my knees as well. My thoughts are running a mile a minute but I can't move, can make my legs go forwards to him, the only thing I can do is stand there and watch as his teammates circle him, camera in my hand like I am a statue.

I always knew that football was a very physical, high contact sport. But Oliver was the quarterback, he shouldn't be getting the type of injuries that have him sprawled out on the ground, a medic running out to make sure that he's okay. This could be a career ending injury, this is probably the worst injury of the season and I can't even move, can't even bring myself to take a picture of the beautiful boy who was lying on his back, groaning in pain.

"Deana, hey it's going to be okay," Dottie mutters as she wraps her arm around me, and I shift my weight onto her because my legs won't work and I can't move, all I can do is stare at Ollie and pray and try not to fall apart in front of the whole school.

"What?" I ask her, not managing to get all of the words out without a choked sob stopping my question, and I shake my head and wipe at my eyes. He's being lifted onto a stretcher, one of his hands limp at his side, and he's not moving or speaking, he's just lying there and I am just standing here and everything in me wants to run to him. I want to run to his side and hold his hand and tell him that everything will be okay, and he will tell me that everything will be okay. But I do not, and he is carried off of the field as the back-up quarterback runs in, and I know that I should look for Bonnie to reassure her, but I don't because I cannot move and my thoughts are just saying Ollie, Ollie, Ollie, over and over again.

The game continues on without him. The players continue to play, and I continue to take pictures, blankly watching the football game, not even cheering when we score a third touchdown. It is like the rest of the world has faded to grey, and all of me knows that I should be beside Oliver rather than without him.

And then halftime starts. I should stay and watch the marching band, and I should be here to watch Lorene walk out to win Homecoming Queen. But as I look back and where they had taken Oliver, I know that I would rather go to him instead.

"I'm going to-" I start to say, and Dottie nods her head, giving my hand a light squeeze.

"Tell him that I said hi," she says, and I nod my head, energy seeping back into my bones. I walk towards the small office that our stadium has built for our nurse, my camera still clutched in my hands as I begin to nervously click the buttons while it's off.

"Ollie?" I ask quietly as I step in the door, noticing right away that the medic has left the room, but there is a curtain drawn up to separate the back half of the room from the front, which I assume Ollie is behind.

"Addy?" his voice calls back, and I breathe a sigh of relief that he's conscious. "Can you-" he starts, and then I hear him swear. I take a cautious step forward, and draw back the curtain slightly, leaving enough room for me to see Oliver.

He's sitting up, his arm is in a sling and there's ice on his head and his hip. His hair is slightly mussed, and he's not in his jersey anymore, the thin white shirt that he wears underneath clings to his frame as he shifts.

"Ollie?" I say again, quieter, taking a step towards him. With his good hand he takes my hand in his, and I sit down beside him on his bed. "Are you okay?" He nods his head, brushing a strand of hair out of my face.

"Just a minor injury," he replies, and his eyes never leave mine. I'm nodding my head, but I don't believe him. "You said that you loved me." I swallow, and nod my head again. He doesn't seem upset, he just continues to look at me. "And you left before I could say it back."

"Ollie-" I start, but he silences me with a short kiss to the lips, and I try not to notice how he grimaces as he pulls away.

"I love you, Adeana Jane Coleman. I have loved you for as long as I have known how to love someone, because it's always been you," he says to me, and as he brushes away one of my tears, I realize how long I have waited for this moment. "I loved you freshman year, when you went to Homecoming with that complete jerk and I spent all night with you just to scare him away. I loved you in sophomore year when we had to read Romeo and Juliet and you were Juliet and I was Romeo. I loved you in junior year when you showed up to Prom with one of your friends, and you spent all night dancing with me. I love you, Addy, and I always will."

"Ollie," I say, quieter this time, and he presses a kiss to my forehead, nodding his head. For once, it's quiet inside my head. The thoughts are silent, and it's just the boy in front of me, and how long I have loved him and how much I still love him. Because I knew, even when we were kids, that I was going to love him forever, something so powerful and strong for someone so young to learn. It doesn't matter that they might still call us kids, I love him too much to care about matters like that.

"You are my future, Adeana Coleman. It doesn't matter if we're miles apart at college, I will always come back to be with you," he confesses, and I give him a watery smile. "I can't promise that it'll be easy. But I know that I want to give us a try, I want to date you Addy, and I hope that you want to date me too."

"Ollie," it's all I can manage to say, my emotions overwhelming me, my throat closing up slightly. "I love you too." He smiles, and it's the dorky smile that I love so much, and I decide that I don't ever want to go a day without seeing that smile. He leans forward to kiss me, and we stay that way for quite some time, my lips on his, until we're interrupted by a voice over the intercom.

"Now, we will be announcing your Homecoming King and Queen," the voice tells us, and I giggle, looking at the boy across from me.

"I think I'm supposed to be walking out there with them," he mutters as he presses a kiss to my cheek, and I sigh and shake my head.

"You're injured, remember?" I remind him, giving him a shy smile as he nods his head seriously.

"You know, I think the only cure might be for you to stick around and hang out with me," he tells me, pulling me close to his side with his good arm. I giggle, shaking my head and pressing a kiss to his lips quickly, before I stand up.

"I'm afraid that I'm going to have to cover the rest of the game," I inform him, and he shakes his head, pressing another kiss to my lips as he winds his good hand in my hair. I pull away from him, and slowly back towards the door. He's giving me an upset pout, but then he stands as if he's remembered something.

"I'll come with you then," he tells me, leaning over the bed to grab something, and I'm shaking my head, but he's already made his way up to me, seeming like he's walking fine.

"What even happened to you?" I ask him, and he looks down at his arm, and then back to me.

"They said I popped my elbow out of its socket," he tells me, and I have to resist the urge to gag and he laughs and nods his head, pulling out his letterman jacket from behind his back. "I believe that this belongs to you." I blush, and take the letterman from his hands, wrapping it around my shoulders, smiling.

"We should get going," I tell him, and he nods his head, wrapping his good arm over my shoulders, and I lean my head onto his shoulder. And we walk out of the nurses office together, his arm around me, onto the football field. And everything is perfect.

opening gif credits to: zuleszn
sign off gif credits to: potterlulls

AUTHOR'S RAMBLINGS:

We're almost at the end! I'm so excited guys, this is so cool! As always, let me know your thoughts, and I'd love it if you guys were to comment and vote!