I'VE BEEN KEEPING myself busy these last two weeks. I've always been a busy person, so it's not much of a struggle finding things to do even with the season being over.

In these last two weeks, Sam and I have gotten closer than we've been in months. The time I don't spend at school and the time she doesn't spend at work or school, we mostly spend together. She's been good since the night of my party. After an excruciating hangover the next morning, she laid it all out for me; the true extent of her struggles, when she started drinking again, why she tried to push me away as a result, and her newfound commitment to sobriety again.

I have reservations about the last part, but in these two weeks, she's started seeing a therapist and I've been closely monitoring her. Plus her spirits have been up, especially after I convinced John to allow her an extra playdate with Jake. I think she'll make it through the trial then no matter the outcome, she's agreed to admit herself into a six week treatment program.

That's all I wanted. This is the plan I was trying to communicate to Summer. Too bad I was so out of it, so panicked and shocked, so consumed in my mind with memories of my worst moments in the past and visions of potential worst moments with Sam in the future. It made me a dick towards her, I won't lie about that fact.

In that moment, despite my feelings for her, I was relieved when she walked away. For a brief moment I thought that might be the end of us and that would be okay because I've never been in a relationship before and I've never been in love. I figured the feelings would just start to evaporate and I'd move on with my life knowing I at least took a chance and stepped out of my comfort zone.

I couldn't be more wrong.

As soon as she was out the door, I desperately wanted her back in. That feeling of someone you love leaving, it's a feeling I only wanted to experience once.

The only reason why I'm not completely going out of my mind is because our fight ended in an ambiguous way. We didn't technically break up, not verbally, so there's still something that can be repaired. All I need to do is get back in contact with her and ask for forgiveness. If only she'd let me speak to her.

I haven't seen Summer in two weeks. She won't answer my texts or calls, and she always manages to remain in the back when I visit her job. I don't want to become a stalker, but I'm remaining diligent in my efforts. I have to, I can't get her out of my damn mind. Every second of every day I'm thinking about how much I miss talking to her, how much I miss holding and kissing her, how much I miss loving her.

"You ready?" Darren nudges my shoulder, taking me out of my deep thoughts.

I slide into my sneakers and check my phone hoping to suddenly get a response from Summer out of the blue. "I'm ready." I sigh and place my phone back into the pocket of my basketball shorts.

Darren's been busy nonstop with his play lately, but he finds time to hang out when he can, and today we've decided to go for a run together to blow off mutual steam.

We pop in our earphones and allow a shared playlist to carry us through our journey. Darren and I try to maintain the same tempo when we jog together but the competitive nature in us always causes things to turn into a full on race.

We sprint side by side out of our building and by the time we get near the quad, we're racing each other trying to see who can make it to the far off bench by the big oak tree first. Since it's the weekend, the areas are mostly deserted so no one stands in our way.

I turn to Darren who smirks at me, inching himself a beat ahead. I shake my head at him and turn back towards my target, new determination leading me forward. I pass him and manage to maintain my speed enough to reach the finish line seconds before he does. I lean against the tree and catch my breath while I wait for him.

"Whew, settle down, man. This is only an exhibition match." He smacks my shoulder and laughs.

I take a seat on the bench and he does the same.

"I know but I still wanted to win," I shrug.

My eyes inadvertently land across the quad towards the doors of baker's dozen. She works today. She should probably be behind the counter right now. I'd love to catch a glimpse of her, just to see that she's okay even though I already know she is. This is Summer we're talking about, she's a strong girl.

"You won, alright. There's no denying that." He wipes the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. "The school year is almost over, can you believe it?"

"It's been a long year," I say somberly. And it'll be an even longer summer if I don't fix things with my girlfriend.

I don't want this to just be some fling or experiment to see if I can handle relationships and heartbreak. I still don't fully know what I want long term, I want to take things a day at a time and all I know is these last fourteen days. I've wanted to be with Summer.

"You gonna be ready for showtime next week?" I tease Darren. "If you shit yourself on that stage I'm never letting you live that down, you know."

"Ha-ha." He rolls his eyes. "I'm ready. I've got all my lines memorized. I can do the choreography in my sleep. You know tickets are sold out for opening night already, can you believe it? An auditorium of two thousand people will be watching us."

"Well, I did force the entire team to buy tickets for them and their families, so it better be sold out," I say. "Your family is coming too, right? How do they even feel about you being an actor? You never told me their full reaction."

"They were mostly confused then eventually shrugged it off as some hobby I picked up and will drop off when I'm bored. My dad even said he was fine with it as long as it doesn't get in the way of basketball and the ultimate goal of playing with Dale in the NBA. But the thing is, the more I've immersed myself in this play, the more I'm starting to like everything about acting."

"As much basketball?" I ask.

"Even more. I've been keeping that in these last few weeks because even thinking that fills me with guilt, but it's the truth. I've felt more thrill performing Tonight and Something's Coming than I've felt playing basketball in years. The game has gotten old for me, I like it, I just don't love it anymore. I'm not sure I ever did because it was always my dad telling me that I loved it. That I was born to play.

"What about next season or the drafts?

"I don't want to join the drafts this year, that's for sure. My dad has wanted me to declare but he hasn't been full on pushing because my mom wants me to have the chance to finish my degree if I want. I'm coming back next year to finish and during the summer, I'll figure out a way to tell my dad I don't want to play another season. Besides, you'll probably get picked up this year, the game won't be the same without you by my side," he says.

"I still don't know if I'm participating in the drafts this year. You know what my mom wanted." I remind him.

"Yeah, she wanted you to get a degree, but that's because she wanted you to be successful, period. I'm sure if she knew what a beast you'd become on the court, she'd be just as happy watching you fulfill your dream. What's the last thing she told you again? That she wants you to live a happy life. You have to decide what will make you happier, joining the NBA or completing a business degree you know you'll never use anyways."

I lower my head, staring at the ground. Darren's right. No way would my mom object to me declaring if she knew it was my dream. With coach's blessing and that sports agent, Kelly Meyer's, campaigning to represent me, there's technically nothing holding me back.

"I'll think about it." Is all I say as I look back towards the doors of baker's dozen.

Two guys walk out. Their hands that aren't full with large cups of coffee are entwined together and they look at each other in a way that feels all too familiar. It's how Summer and I look at each other. That look I could never understand until I understood that I had feelings for her. I miss it.

The door opens again and almost as a sign, Summer is following behind them. She adjusts the strap of her purse over her shoulder and breathes out the fatigue of her day, looking cute with her curls bouncing in a bun.

Darren smacks my shoulder again. "There goes Summer, you finally gonna hash things out or what?"

I slide off the bench and stand straight. "I should go to her, yeah?" I'm suddenly feeling nervous and second guessing myself. She just got off of work, she's tired and probably won't be receptive to my presence. Or maybe she's so happy that her shift is over that she'll be more welcoming, I don't know. I just don't want her to hate me.

"Hell yeah you should. Apologize, apologize, apologize. Should've stopped to get some chocolate and flowers too, but I guess you'll just have to make due with your sweaty abs. Try to remind her what she's been missing," he wiggles his brows.

"You're right." I agree. Whether she's happy or angry, all I know is I need to speak to her already and this is the first time I've been able to see her since the fight.

"Good luck, brother." Darren holds his hand out to do our handshake. "Wish I could stay for the show and give you some pointers, but I'm meeting with my girl for movie night."

I encourage him to go and watch him jog back down the path we came. I need to stop stalling before Summer leaves my sight. She's been on her phone texting, so she's still only a few feet from her job. I sprint towards her and slow down when I get close so I don't end up scaring her. She's so focused on her phone that she doesn't even notice me coming behind.

"Summer." Her name comes softly out of my mouth.

She turns around and her eyes widen as she takes me. "Carter."

"Listen, can we talk?" I want to get straight to the point, we've already wasted enough time if you ask me.

"Um." She looks around then down at her phone, anxiously. "I don't know. Might not be a good idea."

I need to remember Darren's advice. "I'm sorry, Summer. I'm so sorry for how I acted, especially after all the trouble you went through to celebrate my birthday. You have no idea how bad I feel."

I can see the hurt from that night come back on her face. It only comes back for a moment, but I catch it nonetheless. She shakes her head, wiping it out of her mind. "I don't really have time for this right now. I have assignments that need to be submitted by midnight and my brother is here to visit me."

"Theo, really? That's nice." I've heard a lot about her brother. She adores him the same way I adore Mila. If things were right, I'm sure she'd be inviting me to meet him. Too bad they aren't.

"Yeah, he likes to randomly surprise me this semester, I guess. Anyways, He's almost at country line diner, so I really need to go."

"Let me drive you." I offer with force, praying she'll accept.

She toys with her fingers, no doubt trying to find an excuse to reject. "I don't think that's a good idea. I don't want to argue before meeting with my brother. He'll see it on my face and he can be very protective"

"I promise we won't argue. I'll give you a ride and use the time to continue to apologize and explain myself, or if you really don't want to deal with it, I'll drive in silence. Either way, the choice is yours. I'll respect what you want, just let me drive you."

I hate that she thinks I'd want to fight again. Can't she see how much I want her on my face? It's taking everything in me not to sweep her into my arms right now.

"Okay," she says.

"Okay?" I ask just to be sure I heard her soft voice correctly.

"Yes, okay."

A big smile spreads on my face. "You want to walk with me to the garage?"

"I need to change. You can meet me at my room after you've cleaned up," she says, pointing towards my sweaty body.

I laugh, unable to help myself. "You're one to speak, puking beauty."

To my delight she laughs too, though it's a small one. "Talk to me when you get those fish out of your pits."

It's good to know we still have banter. "I'll call you when I get to your place," I say.

***

After a quick shower and change, I hurry to pick Summer up. I'm excited to spend time with her again, these two weeks have felt like forever.

I park and begin drafting a text to let her know I'm here. Before I can send it, she comes out of the doors.

To try to kick things off to a good start I rush out and go over to the passengers side to open her door for her.

She smiles and thanks me and it amazes me how despite everything, she still remains polite.

I circle out of the parking lot and towards the highway. "So, have you decided what you want out of the two options.

"I have," she says, taking a deep breath. "Let's talk about the fight. Might as well."

I nod, thankful she's choosing to hash it out. "I'm sorry about everything."

"You already said that." She sounds amused.

"Well, I want you to know I mean it."

She pauses before saying, "I know you mean it."

Relief washes over me. That's one step, having her know that I'm sincerely apologetic for my behavior.

"I also need you to know that I didn't mean it when I said I was in over my head dating you. Not one bit of it and I've been a mess these two weeks without you. That statement was a cheap shot to mask my hurt because you were right, I saw signs of Sam's suffering but remained oblivious to it. I did blame myself that night, and the gravity of it was consuming me so I lashed out. It's not an excuse, it's where my mindset was."

"Carter, I can question a lot about you, but I can't question how much you care about me because I could feel it every time we were together. It hurt like hell hearing it, but I knew it wasn't true, and neither was my comeback. I said it out of anger and I regret it as well," she says.

"Do you think we could move forward from this? I'd really like to continue being your boyfriend." I try to keep my eyes on the road, I just can't help turning over to catch her expression. I want to see where her emotions are at.

"I've thought about it a lot since that night and I decided I'd ultimately make a decision after I talked to you again. I kinda wanted to wait until after finals, but it's fine." She pushes a curl behind her ears and leaves me hanging.

"So, have you made a decision yet, or do we still need to discuss things?"

"We could always discuss things further, but I have just made a decision," she says. "I didn't know how you would act if we talked again, a part of me thought you'd double down and call things off officially, honestly. I like that I was wrong. I'm glad you've realized your behavior was messed up because it was, and I appreciate the apology. I do miss you and I don't think anything was said to sever things for good. I'd like to continue being your girlfriend."

I throw my head back as even more relief washes over me. "Thank god, I could pull to the shoulder, pick you up and spin you around."

"How about you give me a kiss at the next red light?" She chuckles.

"Deal."

"About the Sam situation..." She drags her words. "I've been thinking about that too, and it's probably best that I just take a step back. I was genuinely trying to help and be supportive, and I know it's a sensitive situation so you can share what you feel comfortable sharing and I'll only offer my advice when you seek it."

"I know you were only trying to help. That's why I felt so bad afterwards."

"Is she doing alright?"

"She's doing better. She's agreed to get help after the trial," I respond.

"Okay." Is all she says while I park outside of country line diner.

I hold Summer's face and connect my lips with hers, enjoying the feel and taste of her after such a long break. She leans in, matching my rhythm as my tongue explores her mouth thoroughly. Nothing has changed about this, we've picked up right where we left off.

When she breaks from the kiss, I'm dizzy and hungry for more, way more.

"My brother's waiting so no makeup car sex unfortunately," she says.

"You shouldn't keep him waiting. I can wait for you in the parking lot, though. Unless he's giving you a ride back."

"No, I want you to give me a ride, and you won't be able to meet my brother sitting in the parking lot, so we better get going." She smirks and holds her hand out for me to take.

I join her side and take it, feeling right back at home. 

A/N: How are you guys liking this story so far? Who was out of line during the fight? Do you think they should've hashed things out? Don't be a silent reader, I'd love to interact with more people. Don't forget to vote :)