w 1 t n e s s

twenty-three

tyler

I felt chuffed with our easy two to zero win. A shutout for Elvis and two points for me. Back in a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt, I felt confident to go out and meet Halle. I'd already done my interviews, so I was free to leave. I waited for Elvis and Alex to go out with me. They caught up to me after a moment. Both had their bags pulled over their shoulders, just like I did. I shoved my hands in my pocket, ready to head off. Elvis immediately rammed his shoulder into mine.

"Going to see your girl eh?"

"Same as you."

Alex joined my other side. He started tapping away at his phone.

"Hey, look." He showed me the screen. "Lynds posted a picture." I did a double take at the post. It was the normal three girls who were good friends; Taylor, Lyndsey, and Alex. But this time, Halle was there. Right between Alex and Taylor, she was grinning like it was the best night of her life. I fished my own phone out to see if Halle had posted anything. She had, a picture of her and Taylor hugging each other tightly and grinning.

halle.finch: Cheers to besties. Love my twin. 👯‍♀️

She'd tagged Taylor in it already. I hid my smile. Was it that easy? Halle had already made such good friends with the other girls that she'd posted something. Another tap onto her account showed me that she'd un-archived the images of us she'd posted at various points before. My heart fluttered. What did that mean?

"Tyler." Elvis's voice pulled me out of my thoughts. I focused back on the hallway in front of us. I realized why Elvis had called my name. Halle was talking loudly to Lyndsey and Alex. Her happiness was obvious. She looked completely at home. Her glow sucked me in. As we approached, Halle's heavy blue eyes flicked to mine. She stopped mid-sentence. Lyndsey and Alex turned to see what she had. I was instantly nervous about what Halle would do. As Elvis and Alex greeted their girlfriends, it was like Halle and I were separated on our own island. She approached me slower.

"Hey." She was smiling shyly up at me. I tried not to grin too big when she leaned up to kiss me on the cheek. I'd take that. She made a face when she pulled back. "Ew. You're sweaty."

"I took a shower." I protested. She shook her head, wrapping one arm around my side. I turned her back to the two men with her newfound friends. "Halls, I want you to meet Elvis and Alex. Aka Merzly and Brinksy." She smiled at them both.

"You guys played awesome." Elvis let out a laugh.

"You don't have to flatter us for impressions. We all know Kitty sucked tonight." Elvis went after the much smaller winger, wrapping him in a headlock. Lyndsey protested as Alex was pulled away from her.

"El! Careful with the merchandise!" The two were already a ways down the hall. Lyndsey shook her head. "The things we have to put up with." She flashed the sparkling ring on her finger. "But I guess I've fully committed to it." Halle left my side to rejoin Lyndsey and Alex. Just like that, she was over me again. I didn't mind. It was nice to see her happy. I hoisted my bag further onto my shoulder again before following behind them at a distance. Halle was talking to them about school, explaining all the crazy courses she was enrolled in. Lyndsey looked lost at the amount of math classes Halle was required to take. I had to agree with her bewilderment. I could hardly handle it either.

Finally, Elvis rejoined his girlfriend. The two said their goodbyes for the night before leaving Lyndsey and Alex with us. I wished we'd be going out to eat instead of parting ways so soon. But the team members would be seeing each other early in the morning the next day so we could travel to San Jose for the seven o'clock game. That time was only a few hours away.