Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
CHAPTER FORTY. narrative caitlin's pov
march 5, 2023: minneapolis, minnesota
My excitement filled every pore within my body and it felt as if I was going to explode. We just won the Big Ten Championship and all I want to do is find my girl, wrap my arms around her, and give her the biggest kiss.
Lily wasn't far behind anyone, she walked up to us with the coaches and management staff, the same way she did last year. Shirts and hats were given to the entire team and staff, black and yellow confetti falling all around us.
"There's my superstar..." she says as smiles spread across both of our faces.
She hasn't adjusted the hat that is obviously too big for her head, but it's cute. There's cameras all around us, so I know I have to be careful with what I do and what I say.
I take a leap of faith and hope to the gods above that no microphones pick up my voice, "Come here, pretty girl!" I say as I grab her hand and pull her closer to me.
Friends call their friends pretty girl, right? Evidently, no one heard me because no one even budged from their places in celebration, but Lily furrows her brows at me for a few seconds before she takes her spot beside me.
"I'm so proud of you," she tells me. I just watch the dimples on her cheeks poke through. Her words are soft and I barely hear them over the screaming fans and teammates in the arena. The smile hasn't left my face since the clock ran out, but it grows even wider now.
"You are?" I ask, a stinging in my eyes.
She nods, "I'm always proud of you, Cait," Lily says. My heart flutters a little. Obviously, the tears are happy tears. I didn't expect to get emotional though.
"I love you so much..." I whisper to her, knowing no one will be able to hear it.
Lily smiles, "I love you too," she whispers back. I wish I could forget about the world around us and just kiss her.
I know I can't do that. It's so hard to keep my hands off of her in public. I guess that's why I seem so clingy in private or when we're with friends.
I drop my head down to her ear, "I am going to kiss you so hard once I get you alone," I whisper, knowing her face is turning bright red at this point.
"Can't wait," she replies and I pull back from her, slightly surprised her response wasn't just nervous giggling. Her cheeks are red from blushing as I suspected which makes me feel accomplished.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Monika approaching us. Quickly, Lily turns away to give Mon a hug, "Mon, you killed it out there!" my girlfriend cheers as she throws her arms around her childhood best friend, sharing her contagious joy.
I shake my head with a big smile, "Gotta thank this one for a lot of it," Mon says, grinning as she pulls me in for another hug after she's done hugging Lily.
Mon pulls me close and whispers, "Stop making fuck me eyes. The reporters are gonna notice." Shit.
I nod, pressing my lips together, "Sorry, my bad," I say, giving her a thumbs up, "Luckily, they haven't," I add.
"Lucky bastard," she says with a small chuckle, shaking her head. I watch Lily's family flood the court, along with my teammates families. My older brother and dad are behind Jada's mom.
I raise my eyebrows at Mon, nodding my head. I see people bringing out ladders for us to cut the net later on. I take this time to grab some of the confetti on the ground and throw it in the air.
"That was fucking amazing, Cait!" Cole says as he rushes towards me. We always hear him before we see him.
He jokes around a lot, but he really is one of my biggest fans. He's a huge supporter of Iowa and the girls in general, everyone loves him and Lily's family. I smile as Cole hugs me tight, my dad and brother coming toward us when they see where I am, "Thank you, Cole."
After a few seconds, he pulls away from me, his hands on my shoulders, "Second triple double against this team."
I nod with a smile, "That shit is insane, isn't it?"
"Uh, yeah!" he replies as I hug Alina and Jessica, the two of them telling me how proud they are of the team. I wrap my arms around my dad's torso when I'm done talking with Lily's family, knowing I'll get to see them later.
"Good job, kid." My dad says. My dad and his words mean the most to me, I have struggled with my identity for so long and knowing that he is always here being my biggest cheerleader while I work my ass off in school, in basketball, and just becoming myself. It means a lot.
Blake hugs me next, also telling me he's proud of me. He goes to Iowa State, playing football. My whole family has been here all weekend, except for my mom and younger brother today, but that's okay.
"Did you send pictures to momma?" I ask with tears in my eyes and Blake takes time to wipe the stray ones from my cheeks. God emotions.
He nods, "Every step of the way, Superstar," I nod now, knowing his camera roll is probably filled with pictures and videos from the game, "Her and Colin were both surprised at the halftime score," he tells me. I let a laugh escape my lips. We led 61-24 at the half, probably our best first half all year.
"I love you guys so much, but I gotta go get Lils and take her home. Come out to dinner with us?" I ask my brother over the noise.
Blake looks at dad, "We ate before the game since it was gonna be late."
"Oh all right, wanna do breakfast with Lils and I tomorrow?" I ask sounding a bit upset, but not letting it get me down. I totally understand that they ate before.
He nods, "Yeah, we can go before dad and I head back to Iowa," Blake says and I nod. Lily and I were staying a few extra days here, having anything needed for homework and school at her place.
The rest of the team has started cutting pieces of the net and I wave to Blake and my dad before rushing over, acting like I was there the whole time as Taylor is on the ladder.
"I need to get some pictures of this!" I hear Lily say as she runs to get her camera bag from the bleachers, disappearing from Monika's side quickly. I just watch her with so much love in my eyes as if she was the only one in the room. So many other people around us are taking pictures of it, but she still has to have her own. She really only uses pictures from other photographers when they're from gameplay, since she can't take them herself.
I feel Kate nudge my arm, looking at me with a small smile. I know it's to let me know to stop staring, but it might be physically impossible for me not to stare at Lily Grant.
