Rumor Has It I'm Dating the Football Captain

Chapter 66: Chapter 66: I Think I’m Losing Her

Mason sat heavily on the edge of his hotel bed.

His right ankle throbbed with a dull, heavy ache. The Florida humidity clung to his skin like a wet blanket, even with the air conditioning blasting on high. He smelled like sweat and strong athletic tape. Every single muscle in his body felt completely drained.

He stared at the bright screen of his phone until his eyes burned.

Audrey: No. Please don’t call. I really need to focus on my grades right now. Just focus on your camp, Mason.

He read the text message five times. It made absolutely no sense.

Audrey never brushed him off like this. She was always fiercely honest with him. They had literally promised no more fake smiles. She knew exactly how much he hated the distance.

He hit the call button anyway. He pressed the phone to his ear.

It rang twice. Then it went straight to voicemail.

"Come on, Audrey," Mason whispered to the empty room. "Pick up."

He dropped the phone onto the mattress. A sharp spike of frustration hit his chest. He ran his hands through his damp hair. Something was wrong. She was shutting him out completely. He was stuck a thousand miles away, completely unable to just walk over to her apartment and ask her to look him in the eyes.

The next morning on the practice pitch was pure torture.

The Florida sun beat down heavily on the grass. The air was thick and incredibly hard to breathe. Mason stood in the defensive line. Sweat dripped into his eyes, stinging them sharply. He wiped his face with the collar of his training shirt, trying to clear his vision.

"Calloway!" Director Hayes barked from the touchline. "Watch your blind spot!"

Mason flinched. He had stepped a full second too late. The opposing striker easily slipped past him and scored a clean goal.

"Hey, man," a guy named Carter muttered, jogging past Mason. "You have to wake up. The scouts are writing things down."

"I know," Mason gritted out.

His ankle shot a sharp pain up his leg, but the physical pain was nothing compared to the massive distraction in his head. He kept looking at his gym bag near the benches. He kept hoping his phone would buzz.

Director Hayes walked onto the pitch. He blew his loud metal whistle.

"Water break," the Director ordered. He pointed a firm finger directly at Mason. "Calloway. Over here."

Mason jogged over. He forced his posture to remain perfectly straight.

"You are dragging your feet today," Director Hayes stated coldly. "The scouts are in the stands. They are watching you miss basic blocks. Where is your head at?"

"My bad, sir," Mason said quickly. "It will not happen again."

"It better not," Hayes warned. His eyes were strict and entirely unforgiving. "I told you yesterday. This camp requires total isolation. You either dial in, or you pack your bags. Do not let outside noise ruin your career."

Mason nodded slowly. "Understood."

He walked over to the water coolers. He grabbed a plastic cup. He drank the cold water, but his throat felt entirely dry. He needed to focus. He had to secure his Tier One spot. But his brain kept flashing back to Audrey’s cold text message. He could not just flip a switch and forget about her.

That night, Mason sat on the rough carpet of his hotel room. He pressed a massive plastic bag of ice against his swollen ankle. The numbing cold was the only relief he had.

He stared at his phone. She had not texted him all day. Not a single word.

He opened his contacts and called Leo.

Leo answered on the first ring. His voice sounded terrible. It was raspy and completely exhausted.

"Please tell me you have good news," Leo answered. "Because I am currently eating a box of dry cereal in the dark."

"I have terrible news," Mason sighed. He leaned his head back against the painted wall. "I think Audrey is backing out."

Leo actually choked on his cereal. He coughed loudly into the phone receiver.

"What?" Leo gasped. "Are you insane? Audrey is obsessed with you. She literally fought a referee for you in spirit."

"She is ignoring my calls," Mason explained. The raw frustration leaked entirely into his voice. "She sent me a text yesterday saying she was too busy with midterms to talk. She told me not to call her."

"Midterms?" Leo asked. He sounded highly confused. "Audrey studies all the time. She never ignores you for a test. She literally sits on the phone with you while she highlights her notes."

"I know," Mason said. "That is why I am losing my mind. Something happened yesterday. You need to tell me what is going on up there."

"I do not know," Leo admitted sadly. "I cannot even go near their apartment building. Chloe blocked my number. She refuses to look at me on campus. I am completely banned."

Mason closed his eyes. The exhaustion was settling deep into his bones. His ankle throbbed beneath the cold ice. He felt entirely useless.

"Leo, you have to find out for me," Mason pleaded quietly. "I am stuck in Florida. The director is watching my every move. If I mess up one more drill, they are going to drop me from the pro scout list. I cannot just fly back to talk to her."

"I will try," Leo promised. His voice turned serious. "I will ask Jackson to talk to Zoya. Wait. Never mind. Zoya kicked Jackson out of the apartment yesterday. We are all completely banned."

Mason let out a rough, bitter laugh. "We are an absolute disaster."

"We really are," Leo agreed. "Just focus on your camp, Captain. I will figure out a way to talk to Audrey. I will make sure she is okay."

"Thank you," Mason said. "Keep me updated."

Mason hung up the phone. He tossed it onto the carpet.

He stared at the blank hotel wall. The silence in the room was entirely suffocating. The physical distance between them had never felt so punishing.

He thought about Audrey. He thought about her sharp, witty comebacks. He thought about how she had stood up to Coach Davies without an ounce of fear. She was brave. She was fiercely loyal.

So why was she hiding now?

Did she finally get tired of the distance? Was six months just too long to wait for a guy she had only officially dated for a few weeks?

Doubt crept into his chest. It was a cold, heavy feeling. He was fighting so hard to survive this camp, but none of it mattered if he came home to an empty apartment.

He grabbed his phone. He opened his messages. He did not care if she ignored it. He just needed to try one more time.

Mason: I do not know what I did, Audrey. But I cannot do this camp if I think I am losing you. Please just talk to me.

He hit send.

He dropped his head back against the wall. He had absolutely no control over this. All he could do was sit in the dark and pray that she would answer.