Chapter 426 - I See You

Chapter 426: Chapter 426 - I See You

Zac closed the door behind him without saying anything.

Roxie stayed beside the kitchen counter while he dropped his keys onto the table and pulled the training bag from his shoulder. He looked tired from practice, but the way he stared at her told her exhaustion wasn’t the reason he was quiet.

She swallowed. "Hi."

"Hi?"

Roxie winced. "Bad start."

Zac dropped the bag beside the couch. "You called Mason?"

There was no point pretending she had no idea what he meant.

"Yes."

"After everything this morning?"

Roxie rubbed her forehead. "Calling him was stupid. Dylan already tore into me about it."

"That doesn’t answer why you did it."

"I got jealous."

"Of Dylan?"

"Yes."

Zac stared at her for a few seconds like he expected something more.

Roxie hated how ashamed she felt standing there. Mason had already made her feel ridiculous at the restaurant. Dylan had made her feel worse. Now she had to explain the same bad decision to the person she should have talked to first.

Zac rubbed both hands over his face. "I told you what happened with him. I told you he confessed. I told you nothing happened. Then today you asked to see my phone because Dylan called, and after I left, you called Mason to check if Dylan still wanted me."

"When you put it like that, it sounds fucking horrible."

"Because it was."

That stung, mostly because she couldn’t argue with him.

Roxie looked down at the counter. "You’re right. I fucked up."

Zac was still staring at her. "So what was the point of me telling you everything if you were just going to ask Mason anyway?"

Roxie lifted her head.

"That’s what pisses me off, Roxie. I told you about what happened. Then you go interrogate somebody else like my answer wasn’t good enough."

"It wasn’t that."

"Then what was it? You even asked to see my phone. Were you checking if I was telling the truth?"

"My head was fucked up." Roxie bit her lip. It was a nonsense reason but it was all she can come up with.

Zac looked away and shook his head. "Do you trust Mason more than me?"

"No. I wanted somebody who wasn’t you to tell me I was being stupid."

That made him look back at her.

Roxie swallowed before continuing. "If I asked you again, I knew you’d give me the same answer, and then I’d still be sitting there wondering if I was just hearing what I wanted to hear."

"So you didn’t trust me."

"I trusted you. I didn’t trust myself."

Zac went quiet.

Roxie rubbed her palms against the edge of the counter, wishing she could explain it better without making herself sound even worse.

"I knew you rejected him. I knew you weren’t interested in him. But then I found out Dylan used to like you, and suddenly I started looking at everything differently. I wanted Mason to tell me I was being an idiot because he wasn’t involved."

"And he did."

"Immediately."

Zac’s mouth tightened like he was trying very hard not to say something.

"He basically asked if Dylan had done anything, if you’d done anything, and when I said no to everything, he asked what the fuck I was doing."

Zac stayed quiet.

"And I believe you."

"You’ve got a weird way of showing it."

Roxie sighed. "That’s fair."

His expression shifted slightly, but he was still angry.

"I just don’t understand where this came from."

"Neither did I."

"What does that mean?"

She looked down at the floor.

"It means I was already pissed at you before Dylan got dragged into it."

Zac frowned. "Because Coach called?"

"Because you’re barely here."

His expression changed.

Roxie saw it and immediately felt guilty again because now she sounded like she was blaming him for something he couldn’t completely control.

She folded her arms across herself. "Forget it."

"No. You just said I’m barely here."

"You have football."

"Obviously."

"Exactly."

Zac stared at her. "Roxie, what are you trying to say?"

She hated the question because there was no answer that made her feel reasonable.

"You’re always gone lately."

"I have practice."

"I understand that."

"Then what am I supposed to do?"

Roxie looked away.

The same question from earlier.

She swallowed before answering. "Nothing."

"That’s obviously not true."

"I don’t want you doing anything."

"Then why are we fighting?"

Her eyes started burning, and Roxie immediately blinked harder because she had already cried once today. She was tired of feeling ridiculous.

"I miss you, okay?"

Zac stopped.

Roxie’s face heated. She looked away because admitting it somehow felt worse than admitting she had been jealous of Dylan.

"I fucking miss you. That’s what I’m mad about."

For a moment Zac didn’t say anything.

Roxie wiped quickly under one eye when a tear escaped anyway.

"We live together," he said.

She gave a shaky laugh. "That doesn’t mean I see you."

That shut him up.

Roxie pressed her lips together, but now that she had started saying it, she couldn’t shove everything back down.

"You come home when I’m already tired. Sometimes I’m asleep. Then your alarm goes off early and you’re gone again. If you’re home, you’re watching film or answering messages. We planned one lunch, Zac. One. Then Coach called and even that disappeared."

His face softened a little.

Roxie hated that too because she didn’t want pity.

"I understand why you left today. Coach really called. I saw the message. You weren’t lying. Dylan wasn’t doing anything. Everybody had a perfectly good reason, and I was still sitting alone at that restaurant pissed off."

Her voice cracked near the end.

She wiped her face again.

"I sound fucking selfish."

"You don’t."

"Yes, I do. You finally have this thing you’ve worked for forever, and I’m crying because you spend too much time doing it."

"Roxie."

"I don’t want you skipping practice. I don’t want you dropping Dylan. I literally just begged him to stay friends with you because he thought maybe he should back off after what I did."

Zac blinked. "He said that?"

"He was pissed. He said if I couldn’t trust him around you, you could stop coming over."

"And you told him no?"

"Obviously."

Roxie looked at him like he was stupid for even asking.

"I don’t want to screw up your friendship because I got jealous for one afternoon. He has enough shit happening with his family already, and you two need each other."

Zac watched her quietly.

Roxie rubbed both hands over her face. "I just got in my head. You were never home, Dylan was always with you, then I found out he used to like you and suddenly every time you stayed there bothered me more than it did before."

"So this wasn’t because you thought I wanted him."

"No."

The answer came immediately.

Zac’s shoulders loosened slightly.

"I thought that’s what this was."

"It wasn’t."

"Then the phone earlier?"

Roxie groaned and covered her face again. "That was me being an idiot."

"Rox."

"What do you want me to say? I heard Dylan’s name, got jealous and wanted proof that Coach really called. Five minutes later I felt like shit because you had told me the truth."

She lowered her hands.

"I trusted you, Zac. I just let one stupid thought get big enough that I started checking everything around it. That’s on me."

Zac stayed quiet long enough that Roxie started wondering if he was still too angry to let it go.

Then he walked toward her.

She stiffened slightly from habit, remembering how she had moved away from him earlier.

Zac noticed and stopped a step away.

"Are you still mad enough that I’m getting rejected again?"

Roxie’s mouth twitched.

"Maybe."

"That’s mean."

"You’ll survive."

He studied her face. "Can I hug you?"

That almost broke her more than the fight had. Roxie looked down and nodded.

Zac stepped forward and pulled her against him.

She lasted about two seconds before pressing her face against his chest and crying again.

"Fuck."

His arms tightened around her.

Roxie grabbed the front of his shirt. "This is embarrassing."

"You’ve done more embarrassing things today."

She pulled back enough to glare at him.

Zac almost smiled.

"Too soon?"

"Way too soon."

He pulled her back before she could move away.

Roxie let herself stay there, listening to his breathing while his hand moved slowly over her back. She had spent most of the day angry because he was never around, and now just having him hold her made the entire thing feel stupidly simple.

"I really am sorry about Dylan," she murmured.

"You should be."

Roxie pinched his side.

"Ow."

"Don’t make me feel worse."

"I’m still allowed to be annoyed."

"Fine."

"And calling Mason after I already told you everything still pisses me off."

Roxie sighed against his shirt. "I get why."

Zac rested his chin briefly against the top of her head.

"I need you to trust me, Rox."

"I do."

"If something gets in your head, ask me."

"I tried that today and ended up demanding your phone."

"Maybe next time skip that part."

Roxie gave a small laugh.

"I’ll work on it."

"And don’t call Mason."

"Definitely learned that one."

Zac laughed quietly.

After a while he asked, "Why didn’t you just tell me you missed me?"

"Because what was I supposed to say? Skip football because your girlfriend is lonely?"

"You could’ve started with the lonely part."

"That sounds pathetic."

"It sounds better than calling Mason."

Roxie pulled back and glared at him.

"I’m going to hear about Mason forever, aren’t I?"

"For a while."

"Asshole."

Zac smiled, but it disappeared again when he looked at her face.

"I really didn’t realize it was that bad."

Roxie shrugged. "It’s not horrible."

"You’re crying."

"I cry when I’m pissed."

"You also cry when you’re sad."

"Thank you for the analysis."

He smiled slightly. Then his hand moved up to wipe under her eye.

"I thought living together meant we were getting more time."

"We technically are."

"Technically?"

"You sleeping beside me for six hours while unconscious isn’t quality time."

Zac laughed.

Roxie shoved his chest lightly. "I’m serious."

"Fair. I come home, eat, watch football shit, pass out, then leave again." He grinned. "We do have sex."

She chuckled. "That doesn’t count." But hearing him say it made Roxie feel slightly less crazy.

She rested her forehead against his chest. "I don’t need every night."

"I can give you more than whatever I’ve been doing."

Roxie looked up. "You can’t start skipping things because of me."

"I’m not talking about practice."

"Then what?"

Zac thought about it for a moment.

"Two nights."

Roxie’s eyebrows pulled together. "Two nights what?"

"After practice, I come straight home. No hanging around with Dylan. No extra film unless Coach actually wants us there. We eat, go somewhere, stay here, whatever."

Roxie immediately frowned. "I don’t want Dylan thinking I made you stop seeing him."

Zac groaned. "I’m not breaking up with Dylan."

"I didn’t say that."

"You basically did."

"Don’t use my own argument against me."

He laughed.

Roxie tried staying serious. "I’m serious. I just told him I didn’t want things getting weird between you two."

"They won’t. Spending two nights with my girlfriend isn’t going to destroy our friendship."

She considered that.

"And you can still see him."

"Thank you for giving me permission."

Roxie pinched him again.

Zac caught her hand this time.

"Violent."

"Deserved."

He threaded his fingers through hers instead of letting go. Then he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

Roxie rested her forehead against him again. "He also made it very clear he doesn’t want you anymore."

"Good. I’d hate to ruin his dating life."

She looked up. "His what?"

Zac grinned.

Roxie’s eyes narrowed. "Is there something I don’t know?"

"I’m kidding."

"You’re not funny."

"I think I’m hilarious."

Roxie shook her head and buried her face against his chest again.

After another moment she murmured, "I really did miss you."

His arms tightened around her.

"I missed you too."

Roxie smiled slightly. "Then why are you never fucking home?"

Zac laughed into her hair.

"Starting tomorrow."

"Two nights."

"Two nights."

"And a date."

He leaned back. "Now you’re negotiating."

"The first date got ruined."

"Fine. A date."

Roxie smiled for the first time without forcing it.

"Good."

Zac wiped under her eye again before looking at his thumb.

"Your makeup’s everywhere."

Her mouth dropped open.

"You fucking asshole."

He laughed and ducked when she tried to hit him.

Roxie chased him two steps toward the bedroom before giving up.

"Go shower. You stink."

"You were just crying into me."

"I was emotional."

"And now?"

"Now I can smell you."

Zac laughed as he grabbed his training bag.

Roxie watched him head toward the bedroom, the heaviness in her chest finally easing.

Before he disappeared through the doorway, she called his name.

Zac looked back.

Roxie hesitated, feeling stupid again, but this time she said it anyway.

"I love you."

His expression softened.

"Love you too."