Blindness(83)

I’m half-listening, the rest of me focused on Trevor and Cody bumping fists. I see Cody pick up a Coke from one of the coolers, and I also see him add a little of whatever’s in his flask to his drink. Jessie is quick to grab the flask from his hand, but he quickly grabs it back, and I can make out his mouth as he says, “Fuck off!” She gives him the finger and whispers something to Gabe, no doubt telling him to keep an eye on Cody. I’m relieved that they’re watching him, but I also know that no one is on my team right now.

The next hour drags; we all sit around and listen to Kevin, Rob and Trevor tell stories about Washington, and politics, and law. I’m barely interested, if at all, and I can see the boredom written on everyone else’s faces. Things pick up when some teen races by on a skateboard, and Gabe talks him into letting him ride for a few tricks. He gets on and starts flipping the board with his feet, always landing on it the right way—like a cat.

Gabe is amazing to watch, and it catches everyone’s attention finally, and the boys all take turns attempting to do what he did. Even Cody does a few simple flips, but I notice how he stumbles, not from his injury, but from the sleepiness in his eyes from what I’m pretty sure is vodka.

The game of stunts manages to pass the rest of the time, until we pack up the cars and head into the stadium. I pre-arranged the suite tickets, giving myself the seat in the front corner and putting Trevor next to me, hoping I’ll be able to hide—or stare at the field and never once look behind me at the very least. When we get to the suite, though, I’m the only one that actually pays attention to the number on the ticket. Everyone else gets comfortable wherever.

“Dude, Cody, check out this cheesecake tray!” Gabe says, pulling the plastic lining from the dessert platter and sliding out an entire piece on a paper plate. “Mmmmm, damn. Seriously, Cody, this shit is good. Here, try.”

Cody just turns his face from Gabe and shakes his head. I watch him walk over to the opposite corner from me, and he props his feet up on the railing as he sits back in his seat. For the first time today, we make eye contact, and my body is rushed with the sensation of jumping from a high bridge. I can’t look away, and Cody doesn’t. But he doesn’t smile, either. In fact, his face is completely void of any emotion at all—he could be looking out a window at nothingness. He reaches into his jacket, still holding his gaze on me, and pulls out his flask and unscrews the lid slowly. He finally raises it up to me in a toast and curls his lip up the tiniest bit before taking a big gulp.

“This one’s on you, just so you know,” Jessie says from behind me. I can’t face her, even though all I want to do is hug her, have her tell me what to do. But she hates me right now, and I deserve it.

“I know,” I say, my voice barely audible. “I know.”

The pre-game announcements start, and pretty soon the team is taking the field. Trevor comes to sit by me for most of the first quarter, and I cheer along with him and Kevin, just trying to act like I’m enjoying myself, like I’m distracted by the game. But I watch Cody from the corner of my eye, I watch him every time he takes a drink—and I shrink with every single one.

Trevor kisses me on the cheek at the start of the second quarter, before he heads to the back of the suite to sit in the sofas with Kevin and Rob. He feels obligated to entertain me, but he would rather be with his friends, so I urge him to join them. I pull my jacket tightly around me, thankful for the heaters above my head.

The second half is full of action, and Cleveland is moving the ball well. They score twice in the first few minutes, and everyone in the suite high-fives and cheers, but I stay in my corner and wait for Cody to explode. He’s getting louder and bolder with every minute that passes, his language consisting mostly of swear words at this point.

Finally, almost half-time, I hear him say, “Fuck this, I’m outta here. You wanna come, Gabe?” Then I see the two of them shake Trevor’s hand and leave through the door. It’s strange how relieved I am that he’s gone, yet worried at the same time. I walk over to the living area and pick around at some of the plates of food, really just listening to the boys talk and hoping someone will give me a clue where Cody went. I’m about to ask Trevor, when I feel my neck choke on the tug from the back of my coat. I stumble backward into the row of stools, where Jessie is sitting.

“Okay, here’s the deal. I’m mad at you—like so f*cking mad I want to punch you in the face,” she says, and I flinch in reaction. “Stop it. I’m not going to; I just want to.”

I take a deep breath, but keep my guard up, ready to run if I have to.

“We’ve got a problem,” she says, looking at her phone and swiping a few times before she hands it to me. It’s open on a text from Gabe, and when I read what it says, I’m hit with a whole new wave of panic.





He’s f*cked up, J. He’s making me drive him out to the pits for jumps. He’s going to do something stupid. He won’t listen to me, you know that.





I look back at her, my eyes wide. I’m not sure what the pits are and what type of jumps Gabe’s referring to, but I know how drunk Cody was when they left, so I’m pretty sure whatever this mixture is, it’s dangerous.

“This is bad, Charlie. Do you understand? He almost died when he tried some dumb-ass trick, and he’s in a really f*cked up place right now,” she says, and before I can rationalize any of it, I’m at Trevor’s side.