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WINTER BREAK STARTS TOMORROW. In other words, I’m fucked.
I should be looking forward to winter break. Two whole weeks of no school, no homework, no dragging myself to early morning training sessions. But I’m not.
Not one bit.
Because winter break means my dad will be home.
And normally, that would be whatever-just something to deal with. But Cora has been acting out lately, and I don’t know what to do about it.
She doesn’t listen to me anymore. She comes home late, barely speaks to me, and when she does, it’s just to tell me to leave her alone. I can smell the weed and alcohol on her when she’s done hanging out with her shitty friends. I have to do something about it, I know but everytime I try to talk to her, to figure out what’s going on, she shuts me out completely.
And when Dad comes home, it’s only going to get worse.
I already know how it’ll play out. They’ll fight. He’ll say something that sets her off, and she won’t back down. Then it’ll be me—always me—stepping in between them before it gets too ugly.
I exhale hard, digging my football boots into the frozen grass. The air is sharp with winter cold, but I barely feel it.
“Oi, O’Connor! You awake?”
I snap my head up. Carson’s looking at me, one brow raised. Around us, the rest of the team is moving through drills, passing the ball between them. Coach is talking to one of the midfielders near the goal.
“Yeah,” I mutter, rolling out my shoulders. “Just thinking.”
Carson smirks. “Thinking about how you nearly missed that last shot?”
I huff. “I didn’t nearly miss. I was off by an inch.”
“An inch is an inch,” he says, but there’s no heat to it. Just that easygoing Carson attitude.
I don’t reply. My head isn’t here. It should be-I need to focus-but it’s not just Cora that’s got me like this.
It’s Carmen too.
Or more specifically, it’s Carmen and Jude.
I clench my jaw, resisting the urge to kick the ball at full force just to let some of this frustration out.
I don’t know what the deal is between them, but I see the way he looks at her. I’ve seen it since the first time I spotted them talking outside school. And the worst part? I think she likes him too.
It pisses me off.
Jude is a year older than us, but that’s not the problem. The problem is that he’s a known drug dealer in the community. That is what makes me want to grab Carmen by the shoulders and shake some sense into her.
She’s smart. She should know better than to get mixed up with someone like him.
But maybe she doesn’t know. Maybe she’s too distracted by the fact that he’s got that whole bad boy thing going for him. Some girls like that. And if Carmen’s one of them, then-
I shake my head, jaw tight. Why the fuck do I care?
I shouldn’t.
But I do.
A whistle blows, snapping me out of my head. “Pick up the pace, lads!” Coach yells from the sideline.
I push forward, slipping back into formation. We’re running attacking drills now, moving in quick passes before setting up for a goal. I intercept the ball and sprint down the pitch, my feet moving on instinct.
Carson’s already in position, waiting near the edge of the box. I fake left before cutting right and passing to him. He doesn’t hesitate, shooting clean into the net.
A goal.
The team cheers, but I barely hear it. My heart’s hammering, my body buzzing with leftover adrenaline. Not from the game, but from everything else rattling around in my head.
Winter break.
Cora.
My dad.
Carmen.
Jude.
I exhale sharply, running a hand through my hair. I need to get my head straight. Because if I don’t, I already know this break is going to be a long one.
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