Explosions

“Charlie, it wasn’t anything to worry about,” said J.J.

“She was all over you, Justin,” replied Charlie. “Tell me how you would be okay if a guy was like that with me.”

“I wouldn’t, but it’s not like I really had a choice,” J.J. said. “She was drunk. Fans do that shit all the time.”

“That doesn’t make me feel better,” she said.

“I know it doesn’t, but…” He trailed off and looked around. He pinched the bridge of his nose and said, “I’m really sorry about this, but it’s not going to stop happening. I’m not going to stop it from happening, even if I wanted to.”

“Why?”

“How would that look if I just shoved off every fan that came my way?”

“I’m not asking you to do that.”

“That’s kind of what it sounds like.”

“Okay, not every fan gropes you when they see you. You laughing about it to her didn’t make it any better.”

“I was just as uncomfortable as you!” said J.J.

“I highly doubt that,” Charlie replied.

“What do you want me to do?” J.J. said.

“Why can’t you find middle ground?” asked Charlie.

J.J. shrugged and scratched his head. “I guess I can try.”

“That would be great if you could,” she said.

He put his hands on her hips. She cast her eyes downward and felt her cheeks go warm. He chuckled and touched her face gently.

“You’re going to have to get used to dating the Houston Texans’ hottie,” he laughed.

“I thought I was used to it,” Charlie said, shrugging her shoulders. “I guess I was just unprepared for that lady to randomly grab your ass in the middle of a conversation.”

“Hey, I won’t let it happen again,” said J.J.

“I’ll take you up on that offer,” said Charlie.

She stood on her toes and kissed his lips. He smiled and began planting kisses from her lips, down her neck, and across her collarbone. She shivered and allowed herself to smile.

“Do me a favor, though,” she said.

He looked up and said, “Anything.”

“Don’t ever call yourself the ‘Houston Texans’ hottie’ ever again,” she giggled.

He groaned, and she gave him a playful shove.

---

Charlie opened the door to the house and looked around. She sighed, slamming the door behind her and tossing her keys on the table next to her. From the kitchen, she heard, “Hey, babe!”

She didn’t say anything. She hung her purse on the hook by the door, and she removed her jacket. She turned around and saw J.J. standing in the doorway.

“Hey, everything okay?” he said.

“I don’t know,” said Charlie. “You tell me.”

“What does that mean?” he asked.

“What did you do at the stadium today?” she said.

“I went and worked out with Brian, Whit, and Brice. Why?”

Charlie crossed her arms and said, “You wanna tell me why you got in a fight?”

“Oh,” J.J. said.

“Oh?” she replied. “That’s all you have to say?”

“It wasn’t really a fight, Char,” he said. “It’s not that big of a deal.”

“If it’s not that big of a deal, why did Coach O’Brien make a special phone call to me to come down to his office and tell me about it?” asked Charlie.

She waited patiently for him to answer, but he just shook his head. She tapped her toe lightly, then shifted to her other foot.

“You’re going to be suspended,” she said. “Both you and Ryan.”

“What?” J.J. said.

“That’s what he’s talking about right now,” said Charlie. “He doesn’t want that on the team, and that’s the only thing he can think of right now. You can’t do this kind of stuff without thinking about the consequences.”

“This can’t be just about the team,” said J.J.

Charlie paused, stared at him for a moment, and took a deep breath.

“I thought you said everything was fine?” she said.

“I thought it was,” J.J. said.

“Then what happened?” asked Charlie.

“I don’t know,” he replied. “I just saw him there, and it caught me off guard. I wasn’t expecting to see him there.”

“And you didn’t think that getting in a fight with him would have consequences? You couldn’t have just talked to him like a man?”

“Charlie, please don’t act like this is such a surprise.”

“Why?” said Charlie. “When have you ever been in a fight before?”

“I haven’t, but that doesn’t mean that you should be surprised by this.”

“If I’d known you were going to make this big of a deal out of it, I wouldn’t have even told you about this.”

“You would have lied to me?” said J.J.

“Lying and not telling are two different things,” replied Charlie. “I’m sick of you acting like I went behind your back”-

“You did, Charlie!” he said.

“It wasn’t intentional,” said Charlie. “And we’re not talking about that. We’re talking about you and this fucking fight. What the hell could he possibly have said to make you that upset?”

“Nothing,” said J.J. “He didn’t say anything.”

“Then what happened?”

“Nothing… Nothing happened, Charlie.”

“Stop. Stop bullshitting me, Justin. I’m sick of this. Something is obviously going on, and I want to know what it is.”

“I’m saying nothing because he didn’t do or say anything, Charlie. I’m in my own personal hell, and I took it out on him. I can’t look at him anymore. The sight of him – the thought of him – makes me so angry. I know it shouldn’t. I know you said it was an accident, and that might be true for you. I can live with you. I can believe you in knowing you’ll make an effort to try.”

“You don’t have to live with Ryan,” said Charlie.

“No, but I have to be on a team with him,” said J.J.

“Then whatever problem it is you’re having, fix it before practice season starts again.”

“And what if I can’t do that?”

Charlie shrugged. She didn’t want to think about J.J. not getting along with any of his teammates. It had never happened before, and she didn’t want it to start happening now. He crossed the room and touched her arms gently. She looked down at her feet then back up into his eyes.

“This isn’t like you,” she said. “I did this to you – to us.”

“I love you, Charlie,” he said. “I love you no matter what happens, okay? It’s going to be okay after a little bit. You’ll see.”

He kissed Charlie’s lips, but she couldn’t help feeling how distant he was from her. She took a few deep breaths, her heart stuttering in her chest. Two months ago, she was so sure about everything around her. Now, she wasn’t sure about anything.