Prove It

Chapter 5

“You really want to know what my problem is?”

“Chris,” Jason warned.

“You’re a selfish asshole,” Chris said ignoring Jason. “That’s what my problem is. You have a fucking girlfriend, bro.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“What is going on with you and Sierra?”

If one more person asked him about Sierra, he was going to flip. Tristan was not only annoyed by the question, but also by who was asking it. He didn’t owe Chris shit. Especially when it came to Sierra.

“That’s none of your business,” he said through his teeth trying to get a hold on his anger.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Chris told him, his face smug.

“Why are you asking me about her anyway? She’s a sweet girl. That’s it. Sierra doesn’t have anything to do with me and you.”

Chris let out a short humorless laugh.

“See, this is what I’m talking about. Do you ever think about anybody but yourself? Jessica is our friend, too, Tristan. And what you’re doing is not cool. Do you even care that you’re hurting her?”

“Not that I have to explain shit to you, but there is nothing between me and Sierra.”

Chris got angry, his face contorting with disgust and he began to raise his voice.

“Do you think we’re stupid? Or maybe you’re hoping we’re blind. You think we don’t see the shit going on between you two? You have everything going for you, man, and you don’t even see it. You have the perfect life, perfect girlfriend, you’re the perfect athlete, perfect everything, and you’re fucking it up.” Chris’s words should have been a compliment, but the way he said them, they sounded anything but flattering. “You need to start making up your mind and decide what you really want or else you’re going to lose everything.”

**

Things have been awkward between the two friends since that day in the locker room. Thinking about it still made Tristan cringe. He felt like Chris became a stranger overnight. Their relationship was even more strained after Tristan won those four gold medals on Saturday, while Chris had to settle for silver in all of his events.

Tristan couldn’t help but think that whatever was bothering Chris didn’t really have anything to do with Sierra. On some level, he always knew that Chris was jealous of him. He thought it was just a healthy rivalry, but this was different. Tristan sensed a resentment from Chris he hadn’t expected and he questioned whether Chris was ever really his friend.

Thinking about that day was draining and Tristan had enough on his mind. He needed to find his girlfriend and get everything out in the open. He owed it to himself and to her. He went to the cafeteria and found Jason. He was relieved to see Chris wasn’t there.

“Was Jessica here?” he asked Jason when he approached the table.

“No. I haven’t seen her all day.”

Where was she? Tristan scanned the cafeteria just to be sure.

“Maybe she went off campus for lunch,” Jason suggested, answering Tristan’s silent question.

Jessica never went off campus for lunch, so if she did leave, it’s because she was trying to avoid him. Tristan said bye to his friends and made a hasty retreat in order to continue his search.