Prove It

Chapter 21

Tristan watched Jessica’s hasty retreat and before she disappeared back into the school building, his vision shifted until he locked eyes with Reggie.

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Tristan rested on his bed and the conversation with Jessica from earlier replayed in his head. Could he really have been responsible for what happened? Jessica did try to talk to him, but he wouldn’t listen. Was he the reason Jessica cheated? No. No fucking way! This was why he didn’t want to talk to Jessica in the first place. She had a way of making him see things her way even when she was wrong. And she was wrong about this. She never should have cheated, end of story. So why couldn’t he shake the feeling that he was a bad boyfriend to her? Would Sierra give him a chance to make things right if she had a problem with him or would she go out and find consolation with someone else? He hated Jessica for making him think to question his girlfriend’s loyalty. But not more than he hated himself for letting her.

“Tristan!”

Tristan buried his head in his pillow. What did he do now? His father didn’t raise his voice often, so when he did, it meant something was wrong. He got up to go see what the problem was. He stopped at the entrance to his father’s study and found him standing at his desk, hanging up a phone. The telltale crease on his forehead and finger-tousled white hair was enough to cause Tristan to pause before entering. He immediately regretted his decision not to stay at Sierra’s after school today. He hadn’t been home all week so he thought it was a good idea to show face. It didn’t feel like such a good idea now.

“You called me?” Tristan said from the doorway. His father waved him inside without looking up from the papers on his desk.

“Why did your coach just call me to say that you turned down his offer to rejoin the swim team?”

“Because I did turn him down.”

“Why?” his father asked in a short, clipped tone.

“I’ve moved on, dad. I don’t need the swim team anymore. I’m already set for college.”

“And was your decision influenced by the fact that Chris will also be on the team with you?”

Was this an interrogation? Because it felt a lot like one. Tristan understood his father’s need to know why he did what he did, but it didn’t take a genius to know he didn’t approve.

“That’s part of it,” Tristan admitted. “ But more than that, I didn’t realize how much I was missing out on until I was off the team."

His father looked up from his desk then. Green eyes that mirrored Tristan’s assessed him. “If I remember correctly, you had a fairly active social life when you were on the swim team. You had a girlfriend, went to parties, had friends. So, what is it you think you’re missing out on, son?”

“I just want to enjoy what little free time I have left.”

“You mean you wouldn’t be able to spend as much time with Gregory’s daughter if you were back on the team.”

Where did that come from? Did his father believe that he’d make a decision like this because of a girl?

“Sierra has nothing to do with this,” Tristan defended.

“I disagree. I think she has everything to do with it.”

 His father’s condescending tone pissed Tristan off. Sierra was not up for discussion and he needed to make that clear. “I’m not talking about her with you.”

“Fair enough,” his father conceded. “Whatever is going on between you two is your business, but when it affects your future, I need to intervene. High school is a stage in your life and most of the people you meet there, you will never see again. But the decisions you make now will follow you for the rest of your life. I urge you to reconsider swimming for your school and representing them in the finals. You owe your coach at least that much. If after you’ve thought about it and you still decide not to do it, then I’m going to insist.”

“In other words, I don’t have a choice.”

“When you become mature enough to understand how your choices affect those around you, then you earn the right to decide for yourself. Until then you’ll do what I say.”

“I’ve already decided and I’m not going to change my mind.”

The disappointment on his father’s face was hard to stomach but Tristan refused to budge on this. He didn’t know how to tell his parent that he didn’t enjoy swimming competitively anymore without sounding spoiled and ungrateful. He hadn’t enjoyed it for a long time and he was partially relieved when he was kicked off the team. How could he possibly tell the man that invested so much of time and money to support Tristan’s childhood dream that the thought of four more years of varsity swim meets felt a lot like a prison sentence? His father would never understand.

“Where are your priorities, Tristan?”

“My priorities haven’t changed. Just because you don’t agree with my decision doesn’t make it wrong.”

His father looked at him for a long time. Tristan looked back. They were at a stand still. After many minutes of silence, his father spoke.

“Alright, Tristan. You’re eighteen years old and soon you’ll be on your own, so maybe it’s time I let you make your own choices so you can learn to live with the consequences. But a word of advice, and then I won’t say anything else about this. It’s not right to abandon people who’ve helped you right when they need you most, even if they’ve made a mistake. Your swim coach did a lot for you and he’s the only reason you got the attention of the scouts from Stanford. You say your priorities haven’t changed, but I think you need to take a really close look at the direction you’re headed in, examine where your focus truly lies, and then tell me if you still think that statement is accurate.”

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 A/N: No Tristan and Sierra scenes in this chapter, which made this kind of a pain to write since I love when they interact but the story needs to move forward so... it had to be done. The next chapter is completed and will be up by tomorrow. Happy reading!