Category: Fantasy

Chapte Sixteen KENDALL By the time I’m halfway down 4th toward the waterfront, the air smells like wet brick and basil. A gull screeches overhead, banking low as if it plans to steal someone’s crust. The neon sign for Luigi’s blinks PIZZA in fat red letters —a glow that promises the pizza is worth the

Chapte Fifteen KENDALL It starts with a buzz. Then another. By the fifth notification, my phone screen looks like it’s having a seizure: Group texts, push alerts, gossip blog pings. The headline hits like a slap: Mystery Father Alert: Tarron McCoy’s ex-wife glows, Hints of Baby On Board Below it, a photo of me leaving

Chapte Fou teen KENDALL By the time September rolls around I’m five months pregnant and the city feels crisp and alive. Inside the stadium, the medical wing is quiet; the boys are on the ice and I’ve got a rare half hour to catch up on charts, a heating pad wedged between my chair and

Chapte Thi teen KENDALL The knock at my door comes just as I finally get comfortable on the couch. It’s been a week since Aleksi and I went to the ultrasound appointment together. I groan as I push myself up and head a few feet to the door. The delivery guy grins when I open

ALEKSI The usual smells of the Hawkeyes stadium hit me the moment I walk in. Ice cleaner from the zamboni, stale popcorn, fresh brewed coffee, and an undercurrent of sweat and determination. I just left Kendall at the baby store a few minutes ago after finding out she’s pregnant and that the baby she’s carrying

KENDALL It’s crazy to think that I’m now three months pregnant and I’m no closer to coming up with a way to tell Aleksi about this baby without him tossing out his entire new life just to ‘do the right thing’, which I know he’ll try to do. The comment section on Trey’s interview is

Chapter Ten KENDALL The waiting room of my OBGYN is a collection of plastic chairs and half a dozen magazines with headlines that promise self-improvement. The TV in the corner is blaring some kind of morning news show but I don’t catch on to anything they’re saying. I’m too nervous for this appointment. My hands

Chapter Nine KENDALL I never thought I’d find myself standing in a closet that costs more than my entire apartment, but here I am, surrounded by sequins, satin, and one terrifyingly judgmental full-length mirror. “This isn’t a date,” I remind the room full of three women who look way too entertained by my misery. Vivi

Chapter Eight SIX WEEKS AFTER PLAYOFF Loss Kendall Walking into Serendipity’s for lunch is usually my favorite time of the day. The lunch specials and fresh-baked bread fill the coffee shop with the best smells that usually make my mouth water. But today, something just hits wrong and I can’t put my finger on it.

Chapter Seven ALEKSI It’s been thirty-six hours since the motel. Thirty-six hours since I pretended to be asleep while she slipped out before dawn, leaving nothing but the imprint of her body on the sheets and the ghost of her apology hanging in the air. Please don’t hate me. I wanted to tell her not