I Wish You The Best

2 - Mason

"Coach says we gotta be back by Monday morning for drills."

Darius points to an email he has pulled up on his phone. I drop the towel from my hands, ignoring the sweat dripping from my forehead for a moment to read the entire message. Our season starts in two weeks and we're practicing and training as hard as ever. We're about to be on the road and in new cities for new games every week for the rest of the year, so we're allowed one weekend at home before the circus starts.

"Should be fine. I'm just going to see my Dad and then catch up with some hometown friends." I finish wiping the sweat from my forehead. "What about you? Spending it with your wife?" I assume Darius would be spending the weekend with his girl considering they just tied the knot early this year.

"She's coming on the road with me, remember? I'm going to take you up on your offer from before and come home with you." He slaps my back with a laugh. "Time to see where the golden boy grew up." I shake my head at his teasing that he and all the others like to join in on while slapping his hand away from my back.

"It's nothing exciting. I can promise you it's the least exciting thing you'll see." Standing from the metal bench I stretch my arms across my chest, wincing at the feeling of soreness. Working my upper body was my favorite type of workout but it always got to me.

"See you in the AM." He's dressed and ready to go, stepping in front of me and tapping his hat as he passes. I wave him goodbye and pick up my shit thrown everywhere before heading out to the car. I still need to pack for tomorrow's drive down to Portsneck so I ditch my original plans of meeting up with some of the team for dinner and just head straight back to my apartment.

...

"I bet you ten bucks you won't make it one night without hooking up with a local fan." Darius teases me as we step out of the car that's just dropped us off at my Dad's place.

"Stop making me out to be a fuckboy D, you know that's not me." I shake his hand off my back and grin widely. "I'll at least wait until tomorrow night." I joke. He laughs at my response and follows me up the steps to my family home.

I rarely come back here, the memories are sometimes too much too bare. I chose to spend my free time focusing on my game or hitting the bars with the team. I throw myself completely into forgetting everything there is to do about this town and everyone in it.

"Mason! You made it!" My stepmother greets me with a wide hug. I tense the second her arms surround me and awkwardly pat her back.

I've never been good with touch. I don't know why or how but over the last few years I've grown more and more animosity toward touching and any sort of affection. The feeling of someone's hands or arms around my body sends straight panic and disgust to my brain. It makes my dating life and sex life almost non existent.

I immediately stepped back from her arms as quickly as they came around me. "Good to see you, Marie," I remember to answer her.

"Oh, you boys must be exhausted, come on in!" She shuffles us through the door, which is almost comical, both me and D being well over six feet but she tries anyway. "It was only an hour's drive, we're not that tired." Darius sits on the large expensive sofa in the living room.

Growing up here was almost entirely lonely. My father spent most of his time buying large empty looking pieces of furniture to fill this large empty looking house. There was no comfort or feeling of family. Only a handful of family photos, most consisting of himself and Marie.

"You boys hungry? Mason, your father is still on a business call. Should be done in an hour." I turned to Marie, jaw clenched.

"He knew we were coming and couldn't take an hour off to greet us?" Bitterness runs through my veins reminding me why I rarely come home.