“Oh.” I wait for the hate to come. For the dreamy look reserved only for me to skew into pure hatred, but it doesn’t come. Of course it doesn’t because Kai is perfect. He was the perfect boy who I watched transform into an even more perfect man, and I don’t even get to keep him. “I didn’t realize you had changed your mind. I’m sorry. Why didn’t you tell me? You didn’t have to be alone.”

Fuck. He is too much. I feel the buzz I had going start to wear off, and I suddenly long to have that red cup back in my hands.

“I’m leaving.” His brows wrinkle in confusion at my words so I press on. “I’m leaving Rice. I’m entering the draft for WPS.” It was the one condition I made of my father when I accepted his demand. I can’t continue to put Kai at risk and I can’t stand to be around him knowing I can’t have him, so I demanded to leave school and go pro early. It’s not common for women to be drafted earlier than their senior year, but I had gained the attention of a few teams after last season so Coach Naughton floated the idea to me earlier this year. I immediately declined at first, not interested in leaving school—or Kai—early, but now the idea felt like a lifeline.

“Where is all this coming from? I thought you wanted to get your degree first? Wasn’t that our plan?”

“It’s not really needed. I’ll get hands-on experience being in the pros, and I’ll make wise investments along the way so I’ll be set.”

He scoffs at my half-assed plan and I can’t blame him. This is all coming out of left field, and I know I’m not making any sense.

“Okay, bet. So what’s the new plan then? We find out where you get drafted and I transfer schools next year?”

My head draws back so fast that it sets me off balance and Kai has to catch me again. I wiggle out of his touch, putting a step between us. “Why would you transfer schools?”

“To be with you,” he says, like it’s the most obvious answer in the world. I wish it were.

I shake my head. “You should stay here. You like it here.”

“I don’t give a damn where I get my degree from. They have kinesiology programs everywhere. You tryna say you wanna do long distance til I graduate?”

“No.”

He steps back into my space. “So what are you saying?”

“I’m saying, I can’t do this anymore.”

“Do what?”

“Us!” I yell. “I can’t do us anymore because…because you’re holding me back.”

Hurt flashes across his features. “The fuck you say?”