The Girl’s Exit Was Louder Than Silence Chapter 02
My head snapped up.
Dylan calmly met my eyes for a second before looking away.
My phone suddenly buzzed.
An email from Coach Anderson popped onto the screen.
“Based on feedback from the players, Madison will temporarily take over your position as team manager.”
Everyone around me started clapping.
I knew I was supposed to smile, clap, and welcome her too.
But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t lift the corners of my mouth.
In the end, the smile I managed looked worse than crying.
When the team had first advertised the manager position on campus, dozens of students had applied.
I’d been scared I wouldn’t make it, so I’d once begged Dylan to quietly pull some strings for me.
“If I get picked, won’t we get to see each other every day?”
He’d refused without hesitation.
“If everyone got in through connections, the team would be packed with useless pretty faces.”
“If you don’t think you can earn the position yourself, don’t apply.”
I’d worked my ass off to prove I wasn’t some useless pretty face.
Eventually, I’d beaten every other applicant and earned the position myself.
Then Dylan told me we needed to keep our distance around the team.
“You earned this on your own.”
“But if I tell them you’re my girlfriend, they might assume you got special treatment and start resenting you.”
Back then, I’d genuinely believed he was protecting me.
I’d even been touched.
Until today.
Today, he’d openly used his connections to shove Madison onto the team.
Nobody judged her.
Nobody excluded her.
Instead, someone excitedly suggested, “Since we’ve got a new team member, why don’t we all go out for dinner later?”
“What do you think, Logan?”
The school covered one team dinner a week, so Logan had no objection.
Once he agreed, refusing to go would only make me look petty.
Before we left for the restaurant, I stayed behind to put away the basketballs.
By the time I changed and came outside, everyone was already in the van.
I was about to climb in when Logan spoke.
“We’re full.”
“Last one in has to Uber there.”
The van normally had exactly enough seats for everyone.
With Madison there, I was suddenly the extra person.
My fingers tightened slowly around the door handle.
Without thinking, I looked toward Dylan.
He was sitting right beside Madison, their heads close together as they talked quietly.
When he realized the van still hadn’t moved, he raised his voice.
“Whoever got in last, just get out already. Stop holding everyone up.”
My eyes stung.
I silently stepped back out of the van.
I stood there until even the exhaust disappeared from sight.
Still, I didn’t move.
The chat between Dylan and me remained completely silent.
He didn’t ask whether I’d gotten a seat.
He didn’t even ask whether I knew where the restaurant was.
It wasn’t until Logan posted the address in the group chat and tagged me.
“Uber to this location. I’ll reimburse you for the ride.”
I was about to reply that I wasn’t coming when Dylan suddenly sent me a license plate number and a trip link.
“I already called you an Uber.”
“Move faster next time. You’re always dragging your feet.”
“See? You got left behind again.”
Madison might’ve officially become the team manager, but she spent the entire time glued to Dylan.
All the actual work was still left to me.
Feeling increasingly wronged, I called Dylan to explain.
He immediately declined the call.
“I get carsick. I can’t talk right now.”
“Just get in the Uber and come over.”
By the time I reached the restaurant, everyone had already found their seats.
There were two empty chairs at the round table.
One was across from Dylan.
The other was beside him.
Without thinking, I assumed he’d saved the seat beside him for me.
But just as I reached it, Madison came back from the restroom.
“That’s my seat.”