The Quarterback’s First Love – Episode 35
The hospital kept Cameron overnight for observation. Maddie refused to leave, curling in a chair beside his bed despite the guest room offered by staff. Each time he woke, her hand remained wrapped around his.
Near dawn, Cameron asked whether she regretted saying she loved him under the influence of fear. Maddie considered throwing a pillow, then remembered his ribs. “I remembered you before the crash. I chose you before the crash. The crash only made us stop wasting time.”
His smile transformed the bruises on his face. “Good. Because I’m too injured to survive rejection.” She warned that dramatic manipulation violated their honesty rule. He blamed the pain medication.
Maddie asked if he regretted pressing charges against Linda. Cameron grieved the mother he wanted, not the choices she made. Adoption had given him opportunities and genuine moments of care, but gratitude could not excuse kidnapping.
Roy Carter called from overseas. He apologized for Linda’s actions but urged Cameron to handle the matter privately. Cameron refused. Protecting the family name had already harmed Maddie once in childhood.
“If you ask me to choose between reputation and her safety, you know my answer,” Cameron said. Roy ended the call without offering support. The silence hurt, though Cameron tried to hide it.
Maddie reminded him that losing a harmful version of family still counted as loss. He did not need to pretend strength for her. Cameron allowed himself to admit that part of him still wanted Linda to apologize and mean it.
Coach Reynolds arrived with flowers and a lecture. Cameron would miss at least two weeks of contact practice. The coach called the chase reckless, then quietly thanked him for protecting Maddie.
The team had learned about the kidnapping through news reports. Several players volunteered security and rides. Their support showed Cameron he had joined more than a roster; he had begun building a community independent of the Carters.
Veronica sent no message. Police had connected her to the medical records but not the abduction plan. She denied knowing Linda would use force, preserving just enough distance to avoid immediate charges.
Maddie suspected the truth lay somewhere uglier. Veronica might not have ordered the kidnapping, but she had supplied Linda with access and insecurity. Their alliance remained dangerous even if it was fractured.
When Cameron was discharged, Maddie drove them home. He criticized her turns until she threatened to leave him at a bus stop. Their teasing restored normality after two days shaped by fear.
Inside the apartment, she helped him remove his jacket. The intimacy of ordinary care felt deeper than the charged moments they had interrupted before. Cameron let her help without pretending pain did not exist.
That evening, they sat on the couch beneath one blanket. Maddie asked to hear what he remembered about their last happy day at the orphanage. Cameron described stolen cookies, a blanket fort, and a promise to visit the ocean together.
Her recovered memories filled in details he had forgotten. They discovered neither possessed the whole past alone. Rebuilding it became collaboration rather than excavation.
Cameron kissed her slowly. He stopped after every shift, checking without words that she remained comfortable. Maddie understood his caution but did not want fear governing tenderness forever.
“I need you to trust my yes,” she said. Cameron held her gaze. “I do.” The answer was not permission taken; it was trust returned.
They moved upstairs together, choosing intimacy without crisis, jealousy, or an audience. The closed bedroom door protected a moment that belonged only to them.
Morning found Maddie against Cameron’s uninjured side. He had awakened first but remained still, unwilling to lose the quiet. “I don’t want to miss another moment,” he admitted.
Maddie noticed the childhood file on the dresser and made a decision. Healing required more than surviving Linda. “Take me back to St. Catherine’s,” she said. “I want to see where we began—and find out who helped your mother erase us.”