Do Not Fall For The Baseball Captains novel Chapter 15

The Backup Gur

The Backup Girl

Victoria’s POV

‘Meet me at the parking Tot

I stared at the phone until the display timed out, leaving me in the dim reflection of my own exhausted face.

I let out a long, ragged sigh that seemed to rattle my very bones.

30 bonus

I had just finished my final lecture of the day, and every bone in my body was begging for a nap, not whatever high–stakes game Elijah was currently engineering.

Ever since the bonfire, my head had been a mess.

Caleb hadn’t reached out once. Not a text, not a “hey, are you okay?“–nothing. When I had finally crumbled and called him, he hadn’t picked up.

The second time, a woman’s voice answered. It was Lexi.

She didn’t say anything; she just let the phone stay active while she giggled, followed by the wet, unmistakable sound of kissing and soft moans.

She knew exactly what she was doing.

Later that night, a text from an unknown number confirmed it: ‘Caleb has chosen me. Stay in your lane, Victoria. You’re nothing more than his best friend. Stop embarrassing yourself.’

never deleted the message. I reread it sometimes just to remind myself how stupid my heart could be, hoping the sting vould finally kill whatever feelings I still carried for him. It never worked.

adjusted the strap of my bag and started walking toward the parking lot anyway.

was halfway there when I heard the noise–loud voices, running footsteps, even a couple of staff members hurrying in the same direction. Students were pointing and whispering.

tried to ignore it. I told myself it was just another campus stunt or a flash mob. But then, two girls ran past me, their oices pitched high with worry.

Did you see? He just went down,” one whispered. “Someone said his leg looked twisted. A total freak accident.”

My stomach did a slow, nauseating roll. Panic made me stop a guy running past.

What’s going on?”

le didn’t even look at me, his eyes fixed on the crowd ahead.

One of the baseball guys. Slipped on the marble stairs near the locker rooms. I think it’s Ashfield. Caleb Ashfield.”

didn’t wait to hear anything else. I took off running, bag bouncing against my side, breath already short.

When I reached the crowd I shoved through bodies without caring whol bumped into until I broke into the open space. Caleb! Caleb!” I screamed. My voice sounded foreign to me, high and stripped raw.

ears were already hot on my cheeks, blurring the sight of him.

Caleb was strapped to a gurney, his face pale and twisted in a grimace of agony.

Joah and two other teammates were hovering nearby, their faces grim. When my voice reached his ears, Caleb’s head olled to the side.

lis eyes found mine, and for a fleeting second, the pain in his expression eased into something that looked like profound

elief.

Tori,” he wheezed.

lunged forward, but a paramedic caught me by the shoulder.

Only family or immediate emergency contacts,” she said firmly.

I’m his family,” I choked out, my voice thick with desperation. “I’m his best friend.”

The nurse looked at Caleb for confirmation. He gave a weak, strained nod.

she stepped aside, and I threw myself toward him nrasning his hand His skin was cold.

How? How did this happen?” I sobbed, clutchir Successfully unlocked! Il the pain out of him and into myself.

I’m okay, Tori. Don’t cry,” he murmured. He reached up with his free hand, his thumb trembling as he brushed a tear from ny cheek.

The Backup Get

That one fender act: the way he looked at me with those familiar eyes, reminded me exactly why I had spent my life loving him–ll washed away everything I’d been through in the last few weeks.

In this moment, I was his person again.

They began wheeling the gurney toward the open doors of the ambulance.

‘Only one person can ride in the back,” the nurse announced.

I looked at Noah and the other guys. I remembered the bonfire. I remembered him picking Lexi without a second thought.

My hand began to slip from his, my heart sinking into the pit of my stomach.

I assumed he’d want one of the guys, or he’d be calling for Lexi. I started to back away, the cold wind of reality hitting me.

“Victoria,” Caleb called out, his voice sharper now. “Where are you going?”

I paused, blinking through my tears. “You… you want me to come?”

Caleb managed a pained, huffing chuckle that ended in a wince.

‘Of course, silly. You’re my best friend. You’re like my sister. I need you there.”

Oh.

The word felt like a rusted blade to the gut. Sister.

I had been officially sister–zoned, and it stung more than I expected.

Part of me wanted to turn around and walk away, but I couldn’t leave him hurting, not when he was looking at me like that. So I climbed into the ambulance and sat beside him.

The doors slammed shut, and the siren began its mournful wail.

stayed close to him, watching the paramedic check his vitals and wrap a stabilizing brace around his badly sprained ankle. ‘Why weren’t you careful?” I asked, my voice trembling as I watched him stare at the ceiling. “You know those stairs are slick when it rains.”

Caleb remained silent at first. He just stared at the fluorescent light above us.

Caleb?” I prompted, tapping his arm gently. “What’s wrong? Is the pain getting worse?”

He exhaled a long, heavy breath that seemed to deflate his entire chest.

Lexi and I… we got into our first real fight.”

felt a sharp prick of bitterness, but I kept my face neutral. And she did this? She pushed you because of that?”

No, no,” he defended her instantly, the reflexive loyalty stinging me. “It was just a phone call. I was distracted, angry… I lost ny footing. It was my fault. I shouldn’t have doubted her.”

arched an eyebrow, my pity warily shifting into annoyance. “Doubted her? About what?”

Caleb closed his eyes.

She’s been spending a lot of time with this guy. She says they’re just friends, but… they’re close. Too close. I brought it up >ecause I felt like she wasn’t setting boundaries. I told her that I set boundaries with you for her sake–and I asked why she couldn’t do the same.”

stared at him, my mouth slightly agape.

n all the years I’d known Caleb, he had never been a fool when it came to women.

He’d always been the one in control; the moment a girl played games or sparked a hint of doubt, he was done–no second chances, no looking back.

But this? This was different. It was as if Lexi had managed to slip a leash around him, a special kind of control that made him willing to swallow his pride and ignore his own instincts just to keep her. It was a version of Caleb I didn’t recognize, and it terrified me.

Before I could snap back a response, my phone began to buzz in my pocket. I pulled it out.

Elijah.

I cursed under my breath. I had completely forgotten about him. The phone kept ringing, the vibration humming against my palm.

I felt a wave of guilt; he had been waiting, and I had just abandoned him.

I looked at Caleb, who was watching me with an intense, questioning stare.

I didn’t answer. I dismissed the call and forced a plastic smile. “Spam callers,” I lied.

The Backup Girl

Then, I quickly typed a message to–Elijah: ‘I can’t make it. I’m sorry. Something came up and I had to go with Caleb‘

My thumb hovered over the send button. I felt like a traitor to myself.

A few seconds after I sent it, the bubbles appeared.

Caleb?‘ Was all he wrote back

sighed and typed: ‘He had an accident. ‘I’m in the ambulance. I just need to make sure he’s okay.”

paused, then added: “Why did you want to see me?

waited. One minute. Two. The “read” receipt appeared, but Elijah didn’t respond.

Elijah’s POV

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