Invisible To Her Bully (Jessa and Noah) novel Chapter 75

Chapter 75

Noah

4

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I should’ve been focusing on the game film playing on my laptop. The recruiter from State wasn’t just sniffing around anymore–he’d been at Friday’s game, watching every move, every throw, every play. Tonight, I should’ve been dissecting coverage and memorizing tendencies. Instead, I was flat on my back, tossing a football into the air like some kid killing time at recess.

The leather smacked into my palm. Thud. Thud. Thud.

Every catch felt hollow. Every toss brought me back to the look on Jessa’s face this morning, standing at her locker with Mariah.

She’d shut me down before I could even get a full sentence out.

“If you’re planning on humiliating me, just back away.”

Cold. Sharp. Like I was poison.

And maybe I was.

I caught the ball one last time and pressed it against my chest, closing my eyes. I’d wanted to tell her I wasn’t there to mock her, not this time. I’d wanted to tell her I was sorry–hell, that I wanted to make things right. But the words got caught in my throat, same as they always did.

Because the truth was ugly: I’d been one of the guys laughing at her before. Teasing her, making stupid comments, acting like it didn’t matter.

And now I was paying the price for it.

The guys said I liked to show off. And maybe I did–hell, probably true. But Daniel? He was worse. He didn’t just show off; he bulldozed people. He cut them down just to stand taller. And Jessa had been his favorite punching bag for years.

The part that made me sick was that I’d let him. Sometimes I’d even joined in, because back then it seemed easier to be on his side than to risk being his next target.

Now, every time I thought about it, I wanted to punch myself in the face.

I sat up and rubbed my hands over my eyes. My head was a damn mess.

By the time I got to the fieldhouse for a late lift session, most of the team was already hanging around, talking trash and acting like tomorrow night was already a win. The room smelled like sweat, iron, and Axe spray. Same old mix.

Daniel was right in the center of it all, holding court like always. He had that smug grin plastered on his face, the one that made me want to break something.

18:33 Mon, Oct 13

Chapter 75

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“Any day now,” he bragged, slapping one of the younger guys on the shoulder. “Recruiter’s gonna call me. Probably just waiting for Coach to finish his pitch.”

A ripple of laughter went through the group, the kind that wasn’t really funny but was meant to keep him happy.

I shoved my bag into a locker and tried to tune him out. Normally, I’d ignore his nonsense, but today it scraped against me like sandpaper.

Any day now? Please. Daniel hadn’t done a damn thing on the field that made anyone sit up and take notice. He loved to talk, but talk didn’t win games.

“Hey, Carter,” Daniel called suddenly, his eyes locking on me like a predator spotting fresh meat. “You look tense. What’s up? You worried that State recruiter’s finally gonna see you choke under pressure?”

The locker room went quiet. Too quiet. Everyone was waiting to see if I’d bite.

Before I could say something I’d regret, Jackson stepped in. He’d been off to the side, but now he was right there between us, his eyes hard.

“That’s enough,” he said flatly. “Keep my sister’s name out of your mouth.”

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