Page 13
After a half hour, their mutual silence became an unspoken understanding, allowing them to run together yet apart, free from the usual distractions of conversation or expectation.
Maybe that was the thing. Everyone wanted things from him, demanded favors, expected their backs scratched. Josh’s encouraging smile offered the first real hint of camaraderie he’d felt in years, without the assumptions and illusions some jerk had cooked up about the “rowdy, randy NFL star.”
The sun continued its slow ascent, tracing the dew in diamond light. For the first time since his heart attack, Tyler felt alive and present in his body. This simple act of running in the quiet had awakened something—a hunger for connection, for pursuit, a need to look closer, and the stupid hope that maybe here, around this track, for once he wasn’t running in circles.
Life is so funny.
As they continued their parallel journey, Tyler knew that whatever lay ahead for him—healing, self-discovery, or whatever—it all began here, behind the old gym, with a familiar stranger running in tandem on the other side of the track.
Tyler’s initial wariness about crossing paths with someone from his past melted away, replaced by a growing curiosity about Josh’s obvious transformation.
Josh lapped him again and, without breaking stride, cast another sideways glance at Tyler, and offered that friendly nod of acknowledgment again. This silent greeting had become part of the ritual. So Josh must have recognized him, which felt more surprising and important than it probably should have, given Tyler’s notoriety.
He smiled and nodded back, appreciating the tacit agreement to preserve the beauty of the predawn stillness. As their gazes met, Tyler felt a thrill of recognition and confirmation that this was indeed Josh Ayres, the timid teenager grown into a genuine grade-A stud.
As they continued their silent run and the sun crawled higher, Tyler felt his spark of hope catch flame, real eagerness now—for his recovery, for new connections, and for the chance at a future that was finally beginning to look bright again. Josh’s quiet strength and unbelievable transformation proved that possibilities were… possible.
Tyler nodded to himself. A real MVP pays attention to every member of the team. How many chances and choices had he missed while he was aimed at the life he thought he wanted? How many small miracles lay hidden beneath the surface of people he hadn’t noticed?
The rhythmic pounding on the track became a sort of meditation mantra, sanding the sharp edges of Tyler’s thoughts. Gradually, he allowed himself to slip into a zone where he could shed the weight of expectation and escape his fame and simply exist, free from judgment or assumptions. Each step brought him closer to a sense of purpose and self-worth.
After all, if Josh could change so dramatically, couldn’t he?
Tomorrow, Tyler vowed, a silent promise to the virtual stranger who had unknowingly lit a spark inside him. I’ll be back here tomorrow, and maybe something more might happen.
On Tyler’s last loop, both men gradually slowed their pace, their chests heaving with the effort. In unison, they slowed to a walk. The morning was nippy enough that steam rose from Josh’s skin and his. As they paced in place, they again exchanged another friendly nod, an unspoken understanding passing between them.
This brief morning encounter had changed everything for Tyler.
Josh ambled to the gym’s back door to stretch against the rail. Tyler kept his distance, unsure of how welcome he’d be any closer than this.
As Tyler made his slow trek off the field, they smiled at each other as though they shared a secret, a kinship formed and a tacit promise of… something. He hadn’t felt this kind of absolute focus and calm in months. Anticipation—that was the word.
See you tomorrow? Tyler considered saying, rehearsing the words in his mind, but he hesitated, unsure if asking was too rude, too weird, too selfish. Instead, he simply held Josh’s smiling gaze for a moment longer and let the soft silence speak for itself.
Before he could do anything dumb or embarrassing, Tyler turned and strode away from the track, his body thrumming with adrenaline and a delicious heat he hadn’t felt in way too long.
With a renewed sense of purpose, Tyler walked out through the field gates to the car, his banged-up heart swelling with gratitude for the unexpected encounter.
Josh Ayres. Who would’ve thought?
Tomorrow, then. Without fail. He’d be back here tomorrow, and the tomorrow after. And hopefully, Josh would too.
Tyler had initially planned to run a couple times a week, to use these early mornings as a bare minimum to escape his rut and clear his mind. But now, thanks to the haunting beauty of Josh, Tyler found himself with a rock-solid reason to return every single day.
Tyler barely remembered the drive. At some point on the way home, he swung by the farmer’s market to pick up eggs like a normal person would. He didn’t remember opening his wallet, so he hoped he’d paid for them. He’d check tomorrow, and pay triple just in case.
By the time he was back at his sister’s front door, full daylight blazed at the horizon, kissing Tyler’s back as he unlocked and entered the little foyer. The familiar creak of the floorboards and the faint scent of his mother’s drugstore perfume brought a comforting sense of nostalgia, grounding him in the place where he’d made himself up. For the first time in years, Tyler felt like he truly belonged somewhere.
“Tyler? Were you out this early?” Nadia called from the kitchen, her voice rising over the sizzle of bacon on the stovetop. Mr. Poops wove hopefully between her legs, bleating for his bowl. “How was your run?”
“Better than I expected,” he replied, dropping his duffel bag by the door. “I met someone.”
“You— You what? Really? Whore,” she said, raising an eyebrow playfully as she plated the bacon and eggs. “Do tell.”
“Not meet, meet. But I saw someone who I don’t really know. I didn’t know exactly.” He shook his head to try and make it make sense to her. “Something happened.”
She frowned and stepped toward him. “Something bad? Are you okay?”
