Bet On It

The acoustic melody filled the radio booth as Lexi leaned back on her chair, mouthing the words of the song. It was the last one she’d play for today’s radio show, so she wanted it to feel calm and comforting for her listeners. The right sound to end her night.

As the song reached its outro, she lowered its volume and turned on her mic, the large neon red on-air sign coming to life above the massive glass windows in front of her.

“And we’ve reached the end of this week’s show,” she said in a relaxed tone. “I hope today’s advice was helpful to all of you out there. Remember to protect your heart and your worth. Don’t destroy that for anyone.” She paused and looked out the big window, spotting Frank as he waved at her. She waved back. “I’m Alexis, and this has been Keep or Ditch. I’ll talk to you again next week!”

She turned off her mic and looked up as the sign’s light turned off. She checked the playlist that would play for the next minutes while she and Frank swapped places behind the mic. It was enough time for her to leave the booth and for him to step inside and get ready for his show.

After she raised the music’s volume, Lexi removed her headphones, collected her items and left the booth. Frank stood near his desk as he looked over a couple of CDs and sorted them into several piles.

“I’m done for the week!” Lexi announced and leaned on Frank’s desk, getting his attention. “How was the show?”

“Dramatic. Very juicy as well.” She laughed, and he shook his head. “How do you not laugh at some of these questions?”

“They’re legitimate questions,” she said. “Besides, you’re the one who makes the selection. Do you want me to fail at my job?”

“Of course not.” He ignored Lexi’s gaze as he picked up some more CDs. “But we should talk about your show.”

“We have time.” Lexi grabbed her phone from the back pocket of her shorts to check the time, and her eyes widened. Sadie was probably fuming or hexing her at this point. “Actually, we don’t. Can we talk about it some other time? I promised I’d go with Sadie to the basketball game.”

Not that Lexi was looking forward to it. She preferred to head home after her radio show so she could relax for a while before studying for a few hours. But when Sadie asked with puppy green eyes and pouty lips, Lexi couldn’t say no. Now, she was about to suffer while watching a bunch of men run after a ball while trying to shoot their shot at scoring. It wasn’t the most pleasant evening, but it wasn’t the worst either.

At least she wasn’t meeting one of her mother’s scummy boyfriends. She shivered at the thought.

“We’ll talk about it when you can,” he said, forcing out a smile. “I also have to get settled so… maybe it’s for the best.”

Lexi had been working with Frank for two years now, going on three. During her first year at their university’s radio station, she was mostly his assistant, preparing questions and listening to albums for his monthly radio show, Behind the Mic, where he interviewed up-and-coming musicians from this area. In her second year, she jokingly mentioned how there wasn’t any advice show on their radio station and how that was the reason why people were constantly breaking up on campus. It was mostly a throwaway line, but Frank took it seriously and helped Lexi pitch the show to their coordinators, and surprisingly, they accepted. Keep or Ditch wasn’t a popular show by any means, but Lexi liked to believe she was making a difference in people’s lives, especially by helping other women not get screwed by toxic men who thought they were the shit but were actually just shitty.

“Have fun with your show! You’re interviewing Chale next week, right?”

Chale was the front person of a gothic rock band that was gaining popularity in the indie scene. Frank had sent several requests to interview them, but it took him four months to schedule this interview. Lexi was glad it was finally happening because he had been trying to make this happen for a long time.

“That’s the plan,” he said. “I hope it goes well.”

“I’m sure it will.” She winked at him. “We’ll speak later, okay?”

They waved one last time at each other, as Frank disappeared into the booth and Lexi grabbed her bag from her desk and left the radio studio.

The campus grounds were softly lit by the setting sun and the streetlights that guided her from the radio studio towards the university’s arena, where the basketball game would be taking place. She passed by the library and glanced through the windows, finding a couple of students studying inside.

She picked up the pace as soon as she was out of familiar territory. She had been to the arena two or three times in the past, but she vaguely remembered where it was. In fifteen minutes, she reached the entrance, showed her ticket, and after a security check, she was inside the large building. Lexi had hoped they wouldn’t let her in since the game had already started but as she looked around, she realised she wasn’t the only one.

People dressed in orange and green made up the majority of the crowd, which sang along to the song playing in the arena. As Lexi glanced around and walked in the opposite direction from some people, she realised she might’ve missed an entire period of the game.

She glanced at her ticket once more and quickly found her spot next to where her best friend was. Sadie wore her long blonde hair in two French braids, each with a small bow at the end matching their university’s colours. Her pale, freckled face was flushed in a soft shade of pink, and when she spotted Lexi, she waved enthusiastically, exposing a small gap between her front teeth.

“Took you long enough!” she said as soon as Lexi approached. “You’ve missed the entire first period.”

“Sorry about that,” Lexi said, and collapsed on her seat, glancing at the court where a group of dancers performed a number to a popular song that everyone sang out loud. “Did we score anything, at least?”

“We did!” Sadie sat next to Lexi, dropping her head on her shoulder. “Flynn scored the vast majority of the points, but Carter scored a few points too.”

A popcorn vendor passed by them, but Lexi shook her head, gesturing instead to one selling beer and other beverages a few rows down. He walked towards them, and Lexi bought two cups of beer, one for her and one for her best friend.

“To an amazing basketball season,” Lexi said before clinking their plastic cups. She drank most of her beer but stopped as the lights changed around the arena, signalling the end of the break and the start of yet another period of the game.

“They’re coming!” Sadie clapped and stood, cupping her mouth to scream. “Go, Carter! Woo!”

Lexi remained seated as the arena exploded in cheers for their team as they walked onto the court. Carter, Sadie’s boyfriend, quickly threw kisses at the crowd, causing a few girls to swoon. He stopped when he spotted Sadie and made a heart with his hands, sending her a couple of kisses before winking and joining their coach near the benches.

“He’s so dreamy,” Sadie said while clutching her chest, melting at the small interaction she shared with Carter.

Lexi bit the inside of her cheek as a remark built in her throat. She wasn’t a big fan of Carter or any of the basketball players, for that matter. If her radio show had taught her anything, it was that they were assholes jumping from girl to girl while leading them on and breaking their hearts in the process. As much as she wanted to believe Carter was different for Sadie’s sake, Lexi knew it was only a matter of time before he showed his true colours and broke her heart.

That’s always how it went. Relationships rarely lasted forever nowadays. Especially with guys like Carter.

“Carter invited me to a party after the game,” Sadie spoke over the loud crowd, looking down at Lexi. “Wanna come?”

“You’re asking me to third wheel on your date with Carter? You can text me once the party is over. I’ll come pick you up.”

The crowd cheered even louder, causing Lexi to focus back on the court to identify what the commotion was all about. Number twenty-eight, Flynn, dribbled the ball towards the hoop, dodging the opposite players as if it were easy.

“I think it’d be fun! And you wouldn’t be third-wheeling. We wouldn’t be alone.”

“Right. We’d be surrounded by people we don’t know, which is practically the same thing.”

Flynn scored two points, and Lexi joined everyone else in the clapping, just so people wouldn’t give her odd looks.

“They’d stop being strangers if you met them,” Sadie said, bumping her shoulder against Lexi’s.

“I have no interest in meeting them, Sadie. We’ve been over this already.”

“I know. But I just… Never mind.”

Lexi knew her best friend meant well, but she had no interest in meeting new people or dating like her best friend. Truth was, even though they were best friends, they couldn’t be more different from each other. Sadie was extroverted and charming to the point where people loved her almost as soon as they met her.

Lexi carried a frown wherever she went, and her height made it awkward to relate to anyone. Especially with guys who tended to be shorter than her. Apparently, height was a big deal breaker when it came to dating. She liked to keep her hair on the shorter side—it was easier to manage—and she dyed it random colours all the time, although a dark red tended to be her favourite, and the one she had at the moment. Whereas Sadie’s body was covered in freckles that were akin to constellations, a collection of tattoos covered Lexi’s, from small to large. Most of them were located on her shoulder plates and left arm, but she also had one on her right upper thigh. She got it when she was a bit tipsy, but she didn’t regret it.

Whereas Sadie’s eyes were the colour of a clear sky, Lexi’s were the light brown of fading leaves in the autumn. They were night and day. Fire and water. But much like a day can’t exist without a night, neither could Lexi without Sadie. They were a package deal and had been since they were nine years old.

“I still think you should come,” Sadie said. “There will be snacks. And beer. And maybe candy?”

“Are you trying to bribe me?” Lexi looked sideways at her best friend.

She grinned. “Is it working?”

“No.” Lexi cleared her throat just as Carter scored a point, earning a loud cheer and clap from Sadie. “So, what kind of candy are we talking about?”

Sadie laughed and wrapped an arm around Lexi’s shoulders, pulling her closer. “I knew the candy would get you.”

“You better not be lying.”

“Never. And if there’s no candy, I’ll personally compensate you with the largest pack I can possibly find.”

Lexi debated for a while longer. Truth was, maybe going to a party wouldn’t be so bad. There would be candy. And she could use the distraction. Frank’s worried expression returned to her, and she pursed her lips. What did he want to talk to her about?

Maybe she should’ve stayed a few more minutes before coming here. Now, she’d have to wait a few more days before she could figure out his answer, and she’d dread every minute of it.