itsgabriel-james

[itsgabriel-james]

Remember The Name

It is game day, people! And I have never felt this kind of electricity. This stadium is on fire, and I mean really on fire.

The Chants should win this game, there's no question about it. With all the buildup and the hype of this season, and the talent they have on this team... It's that great offensive backfield for Coastal Carolina that has everybody's eye. Gabriel James, the quarterback, and Mac White, the tailback, there's nobody better, probably. Finally got here after a long summer of practice. Lot of expectations on this Coastal Carolina ball club. Chants are the team to beat. Turn on the TV, sit down, and shut up 'cause it is game time, people!

The locker room was rumbling under the stands at Brooks Stadium. Gabe sat on the bench, helmet in hand, his knee bouncing up and down with anticipation as he listened to the crowd. He was set to start again this season. There was a lot of pressure on the Chanticleers due to a lot of freshly drafted players. But Gabe was confident. They had drafted a few more QB's, but he proved himself to be their go-to during fall camp, leading an offense with a new fullback, that the media declared "the offense to watch" just based off practices.

The morning leading up to this moment consisted of press conferences, which was still weird. He experienced them last season, but every time he and his teammates took the stage, he didn't get why the press wanted to hear what a bunch of college kids had to say. Half the time they were so nervous that they were talking nonsense. He at least didn't feel as dumb after the conferences when Maddie would text him and reassure him he did a great a job.

The team rallied after their coach's pre-game speech. They ran out onto the field, heading to the sideline as the stadium erupted. Gabe looked around in awe at the stands that were covered in teal. It never failed to amaze him.

After warming up for a bit, it was finally time. He and his fellow captains headed to the center of the field for the coin toss. They called heads, in which is landed, and called offense.

We are underway. Out on the left side, gets away from one man, breaks another tackle, and gets about a 25-yard gain out to the 40-yard line. It's a great way to start the season.

Let's see what this young superstar's got for us. First chance to see the quarterback Gabe James, along with Mac White, play with new recruit Chester Beasley in the backfield. The trio we’ve all been talking about. The hand-off to White, he tries that right side. Gets away! Oh, this kid can move! First down, Chants! By Mac White. He bounces it outside, and breaks a tackle.

And the hand-off this time to big  Chester Beasley, the fullback. Oh, Chester gets ten yards before getting pulled down. You gotta love Chester Beasley when he runs.

Chants on a roll, just like we thought they'd be. First and ten at the 35. James, drops straight back to pass, has Alex Williams open over the middle. He's there with a touchdown! Touchdown, the first touchdown of the season! 

So it's West Point’s turn to respond now, after the easy touchdown drive for Coastal. Coy Amway brings back the kickoff for Army West Point, and up the left side, the near side, he gets away, and gets a beautiful run back to the Chants 40-yard line. And the first down's called, a little bit of misdirection, as they always do, and Campbell bounces it out. And gets away! He's gonna go all the way into the end zone! Army scores on its first play from scrimmaging. Wow, we heard about these counters, and man are they fast. What a great misdirection. And it fooled the Chants. 

We're already into the second quarter. West Point's giving us all we can handle right now. Big block Chester Beasley. Gabe James brings him out. Takes the step. Drops straight back to pass. Looks left. Finds John Golia. He's there. He's got to catch, dives to the cone. Did he get in? Yes, touchdown, Chants!

That's the sign of a great leader and that's who Gabriel James is. You know, you get a kid like him playing D1 ball, he came from a small town in Rhode Island, didn't touch a football until his senior year of high school. He started as a wide receiver and now he's the starting QB for the Chants. That takes a lot of grit, skill, and I'll tell you what, natural talent. 

There’s a lot of talk out there about whether or not he can get the job done, but time and time again, he carries that team. It doesn’t matter if he hasn’t been playing since peewee, Gabe James gets the game, he loves the game, and he is good at it. 

Army with the first down and ten at the 30-yard line, though.

It was a tough game. They were going neck and neck. They went into half-time down by ten. Gabe was taking most of the heat, being tackled left and right. He felt like his team was letting him down, not giving him any protection.

Well, they gotta get something going. Down by ten. They need two possessions, and score in those two possessions to win the ballgame. Third and five. And James looks like he's in command like we've seen him look before. This is a critical play for the Chants.

As they went into the fourth quarter, Gabe called out the play, looking to his left and right, making sure his team was ready. 

James takes the snap. Drops back to pass. Has protection. Throws a wobble. Oh, it's picked off by Watts. Interception. He's got a good wall in front of him. Down on the left side. James, the only one that might be able to get to him. Fumble on the play. A fumble! The ball is loose! Get the ball! 

Gabe watched as his pass failed and was intercepted, then fumbled by the opposite team. He acted on instinct, running towards the loose ball. The player who intercepted acted just the same, running towards Gabe with such intensity that as soon as his hand touched the ball, he was on the ground and everything went black.

That's a gigantic hit on James. He's down on the ground. He is down.

And he's not moving. That was a heck of a hit when James met Watts. And he was the only one that could've stopped him from scoring what would've been a game ending touchdown basically for West Point.

When Gabe opened his eyes, he was unsure where he was or what he was doing. It took him about 30 seconds for the faces he was staring up at to register as his coaches, referees, and paramedics as they ran through a number of questions to see if he was okay. 

"Gabe, you good? How many fingers am I holding up?" His coach held up his hand, but to Gabe the number of fingers kept changing. 

Gabe opened his mouth to speak, words not quite coming out. 

"I'm okay," he finally managed to get out as the medic finished screening him for visible injuries.

"Alright, let's get him up," the paramedic said before they helped Gabe stand. The players and stadium cheered as he stood, causing his head to ache.

He immediately felt dizzy, the stadium turning into one big teal blur. He closed his eyes as he blindly walked with the medics to the bench. Once they sat him down, he opened his eyes and they helped him get his helmet off.  

A few players asked him if he was okay, but he wasn't sure what to say. His head was pounding and everyone looked like they were moving in slow motion. 

"We're gonna screen him for a concussion," the medic told his coach before bringing Gabe to the locker room.

Gabe went through the concussion screening with the medic in the locker room. He suddenly felt a wave of emotions course through him and wiped his eyes absentmindedly as tears flowed from them. Why the fuck am I crying?

“You got hit pretty hard there. Definitely a concussion. Is there anyone you want me to get a hold of to come to the hospital with you?” 

Gabe rubbed his eyes, thinking about Maddie, then feeling confused because he couldn’t remember where she was. 

He didn’t say anything and before he knew it, he was in an ambulance, headed to the ER.

[itsgabriel-james]

Fade Into You

A few weeks had passed since Coastal played UMass, bringing Gabe and Maddie closer than they had been since her birthday.

Her need to be, what Gabe understood was essentially, friends with benefits with him, was more challenging than he thought. There were many times where he almost texted her how much he missed her, or that he loved her, or that he wished she was there with him and vice versa.

But saying those things would make their relationship emotional, and she made it clear that she couldn’t give him that again yet. So he let her know he felt those things in other ways. He positively responded to the stories she shared, commented on all her posts, sent her shirtless pictures, and when he was drunk, let the “I’m horny and I need you” texts speak for themselves.

He felt a little silly for still feeling like it wasn’t enough, that he wanted more. Any guy in college would kill for a relationship where it was flirting and sex and no emotional ties.

But the problem is that there are emotional ties, and he couldn’t let that go.

Gabe let out a soft breath as he viewed Maddie’s recent story for the second time, just to see her face, when he was pulled from his thoughts.

“Hi, Gabe,” a petite, brunette girl with blue eyes and a pretty smile said as she passed by him in the library.

He smiled a little at the attention and tipped his head as he watched her sit down a few tables down from him. Her attention was soon on her friends and Gabe stared for a moment, recognizing her and the group of girls she was with.

It wasn’t weird for people to know who Gabe was, but for him to not know them since he’d been starting QB1 for more than a season now. His name and face had been all over ESPN since the Chanticleers had yet to lose a game this season.

The attention was weird for him. It was something he wasn’t prepared for when he accepted the scholarship to play for Coastal.

Press conferences were still odd to experience. He didn’t really care for the cameras or the spotlight. He just liked to play the game.

Gabe looked back at his book to attempt to study for the test he had tomorrow, but the only thing he could think about was Maddie.

He wondered what she was doing. Probably not wasting her time in a library like he was.

“You’re in my math class, right?” The brunette girl was in front of him again as he looked up from his book, smiling as he realized that’s how he recognized her.

“Yeah, I think so. Are you guys studying for the test, too?” He raised his eyebrows and motioned to his open book.

The girl smiled, “Yeah, you wanna join us?”

Gabe took a second to think about it and before he knew it he was picking up his backpack and moving to sit with the girls.

Anyone in the library that day could see that he was soaking up the attention the girls gave him, flirting with him and boosting his ego, asking him if he was ready for the game, etc.

One by one, the girl’s friends packed up and left until it was him and the blue eyed girl, whose name he learned was Jade, at the table. “Okay, I cannot look at another problem. You want to go grab dinner or something? I’m starving.”

Gabe chuckled as he closed his book, nodding in agreement to not being able to look at another problem. The way she asked if he wanted to grab dinner sounded so casual, he almost didn’t realize it would just be them two. He could say no, but then it would be weird if he saw her in the dining hall, because he was also pretty hungry.

But then he realized that there wasn’t any reason he had to say no. Technically, he was single.

“Actually, yeah. I could definitely eat,” Gabe grinned at Jade.

That one moment introduced Gabe to a world he never really experienced before. Casual dating.

He had dinner with Jade that night, and then again the next night, this time at a restaurant, though he wouldn’t admit it was a date. He had a nice time, but the kiss goodnight was dull. She wouldn’t be hearing from him again.

The next week, he found himself out with a different girl. That goodnight kiss was ordinary. He ghosted her too.

A new girl got his attention every Friday or Saturday night for the next few weeks. He was a gentlemen to them all, but they never made it past his threshold.

There was only one girl who got his attention every other day of the week, but she was 800 miles away.

He thought that dating would make him feel a little more whole, that it would fill the gap that Maddie left in him, but it didn’t.

In fact, he never felt more empty and alone than he did after a date with a girl who wasn’t Madison Ward.

[itsgabriel-james]

Not Over You

The months following the evident break up were hard. Gabe hadn’t felt a heartbreak like this since his dad died. Of course, that was different, but the numbness he felt was the same.

Gabe was on autopilot day after day, week after week. He went to class, did his homework, hit the gym, and partied. Every weekend was the same. Party Friday and Saturday night, and skip lunches on Sunday to fight his hangover.

At first, he didn’t tell anyone that he and Maddie broke up. Especially not Morgan. Gabe didn’t blame her, but it was her idea that he went to visit. He wondered what would have happened if he had just stayed away. Would they have eventually battled it out over FaceTime, the same confessions coming out? Was their break up inevitable? Or was it preventable? If he had stayed in South Carolina and let her have her girls night on her birthday, what would have happened?

So if his mom never put the idea in his head.. would he still be with the girl who was the one for him?

It took a few weeks, but Morgan eventually called him out on skipping their weekly lunches since he visited Maddie. She asked him why he stopped talking about her, and why she never got details about his visit.

“I guess the long distance thing wasn’t for us,” he said with a shrug.

“What? Did you two break up?” Morgan sympathetically asked him.

Gabe felt the pressure of tears brim his eyes and quickly looked down at his food, “Yeah.. I.. I guess we broke up.”

It was the first time he said it out loud. It took four weeks, but he finally admitted it to someone.

Charlie, his roommate, was the second to find out. For weeks, he would ask Gabe how Maddie was, and would receive a vague response, or Gabe would change the subject. He assumed something was up, but didn’t want to press.

It wasn’t until Gabe was drinking alone in their room when he started to spill his guts to Charlie about what happened.

Eventually the rest of their friend group found out, but none of them tried to talk to him about it. And he was thankful for that.

Maddie brought his walls down, and he didn’t hesitate to put them right back up.

The guys keep telling him that he needed a rebound, but Gabe couldn’t even think about that. He wasn’t like that anymore. The idea of being with someone who wasn’t Maddie made his stomach turn. It wasn’t like when he broke up with Leah, where all he wanted was revenge sex for what she did to him.

Part of him wondered if hooking up with a random girl would take away the pain. But a bigger part of him knew that it would just solidify the break up.

He slept with someone else, it would really be over. And what if he did hook up with someone, and then Maddie called? She would never forgive him. She would never take him back. He was all of her firsts, and she was supposed to be all of his lasts.

After a few months of constant weekend partying, Gabe had enough. He bailed on his friends and stayed in, thankful that Charlie was visiting his girlfriend and he would have the room to himself.

He mindlessly played his video games, content in his own space. His phone buzzed, a name that he hadn’t seen in months popping up. Maddie 😍😘

The last time she called him, he declined it. And neither of them reached out since.

They had given up on each other.

Was she calling him on purpose? Was it a mistake? A dare from one of those sorority girls?

Gabe paused his game before hesitantly answering, “Maddie?”

[itsgabriel-james]

Till Forever Falls Apart

It was raining as Gabe stepped out of the airport in South Carolina. He looked around for his Uber, not having to search for longer a minute. As soon as he got in, he sighed.

Gabe had just experienced one of the worst nights of his life. Maddie and him fought in the past, but never like that.

It was as if they had just unloaded all the things that bothered them that they were holding back.

He spent the night at the hotel next to the airport, not able to catch a flight until the morning. Through the whole night her words echoed in his head.

“I told myself I would not be that pathetic girl waiting for her boyfriend to make time for her anymore”

“You left me for South Carolina, you left me for football, you left me for your friends, and you left me tonight because things didn’t go your way.”

He only started playing football because she and her family wanted him to.

He asked her to go to school with him, but she got into Amherst.

She said that he left her, but he felt alone the entire night.

All night these thoughts circled his brain. Gabe didn’t sleep until he was on that six A.M. flight back to Myrtle Beach.

The driver finally pulled up to his building and he got out without a word and went straight to his room.

Gabe collapsed on his bed, face in his pillow, and let out a gut wrenching scream into it. That scream opened the flood gates as he started to sob uncontrollably.

How did everything get so twisted? Was he crazy for being hurt by the events of the night? It was her birthday and she was having fun..

But she sees those girls every day, he told himself. We hadn’t seen each other in a month. I flew there just to see her, she couldn’t give up just one night to be with me?

Everything Maddie said about not wanting to wait around for his call hurt him. He felt like he was always waiting for hers.

Gabe didn’t realize she had ill feelings towards his partying. He knew that she was constantly doing events and socializing with the sorority that he was trying to keep himself just as busy.

The images of her crying face burned through his conscious.

I am an asshole.

He thought he changed. He thought he was better than to walk away when things got tough.

Who was he kidding, that’s what he did.

After a few minutes, Gabe calmed down. He picked his head up and wiped his eyes, glancing over at his roommate’s bed. It was empty.

He silently thanked god for that before going into the bathroom to shower and clear his head.

Morgan is gonna ask to pick him up from the airport in two days. What would he tell her?

He shook the thought from his head.

We’re not broken up. It was a fight. A really bad fight. We were upset. We said things we didn’t mean. I’ll call her. I’ll call her and apologize and tell her how much of an idiot I am and we’ll be okay. Everything will be okay. I didn’t lose her. I couldn’t have lost her.

After his long shower, he got dressed and sat down at his desk, finally having worked up the courage to own up to being a complete dick.

He went under favorites on his phone and tapped her name. The phone rang and rang until it hit voicemail. Should he say something? He didn’t give himself enough time to think and hung up quickly.

“Fuck,” he muttered. She must be at that event. He rolled his eyes.

He suddenly missed everything about her as if they hadn’t talked in months. She felt so far away.

Gabe couldn’t bear it. He opened Instagram and went to her profile, curious to see if she posted on her story. There was nothing he hadn’t already seen from the night before.

He looked at the pictures of them on her profile, tears brimming his eyes.

Why did he behave that way? Was it so bad? Did he miss and love her so much that he couldn’t stand to share her just for one night?

Gabe tapped on her tagged photos and was confused to see a picture of her and a guy he didn’t recognize. He tapped on it, noting it was posted just a few hours ago.

His heart sank as he felt his face get hot. So that’s how it’s gonna be?

Anger and jealously swam through his veins just as her name and picture popped up as an incoming call.

Fine, he thought. I can play that game, too.

And with that, he hit “decline”.

[itsgabriel-james]

Sugar, We're Goin' Down

The off-season for Gabe was the best excuse he had for partying nonstop. He had been practicing and playing football every weekend since he started his first semester, so it was nice to be able to let loose.

Letting loose in his first year of college meant parties, parties, and more parties. He figured that as long as his performance in class and the gym didn’t suffer, he had nothing to lose. After all, if his grades suffered, or if his coach deemed him unfit, he’d lose his scholarship.

Not to mention Gabe was talking to Maddie less and less since being back at school for his second semester, and going out and getting drunk was a nice distraction from how much he missed her. They texted constantly, but it wasn’t the same as hearing her voice and seeing her face. He missed her face, and everything about her for that matter.

Gabe furrowed his brows as he drove to meet up with Morgan for their Sunday lunch. He was trying to remember the last time he and Maddie talked on the phone. His hungover brain was probably wrong, it couldn’t have been that long, could it?

Well he did call her last night, but it went straight to voicemail. That happened a lot since she joined the sorority. Gabe knew it was just because of all the events she had to attend. They had to either have phones off or use it for social media, so he figured she just set hers on DND.

Gabe put his car in park and looked down at his phone, checking to see if she had called back and he missed it. He fought a frown at the absence of missed calls and then shrugged it off before getting out of the car.

He went inside, Morgan was already at their usual table, and sat down across from her. Rick and Joey had been joining them each week, but they went on a camping trip that weekend.

The thought made Gabe sad as he thought about weekends away with his dad.

“Hi, hun, you look.. like you had fun last night,” Morgan said with a light laugh, noticing his hungover appearance. He usually cleaned up nicely for their lunches, but today he had visible facial hair, his hair was a bit disheveled, and he had bags under his eyes.

Gabe half-smiled and nodded, running his hand through his hair, “I went to Surfside last night for a bonfire. I didn’t get back until like four.”

Morgan tilted her head to the side and frowned, “You could have cancelled, Gabe. I don’t want you to feel like you have to do this every week, especially if you’d rather be in bed.”

Gabe shook his head, “No, no, I wanted to come. We had plans, I wasn’t going to cancel. Besides, this food is so much better than the dining hall at school, and I could go for a burger with some bacon.”

Morgan smiled at her son and nodded, “Well I’m happy to see you, even if you’re hungover. Order as many sides of fries as you want.”

He smiled back at her, “Oh trust me, I will.”

Their lunch consisted of catching up on each other’s week. Morgan always asked about school and Maddie. Usually he had an answer for both. Today he could only speak for one.

“School’s been good. Classes are as usual,” he spoke vaguely, his thoughts starting to drift back to his long distance girlfriend.

Had it really been over a week since they talked?

“And Maddie? How is she?” Morgan asked while finishing up her food.

Gabe picked at the fries on his plate, “I don’t know. Maybe you’ll have better luck getting in touch with her than I do.” He was half joking. Part of him was feeling a little bitter. That was probably the hangover talking.

Morgan’s reaction made him regret his words. He didn’t want her to think something was wrong. “I mean, she’s good. We text. I just haven’t spoken to her for real in a while. A little over a week, I think. We’ve both been so busy, and she’s in that sorority now.”

His mom was understanding. She looked as if she was going to drop the subject, but her face changed slightly, “Isn’t her birthday coming up? You mentioned that last week.”

Gabe smiled and nodded his head, “Yeah, shit, that reminds me. I need to send her a gift. I’ll probably head to the boardwalk and pick something out for her.”

“Go to Amherst,” Morgan smiled at him encouragingly. “Her birthday is Friday, right? You could fly out and surprise her. That will probably be a better gift than anything you’d find on the boardwalk.”

Gabe raised his eyebrows at the idea, “That.. actually could work. I have two classes in the morning, but after that I’m free until Monday afternoon. We can spend the whole weekend together. She can show me the campus, her room, introduce me to her annoying sorority sisters.”

Morgan gave him a small look at the last part, but didn’t speak on it. “I think it’s a great idea. I’ll even buy your plane ticket since it was my idea.”

Gabe smiled a real, genuine smile, one that had been missing for a few days, “Really? Thanks, Mom.”

Morgan smiled at how he called her mom. It didn’t happen often, but it did slip once or twice lately. “You’re welcome.”

Gabe was actually excited for the first time since he was back home. He was gonna get to see his girl again. He imagined how happy she would be to see him. The look on her face. The rough sex they’d have. The romantic sex to follow.

He was looking forward to Friday more than he ever had.

[itsgabriel-james]

@gabejames: missing my girl more than ever. happy valentine’s day babe

[itsgabriel-james]

@gabejames: missing the field. college ball, I’m ready for ya

[itsgabriel-james]

Hesitate || Self Para

Walking through an empty school hallway was refreshing for Gabe. The past few weeks had been eventful. Students still pointed and stared and whispered. They did it towards him and towards Maddie. It was becoming less and less each day at least.

As Gabe headed to his guidance counselor’s office, he was glad she wanted to meet with him during study hall and not in between classes. He took the long way, feeling a sense of relief of how quiet the hallways could get.

Knock knock. Gabe half smiled as he reached the counselor’s office and Mrs. Amston looked up from behind her computer. “Oh Gabe, perfect timing.” She pushed her glasses to rest on her head and began searching through her filing cabinet. “Well come on in,” she said.

Gabe sat down in the chair across from her desk and watched as she pulled his file out of the cabinet and set it on her desk. “So, how has everything been?” She grinned at him, almost as if she forgot the drama he was previously involved in.

He raised his brows as he slumped in the chair, “It’s been better. Maddie still doesn’t like to be around everyone, but.. I’m still here for her.”

Mrs. Amston nodded her head slowly, “Okay, but how are things going with you?”

Gabe shrugged his shoulders, “They’re okay. Everyone is applying for colleges and stuff. I applied to a few. URI, Fairfield, UConn, Penn State, Amherst.. Boston U..”

Mrs. Amston listened to Gabe with intent before opening his file, “Gabe, those are great schools. And I encourage you to apply to great schools. I fear though, that your grades may prevent you from attending those great schools. Some of those schools have a low acceptance rate as it is, and if your grades and attendance are low, they won’t give your application a second look.”

Gabe furrowed his eyebrows as he listened to her, “Well my attendance has actually been pretty good since I joined the team. And I can get my grades up, it’s not even the second semester.”

Mrs. Amston let out a soft breath, “Unfortunately it’s not this year the schools are going to pay most attention to. It’s last year’s.”

Gabe clenched his jaw, beginning to feel frustrated with the news. He had been working his ass off to keep at least constant C’s in his classes to stay on the team.

“My dad died last year. I transferred in the middle of the school year! They’d understand wouldn’t they?” He scoffed, sitting up in the chair.

“Yes, of course they understand that, but your grades at your previous school suffered before that, Gabe. I’m not saying you won’t be able to go to the schools you want. I just think you should also apply to local community colleges, as a back up,” she told him, pressing her lips together.

Gabe stared at her for a moment, trying to process everything she was saying. He was never that bad of a student. He didn’t think all the times he skipped or assignments he failed would catch up to him so fast.

“Look, I will be happy to write reference letters for you, and I already know that Coach will, as well as Principal Ward. We will do our best to get you into one of the schools in your top choices,” she reassured him.

Gabe fought a frown and nodded only slightly, not sure if he felt like talking about it anymore.

“And I know this may be none of my business, but I want to make sure not to get your hopes up. I know your mother is out of the picture, and you have been staying with Principal Ward. Do you have the funds to pay for college? Has he discussed paying for you? Or at least co signing for your financial aid? Or did your dad leave you enough for college,” she raised her eyebrows.

As soon as she mentioned it, Gabe felt his stomach turn. He stared at her desk, the details becoming blurry as he zoned out. Could he expect Harrison to pay for him to go to college while already having to pay for Madison? And after he bought him a car. He had his inheritance from his dad, and it definitely wasn’t enough to pay for all four years of any of the schools he applied for. He would be buried in loans for years. Was he good enough to get a football scholarship? Probably not, he only played one season. Maybe there was more money somewhere? Did he have to call the attorney to go back into his dad’s will? There had to be a college savings account for him somewhere. Or did his dad never bother? Did he just know that his son would be a high school failure? Maybe he shouldn’t even bother finishing high school. It would probably be easier for him to get his GED and work for the rest of his life. Maybe his mother-

“Gabe?” Mrs. Amston looked at him with concern.

He blinked a few times and looked at her before standing up abruptly, “I can’t..” He shrugged it off and mumbled something incoherent before slinging his backpack over his shoulder and leaving her office.

He ignored her pleas for him to come back and pretty soon he couldn’t hear them. Gabe quickly headed to the exit as the hallways filled with students switching classes. He forgot he was supposed to meet up with Maddie to walk her to her next class as he ran out to his car.

Before he knew it he was on the way to his family attorney’s office. He parked the car outside if the building he spent a lot of time at when his father died. Gabe nearly stormed past the receptionist, ignoring her urging him to stop.

“I need to see my dad’s will,” Gabe said with little breath, the attorney standing up in alarm.

“Gabe James, I wasn’t expecting you. Did we have a meeting?” Mr. Cooper asked with surprise.

“I need to see my dad’s will. My inheritance, was that it? Was that everything? Am I gonna be able to pay for college?” He rattled off quickly.

Mr. Cooper let out a soft breath and headed over to the door to his office, closing it. “Gabe, have a seat, please. Can I get you anything? Water? Coffee?”

Gabe sat down and shook his head, “No, I just want to know if I’m going to be able to pay for college.”

Mr. Cooper nods his head before taking a seat, “To answer your question, Gabe, yes. You will be able to pay for college.”

Gabe thought he would feel the weight lift off his chest, but it only got heavier.

“You are a beneficiary of a trust fund. The only catch is that you don’t have access to it until you turn 21,” he finished.

Gabe bit down on his lip, “Even though my dad died? That age limit doesn’t get overruled?”

“It would,” Mr. Cooper cleared his throat and pulled out the Will and the bank trust fund information. “If both co-signers were deceased. Your mother is the other trustee.”

Gabe felt the weight on his chest grow heavier as he listened to the attorney.

“Unfortunately without your mother’s permission you don’t have access to your assets until you turn 21,” he says.

“Can I have the documents, please?” He raises his eyebrows.

Mr. Cooper gave a nod of his head before making copies of the documents and handing them to Gabe. “Do you need anything, Gabe? How are you doing?”

“You’ve given me what I need. Thank you, Mr. Cooper. You can send me a bill,” he says before standing up.

“This one is on the house,” Mr. Cooper reassured Gabe as he watched him quickly exit his office.

Gabe couldn’t believe it as he got back into his car. He leaned his head back against the head rest and exhaled heavily. His drug addict mother was the remaining trustee on money he didn’t even know he had. Money he could use for college, for an apartment, to pay back Harrison one day. He knew what he had to do. He had to find her and get her signature.

[itsgabriel-james]

@gabejames: yeah, she’s cute 😘 @maddiegirl

[itsgabriel-james]

He squeezes her gently before he falls asleep.

18 || Madison & Gabriel

[itsgabriel-james]

“Night, Maddie,” he whispers softly.

18 || Madison & Gabriel

[itsgabriel-james]

He nods his head, “I’m pretty tired.”

18 || Madison & Gabriel

[itsgabriel-james]

“I love you too,” he says softly.

18 || Madison & Gabriel

[itsgabriel-james]

Gabe wraps his arm around her.

18 || Madison & Gabriel

[itsgabriel-james]

He tilts his head to the side and closes his eyes.

18 || Madison & Gabriel

[itsgabriel-james]

“Yeah, I know he would,” he smiles a little.

18 || Madison & Gabriel

[itsgabriel-james]

He raises his brows, “What is?”

18 || Madison & Gabriel