Read Gina and Mike for Free Online

dad’s alma mater. I had visited before, but now that I knew for sure I’d be playing ball there on a baseball scholarship, it felt different.
    I got to meet the other recruits along with the rest of the team. I got to see the dorm where the baseball players lived and learned about some of the other cool perks we got. Like being able to register for classes first and being able to study in a special room at the library if we wanted to. 
    The only bad part of going to Madison is that I would be so far away from Gina. She had decided on Theodore, a small private university on the other side of the state. We wouldn’t be able to see each other that much. Probably only at holidays. Gina had been looking at Madison, too, but in the end decided that Theodore was a better fit.  Theodore was in a more rural setting and the class sizes were small. Unlike the hundreds in a lecture hall at Madison, general elective classes at Theodore had no more than 40 people.
    “So how was it?” Gina asked when I called.
    “Great. The baseball facilities are top-notch.”
    “How about the dorms?”
    “Better than I thought they’d be. There are built-in desks with shelves and closets with lots of storage space. A little small, but it’s not like I’ll be spending a lot of time in it anyhow. Probably just sleep there. What sucks is that we’ll be so far apart.”
    “I know,” Gina said. “But we can call each other and we’ll see each other when we’re home on breaks.”
    “But it’s not going to be the same.”
    Gina changed the subject. She had been doing that a lot lately. And I was beginning to think that maybe going to different colleges was a good thing. I knew deep in my heart that Gina loved me, but the divide that had started in the early spring was growing wider. To be honest, I was not only frustrated but also mad that Gina didn’t do more to stop our relationship from falling apart. I felt like I was the one trying to hold it together, and I was tired of being patient and understanding. I wanted to hold Gina, to make love to her and make her feel the way I used to make her feel. But she wouldn’t let me, and it was killing me.
    “Are we still on for tonight?” she asked.
    “Absolutely. Seven sound good?”
    “Perfect.”
    “Mind if we stop by the mall? I want to pick Coach up a card, thanking him for all he’s done for me this season.”
    There was silence.
    “Gina, are you there?”
    “Yeah. Sorry. I heard you. That’s fine. We can stop by the mall.”
    I hated picking out cards. There were too many to choose from. And after awhile they all read the same. But I wanted to find a thank-you card that said exactly what I felt. After all, Coach did a lot for me, and I wanted to let him know how much I appreciated it. I held up a blue card. “What do you think of this one?” I moved it toward Gina so she would take it.
    She held up her hand. “That’s OK. Whichever one you pick I’m sure is fine.”
    I pulled the card back. “What’s with you?”
    “Nothing. I just don’t think I need to read the card.”
    “But I’d like your opinion.”
    Gina sighed and took the card and read it. “It’s good.”
    “Do you like it better than this one?” I handed her another card I had pulled from the rack.
    Gina sighed and grabbed the card from my hand. Her eyes quickly scanned the front and inside. “Either one is fine.”
    You would have thought I had asked Gina to do something horrible. All I wanted was for her to read a card I was buying for Coach. She should be happy that Coach did so much for me. I know she was happy that I got into Madison on a full ride. And since Coach played a huge part in that I would have thought she would be grateful to him.
    “I guess it’s this one then.” I put the gray one back and took the blue one to the cashier.
     
    ****
     
    Gina
     
    I couldn’t believe Mike wanted me to read the stupid thank-you card he was buying for Smith. He kept saying how great he was and how if