“Ok B, I know you have to rest.  I’ll call you later after I’ve finished my Macroeconomics paper.”

“Ok.”

“I love you, B.”

“I love you too T.”

Tina waited for Bette to disconnect the call before exhaling.

‘At least she called me T.’

4 weeks later:

Tina has been trying to keep her mind on her studies so that she doesn’t worry about Bette’s recovery.  Bette gets sadder every time they speak.  Tina spends  much of their conversations trying to cheer Bette up but Bette seems to want to wallow in sorrow.  The doctors tell her that she is coming along slowly but everything seems to be healing solidly.  At her last check-up she is told that it will probably be another 6 to 8 weeks before she can play again.  That means that even if the team was able to make it to the play-offs, Bette would not be well enough to play in round 1.  She is saddened by this because she wants more than anything to help them get to the post season and beyond.  So far, they have played 12 games since Bette’s injury and they have won 6 and loss 6.  This is not good but there is still time for them to try to get the last spot in the eastern conference play-offs if they win the rest of their games this season.

Tina is hanging out more with a few of her team mates on a Saturday night when her phone rings.  She excuses herself because she hasn’t spoken to Bette since the night before.

“Excuse me for a few minutes, it’s Bette.” Tina says to her friends as she answers her call and walks toward the restroom area for a little privacy.

“Hey babe, how are you feeling today?”

“I’m doing ok, I guess.  I just wish I could be out there helping my team.  They lost another game last night you know.”  Bette sounded so sad.

“Babe you can’t dwell on that right now.  You need to concentrate on getting better. Just stay positive babe.”

“What if they don’t extend my contract at the end of the year?  What if no other team offers me a contract either?”

“Babe, of course they will pick you up.”