"So let me see!" I said, dropping next to Bryce in his bed.

Bryce let out a yawn, casting me a look before turning his back to me. He curled up with a pillow and closed his eyes again.

"Come on," I said, reaching over and tugging on his beanie. "Who even wears a beanie in bed anyways?"

"A boyfriend trying to annoy his girlfriend," Bryce muttered.

"Well it's working, so let me see!"

"I'm tired," he complained.

"Just let me see."

"It doesn't even look that interesting."

"Well if you'd just let me see, we wouldn't be having this conversation."

"Dawson," Bryce complained, reaching down to nudge the dog with his foot. "Make her go away."

"You're so mean to me, you know that?"

He rolled over to face me, flashing me a smile. "But I love you."

"Then show me."

He let out a long sigh, sitting up and rubbing his arm across his eyes. "And then I can take a nap?"

"And then you can take a nap," I agreed. "And then we have to do some Chemistry."

"I don't like that plan."

I reached over and whipped his beanie off.

"Ooh, pretty," I said, as I inspected his now staple-free head.

"Gorgeous," he agreed. "I was thinking about going out to be a head model."

"I'd buy your ad." I reached over and pecked him on the lips. "Looks good babe."

"I'm just happy to have those damn things out of my head."

"One more step towards success," I said, reaching over to give him a high-five.

"Nap time now?"

"Nap time now," I agreed, with a laugh.

He's like an oversized two year old.

~*~

"Wow, you're both together in my living room," Bryce said, coming out of his bedroom to see Clayton and me waiting on him.

"Yeah," Clayton muttered, leaning back on his couch. "I'm headed to the game and I need to talk to you."

"Ooh is it bad news? Because I really don't want to deal with that today."

"Tough shit, take a seat."

"Clayton," I muttered, shooting him a look.

Bryce went over and opened the side door, letting Dawson out into the backyard before turning on the XBOX and taking a seat on the floor. "Okay, let me have it."

"So you know how the team was struggling in the whole pitching aspect without you?"

"Yeah," Bryce agreed, reaching over for a controller. "But Powell's been doing better, yeah?"

"About that."

Bryce put down his controller and turned to face Clayton, raising an eyebrow.

"We got a new pitcher."

"Like new to the team or new to the position?"

"New to the team," Clayton said, his eyes briefly connecting with mine before looking back over at Bryce. "New to the school actually."

"Oh fuck, is he good?"

"It's Steven," Clayton informed him.

Rip it like a bandaid.

"Steven Anderson," Clayton continued.

Bryce stared at him for a couple of moments, dumbfounded.

"Pitcher for the Tigers?" Bryce asked, his eyes wide. "For the Greenesville preps?" He waited for Clayton's confirmation.

Clayton just nodded.

"Fuck!"

Bryce tossed his controller across the room, standing to his feet as he paced the floor. "What the hell is Anderson doing?"

"He saw an opportunity and he took it," Clayton said, with a sigh.

"Well he's not pitcher is he?"

"You mean like starting?"

Bryce nodded.

Clayton just grimaced.

Bryce let out a sigh, running his fingers through his half-head of hair.

"I mean, this can't be that bad," I pointed out. "You've beat Steven before."

"No," Bryce corrected. "My Eagles beat his crap Tigers. There's a huge difference between two rival teams playing each other and a head-to-head combat, in which he has the upper advantage because he didn't have his fucking head cut open."

Bryce stopped, bracing his arms on the TV stand.

"You good bro?" Clayton asked, already to his feet.

"Yeah," Bryce agreed, breathlessly. "It's just that I took a bunch of meds less than five minutes ago, and right now I probably have the heart rate of a heart attack patient."

"Come lie down babe," I said, standing up and freeing up the couch.

"No," Bryce declined, shaking his head.

I went over and rubbed his back, trying to help him calm down a little.

"Is Anderson pitching tonight?" Bryce asked, turning to face Clayton once he'd calmed down a bit.

"Yeah," Clayton said, with a nod.

And then Clayton and I both caught onto Bryce's thought process.

"Absolutely not," I said, at the same time Clayton said "Not gonna happen."

"I'm going," Bryce informed the both of us.

"You almost just had some kind of attack right here in your living room when you found out Steven was pitching," Clayton pointed out. "No way are you going to go to the game tonight."

"I missed the part when you gave birth to me and became my mom, but I'm going," Bryce informed him.

"I'm with Clayton," I agreed, shaking my head. "And this will be the only time you will ever hear those words come out of my mouth. But your health comes first."

"I'm not chained to my bed babe. I'm allowed to walk outside and actually go places."

"Okay smart aleck, tone down the attitude," Clayton said, rolling his eyes. "I still don't think it's a good idea."

"Will you drive me?" Bryce asked me.

"Will you ask someone else if I say no?"

He nodded.

I let out a sigh, shaking my head. "Fine, but we have to swing by my house so I can get ready."

~*~

"I guess I didn't really think this through," Bryce said, as we approached the gates and people were already whispering, blatantly staring at him.

"We can still go back," I pointed out.

"No we cannot."

We approached the gate, and the two of us stopped.

I'd never had to pay to go to a game, always sliding through because I was Bryce Harrison's girlfriend.

"Hey Bryce," the lady said, with a smile. "Hey Sophie."

"Hi," I said, with a smile.

Bryce just nodded.

She stepped to the side for us, letting us into the game.

"Boom," I said, reaching over and giving Bryce a low-five.

He laughed, returning my low-five.

But we both sobered up real quick as we walked through an almost silent stadium, everyone just staring at us.

I walked Bryce over to the gate, where Coach Richards was waiting to greet Bryce with an ear-to-ear smile stretched across his face.

He'd come to the hospital quite a few times, and has been urging Bryce to come out to the fields since he's been back home.

Bryce hopped the fence, and I leaned across and gave him a quick kiss.

"So this is the boyfriend then," Steven's unmistakable voice said.

Every muscle in Bryce's body tightened as he pulled away from me.

"This is him," I said, turning to look at Steven.

"Bryce Harrison," Steven said, giving Bryce a onceover.

Bryce just shook his head at Steven. "What are you doing?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Steven asked him. "I'm pitching."

"Two rules," Bryce informed him. "One, this is my team. Always has been, and always will be. And two, don't talk to my girlfriend."

"We'll see about that," Steven said, with a smirk. He winked at me. "Especially on the girlfriend."

"Bryce!" Coach Richards called, jogging over to interrupt what was about to be an ugly brawl.

And ugly because Bryce wasn't really in any condition to fight, yet he looked like he was about to smash Steven's face in.

"Good luck babe," I said, flashing him one last smile before finding a seat on the packed bleachers.

Everyone had come out to see Steven Anderson pitch tonight.

I was wearing my jersey that read Bryce's Girl across the back, which caused the whispers to erupt around me.

"Yes," I said to the girl next to me, who wasn't so quiet with her whispers. "That is Bryce Harrison. People do live after surgery."

She casted me a dirty look, and I just smiled at her.

Bryce was wearing his white beanie, and you could see the beginnings of where his hair ended and where it was shaved underneath.

Or maybe that was just me because I knew him so well.

Bryce seemed to be getting along quite well with his teammates, smiles across everyone's faces.

All except Steven, who didn't seem too happy about Bryce's surprise appearance tonight.

This was supposed to be his shining moment, but instead more people were talking about Bryce than him.

I hope he takes that and shoves it all the way back to Greenesville.

We were out in the field first, meaning that Steven was up to pitch first.

And Bryce didn't seem thrilled about that.

I tensed up as Steven wound up for his first pitch, watching as it sailed across the plate.

Ball.

I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face.

I'd never been so happy in my entire life to see a ball.

Steven, on the other hand, didn't share my enthusiasm.

And the next pitch was a perfect strike, right down the middle.

But he was up and down all throughout the inning, walking two different players, which was unheard of for Bryce.

I saw Bryce visibly relax as the top of the first inning continued.

He was a bit more professional than I was, never letting the smile actually make it's way onto his face. But I could tell that he was enjoying this just as much as I was.

Steven Anderson's debut as starting pitcher was anything but golden.

~*~

"So what did you think?" I asked, Bryce's hand wrapped around mine.

Our arms were swinging back and forth as we walked through the park, the cool night air whipping around us.

"Honestly?" Bryce asked, looking over at me.

"I wouldn't want any other answer."

"I've never been this happy after watching my own team lose in my entire life."

I couldn't help but laugh, wrapping myself up inside his arms. "I was having trouble biting back a smile throughout the game."

"I know, I saw you."

"You were watching me?"

"Of course," Bryce said, kissing the top of my head. "You're beautiful. And I'd much rather watch you and the way your eyes crinkle when you grin, and the way the your right lip tugs up before the left one, and the cute way you try to hide your laugh with your hand than watch Anderson have the worst game on his life."

I couldn't help but laugh, feeling the blush creep out onto my cheeks.

"Given any option where I had to choose between anything else and you, I'd choose you every time," Bryce added. "I love you Ms. Allen."

I turned to face him, wrapping my arms around his waist and looking up into his chocolate brown eyes.

By this point we'd come to a standstill in the middle of the park.

"I love you too Bryce Harrison," I said, with the utmost sincerity. "And I'd much rather watch you bite your bottom lip as you try to hide your smile, and cough into your arm as you try not to laugh, and look up at the sky as you press your lips together and stop grinning than watch Steven Anderson pitch the absolute worst game of his life."

And with that I rose up onto my toes and kissed him as the cool night air whipped around us.

So what did you guys think about Bryce getting his staples removed? A big step in the surgery recovery, right? What about Clayton's revealing to Bryce about Steven's new position on the team? Would you have taken it like Bryce did? And then Bryce going to the baseball game to see Steven back his debut start? How did you expect Steven to do? What about Sophie & Bryce's little walk in the park to end their night?

So I know the biopsy wasn't included in this chapter, but I needed to include Bryce finding out about Steven and all of that before. So my last teaser was essentially a lie. Sorry about that D:

Teaser: Okay, it's the biopsy this time. I promise! Bryce receives his biopsy results from the brain surgery...