Page 5 of Loving the Coach

“You are going to love training. It’s tough but it’s a lot of fun. We go to the gym every morning, we have a specialist trainer, so you’ve an appointment first thing on Monday. It is a hard life, but we get to be pitchside every game. We travel with the team wherever they go. We are celebrities in our own way.”

“I’m so excited. Erm, do you get to hang out with any of the guys, you know - the players?”

Trixie smiles and looks over to Mindy. “Hell, yeah. But we can’t ‘fraternise’,” she uses air quotes. Then she rolls her eyes. “Mindy doesn’t always stick to the rules. She’s been disciplined a couple of times, but she’s been here the longest and she’s the best around. They won't sack her, so she pushes the rules further and further.”

I laugh, having known Mindy for such a short time I can just imagine her doing that. There aren’t any of the guys on the team that I’m interested in, they're a bit older than me, but I bet they’re hot close up.

* * *

Monday morning rolls around and I go to the stadium with the girls. When I go into the gym, my personal trainer meets me and runs me through my daily routine. It’s tough. I puke after the first few routines, I guess I’m not as fit as I thought I was. Every day I go to the gym twice a day. Then we practise the routines. It’s hard to slip into their routine after doing mine at school for the last couple of years. But it’s fun, they do a lot more pyramids and tosses.

It’s going to be a couple of weeks before the first game, so I’ve got a good bit of time before I need to have it nailed.

On Friday the girls tell me that they’ve planned a night out for my first full weekend in Hurtsboro.

Trixie follows me into my room and looks through my wardrobe. “Jeez, Katie you don’t have a lot of clubbing clothes.”

“No, I never went out at home.”

“Like, never? What about with your boyfriend?”

I shake my head., “I… I don’t have a boyfriend. I just went to cheer practice and then home to study. I guess I was a bit of a nerdy cheerleader.”

She smiles and puts her arm around me. “We’re all a bit nerdy, but don’t tell anyone. We know that we need to keep our scores up or they will stop us from cheering.”

“Yeah, it was hard keeping up with all the work and the practice.”

“You still had time for some fun though. Let me tell you about this one time…” Trixie tells me a story about a jock which includes them under the bleachers. I listen and smile and nod when I think I should.

She takes my hand and pulls me down to her room. “I have some dresses that will look so good on you. Come on. Mindy can do your hair, it’s fabulous and she's sooooo good. Roseanne is like dope with makeup.” She opens her door then looks around me and shouts, “Rosie, when you’re done can you do Katie?”

Somewhere down the corridor I hear, “Yeah, no problemo.” These girls are really good friends and I can’t wait to party with them.

After putting on the skin-tight dress, having my hair curled and teased, my face painted naturally, I look in the mirror and can’t believe that it’s me looking back. I can’t believe I look that beautiful. For a moment I think about Garret and wonder what he would think about this look on me. Would he find me attractive? My eyes blur over from the unshed tears. I shake my head and get those thoughts out of my mind.

Tonight is all about me. All about the girls and the cheer squad. I am going to go out and find myself a man tonight. I need to get over my heartbreak. And all the girls talk about sex has made me horny.

Watch out, Hurtsboro men, I'm coming for you.

CHAPTER 5

GARRET

“Yo, Michaels…” I turn my head and see Phillip Preston walking toward me, a grin on his face. I’m standing in the parking lot, almost at my car...Almost. Fucking Phillip, he talks non stop, the guy doesn’t know when to quit. “You’ve been here for two weeks and you’ve made huge improvements in the running backs.” He shakes his head, “the excitement is building for the new season, everyone was worried about our running backs, fuck, they don’t need to anymore.”

I smirk, it’s true, the running backs are fitter, faster, and more together than they have ever been. I don’t take no shit from them but I show them the respect, we work together, what doesn’t work for one, may work for another. Each one of my guys are determined to put the work in and I respect them for it. It’s working and the longer I’m here, the better it will be. “The season starts in three weeks. New York isn’t going to know what’s hit them.” Our first game is at home to New York, they’re tough but we’re better.

He chuckles, “Damn straight,” laughter hits us and we turn to see the players walking out of the building. “The players are in good spirits, that’s what we need. They’re a team and they’re playing as one. It’s going to be a fucking great season.”

“Did you see the new cheerleader?” Gavin Lucy says his eyes wide as he’s got his shit-eating grin on his face.

“Aye, although I didn’t make it to her face, those tits….” Ace Martin’s laughs as does the rest of the guys.

“She’s fucking gorgeous, those plump lips,” Gavin shakes his head, “Damn, the images of her on her…”

“Gentleman, don’t you have places to be?” Philip interrupts and the men immediately change the subject. I’m curious as to who the new cheerleader is. The guys always talk about women, but the cheerleaders are off-limits, and while the guys may comment about them, they’re never as crude as they are about the new one.

I use Philip’s distraction to move away, “Philip, I’ll see you on Monday.” I need to get the hell out of here before he starts talking again. The last time he caught me, he kept me talking for twenty minutes about crap that had no relevance to the job at all. Philip is a strength coach, he thinks he’s more important than the rest of us and in doing so, he thinks it gives him a right to try and make us coach the way he wants it. As soon as he started on me with that shit, I put an end to it.

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