Page 114 of A Game as Old as Time

He was lying on the ground, rolling in pain.

“Gunner…” Hailey heard his mom groan as she shot up as well.

Hailey held her breath. Emilio helped Gunner up off the ground, and both Hailey and Mrs. W. gave a small sigh of relief.

That team is so big.

The massive opposing team was celebrating on their sideline. A hush from the students below was encapsulated by a nervous shake of Juliana’s head.

“I think he’s OK,” Melissa said, pointing to the sideline, where Gunner stood talking to their father.

Please be safe.

She grabbed her sister’s hand as the opposing crowd exploded again, black and gold jerseys running down the field before a whistle blew.

“Well, after a fantastic return, the Crusaders will have the ball first and ten from the Pioneer’s thirty-five-yard line. This is not the start that Coach Bianchi would have hoped for.

Tyrell Whitworth stands back in the shotgun. The Pennsylvania Player of the Year looks over the defense and takes the snap. Whitworth hesitates but is now going to run to the left side. Cortez is running after him! Whitworth…runs over Cortez and is into the secondary! He is finally knocked out of bounds by Malcolm Bailey, but only after he picked up twenty yards! Emilio Cortez thought he had the big, six-foot-five, two-hundred-and-fifteen–pound quarterback, but instead he just got run over.

First down again for the Crusaders, who line back up in the shotgun. Whitworth looks over the defense and takes the snap. He rolls to the right side and throws it to the endzone! He has a man and…TOUCHDOWN CRUSADERS! What a pass by Tyrell Whitworth to find his man in the endzone, and in two plays, the Crusaders have taken the lead.”

The wind was immediately knocked out of the entire Pioneer side ofthe stadium. The student section below Hailey was now quiet and full of shaking heads as the uneasiness quickly shifted to a rising tide of concern. The band across the field was playing some new pop hit from the radio, and the entire side of their field was dancing along.

“It’s OK.” Ms. Summers’ voice did not match her face. “It’s early. We have a lot of time to get that back.”

Maybe.

Hailey nodded, trying to smile, but she could not muster the strength.

She spotted Gunner on the sideline, where he was getting more padding put on his shoulder. He slammed his helmet against the bench after a whisper from the trainer.

This…

Another triumphant scream rose from the opposing side, and when she spun back to the field, she saw Tyquan being helped up by two of the opposing players.

This is unfair.

The godlike Crusaders started to take their positions, waving their arms to the opposing bleachers. Loud shrieks rose into the air.

This is just unfair.

**********

“Well, Pioneer fans, a tough first half has finally come to an end. Our boys have shown a lot of fight against what can only be described as a superhuman Allegheny Prep team, but they still trail 21-0. Coach Bianchi has to be proud of his team’s effort but must wonder if there is anything they can do against what looks like unbeatable opposition.”

“Take it off!” Gunner yelled as he dropped to the floor of the lockerroom. “I can’t throw with it on. You need to take the padding off now!”

The trainer stared at him, shaking his head.

“Gunner, I can’t take that off. It’s the only thing protecting your shoulder from impact.”

Who cares!

Gunner threw his head against the steel locker in disgust. The rest of the team started to slink in behind them.

“I need some damn room out there, Emilio!” Ty threw his helmet to the ground.

“We’re doing the best we can!” Emilio came nose to nose with the muscular running back. “You see how big and fast these damn dudes are? It’s like there are fifteen of them out on that field.”

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