Page 111 of Saving the Halfback

“You’re not mad?” he asked.

I…had no more room to be mad. No more reason. Today, today would be a good day. “No. Not mad. I have regrets, but don’t we all? Are you busy today?”

“No. No plans.”

“Can you do me a favor?”

“Yeah, man, whatever you like.”

“Today…is going to be a good day.”

39

Ethan

Working at the garage, I could feel the hunger settle in close to noon. With all the scheduled meals Bailey’s parents had been insisting I eat, my body was getting accustomed to eating regularly. I had spent all yesterday with Bailey, working around the barn and fixing odd jobs until we had to leave for our football review.

Review day had mostly consisted of praise. Even as Coach went over the tapes, he gave us more props than criticism. We had some tweaks, and one of the plays we’d run obviously wasn’t strong, so we would be throwing that into regular practice with our bread-and-butter plays, the ones that came naturally to us. Watching Bailey get creamed on screen was worse than watching it in real time on the field. I could see it coming this time, and there was no stopping it. But every time she bounced back, I settled back into my seat.

We spent all afternoon and into the night taking beans off the field. She taught me to drive the tractor and haul the bins while she drove the combine. Now and then, she’d get on the radio, teasing me about being a farm boy now. The other farm hands picked up on the banter and added their own friendly jabs, onesaying they needed to get me on a horse now. Screw that. While I would watch Bailey ride until the day I died, I refused to get on a one-ton unpredictable animal.

The bell to the front door of the garage rang. “We’re closed!” I called out.

Chase walked around the corner. “I brought lunch,” he said, holding up a brown paper bag.

I set down the rag I held in my hand. “Hey, just because we are good now doesn’t mean we have to start some sort of bromance.” The smell hit me, and my stomach growled. “Is that…a burger from Tom’s?”

“The one and only.” He found a clear bench and set the bag down, along with two fountain drinks.

“Okay, maybe I can spare a few minutes.” I grabbed one of the drinks and took a sip. Damn, it was the root beer. Root beer was my favorite pop, but the one from Tom’s was the best.

Chase took out a couple of burgers and fries and set them up for us in the drink cup holder, like we used to do when we were kids. We stood at the workbench in silence for a while as we ate. I was too hungry and focused on eating to carry a conversation.

“So, why’d you come down here? What’s with the food?” I asked suspiciously as I crammed more fries in my mouth.

Chase shrugged. “I don’t know. We used to eat at Tom’s all the time. I was in the area and hungry.”

“We used to eat at Tom’s to get out of my house when my dad was going apeshit,” I said.

“True. What’s with the bruise on your chin?” Chase asked.

I narrowed my eyes at him. “I got it during the game.”

Chase took a long sip of his drink before setting it down. “So, he’s still doing it.”

I sighed. There was no bullshitting Chase. I wasn’t even sure Bailey had bought the lie yesterday. “Why would he have any reason to stop?”

“I just thought, with you being bigger now, he would back off.”

I shook my head. “I learned, when it comes to people on drugs, they worry about nothing but their next fix. I’m not my father’s son. I’m the kid that drove his wife away, and then I was the kid that brought the paycheck in. I’m under no illusion about who I am to him, and fighting back only caused more trouble.” A few more months, and I’d be an adult and free of the vermin.

Chase sat back, a heavy look in his eyes that made me uncomfortable. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Genetics are the luck of the draw.”

Chase looked down at the half-eaten burger in his hand. “When the rumors started going around about you getting into fights, and how badass and mean you were, I didn’t get it. You were a bit of a brute, but the only time you even struck anyone was to defend yourself. You know, you were wrong about Bailey being the only one who wanted you in the group. The group felt right when you started hanging with us, with me.”

“Don’t get sappy. I already put up with Nolan and Lachlan. I don’t need it from you too.”

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