Page 28 of Saving the Halfback

He chuckled. “Linemen, the tight end.”

“Are there lots of those?”

“You really don’t know the positions, do you?”

“Okay, in my defense, I feel like there are a lot more positions on the team than when we were little. I know what the linemen are, but what does the tight end do again?”

“Chase is one of the tight ends.”

“That sucks. I’m totally getting creamed. I’m sure he would allow players through just to let them flatten me.”

“What do you mean?” Lachlan asked.

“Not sure if you’ve noticed, but Chase isn’t on good terms with me. I guess…I really messed things up before.”

Lachlan sat back and looked up at me. “I thought the same thing when I started playing with Chase and Eth. For a time, they did pull back, let a few tackles get in. I took it.” He looked down. “I deserved it. They didn’t want to talk to me, so it was their way of letting me know how much I hurt them. You too.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but he stopped me.

“I did hurt you. All of you. I get why you stopped talking to me. I know exactly how many times you came to visit, and my stupid pride and ego refused to let you see me.” He leaned forward and placed a measuring plate by my foot to stand on, then he went to work pulling boxes out for me to try on cleats as he spoke. “Coach caught on pretty quick that there was animosity between us. He brought us in and said he didn’t care what happened, what’s going on, or what’s about to happen. The moment the three of us step foot on the field, all of that is gone. On the field, we are a team. On the field, we have a game to play. He told us he expected us to show up for our team, and if we didn’t like it, we would be kicked off.”

I pushed my feet into a pair of cleats. They felt tight but comfortable. “I can see Coach saying that. He gives me a fair-but-tough-love kind of vibe. He pushes a lot.”

Lachlan chuckled. “You have no idea. Anyway, when it comes to playing football and wondering if the others will have your back, you don’t have to worry. Chase and Ethan, they will playthe game. Just forget who they are and play. Forget everything and play. That’s what I do.”

A sort of sadness came over me, my shoulders falling slightly. “I don’t want to forget you,” I whispered. My eyes scanned around where we stood, a quiet spot at the back of the store. No signs of Ed. Reaching down deep for my bravado, I said, “I know we haven’t really talked about it, but…maybe can we start over? You said I didn’t owe you anything, and you don’t owe me anything. No explanation. If you want to keep what happened to yourself, I get that. It’s just…” My eyes ran over his face, taking him in. His messy blond hair haphazardly pushed out of his eyes, his welcoming, gentle stare encouraging me, his long fingers toying with the laces on the cleats as he hung on, listening to what I was saying. “I just really want my friend back,” I breathed out.

Lachlan raised his hand, as if he were about to touch me, but then pulled back, standing up. “Bailey, I could tell you were going through something. I wanted to say something, but I wasn’t sure I should. You’d distanced yourself from us all, so much, and I figured you weren’t ready. I’m here. I’m so ready to break this wall down too.” For the briefest of moments, our eyes locked, and we just stayed there before he cleared his throat. “So, these ones fit good?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yeah, they’re good.”

Lachlan grabbed them, adding them to my pile, and helped me carry the stack up to the front.

Our dads were howling with laughter over whatever they were talking about. Lachlan set everything on the counter and handed over the clipboard. “Find everything?” Mr. O’Riley asked.

“Yep, all set.” I smiled. He rang us up, explaining to my dad that the school covers the cost of most the gear; we only had to pay for the cleats and mouth guard.

“Brian and I were just talking about carpooling. Bailey, you don’t mind picking up Lachlan in the morning, do you?” Dad asked.

A flicker of something flashed in Lachlan’s eyes before he schooled his features again.

“Um, sure, I don’t mind.” I shrugged. “We both have early practice, anyway.”

“Guess that’s settled, then.” Mr. O’Riley smacked Lachlan on the back and smiled at me. “We’ll be seeing you around more, Bailey.”

11

Bailey

Thursday

He would understand. He would know. He loved me. He told me every day he loved me, so, of course, he would understand. I just had to be honest and communicate my feelings. Of course, he would understand…right?

Ed stood on the outside of a small corral, trying to coax the bull into the hold.

“Ed.” My voice came out breathless.

“I’m working,” he said. His voice, the curt response, the near growl tipped me off that now wasn’t a good time to approach him with this. Dad had already chewed him out this morning about the bull not being back in the field yet. I turned to leave, but Ed’s hand shot out and gripped my forearm. He spun on me, his eyes dark and his face stone.No…this isn’t…how this was supposed to go.

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