Page 9 of Vexing the Viper

When I first arrived in the locker room, it was filled with all the players I had met on Saturday. The team showed us newbies our lockers with our last names taped on top. Coach explained how our practices would work, and our schedules. Half of practice would be weight training, and the other half would be on the field.

Standing up, I throw the ball back to Sam, which he catches with ease. Sam and I have been on fire this first practice. We work so well together. It's crazy how in sync we are for two people who only just met. Hopefully it stays this way, because Coach seems to be impressed with us.

Trent walks up to the plate, swinging the bat in a circle. I met him earlier today and was blown away when he told me he's a shifter Spiderling. I’ve never met one before. When we first got onto the field, he shifted, and it was a fucking sight to see.

His human body is huge and muscular, but his spider form was enormous. He stands tall at almost seven feet, with eight legs that have to easily span six feet wide when he stretches. He has all these little black eyes that take over his face. I love that he let us see his form before he shifted back to a human. I give him a nod as he walks to the plate, getting into his ready stance. Sam tosses the ball at him, and when I'm sure it's going to be a strike, Trent swings hard and the ball goes flying. He starts rounding the base and I jump up, ripping the face shield off. John, who's in the outfield, scoops up the ball and throws it into the infield. I watch in amazement as Trent rounds the bases. The ball is finally making its way to me, so I rush in front of the plate to catch it, the ball landing easily in my hand. I quickly turn around to catch Trent, my glove hitting his hand just as Coach yells "You're out!"

Hell yeah! Whooping and hollering, Sam runs over from the mound slapping me a high five. Trent stands up grumbling, but smiles and shakes his head when he sees me.

"Thank fuck we're on the same team." We high five each other when Coach Mahone whistles and yells that practice is over for the day.

"For it being our first full practice as a new team, I can see how great of a season we can have. I took note of some weak spots, and we'll make a game plan for practices. Hit the showers. I'll see you guys tomorrow."

I start to walk away when Coach yells my name.

"Yes, Coach?" I ask, turning around to face him.

"Meet me in my office real quick." He nods his head in the direction of the locker room, then he heads off the field.

"Okay," I tell him, nervously. I had a kick-ass practice today; why would he want to see me in private? Sulking past the locker room, I walk into his office and throw myself down on the seat in front of his desk. On the table, I notice he has a family pictureof him, his wife, and two kids. I can see an adorable younger Niko in the picture, and I smile. He's under Coach's arm, his eyes rolled mid-photo. Seems as though he's always annoyed. I chuckle at my own thoughts, even more curious about the snake-headed boy I'm rooming with.

"You had a great practice today, King. You're a hard worker, and a hell of a player."

"Thank you..." I trail off, not knowing where he's going with this.

"So, I took a look at your transfer paperwork, seeing what previous classes you took, how well you did. Or rather how well youdidn'tdo."

"Ah." I get it now. While I wasn'tfailingmy classes last year, I was dangerously close to it. My previous coach did the same song and dance talk with me about how I would lose my spot if I didn't bring my grades up and keep them up.

"Now, I don't want you to be kicked off the team due to your grades. And while some of your courses will be a little different being at Creelin U, most of your classes are academic." He's right. While humans have to take an Intro to Monsterkind class, all of my other classes are purely academic. Which could easily fuck up my chance of staying on the team.

"Okay, agreed. I promise to study my ass off–" He clears his throat, cutting me off, and I chuckle. "Sorry, study my butt off, and keep my grades up. I didn't fail last year. I can do it again. No problem."

"I have no doubts. However, I want to make sure you keep your grades up, so I arranged for a tutor to help you."

"Coach, I don't need a tutor," I protest, getting defensive. "I can do it myself."

"Maybe. But I need my starting catcher to make sure he does well academically."

"Starting catcher?" I repeat, momentarily stunned. I knew it was a possibility, but I wasn't sure if the decision was final.

"Hell yes, King. After watching how in sync you and Sam were out there on the field, I would be crazy not to have you both start. Keep it up in practice, and the spot is yours. But you won't be able to keep it if you start failing a class."

"Fine," I relent. "Set me up with the tutor."

"You got it. Even though you didn’t really have a choice." He snickers and I smile. My previous Coach was never friendly, so it’s a welcome change.

I stand up and shake Coach's hand. One of his snakes slithers out from under his baseball cap and stares at me. I wonder if Coach knows I'm living with his son. Oh well, I'm not going to tell him.

"Thanks, Coach."

"No problem."

Walking to the door, I turn around, realizing I forgot to ask an important question, "Oh, Coach? Who did you set me up with for tutoring? Do I know them?"

"I'm not sure if you know him, but it's my son, Nikolai."

Smiling at Coach, I fake a smile. "Oh, nice."

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