Page 30 of Intercept My Heart

“I love you too, Sunny. I meant what I said earlier. You’re mine, and I’m never letting you go.”

Senior Night

“I don’t have to explain to you guys how important this game is. For a lot of you, this is your last year playing, and if you haven’t been recruited, this will be your final chance to be seen by a scout. We are better than this team in skills and strength, but you’ve got to be ready to put it all on the line tonight.

“Get your head in the game, and don’t let up until we win. I believe in each and every one of you, but you have to believe in yourself. Our team has shown up and shown out the whole season. Keep the same momentum tonight. Are you ready!” Coach hyped the team up as we got ready for our final game.

Tonight was the last game and also senior night, so all the people showed up to support us. All day, I stayed to myself so Icould cut out the outside world and really make this night count. The coaches from Douglasville University had already given me a full-ride scholarship, but they were here tonight as well, so I felt like I needed to show them they had made the right decision.

We walked out onto the field, and the fans went crazy. I loved my city, and they showed up for the youth. Every place had its flaws, but when it came to support, we were one of a kind. The announcer called our names out, and I waved to the crowd before locking back in. Today, I had something to prove, and I wasn’t about to let a soul get in the way of that.

“Alright, Sutton. I need you and Roderick ready for whatever Jameson throws your way. You’ll be playing offense and defense tonight because I need our best on the field. If you need additional breaks, let me know. Keep your eyes on that fucking ball at all times. Do you understand?” I nodded before he tapped me on the helmet. My eyes zeroed in on our opponents, and I glared in their direction. A few of them made videos talking about how easy of a win it would be for them, and I intended to make them eat their words.

The first quarter of the game breezed by so quickly, but there were no complaints on my end because we were up by ten, thanks to Roberto and his field goal. Madison hadn’t scored yet, but I could tell they weren’t gonna give up that easily. Their coach screamed at them until his face grew red, telling them they weren’t gonna embarrass him tonight. I smirked while I got into position.

Jameson signaled to me that he planned to throw the ball as far out as he could, so I prepared myself to take off. The adrenaline that pumped through my veins on game day was something I couldn’t even describe. I felt unstoppable and powerful with that ball in my hands.

“Forty-seven, thirty-two, hut, hut!” Jameson called out before he snapped the ball and threw that mothafucka down thefield. My legs burned as I took off like a bat out of hell. I twisted my body as the ball swirled in my direction before I caught it in my hands. There was no time for me to pause and think of what to do next. I dug my cleats into that turf and sprinted the remaining yards to the touchdown line. The crowd stood up, screaming with their banners in the air. If I had anything to do with it, they would be doing this all night.

Tunnel vision kept me from worrying about anything besides this moment. Madison now had possession of the ball, but they wouldn’t be able to score if I had anything to do with it.

“You can enjoy your points now because you won’t get another one for the rest of the game.” Madison’s quarterback, Jeremiah Reynolds, snarled. He was the only black boy on his team, but I would be lying if I said they weren’t strong players.

“Yeah, tell yourself whatever you have to in order to sleep at night,” I called out. Normally, the coach made me sit out on defense, but I begged him to let me play both tonight, so he agreed under the condition that I took breaks when needed.

Jeremiah faked a pass, but I saw the shit coming from a mile away. Unlike most players, I studied the strengths and weaknesses of all my opponents to know what to expect from them. Even if they switched their plays, there was always a play every quarterback preferred over the others.

He took off running down the middle, but I rushed his ass before he could even get any significant yards. If he wanted this win, he would have to come a little harder than that.

“Nice try. Too bad you didn’t get too far,” I spat. He tried two more times to run the ball himself, and each time, Roderick and I shut his ass down.

I started to get a little cocky, and the next play humbled the fuck out of me. I assumed Jeremiah would try to pass the ball to wide receiver Manns, but he flipped the script in the middle of the play and passed the ball to a sub. We all underestimated thisnew player as he leaped over one of the defensive ends who had been crouched down and sped past the whole defensive line.

The moment they scored, the atmosphere shifted. Instead of us being on fire, the offense fucked up the next play, which led to a fumble. Anger surged through my body when they got another touchdown. The rest of the second quarter went downhill as we went from being in the lead to being down my seven. When halftime came, the morale of the team dropped. I waited for Jameson to say something inspiring, but he looked like he needed a hug.

The coach came in and cussed us out, but that wasn’t what we needed. We needed our confidence back, which we had allowed to slip from us in a matter of minutes.

“Coach, can I say something?”

“The floor is yours, Sutton.” I nodded, then stood in the middle of the locker room.

“Look, the first half didn’t go the way we planned, but we still have time to pull out a victory. Defense, I need y’all to pull it together. We score the points, but y’all are the ones who keep the other team from scoring any. Right now, we’re playing like freshmen when we have dominated this entire season and brought more eyes to our city than ever before. We can do better than this. We will do better than this, but we’ve got to work together. Offense, we need all hands on deck. Sometimes, a pass may not go the way we plan, so we need to be prepared for any and everything. Jameson, you are one of the best quarterbacks in our division; don’t start getting shaky now.

“Now when we go back out there, we’ve got to go out there on some take-over-the-world type shit. This is my last fucking game of the season, and I’m not going home a loser. We’re mothafuckin dogs on the field, but we’re not playing like it. It’s time to get in the game and stop playing around. Tonight is allabout us, and we’ve got to remind them who the fuck they came here to see. Are you with me or nah?”

“Hell yeah!”

The team went crazy, and I prayed this was enough to reignite the fire under us. I refused to go home with a loss unless I could say without a shadow of a doubt that I left it all on the field.

“Let’s go!”

“We’re the mothafuckin champs!” We came back in the second half and won the game. That shit was way too close for comfort, but we still made it happen. We were so hyped that our coach could barely keep us quiet in order to congratulate us.

After the other team packed up, the seniors prepared for our last walk. Everyone lined up with their families as the announcers introduced each player along with their family members’ names. A part of me wished I could have sat out this part of the game, but unfortunately, everyone had to participate. I didn’t even bother to reach out to Uncle Ro because he’d never made it to anything of significance. I didn’t expect him to be a part of my graduation either, but it no longer bothered me. I didn’t have a real family, and it was one of those things I’d grown to accept. Wasn’t shit I could do to change it, so why stress about it.

The closer I got to the front of the line, the more annoyed I became. Some of the mothers of my teammates gave me sympathetic glances as I walked past them. I put my head down to avoid their gazes. Devon, aka Jameson, was in front of meas I watched his family step forward. I wouldn’t lie; standing there by myself in that moment made me feel naked. As if I was somehow incomplete in some way. Then I felt someone hook their arms under mine. When I looked to see who it was, my eyes widened in shock to see it was Tootie with tears in her eyes. Another presence stood on the left side of me, and I thought I must have been dreaming when I lifted my head up to see Uncle Ro.

There was no time for questions as the announcer called my name.

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