Page 20 of Hits Different

The tour was basically our reward for winning the tournament. We go to Europe, six weeks, ten cities, a ton of friendly games. A chance to get noticed by international scouts, see the world, and have a ton of parties. And he thinks I shouldmissit?

My face must betray my devastation, because he reaches across and places his hand on my arm.“It’s for your own good, Brandon. I’m thinking about your long-term future. There are concussion protocols to think of”.

“You said there was nothing to worry about!”

He blinks. “When?”

“Just now! I asked, ‘Why is the door closed?’ You said, ‘There’s nothing to worry about’”.

“Brandon, calm down”.

“Getting kicked off the tour IS something for me to worry about, Coach!”

“Brandon, listen”. But I’m spiralling.

“Your whole motto is ‘My door is always open’. Coach Shah? Oh, his door is always open. Then your door closes and my whole life falls apart? I didn’t even know your doorcouldclose!”

“This isn’t a punishment, son”.

“Coach”, I inject as much force into the word as possible. “Please”. I swallow. “I can’t go home”.

“That’s not all”, Coach Shah looks about as uncomfortable as I’ve ever seen him. “The league has made the decision not to penalise Volchok for his involvement in your accident”.

“They’ve decided thatalready?” Not that I wanted anything to happen to Volchok, particularly. But it doesn’t seem fair. He gets to walk away without any consequences, and I'm benched, busted up, and lose my spot on the tour.

“I understand your disappointment, kid. Believe me. So I talked to the other coaches, and the coaches from the Bears, and we think we have a compromise that you might be on board with”. What the hell do the Bears have to do with this?

“In exchange for you agreeing not to appeal the decision in favour of Dmitry Volchok, the Bears will co-sponsor your stay at a premium training and rehabilitation facility”. Coach Shah pauses, “Six weeks at Summit”.

Summit 434. Holy fuck.

It’sthepremium soccer facility. Tons of training, activities, coaching. And sports therapy.For a moment, I can’t speak. It’s the best place in the country. And expensive. I’ve been desperate to go since I was a little kid, but my parents would never let me.

Still, something doesn’t ring quite right.

“This sounds an awful lot like a bribe, Coach”.

“Consider it a goodwill gesture. It’s your decision, but you’ll get the best care and come back with some elite-level training that any other player would kill for. Including your own teammates. They won’t be happy. You know what to do about that, right? Come back better than ever”.

I swallow. Being at odds with my team isn’t an appealing prospect, no matter how much a stint at Summit might do for my career. “You saidco-sponsor?”

“We’ll put up the rest of the money. Because you’re my best player. Despite being a pain in my ass. Speaking of”, he clears his throat uncomfortably, “Summit hosts professional players too, as well as up-and-comers. I don’t know who’ll be there, but you want to get off on the right foot. And that might mean showing some discretion about your lifestyle”.

Mylifestyle?

I colour, feeling my cheeks burn. “I don’t know what you mean, Coach”.

He appraises me for a moment, then tilts his computer monitor towards me. “I’ll go and get your paperwork”. He steps out, and after a moment curiosity overwhelms me.

MLS & Openly LGBT Soccer Player Brad Fleming retires, citing on pitch and locker room abuse.

Brad Fleming, the youngest openly gay soccer player signed to a MLS team, stunned fans by announcing his retirement at the annual soccer association press conference.

The defensive midfielder originally received universal acclaim after coming out in his rookie year, but his performance has struggled in the wake of excessive trolling both on and off the pitch.

“I’m not going to pretend that I haven’t been impacted by the regular abuse I have received on the pitch, or the lack of support I’ve received off it”, Fleming stated, “The level of disappointment I feel that my sexuality is still an issue in this day and age, is second only to my disappointment in not being able to fulfil years of hard work in a sport that I love”.

Once considered to be a future contender for the men’s international team, Fleming hesitated when he was asked whether he would encourage other closeted players to come out, and instead said he hoped that one day ‘we would be in a place where coming out wasn’t necessary’, and that the ‘staff working behind the scenes would take necessary steps to protect the physical and mental wellbeing of their players’.

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