Page 10 of Spring Tide

4

LUCA

I was wrong.So dreadfully wrong.

My knee didn’t magically heal itself over the course of a week. In fact, the pain is now excruciating. Intolerable. By the end of each day, I’m so stiff that I can barely flex the joint even a fraction of an inch. Yet somehow, my knee also feels ... loose. Disjointed. As if one misstep might result in complete dislocation.

I need a skilled eye to take a closer look. But I still can’t allow this shit to appear on my medical record, not if I want to keep it from Coach.

I pinch the bridge of my nose, rereading through this email for the third time.

From:[email protected]

To:Undisclosed Recipients

Subject:Student Interns

Ospreys,

Please welcome your new team interns, Eden Levine ([email protected]) and Grant Fletcher ([email protected]). Eden and Grant are seniors in the sports medicine program, working under my close supervision. You may notice them on the sidelines at today’s practice. Please feel free to introduce yourselves. For the duration of this term, consider them your first official line of contact for athletic training.

Jaqui Nerrie

Senior Associate Athletic Trainer

Coastal University

My eyes trail over her correspondence, a dark thought manifesting inside my brain. Perhaps I could convince one of them to secretly evaluate me. Maybe they’d take a vow of silence, some sort of bribe to keep their fucking mouths shut.

But I suppose that would be far-fetched, wouldn’t it? I’d be asking them to jeopardize their academic status—their future careers—just to save my skin. Besides, I have virtually nothing to offer them in return. It wouldn’t be a fair exchange.

I’ll need to continue wrapping the joint myself, icing after practice, and taking it day by day. I could always research some exercises to help the healing process. Isn’t that what sports medicine is, anyway? Just a bunch of shit you can google in a few minutes?

I’m not trying to discredit the profession as a whole, but WebMD exists for a reason. And I’ve already properly diagnosed myself. I’m sure of it. I’ve finally come to the conclusion that it’s not just a bruise. Actually, I’m fairly certain I’ve torn my medial collateral ligament.

But it’s likely a minor tear. A Grade I or maybe even II, at the most. Something totally treatable without surgical intervention.

Definitely.

I know we’re technically supposed to warm up our joints and muscles prior to training, but I’m on my second ice bath of the day. It’s the only thing I’ve found that effectively numbs the pain, just enough for me to make it through two hours of practice drills. They’re effective, but they still fucking suck.

It’s mostly the shriveled dick part that bothers me.

A displeased groan escapes from the back of my throat as I settle into the tub. Like clockwork, the ice-cold water constricts my veins, blood slowly draining from my shaft. It’s a mild form of self-inflicted torture, but I guess it’s worth it in the long run. It’s not as though I even have time to beat off anyway. Instead, my dick is constantly deflated and neglected these days.

That’s just the way it is.

After nine minutes of full submersion, my hand reaches for the grab bar as I hoist myself out of the tub. My body’s shivering but sated. My injured knee’s completely numb.

Well,goddamn, that must mean it’s officially go time.

* * *

The field is packed today.First and second stringers are gathered together, running warm-ups and taking turns introducing themselves to the sports med students. The male intern seems pretty tight with a few of my teammates already. His female counterpart, however, has devolved into a blushing, fumbling mess.

Unfortunately, it’s only spurring my teammates on. They’re floundering over a pretty new face, and it’s starting to piss me off. She’s not here to flirt—she’s here to work. And this is all a needless distraction, considering our first away game is this Saturday.

As defensive captain, it’s my job to take control of the situation. So I march up to the group of safeties, determined to wipe the smirks off their arrogant faces.

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