Page 9 of Changing the Play

He taps his fingers on the table, his eyes a little unfocused, like he’s not really present. Damn, his mind must be an intense place. Finally, he raises his gaze to mine. “This is our way. Events in history aren’t just isolated facts. Give me a position besides yours, but someone you work closely with.”

“Um, Benson, my wide receiver.”

“And he does?”

I can’t help but smile. “He catches the ball on pass plays.”

“Oof. Really need to do football research.”

“How about I teach you football, and you can teach me history?” I blurt out before I can stop myself.

Darcy blinks at me, clearly thrown off by my suggestion. “Huh, yeah. We can do that.”

“Really?” I almost expected him to tell me to fuck off.

“Yeah, it’s a fair trade, right? But back to this. Benson can’t just catch a ball if no one throws it, right? You’re the first step. You throw the ball and he catches it.”

“Sometimes,” I say with a grin.

“Sometimes,” he amends. “But you throw it, he catches it, and then he does… well, whatever it is he does with it afterward. It’s not just an isolated event, but a series of events that takes place to make a bigger picture.”

I nod slowly, starting to get an idea of how this might actually work. “I think I’m getting what you’re putting out there. But for what it’s worth, the snap is part one in the series of events.”

He rolls his eyes, but it’s playful, not irritated. “Okay, smarty-pants. When’s the next football game? I need to start my education so I can start yours.”

“Oh, you were serious about that.”

His nose scrunches up. “Of course I was.”

“Well, there aren’t any games happening right now. The season hasn’t technically started, but I can always show you replays or something.”

I’m expecting him to shut the idea down, but he doesn’t. “Okay. I’m free on Saturday. We should probably meet at one of our places, though. Not sure the library is the best place to be watching football.”

“Saturday afternoon I have practice, but we can do the evening or morning.”

“Evening is fine. I’ll bring dinner. Your place? I figure it’ll be less distracting if we’re not looking at my mountain of books.”

I blink at him. I definitely expected him to be… different from this. He’s so open. And confident. It’s slightly disarming. “Okay, sounds good.” Although, we’ll still be looking at a mountain of books at my place.

He smiles. “Once I understand enough to tie everything together for you, we’ll tackle history.”

I can’t help but laugh at his unintended pun. “Tackle, huh? You’re already sounding like a football guy.”

His cheeks flush and his eyes dart away. “Don’t get used to it. What time is practice over?”

“Five. So I should be ready for you around five-thirty.”

“Perfect.” He stands, collecting all my notes and organizing them into a neat pile before handing them to me. “And if this method doesn’t work, we’ll find another way, yeah? Don’t get discouraged.”

“I’ll try.” I’ve been pretty damn discouraged for years, but hopefully this is my light at the end of the tunnel.

I watch in silence as Darcy gathers his things and slings his bag over his shoulder. “Oh. I need your number or something. Unless you’d rather I just email?”

“You can have my number.” He takes his phone out and I rattle it off to him.

“Great, I’ll text you to get the details on where you live.” He makes it two steps before turning back. “Oh, and West? You should probably start my education with what a snap is because when I say I have not a clue what that even means, I’m so serious.”

I laugh, way louder than I mean to, and am rewarded with a shush and glare from a girl at the next table. “See you on Saturday, Darcy. And thank you.”

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