Page 49 of Here and Now
“I’m going to get up and need you to make sure it looks effortless.”
If I’m going to come out of this heroic event, I at least need to look cool doing it.
“Do you need help?” Lachlan questions. “Because if you do, that’s not exactly going to look effortless. It’s going to make you look like an old guy who can’t get up.”
Everett nods. “I’m thinking you need to kind of spring up. You know, launch yourself like a real athlete.”
I roll my eyes. “I am a real athlete.”
“Really? I don’t see it,” he supplies—unhelpfully.
I can’t stand my friends some days.
“Just back up and let me stand,” I warn.
Wanting to pop up, a little the way Everett suggested, I push myself to a sitting position and then sort of jump up from there. Not the best, but definitely not the worst.
There’s some clapping and I raise my hand, purposely not looking toward where Penny is.
We head to the sideline to get some water, and Ethan and Kai rush over.
“You did so good, Coach. So good,” Kai says with a smile.
“Thanks, bud.”
“We all saw you fall, though,” my nephew informs me. “Mom got video.”
“I bet she did.”
I’m so going to get that footage from my sister before she posts it.
“She posted it online to show everyone how cool you are,” says Ethan, ruining my damn night.
“Did she show the end where I threw it and Killian caught it?”
He shrugs. “I don’t know.”
Which is probably a no, because Eloise lives to make my life hell.
I turn to find my sister and make a motion of slitting her neck, and she smiles and waves with just her fingers.
Yeah, totally doesn’t have that ending on it. I’d bet my left nutsack.
And I really like the left one. Honestly, I like them both.
“I saw it!” Kai says.
“I’m glad one of you guys did.” I rub the top of his head. Everett calls my name as he’s jogging back onto the field. “I gotta go. I’ll see you guys after the game. Don’t leave until we’re done. I need to tell you something.”
I just lied to my nephew and I don’t even feel bad about it. I want them to stay, and I plan to use the rest of the game to come up with a way to spend a little more time with Penny.
We lose in the most ridiculous fashion. The second half of the game was actually not half bad. The Disc Jocks managed to score another six points, and considering we were in a complete blowout, we were feeling pretty good.
Until they had a substitution player.
I don’t know what freaking supplements this man is taking, but I feel like I’ve been kicked around for a solid half hour. This dude ran circles around us and made us look like the old men we’ve been accused of being.
Absolute bloodbath.
