Page 119 of The Tape Job
I accelerate my usual walking pace and reach the media room just as Danny and Bettsy are grabbing their coffees from the machine.
“Betts—”
“Just keep me out of it,” he flashes, grabbing Danny’s attention.
“What’s going on? Keep you out of what?”
“Nothing,” Bettsy snaps. “It’s not my business.”
He takes his coffee into the media room, leaving Danny.
“Shit. He just walked in on a moment,” I say under my breath.
“With you and—oh!”
“We still haven’t told Johnny yet and I don’t want him finding out from someone else,” I say to Danny but I don’t have time to dwell on it. Coach pokes his head around the door to the media room and uses a beckoning finger towards us.
Once we slip through the door, my eyes find Johnny who’s sitting at the far end of the room with Ryan. He’s got his notepad out, and he’s tapping his pen against the paper.
“Boys. Tell me about that fucking shit-show you called a game last weekend,” Coach says as he fiddles with the projector. I sit down next to Danny just as the screen springs to life. “I appreciate we will not win every game, but some of us are getting sloppy, and I need to know what’s going on. Or is it a case of the January blues?”
I want to engage with Coach’s session, but I can’t help but shift my gaze between Johnny and Bettsy—wondering how I tell Johnny that Vicky and I are fooling around again.
“Are you fooling around with Vicky?” Coach says and my eyes dart forward in a flash.
“I’m sorry what?”
“I asked if you’re finding leadership tricky?”
“Oh. No, but I’m happy to—”
“Right, so,” Coach cuts over me, “Owens, please take some time to adopt a leadership style akin to Preston here,” he points at me, “because I’m thinking we need to re-consider the roles going forward.” Everyone looks around in confusion. “Danny, you’re going to take on the role as captain, effective immediately, and Johnny will take the A.”
Complete disbelief creeps upon everyone’s faces, and Bettsy is the first to address Johnny, asking him what’s going on.
“Coach’s choice,” Johnny shrugs, then glances in my direction. It’s definitely not Coach’s choice. There’s a look on Johnny’s face.
Coach nods. “Let’s move on. Anyway …” he muses, then taps something into his laptop. A video of us sitting on the bench shows on the screen.
“The problem I see here,” Coach says after a few minutes of playback, “is obvious. Any ideas?”
He looks around the room, trying to tempt someone into talking, but no one does. I take a punt.
“Communication?”
He nods, and then presses play again. But it’s clear that no one is really paying attention, myself included. Everyone is looking between Johnny and Danny, wondering what the hell is going on.
For forty minutes we sit and pretend to focus. Forty long minutes.
When Coach finally powers down the projector and unplugs his laptop, he tells us we’re to be on the ice at eight o’clock tomorrow morning for an extra practice. No exceptions.
As soon as we’re dismissed, Johnny pushes his way to the door and bolts away before anyone can stop him.
Vicky
Liam
Can you come to the conference room?
