Page 12 of Beach B!tch
6
Brinley
My feet sunk down into the sand, my heavy bag slung over my shoulder. It was filled to overflowing with bands, bandages, food, medicine, my phone, my wallet, a couple extra suits, a towel, meal replacement bars, multiple pairs of sunglasses, hair ties, sunblock, and two volleyballs. I most likely even had a paperclip and some thread in there in case I needed to MacGyver my way to a Qualifier win.
Today I was in the beautiful, sleepy town of Hermosa Beach, prepared to fight my way to a match win with my partner. I could feel the pressure mounting as I breathed in the thick morning fog. I'd trained my whole life for this and I. Would. Not. Choke.
I bounced up and down on the balls of my feet while I watched the crew setting up the nets and scoreboards. I was early. But you never know how SoCal traffic can be, or if my POS on wheels would give up the good fight, so getting up early and driving here in plenty of time was uber important. We needed a win today. A win today, even if we didn't make it past the qualifying round, would mean we had enough points to be seeded high up in the brackets next tournament. Enough for a win at that tournament to mean Professional Volleyball Player status. Forget VIP...I wanted to be PVP.
I chuckled out loud and shook out my arms as I realized my nerves were leading to crazy town thoughts of initials when what I should do is warm-up and check out the competition as they arrived. I made my way over to a quiet corner of the sand, setting down my bag and starting my warm-up routine. With each movement, I pictured our intricate plays. Each breath timed to the exact step sequence to my jump serve pictured in my mind.
As the sun was peaking through the fog bank and my muscles were limbering up under a sheen of sweat, mostly from the moist air, not exertion, my partner Autumn bounced across the sand toward me. A few other players arrived right after her and the day was underway. While I refueled with a protein shake and some fruit, Autumn warmed up and we went over our game plan.
We took the court and crouched down low, coiled and ready for the first serve. We were a well-conditioned team, flowing around each other with graceful steps. Bumps were well placed, sets were perfectly spaced from the net with no spin, and our spikes were strong and flying around the opponent's blocks. We won both sets in a row, advancing us to the next qualifying match. We were happy with our play and had a few hours of downtime before we took the court again.
As I relaxed in the shade and observed another game going on, I saw a tall, dark-haired guy from the corner of my eye, the hair on the back of my neck rising in warning. I whipped my head back over and did a double-take. Dean was standing by the court, his body facing the game, but his face was looking right at me. Reflective shades hid his eyes from me, but I could feel the weight of his stare.
I hadn't seen him since the fight at Esa's place two weeks ago. I figured he'd moved on and I was both relieved and disappointed. I hadn't wanted the distraction, and I didn't like his troubling behavior, but there was still a part of me that hoped he was different. Hoped he'd persist and mean what he said. How can you say you're into a girl and just like that, give up? The fact that I was even a little disappointed confirmed that he would be a distraction and I was glad for the absence, despite the loneliness that haunted my days, and most acutely, my nights.
Before I could look away and regroup, he nodded in greeting, then turned back to watch the game, ignoring me so entirely I stared him down, my eyes narrowed in concentration. I felt both acknowledged and dismissed. Good God, would I always feel conflicted emotions where this man was concerned?
Anger. That's the main emotion I fostered to deal with Dean. How dare he come here, on my turf, and distract me? This was my life, and he was trying to get under my skin on purpose.
I whirled around, my heart pounding, grabbed my bag and stalked off across the sand, intent on finding a quiet place to eat and refocus. My luck was turning around when I stumbled into Autumn and a few of our volleyball buddies on the strand butted up against the sand. We all hit up a taco shop right on the beach as we waited for our game time. I forced myself to engage in conversation and only dropped one groaner of a joke. Something about Cinderella not making the volleyball team because she ran away from the ball. No one got up and left amidst the groans, so I don't think I embarrassed myself too badly.
When it was time for match number two, Autumn and I left the group in plenty of time to warm up and reapply sunscreen. The sun was out in full force, and we were ready to play the top qualifying team. We either had to beat them here, or we'd have to battle it out again in the next tournament and hope to take a Pro spot there.
"All right Autumn, let's do what we did first match. They have a tall blocker, so our spikes need to either go around or we can try some of those fake-out jump sets you've been working on. I'm up for both." Autumn nodded her head and watched the other team warm up as I did my usual pep talk. "Whatever happens, let's fight like hell, okay? We don't go down without a good fight. You with me?"
"Hell yeah I am, Beach Bitch. Let's do this," Autumn responded with a scary grin on her face. That right there was one of the major reasons I wanted to partner up with her. She got into some crazy competitive zone right before a match. I admired her fierceness because it matched my own.
The first game was tough. We lost by two points. Game two was ours when we came back from behind to take it 25-23. Game three only went to fifteen points, so we needed to get ahead right out of the gate. We were covered in sand and sweat, sunscreen running everywhere. I'd never felt so alive. This gritty shit with tough opponents was the energy I fed on in a game.
We held our own until it was 13-12 them, our serve. I took an extra breath, started my approach, and slammed a jump serve that just skimmed the tape. They were able to bump it out of the sand and return it. I had a beautiful dig that popped it up to Autumn. She jump set it right back to me up at the net. I jumped up with all I had and swung, the ball going around their block, which was a half second too late. A grin was already forming on my face before my feet hit the sand.
Time fast forwarded, and I found myself in a crumpled heap with another body on the ground. Our limbs were intertwined and for a moment, I couldn't figure out why we were wrestling. Pain broke through my confusion and shot up my left leg. Out of pure instinct, I rolled out of the heap and grabbed my ankle. Autumn was above me, mouth moving but no sound coming out. I heard nothing except my harsh breaths coming faster and faster as I pieced together what had happened. The other team's player must have come down on my side of the net after her block, my foot landing on her's and rolling when we both came down.
I lifted my hands away from my foot to see dark bruising already forming on the outside of my ankle bone, some swelling already settling in. I squeezed my eyes shut and willed my stomach to come back from where it had dropped.
This couldn't be happening. No. Not now. Not when we were so close.
Officials came onto the court and we got a technical time-out to figure out if I could still play. Autumn pulled me up, wrapped an arm around me, and we hobbled off the court. I tested out my ankle with Autumn's arm still holding me up. I couldn't seem to put weight on it without it giving out and Autumn having to bear my weight. I let go of her and sat back down in the sand. My hands flew to my face as my head dropped and I tried to swallow around the knot of fear clogging my throat.
I couldn't just muscle my way through this time. We had to forfeit the game.
Dean
I kept my promise and stayed away from Brinley. When I became impatient, I reminded myself I was in this for the long haul so I needed to control my emotions and think long term. I figured two weeks was long enough for her to cool off and for us to have a reasonable conversation. I saw online that she was scheduled to play in the tournament in Hermosa this weekend, so I figured I'd head up there and see her in action. Maybe approaching her on her own turf would soften her edges and allow us to work out what she had against me.
I watched her first match, my eyes never leaving her body. She was beautiful all the time, but seeing her in action on the court?
She was stunning.
Muscles bunching and stretching, legs springing in the air, eyes laser focused on the ball. She and her partner were a well-oiled machine. They signaled to each other with their hands, or a simple head nod, both understanding each other completely. That steel I'd seen come over Brinley's eyes was written all over her face and in the power behind her every movement. I was looking at a turbo-charged version of the girl I knew. She was in her element out here on the court.
I stayed as far back as I could from the game. I didn't want to distract her if she caught sight of me. I hadn't even meant for her to see me in the crowd after the game, but I slipped up, distracted, while staring at her. Figured I'd track her down after her second match and try to talk to her then.
But then I saw her spike that last ball and get twisted up with her opponent. Before she'd even hit the ground, I'd pushed through the two people in front of me and made my way to the edge of the court. My heart was beating fast as I saw the bruising above her ankle from the sidelines as she tested out her foot. Anyone with a set of eyes and any kind of heart could see what this game meant to her. I knew she'd be devastated to even be out one match. If her face was anything to go by, I'd have to choose my words with care if I was going to approach her now.
