Page 28 of Chess Not Checkers
“Don’t worry, Captain, your crown isn’t in danger. No one could hold a candle to you.”
She smiles, and I grin back at her. “And don’t you forget it.” I slide my knight over and up. “Checkmate.”
“Where is your head today, Junior?” Coach yells as I walk off the field.
I clench my jaw. He’s called me Junior all practice. I’m close to putting my fist through a wall. So what that I’ve been a little distracted? That doesn’t mean I have to be reminded of my brother every five seconds.
“Sorry, Coach,” I grunt, and grab a water bottle from one of the managers. Second-string offense starts playing against first-string defense, while first-string offense takes a break. At least, it would be a break if Coach weren’t already in my ear.
“We’ve got no shot of winning if you play like that on Saturday,” he says. “What’s going on with you? MJ said she can tell you’re going through the motions, not here with us.”
I glance over his shoulder to find his wife watching us. Whenever she visits practice, things are always more intense. She knows her stuff and has insanely good observational skills. She sees what no one else can. It’s helpful, but also makes for a long practice of pointing out flaws. Today was the worst day for her to be here.
Though I keep trying to recenter and focus, my mind won’t stop straying to Jasmine. I feel like an idiot. She’s just a woman. But my brain doesn’t care. It keeps bringing up the sad smile she gave me when I got up to leave. And the spark of jealousy I felt when she went and sat down in front of Barrett. He’s a goodplayer. She could learn from him. But I wanted her to learn fromme.
“I’m sorry. I’ll do better,” I say, instead of answering his question. It’s not like I could anyway. He’d pick me up and throw me onto the bench. If he knew how much I wanted to kiss Jasmine, he might do worse than that.
“Make sure you do. This isn’t how the captain of a championship team acts.”
I dip my chin. “Yes, sir.”
I try to use my time on the sidelines to put my attention squarely on the task at hand. But more thoughts start to plague my mind. If I don’t get this right and lead the team to another championship, I’ll never live it down. Everyone will say how I fell short of Jason, regardless if I win every other game for the rest of my life. He had a perfect college record. I have to be the same. No, better. Somehow I have to be better and surpass theJuniortitle everyone throws my way.
Unscrewing the water bottle, I dump it over my head. The cold splash shocks my system. I scrub my face and rake my hands through my wet hair a few times.
No mistakes. Perfection is the standard. Be better than the best.
I repeat the words over and over. Force Jasmine out of my mind. The name on the back of my jersey feels like it’s lined with lead as I walk back out onto the field. But I’ll handle the pressure. I have no choice.
Chapter sixteen
The Threshold
Jasmine Chamberlain
I am going to regret this. I draw in a deep breath as I head inside the athletic dorms building. Where Shepherd lives. I bite the inside of my cheek as I walk through the lobby, carrying the briefcase with my chessboard. I sincerely hope no one sees me going to his dorm. I don’t need those rumors flying.
When Shepherd couldn’t stay at the last chess club meeting, an idea occurred to me. It’s likely a foolish one, but I’m following through with it anyway. I thought we could play outside of chess club. Then I could learn from him, and he could get more play time.
I asked MJ for the football practice schedule under the guise of surprising Bash with a visit, then asked one of Shepherd’s teammates who I share a class with what Shepherd’s dorm number was. I told him I needed to drop off something for a class and didn’t have Shepherd’s number, but I think he saw right through me. He muttered something like,Don’t get my boy in trouble, then gave it to me.
I make it to the elevator seemingly without notice. Since this is where a lot of the athletes live, it’s likely that any number of my teammates or other friends I’ve made are here. To not be seen is a feat.
The elevator takes me to Shepherd’s floor far too fast for my liking. I walk down the hall with a whole garden of butterflies in my stomach.What if he thinks it’s weird I showed up and tells me to get lost?I try to imagine that and fail. A soft laugh escapes me. It’s more likely that he’ll tease me until I scowl, then tease me some more. No, I’m not risking rejection by coming here. Just my pride. Plus, there’s always the possibility of him not being here at all. I’m almost hoping for that as I approach the door.
Room 208 has a surprisingly cute welcome sign hanging over the door. It’s in the shape of a football, with the wordwelcomein white font in place of the typical laces. It makes me smile and relax a little more. Shepherd may be my rival, but he’s not my enemy. He’s just a guy with an adorable welcome sign.
With that reassurance, I lift my free hand and knock twice.
“Coming!” Shepherd’s muffled voice makes me clench my toes in my tennis shoes.
I glance down at my outfit to make sure I look okay. Not that there’s much I can do now besides run if I don’t. I’m wearing flowy black exercise shorts, paired with a matching black tank top. It was too hot today to wear anything else.
The door opens, and I look up to see Shepherd standing in his doorway wearing gray shorts and a white V-neck. His hair is messy and damp, likely fresh out of the shower. He blinks a few times, then rubs his eyes in an exaggerated manner.
“I don’t believe it. Jasmine Chamberlain, atmydoor. This must be a hallucination.”
I roll my eyes. “You’re so dramatic.”
