Page 142 of Steeling Her
“Is your mom alright by herself?” I ask, a little scared for Lynn. Not that they would ever hurt her, but in case they begin to get rough with each other and she gets caught in the crossfire.
Haley snorts. “If anything, you should be worried about the two boys. My mom won’t take their shit. Or anyone else’s, for that matter.” We all watch the slow volcanic eruption down away from us. We can see there’s so much tension. Then the rest of the team walk off to get to the locker room as ordered by Bulldog.
We can see TJ divert himself to this way and hop over the fence, climbing up the steps to get to us. He takes two at a time and reaches us soon after, ignoring what’s happening down on the field. He beams at us and kisses Haley.
“Ew, you stink!” She covers her nose and smiles up at him.
“You still kissed me,” he teases her back. She rolls her eyes, knowing he’s right. She takes him and looks over to us with a knowing grin on her face.
“How is he?” I ask TJ and point down at his best friend swamped by people.
“It looks worse than it is, to be honest. Nick is used to George taking his game apart and telling him what he could’ve done better. It’s always been like that,” TJ assures me and I nod slightly reassured by this.
“Yeah, but dad was a little irritated tonight and I don’t know why? He’s been like this for a while now,” she says.
So, he’s been like this for a while,I think to myself. Maybe it really has nothing to do with me at all? But then why did he mention the distraction? Why did he look at me when he said it? As if he was singling me out.
“True, but I think he’s just frustrated with Nick. It wasn’t his best game and he knows it. Nick is annoyed at himself and just wants to leave the field. I can tell by his face right now.” We all watch the crowd of people talk to Nick and his parents about this. I can see he’s embarrassed and just wants to get out of here. “Look, I’m going to grab him and we’re going to shower. We’ll meet you all outside the stadium in thirty minutes? Alright?” We nod, and he kisses Haley once more. “See you later, babe.”
With one last kiss, he moves away from us and back down the steps, bounding over the barriers again to get to the field. He meets Nick halfway, midstorm off. Nick lifts his head up and stops. Staring right at me, he makes the decision to copy TJ and starts jumping over the barrier. Haley steps back to let me through so I can reach him.
When he runs up the stairs, I get the scent of sweat mixed with deodorant. I flinch a little at the smell.
“Sorry, I know I smell really bad.” He chuckles, taking my head in his hands. He leans in to kiss me softly and I instantly return it, crouching into his hold. “Don’t listen to a word my dad has said. He’s a hothead because I didn’t play that well tonight, which is totally on me. It has nothing to do with anything other than me and the coach, who has no idea how to coach. Bulldog even backed me up on it,” he promises me.
“I know, everyone has their bad days.” I grin at him and kiss his palm.
“You still want to come to the party with me?” I could hear the begging manner in his voice. Sounds like he doesn’t want to go without me, and I know he has to show his face for a little while when he’s there.
“Yeah . . . sure . . .” I agree to go with him. I can’t say no to that face he’s giving me right now; the helpless one which reads “don’t leave me alone.” I know he won’t be alone. He’ll have TJ, the girls, and Reggie, but I can see he wants me to be there with him. I can tell by the fact that he won’t let me go right now, like he knows I’m anxious because of what happened tonight.
“Are you sure? We can go for a little while and then leave . . . I can tell you’re a little uneasy about this.” He caresses his thumb tenderly against my cheek. His eyes flick between my own, trying to figure out what his dad had said which caused me to feel a little hesitant right now.
“Yeah, I’ll just stay with you or the girls.” I nod.
“You’ll stay with me, the entire time. I haven’t seen you in a good while. I want to spend time with you. Outside, preferably.” I laugh at him, remembering how comfortable I feel when I’m outside of a party.
“Okay, I’ll stay with you.” I lean up on my toes and peck him lightly. He winks at me and waves to the others before making his way down towards the locker rooms with TJ. Watching him disappear down the tunnel, I can see four people still talking amongst themselves. I rotate on my heel to the girls, who are gawking with a knowing grin on their faces at what had just happened. “What?” I giggle at them.
“Okay, I’ll stay with you!” they both screech at me with my words melodramatically. Both hold their clasped hands underneath their chins. I roll my eyes and slap the both of them as they jokingly humiliate me. I walk by Haley again to grab my bag as we get ready to leave the stadium that has only a few people around. We climb the steps and push ourselves out the doors, but not before stopping at a vending machine for Danielle to grab a quick snack.
As we wait in the fading light, Haley’s parents are seen exiting the stadium after some time.
“Oh shit . . .” Haley whispers at the sight of her dad. He looks to be boiling with annoyance more than anger. Lynn tries to smile it off but it’s not working all too well.
“Haley, honey, we’re going to drive home now. It was great seeing you girls too! Thank you for coming and supporting the boys, they loved it. So did we, we appreciate it. Right, George?” He doesn’t say anything other than taking his daughter into a hug and murmuring a goodbye to her. He sends me and Danielle a nod but doesn’t look at us before storming off into the car park. “I’m so sorry about him, girls. It’s a tough time right now. With all the contracts and scouts coming to the games, he’s just feeling under pressure . . . even though he’s not playing the game.” Lynn rolls her eyes and cranes her neck around to watch her husband’s retreating frame.
“He just wants what’s best for both Nick and TJ. So, seeing the team play like that has him frustrated right now,” Lynn explains further as everyone nods, appreciating how she’s trying to make this right.
I’m still missing something though. There’s something there with George Jackson. He’s angry at something, but I’m not sure what it exactly is. I’m not sure if it’s to do with me?
“Anywho, we’d best be off. It’s a long drive home, and y’all know I can’t handle long drives with him being like that.” She winks and shifts her purse up her shoulder. “Have fun at the party tonight. And behave yourselves, alright? Bye, girls!” She walks after her husband, who is already sulking in the car. We all wave at her as she slips inside the plush black leather seats of their four by four.
All that remains is the three of us as we wait for the guys to connect with us once again. I zone out completely while Haley and Danielle yammer on about the party we’re going to, talking about who’s going to be there. Apparently, it’s a pool party? I don’t have any swimsuit and I don’t really care that I don’t. Even if I did, I wouldn’t feel comfortable with the number of people swimming around the pool.
I couldn’t think of anything worse about going to this party. I’m not one for great crowds, and by the sound of it, this party is drawing a huge one. I don’t even know whose house it is, other than it’s one of the players on the team. One I’ve never even met.
When the doors open and movement attracts my attention, I see the team coming out, joking around with each other and laughing. The low laughs catch the rest of the girl’s attention too. Bags slung over their shoulders and they all are in tight shirts and jeans. Each one of them has their muscles bulging out of their clothes. They all look like monsters who play football. Once I see the pair of green eyes I’ve been searching for in the bulky crowd of testosterone, I feel my heartbeat pick up along with the zoo in my stomach.
