Those Cool Kids

The Day Of A Jock

                    Chapter Three
                 The Day Of A Jock

                          Dean

"Again, I assume, Mr. Harris you didn't do the work?" It's been a total of fifteen minutes of me trying to think of a better excuse for Mrs. Margaret, better than saying I had forgotten all about it.

It's not like I was partying and drinking, I had actually forgotten all about it and lately my body dies at 9, which doesn't allow me to do much homework. And the fact that I pretty much suck at math.

"This is High school for god's sake, Mr. Harris, stop making me waste my time." she adds up immediately as she shakes her head. I feel embarrassed since everyone else did their work and I don't actually enjoy being a bad student. Because if I am, I'll get kicked out of the team. Which is pretty much my own Apocalypse.

"I don't have it with me," I lie, "I have it at home, Mrs. Margaret." She ignores me and continues with the class. At the end of the class, she gives us back our most recent homework's all plied up in which I have an average of Ds and Cs.

~

"Come on! Keep going!" The coach's screams resound all over the field, he constantly glances at his clock and us, making sure everyone is doing their work. "Dean Harris! I don't want to see you slacking! Move your ass to the finish line!" He screams noticing that people are starting to pass me by. I try jogging faster but the problem is the kneeing down, as soon as I do my body begs me to stop. It takes a couple of minutes for me to get back in the exercise.
"I said faster!" He shouts, I can feel him just behind me and I know he expects to do so. And I do, or at least try.

As soon as I reach for the finish line, I lean down facing my thighs as I try to breath, the sun is horrible and it feels like my skin is burning. The sticky feeling inside the football uniform is killing me.

"You need to do better." That's all the coach says to me, I glance up, my right eye twitching thanks to the sun. I'm breathless and completely worn out, yet, for him, I'm slacking? "You're the captain, your efficient should be the top of the class, captains don't get passed."

I glance back at the ground. I feel uneasy at his words, afraid he might change me from quarterback to my previous spot. Which is not necessarily bad but I have worked so damn hard for this. I'm worried of my grades and the thought of not delivering my homework in maths makes me wonder how it will affect me.

"Someone's a dick." I hear Jason mumbled as he passes me some water. He's as sweaty and looks as shitty as I am.

"He's right, man. I'm suppose to be the best, I can't get passed." I take the bottle and desperately pour it inside my mouth, it feels like glory, like goddamn glory. And it's not even cold.

"You can go now," The coach limits himself to say. I hope he says something about the team, that I'm not the only one that sucked this day but he doesn't.

I clean away the sweat and hurry to the showers. I rip off the uniform and blast the water cold as I get in. After I'm done, I pack up my stuff quickly and head out to my house.

"See you, man." A couple of people say goodbye to me, I nod at them and leave the locker room.

I'm dying of hunger but I know that what's waiting for me at home won't be what I'm up for. Mom's the worst cook in life, though we always tell her otherwise so we don't hurt her feelings. And this past days she's been trying to cook non-stop, which is bad since we are forced to eat it while she just stares waiting for our approval.

When I get home, I can smell her cooking, I greet her from afar and I hurry upstairs. I just got some much homework, I'm trying to keep my grades decent since the coach is pretty strict about that. Lower than C are out of the team, which is bad since I'm always jumping from Bs to Cs.

I check my WhatsApp that's been flickering non-stop. At least 1,000 messages thanks to our little group where Felicity and Lacey spend fighting over and sending photos of dresses while Jason, Carter and John complain on and on about how they should make their own girl group and stop blasting us with their useless messages, which gets Lacey and Felicity pretty pissed off. And that's what keeps feeding my phone in notifications. I turn the volume of my iPhone off and try to do my homework.

Which ends up on me sleeping in my desk, and I try as much as possible to fight the urge of falling as sleep, to which the fact that I'm starving helps me out.

"Dean! Come down!" My mother calls me out and I just sigh and walk downstairs, the house smells like cinnamon and burned food. I reach the last step and I try to breath in and out. 'Relax, Dean. This day sucks but everything is going to be fine' I try to calm myself.

But it all goes to hell when I see her, what the heck is that girl doing here?