Capped By You

Part One

Falling in love. On average it takes 88 days for a man to tell their partner they love them. But hating someone, hating someone takes less than a minute. Trust me.

LOLA

The door creaks open as I quietly sneak up the stairs, arriving home late from gymnastics training. I tread lightly, careful not to wake my younger sister and parents. I dump my schoolbag onto my bed, wishing I could join it on the mattress, but I know I have to shower. As the warm water washes over me, I think about the past eight hours at school. It wasn't all bad – except for the accumulation of schoolwork I received. It's like a never-ending torrent. It doesn't stop. I'm starting to seriously think that the person who said high school was the best part of our lives never set foot in the building. As I dry my hair, I get a call from Avery. The phone buzzes so aggressively it almost falls off the en suite bench.

Avery is my best friend. She's that type of friend where you were once forced to spend time with each other as children, but as you grew older, you discover their permanence within your life. Last year was hard for Avery, with the loss of her older brother Jason. I would spend days on end with her crying, dancing, singing, and eating to distract her from the constant, aching pain. I am so proud of the strength and grace she has developed. It is so terribly hard to watch someone you love utterly break down. You feel so hopeless. Utterly hopeless. All you want is to be able to take away their pain. do it stop their pain.

"Hey Lols, how was gym training?" she asks. I adore her so much for asking.

"Eh, it was okay. Coach didn't push me too hard today, but with state competitions coming up I'm just waiting for the stress and pressure to begin," I reply. 

Gymnastics is my focus at the moment; I want to make it to the Olympics so working hard is very important to me. I have postponed the opportunity to make new friends or begin new relationships, spending most of my time in the gymnasium. That's why I receive calls from Avery at random hours of the day - I barely have a spare minute within my schedule. I'm so lucky to have a friend that understands how important this is for me.

After chatting to Avery about our day and general updates, I finally close my eyes, flop onto my bed and enter a deep sleep as I await the jolting sound of my alarm. A small moment of bliss.

COHEN

I am transported onto the field, adrenaline coursing through my veins and the mass of the crowd ringing in my ears. A wall of sound. Brett's hand meets my shoulder as my team gathers into a pre-game Grand Final huddle. I begin my speech, encouraging quick movements and flow along the field. I know we have this one in a bag.

I've always loved the game. Football that is. The immense freedom I experience on the field, the ability to make a crowd of fans wail in happiness is unmeasurable to any feeling in the world. At halftime our team is winning; three goals to one. The game is passing in a blur, and the whole team is moving together like one unit. Playing like this feels amazing. I make sure to secure another goal, and finally, the siren blares. We are met with cries of joy and streamers levitating around us, as we realise the fate of our team. We have won the Grand Final. This means state championships. No one at Mallina University has ever made it this far into th-

"Cohen. Cohen? What is pi divided by six in degrees?" Ms Haymond exclaims as she interrupts my mindless daydreaming. Dammit.

"Um. That would be ... 30 degrees?" I groan as the words leave my mouth.

"Good. Please pay attention Cohen, your natural mathematical abilities will only get you so far," she comments, glancing at me over the top of her glasses.

You see, the football team at Mallina University had made it to the state championships before, but it was me, that has never made it. I was in a car crash a few summers back, where I fractured my spine. It sounds terrible, and it was the worst day of my life.