DUPLICATE

CHAPTER 14. PART 1

I need to concentrate on something else before I start reflecting on my lack of the game. 

"Adele, you wanna kick it?" I hear Slyvia beside me, I smile and nod. She places the ball down on the floor and runs to her right. I look for the good direction to kick the ball towards. Left side has fewer Yellows and forwards are in their positions. I take a step back and kick the ball, it interlocks my cleat with the middle.

The ball flies into the air; I step up, our midfield headbuts the ball and it goes towards Amy. She pushed it forward and I run upfront on my side of the field.

  I hear my name in the crowd nearby, my head shifts to my side and I see the guys, all 6 of them. My mouth opens in shock, but before I could even think the ball hit my head and smacked me to the floor.

  I close my eyes and suddenly want to shove a knife into my forehead. I lay on the floor and I heard the ref blow the whistle again. I feel like dying of embarrassment right now, Voices clatter around as I proceed what to do when I get up. Should I run away, become the dealer under the bridge?

Should i-

  Rough hands trace my bare skin on my legs and arms. I startel and move my head up. His face comes into realization, I feel relief.

   Felix.

  He knees in front of me with a worried facial expression. The black eyes of him scan my body from the bottom of my cleats to the tip of my head. The wind blows the curls falling to the bridge of his nose and blows my baby hairs as well.

Our eyes connect and his head falls down, his eye moves back and forth against the grass before he raises his head once again, Felix bites his cheek before his mouth opens.

"Are you hurt?" he says softly. And I'm reminded of the time he saved me, and he's here right making sure I'm okay.

"I'm okay," I responded. My head is pounding, I'm embarrassed, everones watching me. I bit my nail too short now it's hurting and I'm broke. Things could be way worse, but still Felix shakes his head. "Your face is redder than a tomato." I press my lips together, and stand up.

"Felix... Go back to the stand before the ref yells at you." I see him hesitate, but his eyes move behind me and immediately Felix stands up and starts walking the opposite direction from where he sat before.

"Felix!" I yell, his head turns and his tense shoulders relax, the force on his jaw unhinges and lips press open in the middle. "Thank you."

PART 2

Felix Ray

-present-

  My breath shudders as I leave the hotel building. The rain pours, the pounding of raindrops hitting the cars and ground rises as I walk away from under the canopy.

I focus my head up scanning for our car, but the fog blurs everything. Only distorted shapes and colors are laid out for me. I sigh and walk back under the canopy, this rain is going to make us lose time.

  I have no idea how much time I wasted trying to kill myself. But deep down I know that whatever Adele is doing, she has it all planned out. Every second, minutes, hour and day, is planned out.

Hell if I was her I wouldn't waste a minute trying to kill that bastard.

The more I stand and wait the more a churn in my stomach pushes louder. Fuck, I press my hands around my pockets checking if Domonic left me a lucky cigarette. Disappointment fulfills and i shake my head, "Dumb bitch." I mutter into the blistering air.

I lean my body on one of the pillars, as I stare out into the earth.

  I used to hate cold, rainy weather. When I was in college, life seemed decent. The warm sun hit onto my body back then and I'd walk into the ocean enjoying how the sand felt against my feet. And when the water would splash onto my body, it felt of relaxation and purity. Something I'd look forward to every weekend.