"She cheated on me. He cheated on you. What do you say? Want to settle the score?"
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Kate Wilson, a hot-headed Dragon striker, and Rosie Connelly, an uncredited behind the scenes Sea Lion captain; witness Kate's...
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An email from Coach Connelly had landed in my student account after the game on Friday. The subject line read: Mandatory Volunteering. It'd detailed how he signed up the Sea Lions and Dragons to hold a car wash in the town square and out of the back of the Beanery car park.
He had to pick the one fundraiser that no one with a heart could bail on.
Who could say no to raising money for the local cat shelter?
The aim was to contribute positively to the local community while easing tensions between the two groups before our rematch.
Any forms of violence from either team would result in an immediate expulsion. The word 'expulsion' was capitalized, red, underlined, bolded, and highlighted. It was a very desperate bluff, or it couldn't have been any clearer of a warning.
Our first and hopefully last shift began on Sunday morning at ten.
The bus door swiveled shut behind me and the driver took off from the school straight away. Coach Connelly usually sat up front with the driver, but the seat next to the driver remained empty today. His black SUV wasn't parked in the car lot, either.
I made my way down the back and slumped into the chair beside Izzy. She was too occupied applying lip gloss to even offer so much as a 'hello.' But she lowered my head onto her shoulder and gave my hair a quick pat before focusing back on the handheld mirror in front of her face.
My eyes were heavy, and my brain was fuzzy after two whole hours of sleep the night before. I was in no fit shape to entertain any conversation; conversations that would no doubt be about the fact I'd ghosted everyone since the game on Friday.
That's what happened when you discovered your boyfriend had cheated on you and probably had been for a while.
My lack of response hadn't stopped the team from sending piles of supportive messages all weekend long.
They'd mostly consisted of Izzy updating me on Eduardo's condition, Dan asking if he could slash Carter's tires, then finding out that Carter didn't have a car, and offering instead to egg his house, and the rest of the team offering their anecdotes of how to get over someone.
The only thing that kept me sane was snuggling up inside my dad's big black hoodie that he used to wear when he painted. He'd splashed the cuffs with yellows and blues and reds. It still smelled like him; a smokey cedarwood. It helped that I'd sprayed his cologne onto the hoodie before I left the house this morning; an extra boost to get through the day.
I rubbed my eyes with the back of my hand and snuggled my cheek against Izzy's shoulder.
"You, my friend, look like you need to get stoned," Dan said from the seat in front of me, offering a rolled joint between his fingertips. He positioned himself upright, so he knelt backwards in his seat, and motioned toward my red eyes. "Had one already?"
