Falling for You

Chapter 14

- Josh's P.O.V -

I spent most of the week after and before school either working on my portfolio or training for the game on Friday evening.

By the time Friday arrived, I felt like a nervous wreck. My future depended on this game and whether I could get a football scholarship to the University of Louisville to do art.

School was normal on Friday if you disregard all the football banners and people wishing me and the other footballers good luck in the hallways. Talk about pressure! We were preparing for our SATs and I knew I'd be fine for them. After school, I caught Jennifer just as she was leaving her Human Biology class.

'Hey, Jenn,' I said.

'Josh!' she smiled. 'I didn't expect to see you this afternoon. I thought you'd be out on the field warming up or getting ready for tonight. The game starts at 6 right?'

'I just wanted to see you before you left,' I smiled back and grabbed her hand as she walked out to the front of the school to wait for the bus. 'And yeah, it starts at 6.'

'I'll be there,' she said, stroking my arm. 'And don't stress too much, just go out and enjoy yourself.'

'Thanks,' I said, appreciating her comforting words. I leaned in for a kiss and ran my fingers through her hair. 'Now, go home and get some study done before 6. See you tonight.'

'Ok,' Jenn smiled. 'See you at 6.'

- Jennifer's P.O.V -

The bus ride home from school was crowded and hot. As I hopped off at my stop I heard a voice behind me.

'Jenn?'

I turned around to see Sam standing behind me. He gave me a sad smile.

'Hey, Sam,' I said quietly as we slowly walked to our houses together. It had been almost a week since we last spoke. 'What do you want?'

'To talk to you without you ignoring or avoiding me,' He replied.

'Well, Sam, after the other night, what do you really expect?' I retorted angrily.

Sam grabbed my arm to stop me but I yanked it out of his grip.

'Jenn, you know I wouldn't have done that if I were sober,' he explained desperately.

'So you're telling me that you had no control over what you were doing?' I said sarcastically. 'Get real, Sam. You knew what you were doing and you knew that it was wrong.' I started walking more briskly.

'Jenn,' Sam called, catching up to me.

'What?' I snapped and stopped talking. I turned to face him.

'Jenn, I didn't intend to hurt you at all,' Sam explained. 'And depsite my objections, I had no intention of sabotaging your relationship with Josh.'

'Sam, I told you on the weekend,' I rolled my eyes. 'I need some time to forgive you. You were my best friend and you took advantage of that. You took advantage of my trust.'

'I'm so sorry,' Sam pleaded. 'Please forgive me. I just want things to go back to normal again. I miss you!'

'Well, you should've thought of that before confessing your love to me and kissing me,' I said quietly. Of course, I felt bad rejecting Sam. He was still my friend but I wasn't going to give in. I needed to assert my authority and stand my ground. I wasn't going to let anyone get away with treating me badly and taking advantage of me.

'Jennifer,' he said. 'I can't take back what I did, but we can try to move on and go back to how things were before.'

I crossed my arms and glared at him but I could feel myself starting to crack. I couldn't stay mad at him. He'd been my best and pretty much only friend throughout high school and I didn't want to ruin all of that. But I didn't let my guard down.

'We'll talk later,' I said firmly. 'Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some study to do.'

He smiled at me as I turned away. He knew me too well and knew that I was close to giving in.

---

The bleachers were full of students donning our school colours and cheering loudly even though the game hadn't even begun yet. I had no idea who we were versing but I couldn't help but feel a sense of pride in the fact that our team had made it to the end of the season and to the finals.

I sat towards the front of the bleachers so Josh could see me and know that I'd turned up as promised. Minutes later, the marching band began to play and the players took to the field. The crowd around me erupted with cheers and applause.

I recognised Liam and Josh immediately because they were goofing around with each other. Josh eventually spotted me and waved to me and I waved back shyly. A few people around me looked in my direction to see who Josh was waving at, and immediately recognised me.

The players took their positions on the field. We were on the offensive side, so Josh was centre and Liam was the quarterback. As soon as the buzzer sounded the game had begun.

Throughout the game, I had noticed a few men with clipboards dispersed throughout the crowd. I assumed that they were recruiters from colleges - the people that Josh had been dreading all week.

After 3 and a bit quarters of intense, fast-paced action, we were leading by a few points, but it would have been easy for the defense to challenge our lead.

Finally, we were down to the last minute of the game. We had possession of the ball and one of our tailbacks was running with the ball. With seconds to spare, he had scored a touchdown and we had won the game!

Once again, the crowd erupted with the sound of cheering and screams of delight. It was the first time in years that our team had even made it to the finals. Confetti sprayed the bleachers and the field, and people were moving from the bleachers onto the field to congratulate our players. 

I made my way down to the field with the rest of the crowd and looked out for Josh.

'Jennifer!' a voice called to me. It wasn't Josh's though, it was Liam's.

'Liam!' I shouted as I turned around to see him a few meters away from me. 'Congratulations!'

'Thanks!' he replied, having to shout over the noise to be heard. He walked towards me and pulled me into a friendly hug. 

'Where's Josh?' I asked.

Liam pointed to some random direction. 'He was looking for you,' he responded, smiling.

'Thanks!' I smiled back.

I slowly made my way through the crowd, keeping an eye out for Josh. Eventually, I saw a group of girls taking photos with him. I felt a pang of jealousy but I brushed it off, knowing that I could trust Josh. 

After the girls had finished taking photos, I tapped him on the shoulder and he turned to face me.

'Congratul...' was all I managed to get out before his lips met mine, moving passionately and expertly. He pulled me into a big embrace while doing so, lifting me off my feet. Our kiss lasted a minute or so as his hands explored my hair and my upper back.

Eventually, we pulled apart to breathe. 'Congratulations,' I breathed.

We both chuckled quietly. 'Thank you,' he said.

'For what?' I asked.

'Being so... supportive and comforting,' he admitted. 'This has been a very stressful time for me and I can't thank you enough for being here for me.'

I blushed a bit. 'It was nothing really,' I said, not being able to hide the smile that had crept across my face. 'You should expect nothing less from me. After all, you're my boyfriend and I care about you.'

He smiled and pulled me in for another hug. As he released me from his embrace, one of the men with the clipboards from earlier interrupted us.

He cleared his throat. 'Uh, hi,' he said awkwardly. 'Are you, uh, Josh Hutcherson?'

'Yes,' Josh said, with a spark of excitement in his eyes.

'Sorry to interrupt,' he said. 'But my name is Max Davies and I'm from the University of Louisville. I'd like to talk to you about our recruitment program because we are very interested in offering you a scholarship.'