Falling for the Goalie and Other Dangerous Sports

Chapter 13 - Derek

Wyatt looked genuinely hurt. My words registered in my brain for a second, but the sound of a golf cart snapped me into the present, quickly letting go of Wyatt's arms.

"There you are, Derek. Glad you came back to us." Coach Dublin said, taking in my rumpled appearance. "And Wyatt. Alright, let's go back the the cart, uh, you two..." Her words drifted off uncertain. Wyatt's eyes were still in a caught-in-the-headlights look, me, becoming aware of my scowl and the dirt over my clothes. She handed me a water bottle, somewhat unnerved. I took it and realized how thirsty I was. The water was half gone in a minute.

We walked in silence to the cart, where Maddy sat in the back. Great. I sat on her right, gulping my water and trying not to look at her. I saw Max try to catch my eye in the mirror, but I couldn't take anything right now. I felt a tap on my leg, only to see Maddy give me a quizzical look. 

Amidst my anger, I shot her a look. "Leave me alone." I thought. "Just leave me alone."

We arrived back at the field, only to find everyone had been excused. Wyatt grabbed his stuff and left without a word. Coach Dublin had to leave and asked if we could wait until everyone left. My brother agreed quickly. I then realized the only person left here was Maddy.

It was getting cold out and Max was already in the car with the heat on, reading a newspaper. I was about to climb in when he said, "Whoa there, little bro. Can't leave the damsel in distress."

"She's fine."

"Nah, go out and wait with her."

"Why? She can wait by herself."

"I don't think she wants to."

I was a little bit caught off guard for a second. "The other compromise is to bring her into the car too and make sure I embarrass you." Max continued, giving me a smirk that I wanted to punch off his face. Reluctantly, I grabbed a hoodie and began the shut the door.

"Grab that hoodie, too!" Max added. I snatched it up the second one and slammed the door shut as hard as I could. Looking at my two hoodies, I wondered why I had them both. I saw Maddy wrap her arms around herself. Without another thought, I threw a hoodie to her. She caught it and slipped it on silently. I put on my own and took a seat on a bench.

"Are you feeling better?" Maddy asked quietly.

"Yeah." I responded. Why had I been so harsh to her? I kept my eyes averted towards the pine trees.

"Thanks for getting me out of running. And the compliment."

My heart pounded a bit at the embarrassment. "I thought that never left here."

"We're still at practice."

"Can we pretend it never happened?"

"I don't want to pretend."

I stared at her, feeling nothing for awhile. Then it hit me. Hit me hard. Why did I have to be so stupid. Or why did I have to be so hopeful.

"What was your score on the state tests last year?" she asked, taking a seat across from me. The question was out of the blue, but I thought about it.

"Which ones?"

Wait-please don't say reading.

"Reading."

Of course.

"...570 something." I lied. I actually knew it was a 584. A 584 out of 584. I remember how Mom reacted to the news - in fact, it probably got me the phone I have now. I didn't expect anywhere near that score when I took the test. My whole family used to tell me how much I read when I was little, and eventually it subconsciously turned into writing. My darkest secret was that I actually did keep a journal of some sorts, for jogging down anything interesting that's happened, scribbling a short story, or venting out any anger. There was one particularly emotional point in my life where another girl came into play - which is the reason I have it literally nailed down under my floorboard, under my bed.