Lacrosse

13- Bond and Beyond

Kendall

"What bonding exercise are we going to do?" I ask, leaning back in to Josh's chest. It's a team tradition to do some type of bonding game before any scrimmage or game we play. It's not really traditional bonding but more like just having fun. We play truth or dare, never have I ever, two truths and a lie, and all that jazz. Often times it causes us to divide instead of unite as a team.

"We haven't done What Are The Odds in a while," Destiny suggests from beside me.

"Let's do that then," Rachel agrees. Nobody objects to playing the game, so we start.

What Are The Odds is like an extreme version of truth or dare. You don't have a choice of what to do, it's all chance. One person asks the other a question that starts with what are the odds that you..... and say something that the other player will have to do. The second player picks the odds. Usually we do between one and ten but sometimes we do one and five or one and twenty. The first player counts down from three, 3... 2... 1... and once they reach one, both players say a number that lies in the odds that were chosen.

For example, if the odds were one and ten, both players would say a number between one and ten. If both people say the same number, the second player has to do whatever it was the first player said. There is no backing down unless you take a punch from everyone who was able to hear the round. If they don't say the same number, nothing happens and the game just moves on.

"Destiny, you start since you suggested it," Josh says. "So ask anyone."

"Hm..." Destiny mumbles, tapping her pointer finger on her lips. "Kendall! What are the odds that you go sit on Todd's lap for the rest of practice?"

Todd is the senior captain for the boy's team. He has spiky dark brown hair and hazel eyes, a sprinkling of freckles spreading across his nose. Todd has the reputation of being a lady's man and has hit on every girl on the team, and most everyone in school, including me. He actually has taken quite a liking to me, causing Josh to despise him, and everyone on the teams know it. This question for the game causes a smirk to spread across his angular face.

"One and ten," I state.

"3... 2... 1..." Destiny counts down.

"Eight," we both say at the same time. I groan loudly and feel Josh stiffen behind me. I push myself upward and walk across to the other side of the circle, planting myself on Todd's lap. I look across to Josh and he has an expression that can either be anger or sadness on his face.

Don't worry. I love you, I try whispering to him through my eyes. Something on his face softens, and I know that he understood me.

"Andrew," I select. "What are the odds that you tell us who you think the hottest girl on the team is?"

"One and twenty," Andrew answers. Chicken, I think to myself. This isn't even a bad one.

"3... 2... 1..."

"Seventeen," we state simultaneously, causing Andrew to curse under his breath.

"Rachel," he mumbles. His tan cheeks turn pink and Rachel's face turns the color of her twin's hair, a fiery red.

We continue on with this game for several rounds. Andrew picked Rachel and they didn't say the same number. Rachel chose a freshman named Mariah and she had to tell us her most embarrassing moment. Josh had to drink from an open bottle of Gatorade taken out of the nearby trash can. A boy names Alec had to let a girl named Gillian write her name across his forehead in Sharpie marker, etcetera.

"Last round kids!" Coach Amanda calls from the bleachers. Almost everyone has had a turn to ask and get asked.

"Todd!" the perky senior captain of the girls team, Jessica, exclaims. "What are the odds that you kiss Kendall on the lips for at least fifteen seconds?"

"Hell no!" Josh calls out from across the circle from where I am still sitting on Todd's lap.

"Relax dude," Todd says with a laugh. "You don't even know if it's going to happen."

"I don't want there to be any chance of it happening," Josh growls.

"I'll make the odds hard for you kid," Todd states. "One and fifty."

"3... 2... 1..." Jessica counts down.

"Forty six," the both say.

"Take the punches Todd," Destiny demands quickly after the number has been said.

"No. I'm not a wimp," Todd spits back.

"Don't be a douche!" Rachel yells.

"Blame Jessica for giving me this What Are The Odds, not me for saying the same number as her!"

"Don't bring me in to this!" Jessica squeaks.

"You're already in this!" Todd hisses.

"Come on Todd! Make some kind of exception!" the freshman Mariah adds.

The debate goes on for a minute or two, my friends screaming at each other to try to reason with Todd. Of course he's not going to back down from this, he has too much of a reputation for being a scumbag to even care what we think of him at this point. He'll do whatever he wants because he just doesn't think about anyone but himself.

While the housing continues, Josh and I just stare at each other. He looks nervous of what is to come and I try settling his nerves through my eyes once again. It doesn't work this time. With every word that is said concerning what Todd is to do, I see him bite his lip a little more. Wring his hands a little tighter. Shake his foot a little faster.

"Grab her butt or boobs for fifteen seconds instead!" a voice suggests.

"That's even worse than just kissing her!" someone else screams.

Josh and I exchange a knowing glance, a look of two people who have the same plan. Within two seconds, our plan is in action.

Josh and I are on our feet, running out of the yelling circle of players and off the field. We run to the benches and grab our unused equipment, and are in the two front seats of his Ford Focus, driving away, before anyone probably even notices we're gone.