With a yawn I walked into the sleepy stadium. With the freezing rain we had throughout the night, It killed most tailgaters dream except for a few Die Hards.
After Dale left the stadium the previous night, I didn't see Everett. I thought about what Dale said to me; however, I decided that what I wanted to say was better left said in person. His words swarmed my mind like mosquitos on a late summer day. I could barely focus on the words dad said as he told me about the day and the line up.
"Listen, Nora, I know you are mad at me," dad said with a sigh as I sat in his office.
The mention of his name caused me to snap out of my thoughts. Suddenly my eyes were trained on him, waiting for his next move.
"I'm sorry if I disappointed you."
"It's a little more than disappointment and it's more than just me," I said as I gave a humorless chuckle. I felt my phone buzz and saw that it was Everett telling me he was already here.
"Nora, if you knew the position I was in, you would understand."
"I really don't think I would," I said as I stood up from my chair and slipped on my hat to shield me from the cold. "I'm going out. I'll talk to Paul about the tasks I need to do." With that, I left his office to track down Everett.
I walked down halls until I found him resting his back against the wall. His normally cool look was replaced with worry. He was stressing about today. This was the first game that Charles would join and it was getting under his skin.
"Hey," I waved as I walked up to him.
Instantly his worry expression vanished as he pushed himself off from the wall and smiled. "Hey." He pressed his lips against mine in a rushed greeting.
"You are early."
"I wanted to beat the crowd."
"Makes sense."
He wrapped his fingers around my small hands as he let out a sigh. "Today is the day."
Not only was today the day Charles would be in the game, but it was also the day of the interview. I was sure there were so many things going on in his mind. "Are you ready for it?"
His face scrunched up as if he ate a lemon. "I'll have to be."
I nodded, not sure what else to say to him.
"So how was the afternoon with my old man?"
A smile came to my face as I thought about Dale. "You know I love that man. He was just fine."
"You are too kind with him."
I shrugged. "It's not hard when he is kind back." I sighed as I looked around the empty hall to make sure we still had the privacy. "You're father told me about Charles and you dating," I said to Everett.
The sentence caused him to take a step back from me and glare at the ground. "I wouldn't call it that. But it is frustrating that is what he told everyone around me."
"Then what was it? Everett, I feel like there is more to this story that I don't understand. I think it should be hammered out before the interview today."
He kicked his shoe against the brick wall beside him and sighed. Silently, he looked around us to make sure the coast was clear before giving a small cough. "Yes, I did go on a date or two with him. It was for only a few weeks, and I realized that he was not a good person. I tried breaking off from him but that was when the abuse happened, after I called it quits."
I nodded as his words sank in.
"I had never went on a date with a man before. I didn't even think I liked men until Charles welcomed me to the team. There was something about Charles that drew me in. I thought maybe I could at least try."
"I just wish you told me these things before your father told me."
"I'm sorry. I was going to tell you, I just don't know how to bring it up."
I nodded as Tad's voice echoed the hall.
"Oh, hey Nora and Everett," Tad said as he swung a bag over his shoulder.
"Hey Tad," Everett said as he zipped his coat up. He turned back to me and shrugged. "I should get ready. I'll see you out on the field." He gave one last kiss to me before walking off, leaving me with Tad.
"Did he just greet me?" Tad asked in shock.
"I guess he did."
"So, girl, you have to spill. What is going on with Charles back on the team. I thought they would have kicked him off with the intention to never have him back on the team."
"It's the university. They want to win and will do anything to get there."
"Damn."
"My thoughts exactly."
"And your dad can't do anything about it?"
"If he can he hasn't tried. All I know is that Charles will be the death of this team," I pouted.
"That's a little harsh, don't you think?" Charles' voice rang out.
My eyes met his with furry. Seeing him caused my insides to coil and my blood to run hot. He was the cause of all the problems but yet he stood around like it was no big deal. "This an A B conversation. You can C your way out."
He chuckled as he adjusted his sweatpants. "You are cute when you are fiery."
I had enough of him. With my head held high, I took a step closer to him, ready to give him a piece of my mind.
A smirk appeared on his lips as he stared at me, waiting for my move.
"Nora, can you help me out here?" Paul asked as he struggled to carry supplies for the game.
"Don't think we are done," I threaten to Charles before peeking out from Charles with a smile. "Sure thing!" I called out to him, happy to leave Charles.
"What was that about?" Paul asked as he handed me some empty water bottles.
"Nothing important."
He nodded. "I'm not saying this because I want to boss you around, but because I want to watch out for you. You should stay away from Charles."
I frowned, nearly dropping the water bottles. "Why do you say that?"
He shrugged. "He's just no good."
No good. Those words raced through my mind for hours. It consumed my thoughts, allowing me to only think of them. If he was no good, the school should do something about letting him back in. Dad should have tried better, the assistant coaches should have tried. Instead, they were failing the team. Frustration and exhaustion slowly brewed within me. Before I knew it, I was standing beside Dale, talking to him during half time.
"Man, your father wasn't lying about getting me the best seats in the house," Dale grinned as he looked out at the field in front of him as the band played.
"He is a man of his word, isn't he?" I asked with venom in my tone.
He nodded, not picking up the venom. "Hell yeah he is."
"So what do you think about the game so far?"
Dale as he took a sip of his beer and shook his head in disbelief. "It's amazing. Man, everyone is playing so well! I just wish I saw more of Everett. We all know he is the star."
I nodded silently. Although, I knew why dad would not play him. This whole week Everett hadn't been playing well during practice. Everett's head wasn't in it. And honestly, it wouldn't be as long as Charles on the bench beside him.
"Maybe he will play in the second part," he suggested. "If they put my boy in, I am sure we would be leading by more points than we are currently. This game is closer then I would like to see. But I'm sure your dad knows what he's doing."
He didn't. "Maybe."
"You know the saying, keep the best for last." He nudged my shoulder with his as if it was an inside joke I would get.
I forced a dry laugh as I pulled out my phone to see a text from Tad asking where I went off to. "Maybe," I said as I pulled on the hat, I wear to shield my ears from the cold breeze.
Silence spilled between us as we looked onto the field. I tried to rack my mind with something to say but came up with nothing. I was in no mood to visit when I knew there were more important things to deal with.
"Well, I don't want to keep you. I know how busy you can get."
"Yeah, I should be getting back. I'll see you later."
"See you," he said as he looked back out at the field as the band got off.
With one last smile, I left, heading back to the field where I probably should have been this whole time. But I didn't want to be with my father and Charles any longer. I thought leaving during half time was a basic need of mine to clear my mind. The conversation with Paul was just an echo now as Dale's conversation rang a little clearer.
As I walked the halls to get back, I mentally counted backwards, hoping that I would at least be present and helpful when I returned.
"Nora, where did you go? Your father was asking," Tad said as I walked onto the sidelines.
I shrugged. "Whatever he wanted could wait." I looked over to see Everett glaring at the field.
"Nora, where have you been?" dad's voice rang out from behind me.
I turned to face him with his polo and headset. "What do you need?" I asked dryly.
He wrinkled his mustache and scratched the back of his neck. "Nothing," he mumbled then turned to the field again as if that was more important.
"That's what I thought," I mumbled as the players ran onto the field again.
"dang Nojo, the heat between you two is burning this place down," Tad said as he walked up to me.
"That's what he gets for this mess we are in."
He shook his head with a small frown. "Do you really think he can do anything about it?"
"So, you are on his side now?" I snapped as I glared at him.
"I didn't say that."
"That's what I heard at least."
Anger boiled within me. He should have been on my side. He knew what Charles was capable of but yet he was letting it slide. His reaction was not acceptable. "You know, I'm not much help out here. I'm calling it," I said as I turned on my heals and left the field.
As the day wore on, my anger slowly faded. It wasn't until I sat at the small coffee shop with Everett after the game that I realized I was completely calm again.
"The game could have gone better," Everett said as he drew a circle with his finger into the table in front of us.
I shrugged. "You guys won, isn't that enough?"
He shook his head. "I should have done more. We didn't win by much."
"Don't beat yourself up," I said as I pulled out my phone to check the time. The interviewer should be here at any moment.
"Yeah, I guess."
<>
The game was just adding to his anxiety and waiting wasn't helping. "Are you ready for this?" I asked Everett as we sat in small cafe close to high street.
Everett nodded as he let out a breath. He no longer smelt of BO, instead he smelt like soap and cologne. "Yeah. This is the only way I know how to stop Charles from joining the team."
"Okay," I said as a middle-aged woman walked into the nearly empty cafe.
She shook off the rain drops from her black hair. She looked around the room and smiled at Everett and I. With sure steps she walked to us, pulling out a laptop from her oversized purse. "Everett?" she asked before taking the empty seat beside me.
"That is me. And I suppose you are June."
She beamed as she took a seat at the table. "That's me."
"Nice to meet you in person."
"Likewise," she said as her eyes lingered on me.
"Oh, this is Nora, my girlfriend. I hope it's not a problem that I invited her."
"Not a problem at all. Pleased to meet you."
"Nice to meet you as well," I said as I took a sip of my drink.
She quickly pulled out a few other things in front of her and cleared her throat. "I'll just give you the run down really quick. This should take no more than 30 minutes. Afterwards I will compile a rough draft of the paper and send it to you by Tuesday. If you approve it, I will send it to the final editor who will release it. This is such an important story, so we want to publish it as soon as possible."
"So when do you want to publish?"
"In the next Sunday paper."
"So eight days from now?"
"Is that okay?"
Everett chewed on his lip as he thought about it. I was sure he never thought it would come so quickly. But he had to understand that an article like this was incredibly important. If the university got word about this, they would shut it down. This needed to be released now and especially during the season.
"I hope you don't mind I record this," June said as she pulled her styled hair into a flower shaped clip.
"Of course not."
She smiled at us. "Okay then. Let's start with your name."