Chapter 6: A Change of Heart
-Chase-
I couldn't sleep. When I got home, I sat on the couch with my paws buried in my hands. All of this happening at once. It's awful.
I heard a knock on the door. "Chase, c...can I come in?" asked a voice I know. I walk up to the door and open it.
"Stacy? What are you doing here? You win! You got your revenge! Leave me alone!"
"Actually, I want to apologize for that," she said, "I acted like a bitch. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have cheated. I'm sorry for what I unintentionally caused. I hope there's some way for you to forgive me."
"Look," I tell her, "I'm really not in the mood for this. I bet you've seen what happened to Lucas."
She looks down at my right paw. "What happened to your paw?"
"I punched some cement. Nothing too bad."
"May I ask why Lucas was also in the hospital?"
"I put him there. He put Luke in there, so I put him in there." She backs away slowly. "Relax, I'm not going to hurt you. You didn't know this would happen. All you knew was Lucas was going to do something. I still don't see why you did it."
"I just didn't like how it felt to be the one dumped. Look, can I be honest with you? I'd rather do this privately rather than out here."
"Fine, come in." She sits down on the couch. "So what do you have to be honest about."
"The reason I acted the way I did was because as a kid, my mother left us and my father was fairly abusive. He became an alcoholic after she left, which made him even more abusive. I would get beaten for no reason at all. Later after that, his drinking went out of control. A week later, he died in a car crash. Ran the car right off the side of the bridge. I had to fend for myself. It didn't help that I was being tortured throughout school. Eventually, college came around and I thought I would start over. So I became a popular girl. I would act as how they acted and people either wanted to be with me, or they left me alone. Only now do I realize how much of a bitch I was and I apologize for it."
"I would never have assumed you had a troubled past."
"I try to hide it. I don't like it at all.
Occasionally, I would have emotional breakdowns."
"I'm just sick of people trying to take advantage of me. The only people I know of that haven't was Kristina and Luke. Now Luke is in the hospital and I don't know if I could take him on another jog. Lucas really damaged him."
"You gave Lucas a dislocated jaw, bruised back, and a slight concussion."
"I could have killed him if I wanted to. How well would that benefit me? Sorry for your past and I appreciate you trying to apologize for your behavior. May I get some rest for tomorrow's game."
"Yeah, sure. I'll leave you be." Kristina walked out the door. "Every touchdown you score, score it for Luke," she said as she was shutting the door.
I fall asleep with that thought in my head. Every touchdown you score, score it for Luke.
-Kristina-
I wake up on the couch of the hospital. There was a doctor in the room checking up on Luke. I went to the restroom and looked at myself in the mirror. "Damn I could really use a brush."
"Here you go. Use this," a husky, looks to be in her mid forties.
"Thanks," I reply, "Who are you?"
"What? Am I not allowed to see my own son's boyfriend?"
"So you're Chase's mom?"
"That would be correct."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Kristina, a friend of theirs. Thanks for the brush."
"No problem and good for you for being there for Chase. I'm just stopping by before I go over to Chase's game."
"I promised him I'd watch over Luke. Well, more like I made him go home," I laughed, "I'll be watching the game on the tv here. Hopefully, sleeping beauty will get out of his coma to watch him."
"Comas are a funny thing. They can last as short as a few hours or last a long time."
"I hope it's over soon."
"Doesn't he have parents."
"I'm pretty much the only family he has. Me and now Chase."
"May I ask what happened?"
"They kicked him out. I took him in for the rest of high school and we came here for college."
"What state did you two come from?"
"South Carolina."
"Dang. So you two traveled across the country."
"And it was for the best. Luke loves Chase and Chase loves Luke."
"I suppose so."
I hand her her brush back. "Thanks for letting me use it."
"No problem. You want anything?"
"No thanks. Thanks for the offer."
"Well, I'm gonna go and visit Chase for a bit."
"Nice to meet you again."
"Take care of Luke for Chase."
I laugh. "Plan on it." She leaves. She seemed like a very nice woman. Really caring. Chase is lucky to have a mother like her.
I turn on the tv to the channel the game is supposed to be on.
Lucas came in. "How's the faggot doing?"
"Better than you're gonna be if you don't back the fuck away."
"Calm down. I'm not hear to cause trouble this time."
"You just did by calling him faggot."
"Ok, ok I'll go, yeesh," he said, nonchalantly, chuckling on the way out.
People like him piss me off so much. They don't give a damn about anyone but themselves. They are self-centered, idiotic assholes. Ugh, he makes want to punch him right where it hurts. I would love to add him to my mile long list of people I have beat the living crap out of.
After calming down, I head to the vending machine. It was very convenient that it was only 30 seconds away from the room. I grab a bag of Doritos and head back. I hear a sound I shouldn't be hearing.
-Chase-
I watch the pre-game highlights. It consists of statistics of last year, key players to watch out for, and other things.
I hear a knock on the door. "Come in. It's unlocked."
My mother walks in. I walk up and hug her. "How's my not-so-little husky doing?"
"Honestly. I'm still upset."
"Luke?"
"Yup. I'm starting to fear if he'll ever wake up."
"I met your friend when I went to visit him, thinking I'd find you. He is cute by the way."
"I don't remember ever telling you my sexual orientation."
"When you called me saying something tragic happened, and based on how you sounded on the phone, it was somebody that was close to you, like really close. And when you said him, I automatically assumed."
"And you don't mind it at all?"
"Not at all. Whatever makes you happy is all that matters to me. Plus, you are plenty old enough to where you don't need me on your ass every second, telling you which way to go."
I laugh. My mother was known for just telling the situation how it is. "Love you mom. I should head down to the practice field."
"I'll see you at the game. I'll be cheering you on."
"Ok."
I drive over to the practice field. I see the teammates just warning up, messing around. I head into the locker room, gather my things, and proceeded to warm up before we walked to the stadium.
As a unit, we headed to the stadium locker room. Coach told us in five minutes we were warming up.
First game of the season. I'm pretty nervous. I don't know why I should be. I've been doing this for four years. Fist game of the new season jitters maybe?
[hey guys. A little interrupter and I apologize for this. Unless you want me to, I will NOT be putting football scenes in the story. Enjoy the rest of the story ^.^]
We warm up and get ready to play. It was nice to have the band introduce us as we ran out into the field. I couldn't help but feel a little excited for the moment.
In the end though, we won 35-7. I scored four touchdowns for Luke. If only he was here to see me.
In the locker room, the teammates were congratulating me on my performance. I would reply with thanks.
I went back the the practice field and grabbed my things and met my mother outside the gates.
"Let's grab some lunch," she said.
"Fine by me."
We headed over to a restaurant over near my dorm. "So where's dad? I haven't heard from him in a while."
Mom'a ears suddenly dropped. "When you left for college, he went to the bar with some of his friends, but he never came home that night. in the morning, I found out on the news that he had passed away in a car crash."
I was still sad about Luke being in the hospital, but now I feel like I got hit by a freight train. My dad and I had a close relationship. I can't believe he's gone. "I missed his funeral. H...how could I have missed his funeral?"
So here's the story between my dad and I? He and I didn't have a relationship quite like father and son. We were more like brothers. At least, he treated me like I was. He taught me everything I knew about football. He got me my own weight set when I was 12. He also taught me how to drive. Sure, my mother was sweet, but I always hung out wit my dad. At 17, I was his designated driver when he hung out with his friends. I had a blast hanging out with him and his friends. Now, he's gone.
"Don't beat yourself down. I couldn't bring myself to tell you."
"I...it's fine." I'm about to burst into tears. "Just it's really hard when two people I care about are hurt, injured, or dead."
My mother hugs me and hands me an envelope. I open it and it contained $10,000. "Your father left this in his will specifically for you and your future. I highly recommend you save it."
"I will mom. Promise."
"Now that that is settled, let's eat."
After lunch, I tell my mother goodbye and head back to the dorm, before going to check on Luke.
-Kristina-
The line is flat. I immediately rush into the room and as soon as I looked at who it was in the bed, I realized I was in the wrong room.
Feeling stupid, I went into the room next to it, which was Luke's room. I watched the game and I saw Chase score four touchdowns. It was a pleasant game to see, not going to lie.
About 2 hours after the game ended, Chase returned.
-Chase-
"So did everything go ok?" I ask.
"Yeah. I only had one run-in with Lucas. That was it."
"What did he want this time?"
"Nothing that I can figure out. He left after I threatened to put him in worse condition than Luke."
I laugh. "And you probably would too. Thanks again Kristina. I appreciate it."
"Luke is like a brother to me. I'm going to be there for him when you can't."
"Why don't you head home and get some rest. I'll be here for the rest of the weekend."
"I'm going to stop by at least tomorrow."
"Fine by me."
"I'll see you tomorrow."
"Bye Kristina."
She heads out of the room. I sit in the chair next to him and grab his paw. His breathing and getting further and further back to normal. I watch the tv and before I go to sleep.
"Hey, did I come at a bad time?" Said a voice I have not heard in a long time.