- 3 -
The Soccer Practice
"You what?" Daniela, my best friend since I was in my mother's belly, exclaims surprised, almost spitting her drink on my face. We are at the popular town's café.
"Yes, exactly what you heard." I sigh, passing my finger around the glass of my orange juice. Daniela smiles broadly as if she has just won the lottery. Her black hair falls at the sides of her face. She has that type of hair that if you don't even need to comb, it just looks good all the time.
Daniela has been by my side ever since I can remember. Our friendship started in kindergarten when she tried to stick a pencil in my ear. Yes, it was an unconventional beginning for a lifelong friendship but that was us. We are unconventional and a little crazy. In a way, we complement each other in a perfect and synchronized way. If that's not an eternal friendship then I don't know what it is.
Dani keeps that silly smile on her face as she speaks, "Why do you look so discouraged about it? We're talking about Ares, your frustrated love since you were seven or something."
"I told you how he talked to me. Such an idiot."
"But he talked to you, Rachel. He noticed your presence in this world. That's a start, definitely better than just seeing him from afar like a stalker."
I looked at her in surprise, "I don't stalk him."
Dani rolled her eyes, "Really? You're going to deny it to me? I've seen you stalk him from the shadows."
"Of course not. It's merely a coincidence that I see him from the distance when I am walking around town."
"Walking around town or hiding behind a bush?"
"Anyway," I change the subject, "You're supposed to help me. I need to find a way to stop him from using my Wi-fi. I don't want him to get away with it."
"Why don't you change the password?"
"So that he can hack my computer again? No thank you."
Dani pulls out her face powder and checks herself in the small mirror, adjusting her hair, "I really don't know what to say. What if we ask Andres for help?"
"Are you joking? And for the last time, Dani, it's Andre, without S."
"Anyway," she pulls out her red lipstick and begins to apply on her lips, "He's good with computers and stuff, right? He's the classroom nerd for a reason."
"Do you really have to do that here? We're out in the open," I say, even though I know I'm wasting my time. "And I guess he knows a few tricks. He helped Francis in her project."
Dani closers her powder and gets up, "See? I'm always solving your problems." I open my mouth to speak but she continues, "And you know exactly what my recommendation for this whole crush thing is."
"To move on and forget him?"
"Yes, you're wasting your time."
"But he's so..." I sigh. "Perfect."
Dani rolls her eyes, "I have to go to the bathroom. I'll be right back."
She turns and walks away, earning a few looks and smiles from some guys as she walks past their tables. Dani has no problem getting men's attention. It also helps that she has a slender body and is so ridiculously tall. I can safely say my best friend is one of the hottest girls in my school.
I play with my straw while finishing my orange juice. It's hot as hell but I rejoice in it. I don't want summer to end because that means classes and to be honest, my senior year scares me a little.
Ares invades my mind again. I allow myself to remember his voice and that arrogant smile from the night before. I knew that he didn't have the best personality in the world. For the time I've watched him, I realized how cold and meticulous he is. It's like he's a robot, unable to feel. A part of me has the hope that I'm wrong and that he is actually sweet inside or something.
The alarm on my phone goes off and pulls me out of my thoughts. I check the alarm's title: Soccer practice. A smile forms on my lips. Every Tuesday and Thursday at 5 pm, Ares has soccer practice in a public field near my neighborhood. It's not like I have watched him for days to decipher his schedule or something.
Oh God, I need help.
Ignoring the possible scoldings of my conscience, I push my cellphone in my bag and pay the bill. I lean against the wall in front of the bathroom to wait for Dani. I move my feet impatiently until my best friend decides to get out. She took her sweet time.
She looked at me strangely, "I thought we'd have dinner here."
"Soccer practice." I can't stop smiling.
"Are you telling me you're going to ditch me to go see a bunch of beautiful and attractive, possibly shirtless men?" she asks me, but I know she's joking.
"Do you want to go?"
"No, stalking guys from a distance is not my thing. I'm more of hands-on action with guys and you know it." she winks at me.
"Stop rubbing your experience on my face." I pretend to sound hurt.
"Stop being a virgin." She sticks her tongue out.
"Maybe I'm not anymore."
"Of course you are. Stop saving your virginity for that platonic love of yours."
I blush, "I am not saving anything."
She shakes her head, "Of course, of course, go. God forbid that you miss the opportunity to see him shirtless because of me."
"He never takes his t-shirt off." I mumble in frustration.
Dani laughs, "You want him to deflower you so badly, eh? Naughty."
"Dani!"
"Ok. I'll shut up. Go but you owe me dinner for another day."
With red cheeks, I leave the café and walk in the direction of the football field. Dani is crazy. She always brings the sex topic to tease me. Even though I don't have experience with guys, I know what sex is. Of course, I do. Who doesn't in this century? Even so, I can't talk about it without blushing and getting nervous.
After arriving to the field, I buy a pineapple milkshake —my favorite— and then, I put my dark glasses on, pulling the hood of my hoodie up to cover my face. I know, a hoodie with this heat, I may die but I have to hide. I sit in the stands in front of the soccer field to enjoy the view. It's just me and four other girls who look like they're friends. At first, I thought they were like me who just came to see the guys that were out of their reach but then I realized they were the girlfriends of some guys in the team, fortunately none of them was involved with Ares. I checked.
I suck on the straw of my milkshake and watch them get in the field, stretching. Although this is the football team of the prestigious school Ares attends, they are forced to practice here during the summer.
Ares trots around the field, wearing black shorts and a green t-shirt with the number 05 on his back. His black hair moves with the wind as his trotting turns into running. I stare at him in awe and forget the poorly way he treated me last night.
He is so hot!
When the practice is finished, the sky rumbles with a loud thunder and without warning, it begins to rain. Cold drops of rain begin to fall on me; I curse and squeeze the hood of my coat over my head. I run tribunes down and pass the parking lot quickly. I know that when it rains the players go home because the field has no roof so I may run into Ares in the parking lot.
In my hurry to get out of there, I don't notice someone walking out of the field and crash against him, "Ah!" I hold my nose, looking up. He's one of the guys from the team, a tall brunette who looks like he just stepped out of a photoshoot.
"Are you alright?"
I nod and move forward. And then it happens, I hear the voice of my frustrated love.
"What are you doing standing here in the rain?" I hear Ares ask the dark-haired man behind me.
"I stumbled upon a very strange girl. She was wearing sunglasses with this rain." Weird girl? I try to hear Ares's response through the rain, but I'm already far away. That was close.
I walk as fast as I can. I feel relieved when I see the exit of the parking lot. I head right to continue my way to my house, the rain turns heavy. I can barely see my way. I don't see a place to shelter. I hear voices in the distance and instinctively I get into an alley. With my back against the wall, I dare poking my head out to glance at the street.
Ares is chatting with some guys from the team, they all have umbrellas of course. I should have checked the weather forecast!
"Are you sure you don't want to go with us?" The brunette I crashed into before insisted.
Ares shakes his head, "No, I have things to do at home."
His friends walk away and Ares just stands there, in the rain as if waiting for something.
What are you waiting for?
Ares decides to move and to my surprise, he doesn't take the way to his house but the opposite direction. He lied to his friends? Curiosity makes me make a bad decision, as always: To follow him.
Worse than following him, is following him while it rains.
He has umbrella and me? Well, a very damped hoodie.
The weather pities me enough to make the rain stop, becoming a light drizzle. I feel like I'm in a spy movie, hiding behind bushes when I think he may see me. It's getting darker, and we move away from the town center, entering lonely streets.
This is a bad idea.
What am I doing?
Stalking him, as always. My mind responds in a sarcastic tone.
Ares walks with determination as if he knows exactly where he is going. We pass a small wooden bridge and the cool breeze of the night becomes present while the dark clouds swallow what is left of sunlight. I hug myself and lick my lips, asking a silent question to him.
Where are you going in this darkness?
I can't see the street anymore, just a dirt road that takes us into the forest. My confusion grows even more because I know where this path is going.
All of the sudden, Ares jumps a small fence and I confirm my suspicions: The cemetery.
What the hell?
What is he doing here?
Oh no.
My imagination runs like crazy again: He is a vampire and comes here to reflect on whether or not to kill his next victim.
Or even worse, he knows that I'm following him and he brought me here to suck my blood and kill me.
No, no, no, I can't die a virgin.
Maybe he has a good heart and decides to deflower me before killing me, that would be considerate on his part.
I really need professional help. I wonder if psychiatrists are expensive.
A little scared, I jump the small fence. I can't believe I'm following him into the cemetery. I'm crazy, but curiosity has gotten the best of me once more.
To say that the cemetery looks horribly creepy is not enough. The dark clouds hide a semi-black sky and lightning flashes the graves making it look like a a horror film.
Being the stupid person I am, I follow him through tombs and dry trees that move with the wind. Maybe, he comes to visit someone. However, I can't remember any recent deaths in his family. Believe me, in a small town you hear everything, and everyone knows everything.
Ares starts to walk faster and I struggle to keep up with him, keeping a safe distance. We enter an area of mausoleums, which look like small houses for those people who are no longer with us. Ares turns in a corner and I hurry to follow him but when I cross the corner, he's not longer there.
Shit.
Keeping calm, I cross that little path among mausoleums but I don't see him anywhere. My heart pounds like crazy, making me swallow.
Lightning followed by thunder makes me jump out of fright. I knew this was a very bad idea. How can I follow him to the cemetery at this time? I turn around, trying to follow the small paths between tombs where I came from. I need to get out of here before one of these souls decides to come for me.
Curiosity killed the cat, has never made any more sense in my life.
I deserve it. Another lightning, another thunder, and my poor heart is on the verge of collapse.
I pass by the front of a crypt and I hear as if there are knocks from the inside.
Shit, shit, shit.
I'm not going to stay to find out who or what it is. I walk faster almost running but of course I'm stupidly clumsy when I'm scared. I trip over a root of a tree and I fall on my hands and knees. I lean back, sitting on the back of my thighs. Shaking the dirt out of my hands and and then I feel it.
I feel something behind me, a shadow reflects on the path in front of me.
And I scream, so loud that my throat burns after it.
I get up in a hurry in a panic and turn to start praying in defense but I stop dead when I see him.
Ares.
xx
Author's note: Thank you so much for giving this story a shot. I can't get tired of saying thank you. Love you, guys.
What do you think of Rachel so far?
Hugs,
Ariana.