Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 152045 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 760(@200wpm)___ 608(@250wpm)___ 507(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 152045 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 760(@200wpm)___ 608(@250wpm)___ 507(@300wpm)
The band marches, people leave their seats for the bathroom or food, and the teams drift into the locker room.
“Hunter, half time,” Dewitt calls.
I turn my head, just enough so he’ll hear me over my shoulder. “I’m staying here.”
“Now!”
“I’m staying here!”
They leave, and I don’t sit. I stand there and hydrate and fume, but shit fills my head like a bucket, pouring in until it overflows, and all of a sudden, my head falls back and my shoulders sink.
I don’t even like football that much. I never did.
I played, because I knew Dad loved his kids in sports, and if Dylan was at the games, then I wanted her to watch me as much as she did Kade.
I laugh with no one there to hear.
“Do you love your brother?” a voice asks next to me.
I look over to see my mom.
I stare at her a while, and I don’t want to lie to her, but God, it’s been so long since Kade was my brother. I forget what it feels like. “I want to,” I tell her.
She nods. “It’s just a game, Hunter. It won’t solve anything. It won’t humble him to lose. Why are you really here?”
I stare down into her eyes, the tears not falling, and I hate to think of how my family is seeing this.
“I want to face him.”
She shakes her head. “You’re so much better than that. Why are you here?”
I turn away, swallowing through the needles in my throat.
“Anger happens,” she says, “but you can’t let it be your entire identity.”
It never used to be. Having Dylan close showed me how good it felt to be happy. I want that every fucking day.
“For the team,” I tell her. “I want this for Farrow and the guys. They need it.”
She gives me a small smile, looking proud of me finally. “That’s what I thought.”
She heads back to my dad, and the teams walk out, the referees take up position, and the second half starts.
Running up to the guys on the field, I pull on my helmet. “Spot left. Twenty-five dive.”
They gape at me. “Are you sure?” Calvin asks.
I look to Constin. “Spot left. Twenty-five dive.”
He smiles.
“Ready?” I ask.
They clap. “Ready.”
We line up, facing the Pirate defense, and Ozzy Ozborne plays over the speakers of the stadium.
I look left to right. “Yellow thirty-two!” I shout. “Yellow thirty-two!”
Luca snaps the ball, and all in slow motion I see the Pirates charge ahead. Constin runs behind me, and I twist, passing off the ball. He barrels through the shit, leaping over the players, and just fucking runs, and by the time the Pirates know who has the ball, he’s already ten yards ahead. Digging in, he races as Dirk comes in for me. I twist out of his way, watching and holding my breath, fists tight and body charged until…
Constin flies over a Pirate trying to tackle him and rolls right into the end zone.
“Yes!” I howl, jumping and pumping my fists with my team. I look over the field goal post, seeing my parents standing and cheering, and I see my dad’s smile from here.
Kade takes the field, struggling for yards, but he makes a first down, and a touchdown with a pitch from the five-yard line. The score is twenty-four to fourteen. It’s our turn again, but we’re unable to get past their defense. We manage to make a field goal, bringing us up to seventeen.
The fourth quarter moves in, and Farrow and I walk down the line, pumping up the players. “They’re going to bed pissed tonight!” Farrow shouts. “We’re not giving up another yard!”
“Not one more!” I yell.
Farrow runs into position, and Dewitt grabs my arm. “Take tackle.”
“What?”
“Keep that little shit from scoring one more time,” he grits out.
He means my brother, and I almost feel a stab of pride for Kade. I nod.
Running into the lineup, I stare at Kade as he notices me too. “Grew a pair, huh?” he taunts. “This is going to be fun!”
I look to Farrow, nodding once, and Kade throws a glare at my friend and then back to me.
He calls out his play, catches the ball, and just as Farrow and I predicted, he fakes passing and runs it instead.
But I’m already there, on his tail, chasing him hard. The wind blows past me, players run at each other, and I dig in, pursuing him hard. Almost there, almost there, and then…I take him to the ground before he reaches the end zone.
The ball spills out of his hands, and all at once, everyone scrambles. Farrow grabs the ball, spins around, and I flip over, watching everyone charge after him as he barrels back the other direction.
“Fucking son of a bitch!” Kade bellows at me.
I grin, out of breath as I lie on the ground. “Hey now, that’s your mom too,” I tease.