Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 109903 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 550(@200wpm)___ 440(@250wpm)___ 366(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109903 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 550(@200wpm)___ 440(@250wpm)___ 366(@300wpm)
"Go, Abby, go." Andrew shooed her with both hands. "Bring him back when he's drunk. We've got Neil. Right, Neil?"
Neil had used all his words on Kevin, so he just nodded. Abby hurried after Kevin, but she looked across the court toward the Ravens' table. Neil saw her wave and followed the gesture to Wymack. Wymack was heading the Foxes' way, his face a thundercloud. Neil clenched his fingers tighter and willed them to stillness.
"Neil," Dan said, taking Kevin's seat between him and Andrew. "Are you okay?"
"Does he look okay to you?" Andrew asked.
Dan shot Andrew a livid look, but his smile said he wasn't impressed by her anger. Andrew held onto the table edge and leaned back until his chair was balancing on its back legs. It gave him an unobstructed view of Neil behind Dan. Neil looked at him because he didn't trust himself to face anyone else just yet. Andrew shielded his mouth with his hand but didn't bother to lower his voice.
"I told you so."
"Sit down, Minyard," Wymack snapped, coming up behind Dan's new chair. Andrew gave an exaggerated sigh and let his chair fall back to the ground. Wymack turned on Neil next. "Did you or did you not tell me you weren't going to start a fight?"
Nicky spoke up on Neil's other side. "In Neil's defense—"
"I didn't ask you," Wymack interrupted. "Neil, talk to me."
In his head Neil was already counting steps to freedom. Their new seating arrangement made them the closest table to the court door. He'd just have to cross the inner court and get through the locker room. The fence around the stadium was ringed with barbed wire to prevent vandalism and theft, but he could leave the way they'd come in. It was a toss-up as to whether or not the guards would stop him. A young man in nice clothes running breakneck speed away from a public event was suspicious.
If he had an excuse to get out of here, like following Kevin to the vodka on the bus, he could conserve his energy until he passed the guards. From there he just had to find a taxi, because hitchhiking wasn't going to be fast enough this time. He needed to get back to Palmetto State and get his papers from his safe. He needed his money and his numbers. Maybe it was finally time to call—
Neil's escape route ground to a sickening halt in his head. He pried his fingers apart and pressed one hand to his pocket. He could feel the hard lines of his phone through the cotton.
"Neil, if you can't be here say so," Wymack said. "Abby can take you elsewhere until it's time to leave. Get out of here and get some fresh air."
It was the perfect opening, but Neil couldn't take it. If he did, he really would go, and he wouldn't come back. Running wasn't easy, but it was easier than trusting Andrew. But Neil remembered the weight of a key in his palm, its metal soaked through with another person's body heat. He remembered Andrew's promise to see this year through with him.
"No," Neil said, finally finding his voice. "I knew this was going to happen. I just wasn't ready for it. I'm fine."
"What can I do?" Wymack asked.
Neil looked up. The tired look on Wymack's face said Neil's surprise was a little too blatant. For a split second Neil felt guilty, though he wasn't entirely sure why. He crushed it as fast as he could. He had too much else to worry about right now and was feeling too much already to deal with a strange thing like guilt.
"I don't know," Neil said.
"When you know, tell me."
"Yes, Coach."
The arrival of another team helped distract them. Kevin returned a while later, looking worlds better with an ungodly amount of vodka in his system. When all fourteen teams were accounted for, Blackwell's coach gave a short speech about the season. Event staff rolled food out, and the teams ate to the sound of scattered laughter. Away from the pressures of game night it was easier for them to behave. They just needed to avoid bringing up rivalries and tensions.
Thirteen of the coaches had taken the Foxes' original seats with the Ravens. The Foxes were stuck socializing with the other half. It was easier than Neil expected it to be. The coaches were professionals and therefore more reserved in their personal opinions. Dan and Kevin carried most of the conversation, Dan with an infectious enthusiasm and Kevin with drunken good nature. Neil was glad for that, as he didn't want to talk to anyone, but now and then a coach directed a question down the table toward him.
After dinner a crew cleared the court. The table legs were collapsible, so the tables were piled three high along one of the court walls. They stacked chairs until the weight of them threatened to topple them over. With the middle of the court cleared out there was room to set up a couple icebreakers. Neil twitched as he watched them erect a temporary volleyball net where only Exy should be played. No one else seemed to have a problem with it; teams fell apart and mingled as they found something new to do. Further down, a stereo system started blasting what passed as popular music these days, and half of the court became an impromptu dance floor.
"Go forth," Wymack told his Foxes. "Have fun. Or don't. I don't care. Just no more fighting, you got me?"
Most of the Foxes didn't need to be told twice. Dan and Matt hurried to find a volleyball team. Aaron and Nicky tugged their dates toward the dance floor. Allison was starting to look a little unsteady on her feet, so Renee ushered her off the court for a quick break. That left Neil, Andrew, and Kevin standing alone. Wymack eyed them.
"You miss that one and need to hear it again?"
"Oh, Coach." Andrew tossed his hands up in a helpless shrug. "You can't even imagine how much fun we are having right now. It's overwhelming. Give us a minute to catch our breaths before our hearts explode in our chest."