Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 117363 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117363 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
The Trojans’ vice-captain gave a serious nod completely at odds with his easy, “Tell your fanboy we said hello.”
“Our fanboy,” Jeremy reminded him with a laugh as he got moving again.
He found the night’s roster where he’d left it, taped to the wall near the locker room exit, and he peeled it down on his way into the inner court. The deafening chaos of packed stands was a familiar and exciting weight, urging him onward and forcing his gaze to the court. They were thirty minutes out from serve, but Jeremy already knew tonight was going to be a great night. Championships brought out the best and fiercest in all of their opponents, and the chance to play an unfamiliar team was a rare challenge the team craved. Tonight’s experiment was the icing on the cake, an invaluable experience no matter how it ended.
Jeremy finally reached the Away side of the stadium, and the sight of the Palmetto State Foxes gathered by their benches rattled him a bit out of his heady glee. He knew the Foxes were small, but seeing them on TV and seeing names on paper was nothing compared to seeing them in person. The Trojans had as many strikers as the Foxes had bodies on their entire line. It was jarring thinking the ERC had signed off on them. Rumor had it they were going to revisit the size rule next season, but Jeremy wasn’t going to hold his breath.
Coach David Wymack was standing off to one side, between Jeremy and the Foxes, but it took no time for Kevin Day to spot Jeremy and move up alongside his coach. Jeremy’s mood ticked up again immediately, and he greeted them both with a bright grin. Wymack’s handshake was firm and his face kind; Jeremy liked him immediately.
“Coach Wymack, welcome to SoCal. We’re excited to host you tonight. Kevin, you crazy fool,” he said, and clapped Kevin’s shoulder. “You never cease to amaze. You’ve got a thing for controversial teams, I think, but I like this one much better than the last one.”
Kevin waved that off. “They’re mediocre at best but they’re easier to get along with.”
“Same old Kevin, as unforgiving and obnoxious as always,” Jeremy said without any real judgment. “Some things never change, hm? Some things do.”
They’d only ever met on the court during championships, since Edgar Allan and USC played on opposite sides of the country, but before Kevin transferred off the Raven line they’d at least sent each other sporadic texts on game nights. Then Kevin disconnected his number and dropped off the face of the planet, and Jeremy had to find out weeks after the fact that Kevin had lost his playing hand in a brutal skiing accident.
He’d sent a long and heartfelt letter of condolence and support to Palmetto State, hoping for a response but not taking it personally when one never came. Kevin had lost Exy the same year he signed with the national team; of course he needed to withdraw and come to terms with his injury. Jeremy wouldn’t have handled it any better.
Thinking there was more to it was enough to turn Jeremy’s heart inside-out, and he couldn’t not ask. “Speaking of your last team, you, uh, you created quite a stir with that thing you said two weeks ago. About your hand, I mean, and it maybe not being an accident.”
Kevin was silent for so long Jeremy thought he wouldn’t get a response. Maybe the friendship they had now was just a memory of what once had been and Kevin wasn’t willing to confide in him? But then Kevin motioned to him to follow and said,
“I have a backliner for you. Do you have room on next year’s line-up?”
Jeremy didn’t miss the look Wymack sent Kevin: sharp but not alarmed. Mystified, Jeremy trailed Kevin until they were out of earshot of the rest of the team. Kevin glanced up at the crowd, studying it with a distant look. Gauging the noise level, Jeremy might have guessed, but he refused to believe it. What sort of secrets could Kevin have to share that would justify that level of precaution?
“Kevin?” Jeremy asked. “Talk to me.”
“I need you to sign Jean,” Kevin said, and belatedly added, “Moreau.”
Jeremy opened his mouth, closed it, and tried again. “You need me to what?”
Kevin gave Jeremy his full attention at last, and his expression was deadly serious. “Edgar Allan cannot announce it yet, but they have cut him from the Raven lineup. The Ravens hurt him,” he said, and Jeremy had the fleeting and foolish suspicion it was an understatement. Maybe not so foolish, because Kevin explained, “It was supposed to be a simple hazing to blow off steam, but it got out of hand. He’s off the court for the rest of the season.”