Page 7

CHAPTER 7

brING EM OUT BY T.I.

Parker Thompson:

“Today is your first game. Why do you look like you're sitting there moping?” Xander asks me, jumping over the back of our couch to sit right next to me. I sigh, staring at my phone.

“If I tell you something, will you not be… you about it?” I ask him and he narrows his eyes.

“I’m hurt. What does that even mean? I’m basically perfect,” he tells me and I sigh, my jaw ticking. There’s no way I can talk about this with him.

“Tell me, too. I’m better than Xander,” Nico saunters into the room, eating a spoonful of what looks like noodles. It came from a package, to say the least. Lunch of a champion.

“Jesus Christ,” I sigh, leaning forward.

“What is it? You’re acting like you're in crisis.” Xander kicks his feet up on our coffee table and pulls his phone out, nonchalantly scrolling.

I look between him and Nico who are barely paying me attention at all. Andrew is the most simple and level-headed. Of course, he isn’t here right now when I could potentially use his insight.

“Brianne Archer took me home the other day and I asked her out,” I tell them.

Noodle juice splatters across the living room and I see Xander slowly look up from his phone and forward to the wall across from us.

“I beg your finest pardon?” Xander asks, cocking his head toward me, his phone screen now dark.

“And I have her phone number. Today is her birthday and I want to text her, but I don’t know how,” I tell them and Nico’s shock turns into a smile.

“Are you asking us for girl advice, Parks?” Nico sets his bowl down

“This is exactly what I didn’t want. Don’t get weird,” I tell him and Xander shakes his head.

“Back up. This is your teammate's sister, no?” he asks and I nod.

“Yes, and?” I ask.

“Doesn’t it bother you?” Xander asks and I furrow my brows.

“Should it? I’m not best friends with him or anyone on the team. I wasn’t looking for you to chastise me, I wanted to know what to say to her without sounding… You know what, never mind,” I start to get up and Xander stops me.

“No, no sit down… If you’re not worried, then it doesn’t matter. Maybe just text her happy birthday. Plain and simple?” he suggests and I shrug.

“I don’t want to sound dumb. No emotion behind it, just happy birthday?” I ask the two of them and they both shrug.

“She won’t read into it too much,” Nico tells me, and I look at him and then back to Xander, and watch as the realization sets in.

“Okay, she probably will. Maybe don’t say anything and just tell her in person,” Xander tells me and the thought didn’t cross my mind.

Telling her in person. That would most likely be more special anyway—showing that I’ve been thinking about it, that I remembered it. Right? Or am I being an idiot, overthinking this to the point of exhaustion when she doesn’t even slightly care if I say it or not… Brianne is interested. I think . Part of me wonders if she likes the excitement of talking to a football player, not me specifically—that I haven’t been the thing that impacts her but what I am and who I am has. I don’t like that thought so I need to get it out of my head before I psych myself out. I’m supposed to be getting out of my head and going for things this year. This is me doing that, even if I’m not doing a great job so far.

“Okay,” I nod and click my phone off. Then, I stand, push away from the couch, and walk toward my room.

“Okay, what? Are you going to text her? Parks!” Xander yells after me.

“I guess we’ll see,” I tell him and he follows me into my room.

“We’ll see? Parker, you haven’t gotten action in years and haven’t had a real girlfriend since before I met you. No, that girl from freshman year does not count… Wait, have you ever had a girlfriend?” he asks me and I scoff.

“Yes, I’ve dated before. Go away,” I grumble.

“Don’t put your grumpy pants on yet. It’s a valid question, you never talk about women. I swear, I thought you went celibate. This is exciting,” Xander tells me and I look back at him, wondering how someone with a sleeve of tattoos, and large muscled arms as well as the most stern, ‘fuck with me and find out’ face can be so soft sometimes. He’s like a scary-looking teddy bear.

“You shouldn’t be this excited over my relationships,” I tell him, checking my football bag.

“Says who? I care about my friends' love lives like I care about my own,” he tells me and I raise my eyebrows.

“Last time I checked, we were both dry in that department. I gotta go,” I tell him and he groans.

“At least keep me updated!” he calls after me.

“Don’t wait up tonight. I’m going to Brianne’s after the game,” I tell them, and Nico and Xander both scoff.

“You dirty little—”

I close the door before I can hear anything else.

* * *

It’s the first official game of the season and I’m panicking for some reason. I can hear the crowd even from under here in the tunnel. We’re about to enter the game and head onto the field and my nerves are shot. I’m geared up in my uniform, all of us wearing the royal blue home game uniforms, which is my favorite out of all of them. Bellamy starts like he always does. Coaches are starting to walk onto the field and my heart is beating out of my chest. I can already hear the crowd outside of the tunnel that we’re in.

“Who are we?” Bellamy screams and we all start our slow chant together, as tradition.

“S,” Bellamy chants and we call back.

“P,” he yells and every single team member calls back to him.

“U,” he screams and we all chant.

“SPU!” we start. “SPU, SPU, SPU!!”

Bellamy, Lawson, and I, the three team captains lead the guys out of the tunnel, all of our team behind us. Our entrance song plays, T.I.’s Bring Em Out. It’s the same entrance song this team has had for the past five years and it does what it needs to do. I feel the bass of the stadium in my bones as we run onto the field. The lights are blindingly bright and as many times as I’ve run onto this field over the past three years, I’ve never heard the stadium louder than it is at this moment. The entire school is here right now, all decked out in blue and gold.

Bellamy and Lawson, along with our other teammates, turn into someone else on the field. Their confidence shoots to the sky, their adrenaline taking over. I’m the opposite. When my feet touch the turf, I’ve never been more in tune with myself. I’ve never been more focused. I block out the stadium. I block out the sound of the cheerleaders. The only thing I listen to is Bellamy as he calls plays to my teammates. I never focus on anything like I do on my game. My sport. Nothing else exists but me, and the field when I enter. But this year is going to be different. As Bellamy said, confidence is key on the field. I can do it too, just like them.

We run and my focus starts to click in, the anxiety dissipating in my bones, leaving out of my body slowly but surely. No distractions. No nothing… except that’s not true. For the first time ever, that’s not true. Because my eyes catch, not on something, but on someone. I’ve never lost my focus, never stumbled over my game, but as I make my entrance out past the baton dancers, and the band that stands on the field, I see the cheerleaders. They wear royal blue uniforms, their skirts glittering and shining under the lights. The tops they wear are long-sleeved and the same color blue with gold and white accents as well as a hornet on the front. Brianne looks stunning. That’s the only word I can think of. She looks like a diamond under the lights. I’ve never seen her this way, done up like this.

She has red lips—perfect red lips—and her cheeks have that same blushing look as they always do. She’s smiling so wide as she shakes her pom poms, looking at all of the players. Time slows, my head sounds like it’s underwater, the music blowing out around me as I look at her. I slow down, not stopping myself, but making sure she sees me.

“Good luck number 13!” she shouts at me and I nod my head.

“Happy Birthday,” I yell over the screaming, and to my surprise, the blush on her cheeks intensifies and I’m left speechless.

I jog backward slightly, only giving myself a few more seconds to look at her before I go back to my headspace. Back to the place I should be right now for games. God, she’s gorgeous. I’m never like this. I’ve never been affected by someone because of their looks like I am with Brianne, but it’s not just that. It’s her gentleness. Her care. She’s unique in a way I don’t know how to describe. I don’t have time to describe it right now. I need to focus. To lock in now before I lose my head altogether. We’re just… Having fun. Whatever happens is casual, there’s no pressure. Not on me, not on her. I need to remember that so I don’t work myself up.

“What did you just say to her?” I snap out of my head at the sound of Bellamy.

I jump up and down on the sidelines of the field, the adrenaline and focus sinking into my veins.

“She dropped me off at my apartment the other day. Mentioned her birthday was today,” I tell him.

“Yeah, she’s really nervous right now since it’s her first game. I should go wish her luck, shouldn’t I?” he asks.

“Sure. She seemed fine. I just said happy birthday, though… I don’t know,” I shrug.

I totally just gave myself away. That was weird, right?

“Do you want to come over after the game? We’re probably going to celebrate her birthday tonight,” Bellamy extends an invite he has no idea that I’ve already received.

So, that’s a good sign, he doesn’t know anything.

“Sure.” I nod, keeping my words short and clipped.

I’ll think about that after the game ends. Until then, I won't be thinking about anything.

Bellamy runs to his sister and I wait with Lawson. Bellamy and Brianne hug and then the two of them start a handshake, a full blown intricate one. Her smile is vibrant and bright… I turn away, waiting until Bellamy comes back, and Coach Corbin pulls the three of us in, giving us a pep talk.

Coach Corbin doesn’t hesitate to remind us we don’t have Lawson playing on the field tonight since he is still injured from the first scrimmage. One of our competitors took him down on a play we probably shouldn’t have done. His recovery is almost done but he won't be playing today despite still being in uniform. He’s going to do the team captain coin toss with us anyway. I know he’s itching to be back on the field with us. It sucks too because I don’t want the loss of Lawson to be the reason we don’t win our first game of the season.

I’ve never been a team captain on this scale. If I didn’t already have a confidence booster, this is it. This is what I needed. Music booms over the stadium and we walk out, the three team captains in a line. I feel intense and badass. Like no one could even touch me if they tried. We meet at the center of the field, our opponents standing there with their team captains. I know this is being televised. I know everyone’s watching and honestly, I don’t care. For once, nothing affects me.

“Head captains, call it,” the ref tells us.

“Tails,” Bellamy tells the ref and we watch as he does the coin toss. I wait, then he nods his head toward us.

“Tails. Seattle Pike gets the ball,” he tells us and we jog backward, and then walk off the field in a line still. It’s time to do what we do best. Win.

* * *

There’s 5 seconds left in the game. Not that any of that matters considering we’re winning. Even without Lawson playing our first game of the season, we’re up by 14 points. But it’s going to be more if this goes the way we need it to. Bellamy holds his gloved hand out to me and I slap fingers, closing my digits around his in a subtle handshake as we get ready to set up for our next and final play of the game.

“Ready! Down set!” Bellamy shouts and we all get into position.

I keep my eyes locked in on my opponents. The defensive players are looking me dead in the eyes like they’re ready to bury me in the turf under my feet. I wait, my heartbeat pounding in my ears, the sound of the crowd cheering drowned out by the sound of my own heavy breathing. I know there are cameras on me. There are people watching all over the country—people who know me, people who want to know me. Potential future coaches. I know all of this and block it out as I count down in my head, waiting.

Then, the whistle blows. I move, making sure I’m not blocked and free. I watch from my side, keeping myself open as I watch Bellamy hand off the ball to the running back stepping in for Lawson right now. He normally favors his right side anyway. He takes the ball and runs, but the second he looks like he’s in trouble, he tosses it straight back to Bellamy. I run, darting down the stretch of the field, making it straight into the endzone as planned. I turn and watch Bellamy throw the ball directly at me. My heart thunders until I feel the leather ball in my fingertips. I’m taken down right as soon as I catch it, our opponent tackling me straight into the turf, but it doesn’t matter. I caught the pass. My ears ring with the heavy guy on top of me but the second he’s off, it’s like a roar coming to life inside of me.

For the first time tonight, the sound thunders back into my brain, and I can hear the endless cheering as I come out of my haze. I’m surrounded by my own teammates. I take one of their hands and he hauls me up. I lift the ball over my head and the crowd somehow gets louder. I let myself smile, knowing that this won't be just now, but a season of this. Wins like this. With me being the one they’re cheering for, not just Griffin Jones. I didn’t get as much play time these past few years because he was the top wide receiver. But now… now it’s me.

Bellamy basically tackles me to the ground and when we make it to the center of the field, it’s practically chaos. Lawson runs from the sidelines and shoves me side to side, congratulating me and so is Bellamy. Everyone is screaming and cheering, and I’m more than overwhelmed, to say the least. I’m swept up in it. I’m taken aback by it. I’m enthralled by it. I love it. I’ve never felt this type of adrenaline on the field, not once. But right now, I feel like I could conquer the world. A touchdown on my first game as a starting wide receiver….

The field takes some time to calm down, but once the chaos subsides, we’re all ushered into the locker room. Coach gives us a short pep talk and congratulates us before telling us to get rest, and get ready for continued practice next week. Winning doesn’t change anything. Normal Coach Corbin behavior.

We all shower and get our senses together but even after that, I don’t feel like I’ve come down from my high of winning. My high of catching the last touchdown and being the one that was cheered for. I don’t think anything could damper the feeling.

“You coming, Parky?” Bellamy asks me, pulling his shirt over his chest.

I stand, only in my briefs and I nod.

“I am. I can catch a ride from someone if you’re ready now,” I tell him.

“Kamryn is waiting. You don’t mind?” he asks me and I shake my head.

He exits swiftly, heading out to see his girlfriend. I get dressed and leave the locker room. Once I make it down the hall and past the tunnel toward the back entrance of the stadium instead of the main one, I see a small group of cheerleaders leave the locker room. Brianne. She’s the first one I spot. She’s still got her uniform top on but instead of a skirt, she wears long royal blue track pants. Her cheer shoes are replaced with tennis shoes. Her hair is still the same—half of it is pulled up, but the rest cascades down her back in pretty waves. I watch as Dakota nudges her and nods his head toward me.

“I’ll see you later, Baby.” He kisses her temple and gives her a side hug before jogging off with one of the cheerleaders that’s in my grade, Valerie. I don’t know her well but I do know she’s incredibly nice. She always has been.

“Bye, Baby B!” Valerie calls out. “Congrats, Parker!” She waves to me and then she and Dakota leave down the hall, leaving Brianna all to me.

“Do they all call you Baby?” I ask her and she nods, a smile prominent on her face.

“Why are we even talking about me? Go you! Parker that was… Oh my god!” She shoves me to the side, jumping around me, excitement very present in all of her movements. I smirk to myself. “Do not be humble right now.” She raises her eyebrows and I see her get a Kamryn look on her face, the kind of face where she means business.

“It was pretty amazing…” I tell her, not just talking about the win but the feeling.

“This is why I came. This is why I’m here. I’m so excited for the next game already, that was. Ugh, that was amazing,” she tells me and I remember this is her first college game. This is her first time cheering on this level.

“Answer my question now,” I laugh, feeling her energy bouncing off the walls around us.

“Everyone calls me baby because I’m the youngest on the team. 19 now, but I’m Baby B,” she tells me and I nod.

“I thought Dakota was a freshman too?” I ask her.

“He is, but he took a gap year so he’s still older than I am,” she explains.

“And is he not attending your birthday activities tonight?” I ask and she shakes her head.

“He planned everything for tomorrow. Tonight we’re just going to hang out at the apartment like we always do on my birthday. Normally, it’s just me Bellamy, Lawson, and Griffin, but now that my brother and Lawson have girlfriends, and Griffin is gone, things are a little different,” she tells me and I nod. “You’re coming, right? I can take you…”

I nod, “Sure.”

I watch as she shuffles her feet. She’s smiling still and I like that she’s always smiling. Because her smile is bright, kind, and almost infectious. Almost. Because I’m not allowing myself to smile like an idiot despite the fact that I kind of want to.

We leave the stadium and make our way out to Brianne’s Jeep. The second we get in, and she turns it on, the sound of Taylor Swift plays over the speakers and I smirk. She turns the volume up slightly and starts to drive. The word gorgeous is repeated so I assume that’s the title of the song. As she sings it lightly, I can hear that she’s actually not a bad singer. She taps the steering wheel with her manicured nails and I should probably stop staring at her, but I once again find it more than hard to take my eyes off. Once we pull down the main road, her music stops and her phone starts ringing. She opens the call and motions for me to be quiet.

“Hey, Belly!” she shouts.

“Hey, B,” her brother has laughter in his voice and I keep my finger to my mouth, drawing on my bottom lip as I listen to the conversation.

“What’s up?” she asks.

“We wanted to go out since it’s the first game of the season. Do you need to get ready?” he asks her and I watch the smile on her face falter.

“I thought we were going back to the apartment? To play games?” she asks and Bellamy has a separate conversation, not with her, but with someone else.

“What did you say?” he asks her.

I know Bellamy isn’t trying to be an ass, but right now, it feels like he is. It’s her birthday… but he did just win his first game of his senior year. I understand both sides, I guess.

“I said… Never mind. Um, I think I just want to stay in if that’s okay with you?” she asks him for permission and I narrow my eyes.

“Yeah, if you’re sure you want to stay in. It’s your birthday, you sure you don’t want to come out with us?” he asks and she presses a smile to her lips, forcing it.

“No, I'm okay. But I love you. Have fun and please be safe. Call me if you need me,” she tells him.

“I love you, happy birthday. I promise we’ll be back to celebrate after,” he tells his sister.

“Don’t rush… and congrats on your win,” she tells him.

Her brother hangs up. She grips the wheel tighter and sighs.

“Do you want me to take you to wherever they’re going?” she asks and I hesitate.

“Why don’t you want to go?” I ask her.

“Well, it’s silly but it’s kind of been tradition that I come to their apartment the past few years so I just... I didn’t really want to go out tonight. It’s fine though, really Parker.”

She does that thing again where she forces another smile and I shake my head. There’s an obvious difference from the smile she had in the underbelly of the stadium a few minutes ago to the one pressed on her lips right now. It’s very easy to spot when you really pay attention.

“That’s bullshit. Why would he go out anyway?” I ask her and she shakes her head.

“Because you guys won your first game of the season and it’s a big deal so he wants to celebrate. Seriously, it's no big deal. Where do you want to go?” she asks, leaving the offer open.

Well not necessarily open, but that’s exactly what I’ll take it as.

“I’m going back to your apartment like I planned to,” I tell her and watch the shock swarm her features, and then leave them right away. She covers her emotions so well it’s almost scary.

“You don’t have to do that, Parker. It’s seriously not a big deal. Birthdays happen every year,” she tells me and I nod.

“And we’ve won the national championship three years in a row. We win games all the time too, doesn’t make any difference to Bellamy, does it?” I ask her and watch her press her lips together.

“It’ll just be us, and I don’t want you to spend your Friday bored out of your mind playing—”

“Once again, Brianne, if I’m doing something it’s because I want to. I think I told you that when we were at Haven… If you remember,” I tell her and she nods.

“I remember fine, but to be honest I didn’t think you did. I thought you were drunk,” she explains.

“Drinking and drunk are very different things. I remember everything that happened and I meant my words. If I didn’t want to come back to your place, I wouldn’t. I’m not leaving you alone on your birthday. Stop fighting me,” my words come out gruff and she scrunches her face up.

“You’re grumpy,” she mumbles.

“You’re stubborn,” I fight back.

“Awe, thank you,” she smiles, and I smirk, but suppress the expression, chewing the inside of my cheek.

I look out the window. I’m spending my night alone with Brianne Archer, my teammate’s sister, and somehow my new infatuation. I don’t know how this happened. But if it wasn’t meant to be happening, it wouldn’t be this damn easy.