Page 73 of The Surprise Play

No wonder I’m feeling so empty.

Playing college ball has been the highlight of my life so far. I’ve loved every minute of it… and now it’s over.

“Okay, gentlemen.” Coach Jones stands up, clapping his hands to get our attention. “Phones and tech away please, guys. I want your full attention.”

He waits out the shuffling as everyone gets themselves organized, and we’re soon all staring at him with morose curiosity.

“That was a tough game yesterday.”

A ripple of disgruntled murmurs spreads through the bus.

“But you can hold your heads up high. When we get back to school, you can walk onto campus as proud men because you fought hard. You gave it your all. Every player who walked off the field yesterday had nothing left in the tank, and that’s all I can ask of you.” Coach smiles, his white teeth flashing. “You are an excellent team. You’re a team who made it to the finals. The finals!” Hestarts clapping, then lets out a whoop. “The finals, gentlemen! You are an excellent team!”

The other coaches start cheering, and soon that enthusiasm travels down the bus until a deafening crescendo of celebration takes over.

He lets us go for it, blowing off whatever steam we’ve been bottling up before finally bringing us back down.

“That’s the energy I want to see, because this isn’t over. We may have finished our season, but we’ve still got practices to attend. We have to prep our men who are hoping to go pro. They’ve got the Combine coming up. It’s still weeks away, but we want them in peak condition, don’t we?”

Another round of cheers goes up as those nearby slap me on the shoulder. I look at Zander, who’s also getting jostled, and we share a grin.

“And we want to keep developing our younger players, getting them ready for next season while those of you who are ready to lead prep yourself for that shift too. So…” He claps his hands again. “This isn’t over. This is a fresh beginning to our next season and the journey beyond college ball. This is an exciting time for us, and we’re gonna walk off this bus and show every student at Nolan U that we are proud of what we’ve achieved this year. You with me?”

And here we go again, laughing and cheering as we head back to campus.

We are pumped and fired up by the time we finally pull onto the school grounds, and the reception that awaits us is exactly what we needed.

The band and cheerleaders are out in force, along with a large gathering of students and faculty.

They cheer us off the bus, and I feel like a celebrity as I high-five those I pass and get hugged and kissed by numerous girls.

I greet them all with smiles and thanks, enjoying the hyped-up atmosphere.

For a second, I find myself scanning the crowd for Satch, but I don’t see her, and it’s impossible to ignore my disappointment.

Holy shit. Am I looking forward to my tutoring session tomorrow?

I can’t help a soft laugh as I dole out another high five and realize how excited I am about hanging out in the library to study.

Never thought I’d think something like that. Not in a million years.

CHAPTER 22

ELIZABETH

I’m meeting Wily in thirty minutes, and I’m already getting ready. It only takes fifteen minutes to walk to the library, but I want to be there on time and… for some reason… I want to look good.

Why?

Why can’t I just throw something on like I normally would?

Why was I unhappy with my original skirt and sweater combo?

Why is my favorite cardigan suddenly not good enough?

I frown in the mirror, taking in my reflection and the olive-green dress I chose. It has a pretty blue swirl through it. I love this fabric. Mom and I picked it out together last time we went shopping, but?—

My shoulders slump and I unzip my skirt at the side before reaching for the dress I wore yesterday. It’s navy blue with an orange ribbon at the back. I do like this one. And I feel comfortable in it.