Page 27 of Who’s Playing You (In The Nick of Time #1)

NICK SOBA

Trickie Nickies

The Love Machine:

Yo Diva! I need advice. To velvet or not to velvet? image

The Holy One:

Bro. Why didn’t you ask me?

The Love Machine:

Because you think cowboy boots go with everything. This is a classy event. I can’t wear my dusty Lucchese’s.

The Holy One:

You have Lucchese’s? Dude. Those are like a grand.

The Love Machine:

Yeah. And I live in Texas. I have to fit in.

The Holy One:

Poser. By the way, velvet for sure.

The Love Machine:

Fuck off. Where the hell is Diva? He’s been awfully quiet lately.

The Holy One:

Guess he thinks he’s better than us because he’s in NYC.

The Love Machine:

Who’s the poser, now? C’mon Nick. Are you gonna leave us hanging? Not cool, bro.

I looked down at my phone as the text messages rolled in, one after another, in quick succession. These two would continue to go at it for another hour like this.

I didn’t have time, or the heart, to answer them right now. Leaving yet another thread on “read” from them.

I looked over the locker room. The Rage’s locker room. In New York.

Fuck.

I missed my friends.

And my betrayal was really starting to eat away at me. Like, deep down. I tried to console my conscience over the fact that they seemed to be thriving. They were jelling with their teams and seemed to be really liking their new teams and cities. I mean, that had to count for something - right?

That’s what I told myself at least.

That this was for the best. That this all worked out like this for a reason. And in the end, that this would all come together perfectly and we’d all laugh over this. One day.

Far away from this day.

And maybe I was also feeling a little salty and jealous.

Jealous over the fact that both of them were immediately welcomed to their respective teams with open arms. All the guys were so excited to have them and my two friends were just eating it up every day.

And I suppose my jealousy originated from the blow to my ego - the blow to The Diva’s ego - when I wasn’t welcomed here with open arms and a damn parade, like I had low key expected.

And my brothers’ welcome? It had been everything short of the parade.

I mean, good for them, they deserved that, but… I was - am - The motherfucking Diva !

So while my friends were living it up and basking in their new teams’ adoration… me on the other hand?

I looked around the almost-full locker room one more time. My teammates were milling around in various states of undress, getting ready for practice.

I had already been here for going on two hours and had already finished stretching and doing some low impact strengthening exercises. Not that any of my teammates were aware of that.

They were all mingling, talking about their lives, families, booty calls, and joking around. I was still an outsider though. And sure, I took responsibility for some of that, for the fact that I hadn’t made much of an effort with them after the initial frosty reception.

But in the last few weeks, I’d shut up the haters and the skeptics. Like I knew I would. One by painstakingly one.

When my new receivers caught throw after beautiful throw, exactly where I told them to be to catch it, like clockwork, a handful of the guys weren’t giving me as much of a cold shoulder. Likewise, my linemen had changed their tune. In all fairness, they were the first to do so.

In the first few weeks of practice, I guess I’d somewhat broken through the ice with my first line of defense.

The huge walls that protected me, they were kind of indifferent towards me at the very beginning.

But after getting to know me, when they saw that I listened more than I spoke, which was completely at odds with The Diva personality that they were expecting, they softened towards me a bit.

They quickly realized that I was all business, and seeing that I wasn’t letting any of the pomp or circumstance of the noise around The Diva impact my game… well, that also helped.

What really sealed the deal was once we started running drills together, and they felt my support and appreciation for them, they softened even further.

When they realized that I looked to them for direction at times, well that was like the final brick broke for them, and their attitudes began to totally shift.

I can’t say that the rest of the team followed their lead all too quickly though.

But my linemen weren’t used to impacting a quarterback as much as they found that they impacted me.

I was a creature of adaptation: I would adapt to my surroundings and what I saw happening, in this case, on the field.

And when it came to my first line of defense, if any part of their wall broke, I had to pivot.

And so I kept a close eye on them, their body language - their tells, strengths and weaknesses.

They thought it strange when I’d notice if they took a hard hit, when I noticed before anyone else that Terrance Brown was injured during practice two weeks ago.

Terrance hadn’t even realized the full scope of his injury by the time I was at his side, kneeling next to him on the ground, calling for a medic.

He had looked up at me in surprise. I guess they weren’t used to their QB’s giving a shit about them.

It hadn’t been a serious injury, thank fuck for that, because I desperately needed that guy to cover my ass.

I looked back down at my phone as it kept buzzing with texts from Dumb and Dumber, debating velour now.

I turned the phone off and put it on the shelf in my locker as I stood.

When I turned around, it was as if my contemplations had conjured Terrance up because he stood before me, all three-hundred-and-thirty pounds of him.

“What up, Soba?” he nodded his head to me.

“Hey,” I almost stammered. “T-Bro, how’s it going?”

“We’re heading out to warm up, gotta catch up to you,” he simply stated. When he saw the confused look on my face he continued, “Bruh, I know you already warmed up. How early did ya get here today? One? Two? Three hours early?”

I guess I wasn’t as invisible as I had thought.

I grinned and quickly looked away before facing him again. “Um, I was here about two-and-a-half hours ago. Already got warmed up but I need to warm up my arm now while you guys get loose.”

“Well alright then, let’s go,” he said as he nodded to the exit. “I can set up the net for you and whatever until the coaches and their lackeys are ready.”

I wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“Yeah man, let’s go. How’s the achilles?” I asked him as we headed for the tunnel.

He side-eyed me quickly. “Better.” In a clipped tone he added, “Won’t be a problem.” He nodded to me in confirmation, in finality, that he was good-to-go.

“Good. Good,” I said that last one mostly to myself. Feeling relieved that not only did I have the best defender back in full action, but that he might actually be on my side and would actually be caring about his job when it came to protecting my ass.

Once we got onto the field he stopped, his hand going to my chest to stop me too. “Ya know man, you’re not what I expected…” he let that sit there in the open between us.

I was trying to find words for a rebuttal but he ever-so-slightly shook his head.

“All of us weren’t sure what to expect when they drafted you.

We’re well aware that we’re the worst seed in the conference and it was a slap in the face when the bosses placed all their eggs in your basket and started talkin’ like you were God Almighty reincarnate and would singlehandedly save this team. ”

“Man, I…”

“No, no, let me finish. Let’s just say that that pissed a bunch of the guys off, not to any fault of your doing.

You just took the brunt of that frustration from them, and I’ll fully admit, from me too.

And once you were selected, confirming the rumors…

Man, we all knew about you and your rep.

It’s hard to not be aware of your reputation, whether you’re in the football world or not. ”

I grinned and gave him my smug smile, “Well, ya know…” I started to showboat but he again cut me off.

“You don’t have to floss for me. I’m a simple guy.

Alright? Simple meat-n-potatoes type of guy.

I’ll be straight with you and I’m hoping you can be straight with me.

” I let my grin, my facade, drop. He was being as straight with me as anyone had been in my life.

He was one of the very few who recognized that The Diva was in fact mostly just a front, a facade in fact.

I nodded to him, letting him know he’d humbled me.

“What I was saying is that, knowing some about your rep combined with the attitude here at the team before the draft, let’s just say that you stepped right into something you had no idea about.

I’m sorry that you’re bearing the brunt of it, but honestly, I think you can probably handle it. ” He chuckled on my behalf.

“At least, you’ve surprised me with how much grace you’ve handled it all.

And I’ll be honest with you, I never would have expected that.

And your whole ‘Diva’ thing, well, let’s just say that that didn’t help any with our expectations and the already annoyed…

or shall we just call it what it is? Toxic atmosphere and attitude we had before, during and definitely after the draft. ”

I looked to the ground as I chewed my cheek and nodded.

“I appreciate you shedding light on some of that, but it’s pretty much what I figured.

And I’m aware that I rub some people the wrong way, that’s just the nature of…

well, The Diva. It’s not all high praise.

I’m used to the amount of shit that gets dumped on me at the top, that’s also why The Diva has needed to continue to be The Diva , which you’ve evidently seen through.

One of a handful, so props to you. But, ahh, just don’t be, ya know, letting that highly classified info slip out there to the general public,” I teased.

“Nah, man. I got you. And I just wanted you to know that I see you. I see your work ethic, and I’ve heard what you’ve been lecturing some of the other guys about…

a loser’s mentality will in fact not get us anywhere.

So like I said, you’re not who I was expecting you to be.

And I am pleasantly surprised about that, my man.

I think that we might have a chance after all, if this is the true authentic you. ”

He gave me a toothy grin. “I never doubted your talent, boy, but I was worried about that inflated ego of yours. I knew it wouldn’t mesh here - and like I said, part of that has nothing to do with you.

But the anticipation of an inflated ego of a primadonna had everyone’s shackles up, because it was just like adding gasoline to the already out of control fire we had roaring so far out of control. ”

“Well, I’m not known as The Diva for nothing, T-Bro,” I returned his toothy grin, my arrogance coming to the surface.

“A little bit of that cocky little personality of yours is certainly expected, and hell bruh, I’m sure you can live up to it too, but I just wanted to let you know that you don’t need to front with me.

I’ve seen you these past few weeks, and I’ve heard you.

Like, I see you, see you. And all I’m saying is…

you’re not what I expected, and I mean that in the best possible way. ”

“I appreciate that,” I said as I grabbed his hand in a bro-shake.

T-Bro continued with a chuckle, “And call me crazy, but maybe those office jockeys behind the glass windows in those fancy offices up there,” he said as he gestured to where the executive offices were up above us.

“Maybe those guys might be onto something with you. Hell, if we start winning, I don’t even know, man.

But I actually think that right now we have a little chance of doing something, disrupting the status quo that’s been happening since I went pro. ”

“Oh yeah, the status quo, huh?” I said on a chuckle, knowing he was referring to the winningness of the current champs and the controversy surrounding them.

“Yeah man, fuck those guys.” He laughed. “I’d love to go after them, be the ones to topple the champs and ruffle every single one of their feathers. And I don’t know, there’s a buzz here at The Rage now… wouldn’t it be something if that actually turned into something, huh?”

I just grinned at him.

He then got serious, “So tell me, all BS aside, are you the guy ?”

“The guy?”

“Yeah, the guy who’s going to lead this team to fucking destroy the status quo?”

“They don’t call me The Diva and The Disruptor for nothing.”