Page 13 of Fumble Into the End Zone
I smiled because I wasn’t running at full speed to appease his ego. He was also my navigation guide, surpassing him wasn’t going to benefit me. Bryce increased his pace, and I followed his lead. Once the hill became visible, I found my grind and hit it with intensity.
“Shiiiiit,” Bryce yelled through gritted teeth.
I didn’t say anything, but I understood the words as my calves burned. We both dug into the ground to make the incline. Landing at the top, I stopped and tossed my head back to catch my breath. My heart pounded in my chest like a drummer in a southern worship service. Taking short, hard breaths allowed me to regain control of my body. Bryce lifted, but he still struggled to settle his chest. For professional athletes, it took us longer to recover than it should have.
“All right, Marcus, I see you,” Bryce said, and I shrugged.
“In order for us to have the connection I want us to have, I need you to talk to me, man,” Bryce said.
I wiped the sweat from my forehead with my shirt.
“What do you need to know?” I asked.
Bryce’s brows furrowed at my question as he folded his arms across his chest. I could tell he was at a loss for words.
“How about you ask me the shit you didn’t find online,” I said, and he smiled.
Like most quarterbacks, I bet Bryce was analytical in life, as he was with a playbook.
“All right, what’s the deal with you and your baby’s mother?” he asked.
I re-adjusted my stance before I answered. “I haven’t seen her since the day before she had my daughter. The hospital called me. She left my daughter and my contact number. What’s crazy is I was about to get jumped into a gang, but I went to the hospital instead to pick up Harley.”
“Damn. Have you heard from her? Is she involved in her life?” he questioned.
I didn’t share the intimate details of my life with most people, but we needed to establish a connection. Without us being on the same page, we couldn’t help each other.
“Nope, not a word. She never returned to high school. From what I heard, her parents sent her off. Harley asks about her from time to time. It was hard being a single father at sixteen, but I did what I had to do. My little football princess saved my life,” I said.
Bryce approached me and slapped my hand. I knew I gained his respect.
“What’s the deal with you and Vick? He did some foul shit. I would’ve beat his ass for his stunt. Why didn’t you?” I asked.
Bryce chuckled, but anger flashed in his eyes. “I haven’t forgotten. I go about things differently, I plan to use you to dethrone his ass. Consider yourself the new number one wide receiver for the Houston Armadillos. I need us to be connected before you leave in three weeks. You down with it?” he questioned
This time, I chuckled at his statement.
“What choice do I have? If you throw the ball at me, I’m going to go get it. I need the starting position to take care of my daughter and grandmother. The reality of the matter is we feed off your arm. I’m involved whether I want to be or not. As a man, I can’t get down with what Vick did. I already don’t trust his ass,” I said.
Bryce and I glared at each other as he extended his hand.
After a long, hot shower and the meal prepared by Mrs. Prescott, I rested my body across my bed. Hill and Austin handed me my ass today. I caught one ball against Hill after I fought for separation and he turned it up a notch. Austin critiqued my footwork constantly – I couldn’t move off the line of scrimmage without a restart. But, the connection between Bryce and I sparked once the ball fell into my hands.
I lifted my phone to call my daughter and saw a message from my mother.
Unknown
Marcus, son, please talk to me. I know I messed up. Don’t push your half siblings away.
I toggled over and called Harley. The tablet rang once before she answered.
“Daddy!” she sang into the video.
“Princess. I miss you.”
“Good, now can you come home?” she asked with bright, hopeful eyes.
I hated disappointing my daughter, but glaring into her round face wasn’t going to make my answer any easier. Outside of football, we were inseparable.
