By the end of the day, then the week, I’ve gotten used to my new station in Silverwood Public.
Megan White is gone.
Long live the new queen.
The end of the week marks the second to last game of the season and it’s also the first game that Gio’s fully in it for the long haul since he was attacked. He’s played multiple times during his recovery, but never the whole game and never against guys as big as the team they’re facing now.
“Hmmmm, do you think any of the players from Rockville will come to the after-party?” Roquel asks as she and I march up the bleachers to find a spot amongst the mass of students.
Though she hasn’t said anything, I’m pretty sure Roquel knows that I’m the reason Megan has pulled out of school. If she’s bothered by that fact, she hasn’t shown it. Mads, on the other hand, is not exactly approving of my methods.
“Don’t know,” I answer Roquel as we find seats in a good section of the bleachers. “Do you know if Mads is coming to the game tonight?” I cast a look out over the crowd, but I don’t spot her familiar blonde ponytail.
Roquel pats my leg. “She’ll come around, Jules,” she says, “but I think she’s a bit busy prepping for the winter formal—you know it’s coming up soon.”
“It’s next month, isn’t it?” I say, wincing as the cold bite of metal sinks right past my thick jeans and into my ass. Would it really kill the school to invest in cushions or something to rent for these things?
“End of next month,” Roquel clarifies. “But she’s practically planning it all by herself—the student council is useless.”
I grunt my agreement as the announcer begins to hype the crowd and the cheerleading squad for Silverwood Public takes to the field. I sit forward, my stomach cramping as I bite down on my lower lip—concern for Gio at the forefront of my mind. Though he’s healed up rather well, football is one of the harshest contact sports, and even if he’s not the quarterback or running back, one wrong move could send him straight back to the hospital.
“Here they come!” Roquel smacks my side excitedly and jumps up with the rest of the crowd as the banner decorated earlier in the week by the cheerleaders is ripped to shreds as the team runs onto the green.
I rise to my feet as well, clapping and going onto my toes to see over the heads of those in front of us. Lex is the first one I see—with his height and mass, he’s the easiest to pick out of a crowd. Nolan is next, and then, finally, Gio. My clapping rises into a loud crescendo and it doesn’t stop until the rest of the crowd descends back into their seats and the game begins.
Roquel leaves to get the two of us a few sodas and comes back, demanding a play-by-play of everything she missed. Thankfully, nothing too major has happened and Gio seems to be performing well despite being locked to the field the entire time.
In the second quarter, there’s a particularly rough tackle from Rockville that takes him down to the ground. I grind my molars as I glare at the asshole. The black-and-white dressed ref peels the guy off Gio’s body, blowing the whistle so hard that the ref’s face is practically swollen red.
“He’s fine,” Roquel assures me. “He’s fine.”
He better be,I think,or I’ll find out who the fuck Number 27 is on Rockville’s team and break his fucking kneecaps in retribution.
Gio jumps up from the ground and seems to shake off the assault with little issue, and I breathe a sigh of relief. Annoyance cuts into me when instead of being benched, that same Rockville offensive lineman is allowed back onto the field.
On the next play, though, I cackle as Gio switches course and slams himself into the fucker, slamming him into the cold, hard ground. Even though Roquel and I are several seats up and it’s impossible to truly see Gio’s expression from up here, I can picture him smirking behind his mouth guard.
“Damn.” Roquel whistles low and long. “He’s vicious when he’s pissed.”
Flicking one of the strands of hair off my shoulder, I shrug. “That asshole had it coming.”
She turns her head in my direction and arches a brow. “You’re getting particularly protective, aren’t you? What would Lex or Nolan think?”
I focus my attention on her. “Why would they care?”
Both of her brows jump towards her forehead. “Um… which one of them are you dating again?”
“Does it matter?”
“Well, I mean, I guess not—but they might not like you being so into another guy, especially one of their friends.”
“And if I’m with all of them?” I tilt my head in her direction as her eyes bulge.
She shoots a look out to the field and back again. “Really?”
Adjusting my ass on the rock-hard bleachers, I return my gaze to the game as the second quarter comes to an end and the cheerleaders take the field for halftime once again. My silence must be answer enough because Roquel makes a sharp sound of dismay and then mutters a quick, “What the fuck?”
I’m no longer listening to her, though, as Coach Danley—who I recognize from my first day of school—rushes onto the sidelines of the field. Though I don’t like the motherfucker because of his obvious hostility towards me, I’m laser-focused on him now. He’s not one of the assistant football coaches, so he has no business being on the field. After a quick stop by the guys’ actual coach, after which Nolan is called from the others where they’re all huddled around, a sense of dread works its way into my veins.
