Page 38 of Love Me Not
Cheerleaders leapt in the air, contorting their legs at odd angles, and I spotted Kandace waving her pom poms with the rest of them. Once both teams were on the field and the band was up in the stands, the cheerleaders took their place directly in front of our section and I spotted a small number painted on Kandace’s cheek.
The number from the jersey Aiden wore every Friday. She clearly wasn’t giving up.
The team finished their stretching and ball tossing to also take their place on the sideline. Jacob stood and yelled Trey’s name, causing him to turn our way. I’d never seen such an intense look on his face before. Until his eyes met mine. Then he smiled and my heart did a backflip in my chest. What the heck was that about?
The first half flew by, and I cringed with every bodily collision, which essentially meant on every single play. How could anyone find this level of brutality fun? Or entertaining? At the same time, I knew these kids and I couldn’t help but root for them. There was a real sense of pride in seeing them do well.
We were ahead by a touchdown going into halftime, and I’d been so engrossed in following the kids I knew around the field, I almost forgot how cold it was. The break in the game meant getting up to stretch and taking a trip to the concession stand for hot chocolate. Yes, please.
“Are you having fun?” Megan asked as we squeezed through the crowd behind the stands.
“Not sure fun is the word for it,” I replied. “I’m struggling not to run onto the field and make them all stop hitting each other.”
She nodded. “It looks violent, but the protective gear helps.”
You couldn’t convince me that those helmets were truly protecting their still developing little brains. The human skull wasn’t designed for that level of impact. Now how was I going to convince my sister to pull her son out of this sport before his little noggin got too damaged?
As we approached the concession stand and spotted the large crowd forming multiple lines, Megan said, “Halftime is going to be over before we get up to the window.”
“I can’t sit through another half of this without something warm, so we’ll have to suck it up.”
“Well, look who’s here.” I turned to find Pepper Lowell coming our way. “Never thought I’d see the day.”
“Don’t get used to it,” I said, knowing exactly what she meant. “I won’t be attending another one. Pepper, this is my friend Megan. Megan, this is Pepper Lowell. She’s the choir director at school.”
“Nice to meet you,” Megan said. “I’d shake your hand but I have warmers in these pockets and I don’t want to pull my hands out.”
“I totally understand. I found the ones that go in your shoes.” Pepper lifted the toe of her right boot. “Life savers.” To me, she said, “So the rumors are true then?”
Who were they gossiping about now? “What rumors?”
“The ones about you and the coach.”
Lovely. Just lovely.
Chapter Ten
“About me and what coach?” I asked, barely keeping my temper in check.
We had seven sports at the school and though I knew exactly the coach she meant, getting confirmation was always better than confirming the wrong information. Not that there was anything to confirm.
“Come on,” she said, poking me with her elbow. “If you and Trey are trying to be discreet, you’re failing miserably.”
“There’s nothing to be discreet about. I can barely tolerate the man.”
The line moved and we all stepped forward.
“He isn’t so bad,” Megan said. “I like that he has a happy puppy vibe about him.”
“A happy bald puppy,” Pepper said with a laugh.
“There are worse things than being bald,” I cut in, mouth way ahead of my brain. I had zero reason to defend Trey Collins or his lack of hair. None of which was the point of this conversation. “What are people saying about us?”
“Just that there appears to be a budding romance.” The last was said with an exaggerated eyebrow wiggle.
The eyebrows needed to stand down. “Where would anyone get that idea?”
She shrugged. “He comes to your rehearsals after football practice, and you two were seen talking together, looking very cozy, in his pickup truck. I mean, if you don’t want people to know, you probably shouldn’t have little meet-ups in the school parking lot.”