The Taunting (College Life #1)

James Logan better count his blessings

I make my way through the crowd, over to my seats where I sit next to my parents. As usual, they are decked out. Blue and yellow all over their faces, arms, and even legs. My father has a large foam finger and my mother is wearing a light-up hat. There is no way they won't be seen miles across the stadium.

Across the row, I see Teddy and my sister. I can see the painful look on his face and the eagerness. Since his whole fight at Parker's house in the valley, he's been suspended for the entirety of the season, which means no championships.

I talked on the phone with Bridget last night, she told me about the guilt she felt and wished she could change history. She blames herself. I know Teddy wouldn't want her to think like that, after all, he was defending my sister. You can't put a ban on chivalry.

Right next to them are Carlee and Doug, who are wearing matching Berkeley t-shirts. Jill and Daniel are below us; they weren't able to get seats near us. I can see Jill's head moving a lot, which means she's talking Daniel's ears off. Connie and Cross are next to them.

Jace is sitting on the football bleachers that are directly in front of the field. Monica volunteered to sit with him, but he told her no and to give him some space. Ever since his accident of getting hit on the field, she's been obsessing over him. Thinking that something even worse is going to happen to him. She's standing right next to me, wringing her hands.

"Hey, are you alright?" I lean in closer to her so she could hear me over the loud cheering and noise. We're surrounded by people, I hope I don't have to use the bathroom, that's going to be a bitch.

Her eyes tear away from Jace, "Yeah, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be fine?"

"Because you look like you're going to vomit," I comment.

She rolls her eyes, "I'm just worried about Jace, that's all. I know that he wants to get onto that field, this is the championships, something he's been waiting for. Now, it was ripped from him by a stupid football player."

I pat her hand, "There's always next year, right?"

She shrugs her shoulder, "Maybe. The way his arm broke, it may not heal properly. He's quarterback, he needs his throwing arm. When they come back from injury, most football players are never the same. I just worry about him, he's my baby you know." She bites on her pink acrylic nail.

We look back on the field, listening to the announcers as they mention each player from the Stanford team. I hear James's name mentioned, but I can't see his face since his helmet is on. He's tall like Andreas, a peak of blonde hair shows out his helmet and he's strong looking. I wonder where Jessie is, she has to be here. Andreas never told me the story of why she cheated on him, I wonder why she did it.

Andreas is a great guy, super funny, and very caring. The way he kisses is so soft and gentle, his hands are rough, but feel good against my head when he massages it. And his hugs make you let go of all the anxiety and anger of the world; you just feel so content.

I hope she knows how much she hurt him, and I hope he knows I would never do that to him. He means too much to me.

I hear the announcers calling for the UC Berkeley team. All the boys come out, clad in the school's blue and gold. They look amazing. My eyes search for one particular player, then I see him. His face is contorted like he's thinking about something, his lips are formed into a thin line and his hand is clutched around his helmet. He doesn't run out like the other players; he just walks fast paced over to the bench.

He and Jace spark up a conversation, from the way his lips were moving and shoulders tensed, he was angry. Then, his eyes search the crowd and land on me. I wave a shy smile. He doesn't smile back but waves his hand.