Field Hockey and the Cleveland preserver

6

Mac's pov

I woke up lying prone next to KJ. What happened last night? Are you really here? God Kaje....

Then her alarm turned on. She hopped up and turned it off. 

*

After a breakfast of oatmeal we got on our bikes and left, somehow, without KJ's parents ever noticing me....well it's not that they were ever up or anything, really me and Kaje just hung out in her room and went down for dinner for half an hour and her parents never came in. I smirked confidently at the thought that I was so sneaky. Never seen, unnoticed, invisible. 

We road down the streets. We gladly didn't encounter any stupid teenagers or crazy Walmart people, I just threw all my papers and then we did Kaje's route. Making conversation all the way.

"Where is Erin's house anyway?" I asked biking slowly.

"Mac?! How did you not know?" Kaje asked with disappointment, "It's over on Barry road."

"Ok....how's Buttonwood?" I asked changing the subject.

"It's fine. Some girls were making a big deal out of St. Mary's. We're playing them tomorrow. Alex went on a whole tangent about destroying the enemy or lying on a cold floor but winning? I don't really know"

"What the fuck Kaje. I think she is going mental."

"Eh, I don't really remember what she said."

"Are you sure she was talking about field hockey?" I joked.

"Yea I'm sure. But yea, I don't have too much homework other than math and I did that yesterday at lunch."

"Cool, I don't have any work but I have to do other stuff."

"Erin's house is just up ahead." Kaje said. 

We greeted Erin and Tiff. We hung out for awhile, started a monopoly game. KJ won, but it took five hours...

We later went to Tiff's where we played Tetris. KJ seemed so interested by it, like it was the most fascinating  thing in the world. Nothing broke her stare until we turned off the TV and went home. 

"I have to be home by now. Dylan defiantly needs his Walkman back." I said to Kaje.

"I understand. I need a good rest before my game anyways." She shrugged, I waved and turned on my bike, putting on my headphones soon after. 

************************

(The next night)

I listened to music and road around for a bit, I had just had a long day of collecting and being chased by drunk teenage boys. I wanted to clear my head before I got home where I was eventually going to be yelled at. Don't think about Dad, or Dylan. I told myself mentally. I road past the movie theatre on Main Street, no one was even there. All empty as my wallet. But soon, My tires screeched against the dirty concrete as I pulled over when I saw a bill tucked halfway under metal cover over the order window of the ice cream shop. It was a twenty to my luck. I could use it all on smokes but that seemed like a waste, KJ wouldn't want me to do that anyways...

I gripped the handlebars of my bike and set course for a certainly good use of my time and money, the music store.

I went inside, like it was every other day, vinyls lining the walls, VHS tapes, laser discs, but then there was the cassette section. The only gold I cared about. Bands lined eight foot tall shelves, no less than a thousand tapes were on display. 

However I only cared about a few bands. I made my selections pretty quickly by Dylan's standards, and bought three tapes for seventeen dollars. I shoved them in my jacket pocket and sped home.

*

When I got there it was already dark, I crept around the side of the house and went into my room through the window, my lock was broken so I could always get in, it was only helped by the ground floor aspect. 

I crept in and heard the yelling from the living room, my Dad was complaining, something about how the Browns had lost another game. Alice was quietly listening, a rare moment of not complete chaos. I'll just put back Dylan's Walkman in a few hours I thought putting the tapes with the rest of my collection. I sat on my rough bed and stared at the Danzig poster on my wall. Lost in thought. I took off my jacket and lied down, brushing the hair out of my face, exchanging the staring contest with the piece of paper for the ceiling. 

After awhile I looked around my room dissatisfied. Random junk was strung about the floor. What little clothes I had sat in my unused chair, my shelf (if you could call it that) was barren, the wall had dents and odd discolorations that not even I could explain, and it was overall a dark, depressing place.

I sighed and heard Dad leave for the night shift. I walked into the living room that smelled more like cigarettes and death than usual. I saw the Dylan was gone, the coast was clear, so I put the Walkman back in his room. I took a cigarette off of Alice and started cleaning up the beer cans. I threw them out first and then swept up all the debris and dirt that made us look more poor than we already were. I turned off the TV and went to my room.

It was late, but I decided to not stay the night. I left through my window and got on my bike. I started done the street when Dylan pulled up in a car out of nowhere,

"Hey Mac! Where are you going?"

"Out."

"Do you have my Walkman? If you do I'll kill you."

"No I don't dipshit."

"You better not. Shiteater"

"Why are you even out?"

"I was at the school. We did some sick graffiti."

I scoffed, "aww, did you do a little picture of a sun and a smiley face?"

"No assclown. I wrote ur mom." He said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

"Fuck off"

"What the fuck ever, have fun whore." He said speeding off.

I road down to Stony Stream high and stared at the wall. He wasn't joking. Someone sure did give it a splash of color. 

I shook my head and went to the first place I could think of. KJ's house. 

I hid my bike behind the fence, climbing up the cedar tree next to KJ's window. I looked inside to see her reading. I timidly knocked on the window, she looked up, surprised at first. "What are you doing here?" She asked opening the window.

"Didn't really want to stay at home."

"Yea, do any of us?" She smirked.

"So what have you be- what's that?" I asked pointing to the large blue mark on her arm.

"Oh that. I had the game against St. Mary's. Right."

"What the fuck Kaje! You play field hockey."

"I know, they were just....a little rough."

"I don't think that blue is a sign of 'rough'. More like 'painful' I thought you played the proper preppy sport; not fucking tackle football."

"I mean it's not like it isn't. But at least we won."

"Yea and no blood?" I said sarcastically.

"Well....." KJ mumbled. "I mean I got hit in the face by a stick when I hit the ball, so I got a bloody nose but other than that I was fine." 

"Jesus Kaje."

"Soo how was you're day? I assume less brutal?"

"Some chuckle fucks chased me for an hour. I was only on my bike."

"Oh god" KJ said.

"I only lost them when they ran out of gas. Then I went somewhere else then here."

"Pretty eventful." KJ said 

"Yea I know. But I'm just happy to be with you." I said pulling her towards me.