How Field Hockey Met Football

Chapter 1: How It All Started

| Austin Vayner's Pov |

The music was blaring. I stood beside some drunk blonde, maybe a cheerleader, as she tried to con me into doing some party shit. I say try for two reasons. 1) I can't hear a damn word she is saying. 2) I'm only here to prevent drunk driving. I slowly walk away as she fills her red solo cup up with some cheap vodka.

"Hey man, what were you doing talking to Stacey?" Luke Greyson, my linebacker, asked me.

"Who's Stacey?" I asked, bewildered.

"The drunk blonde you were just talking to. Head cheerleader? Ring any bells?" Luke asked me.

"Oh, really? Well, look at that, learn something new everyday!" I chuckled, nervously.

"Are you gonna get laid?! Great, man, you really need it!" Luke said.

"Dude! Are you shitting me? I'm not gonna have sex, especially not with a drunk girl! Plus, I'm learning from James, he had sex almost every night and look at where that's got him! A baby!" I practically shouted. Luke just shrugged and walked away. I rubbed my hands over my face in exasperation, when I uncovered my eyes the sight in front of me made me want to puke. Some fuckboy had a girl pinned against a wall. It was evident the girl was fiercely trying to get away but, two of fuckboy's buddies were helping him keep her down. I walked up the behind the douchebags and cleared my throat. I smirked as the helpers' eyes grew wide. I used my eyes to tell them to run. They did just that.

"Oi, worthless bastards! C'mon, sugar." Fuckboy said to the girl. She struggled more.

"Hey, Fuckboy." I said. He acknowledged me but, didn't look at me. I continued, "Let. Her. Go."

"No." He turned to me this time. I stared at him for a few seconds before he attempted to punch me. I caught his wrist before he gave me a black eye and, instead, gave him one. Without looking at the girl, I grabbed her hand and left fuckboy on the floor in shock. I led the girl to my black jeep and opened the door. I got in on the other side and then looked at her with a groan.

Melady Carmichael.

Melady is captain of the Varsity Field Hockey team. She and I are at each other's throats all the time because every year since freshman year we have been tied for school's MVP. All the football guys vote for me and the field hockey teams, both boy and girl, vote for Melady. It's pretty self explanatory. Ever since then, the school divides itself into two teams for the sake of seeing us tie and our rivalry continue for another year. We pull a bunch of pranks on each other too. Basically, it's war. Last year, we started Water Wars. Water Wars is basically the Hunger Games, but with water. Melady and I were the last ones standing last year and we shot each other at the same time. So, it was, once again a tie.

"Thanks, Austin." Melady said, I heard the sincerity in her voice.

"No problem, it was the right thing to do, you okay?" I asked. She nodded. "Where do you live?" I asked as I pulled out of the driveway.

"You can't take me home, my mom can't see me like this." She pleaded. I nodded and drove to 7/11.

"Want anything?" I asked. She nodded and got out. As much as I hate this girl's guts, I was raised better than to just let her go off on her own. She's strong, and smart, any other girl would either be crying from fear or yelling at me in anger. She's just thankful.

I opened the door for her and she entered the store. I watched as she went straight for the Slurpees. She got a medium cup and filled it halfway with Pina Colada, then added some cherry, then lime and finally, a small dollop of banana. She sorted through the straws and got a red one out, our school's main color is red. I followed her to the check out counter, getting a coke on the way. I got two hotdogs, hoping she's not vegetarian. She filled it up with chili and cheese. I stared at her.

"What?" She asked.

"Chili and Cheese?"

"This is how my brother makes it and I guess I just started to like it better then normal hotdogs." She smiled at the thought of her brother.

"It's a wonder your not fatter than you are." I smirked. Then, realized I made a mistake. "Too soon?"

"Yeah." She gritted out. I winced. Oops. I filled mine up the way that I like it, Chili and Cheese with a little bit of jalapenos. "Why'd you question me putting chili and cheese on mine if you do the same?" She asked.

"You just don't seem like the type." I responded.

"There's more where that came from." She smiled and walked out the door. I payed the guy behind the counter and followed her. She was sitting on the hood of my jeep eating her hotdog. I had parked along the side of the parking lot so I hopped up with her and we ate in silence.

"Why do we hate each other?" She asked.

"Cause we can never beat each other at anything?" I answered, although it came out more as a question.

"I don't think so, I think it's because the school wants us to hate each other so we do." She said. I thought about it. If I truly hated her, no amount of good parenting from my momma and dad would make me buy her what I just did.

"What are you saying?" I asked.

"I wanna be friends." She said.

"Really?" I asked. She looked at me and nodded.

"But, I also like our little rivalry. So, I propose we do this every Friday night. And when we get back to school, we hate each other again." She said.

"Why go through all that trouble if we can just stop being enemies?" I asked.

"Because the prank is already set up and there is no way I'm stopping our prank war now. That is surrendering and I will not surrender to you, Vayner." She said with a triumphant smirk. I smiled and realized that we would be friends, it would just seem like we're enemies to other people. We sat there and talked for another few hours before I looked at the time. 1:39am.

"Well, I better get you home." I said. She nodded and got in the jeep. She gave me directions to her house and I dropped her off.

"Bye, Vayner." She smiled.

"See ya, Carmichael." I smiled back. She waved and went inside her house. I backed out of the driveway and went to my house. As I was walking in, I thought back to the party and how I punched a guy in the face for harassing Melady. He will pay for hurting my new best friend. He will.