offsides | c. clark

two.

2020
The University of Iowa
Iowa City, Iowa

"Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to the start of your college athletic career. You've already achieved something amazing by earning a spot on this team and at this school. You've worked hard, shown talent, and have been given an opportunity that many others dream of. You're here for a reason, and today, I want to talk about what that means – not just for you, but for this program, your teammates, and your future."

"First, let's get something straight. Your position on your respective teams and your scholarships are privileges, not rights. I repeat: privileges, not rights-"

Alexandria began to tune out the speech as she clicked her pen and began sketching on the papers that they had given them for the orientation. She mindlessly began to draw on the page.

"There he is!" Kassidy, her teammate and roommate, hisses in her ear. Alex looks up and scans the auditorium trying to figure out who exactly Kassidy was talking about. Kassidy grabs her chin and turns her head to the left. There was a guy sneaking a look over his shoulder and at the moment Alex locks eyes with him, he quickly turns around.

Alex's brows furrow as she looks up at Kassidy and Kassidy stares back at her with big green eyes, "Do you think he's cute?"

"He's fine," Alex says shrugging her shoulders as she resumes her sketching.

"He's fine as in he's average and you wouldn't mind being seen with him or he's fine as in you'd jump his bones?" Kassidy asks.

"He's fine as in he isn't the ugliest man in this room," Alex retorts with a smile.

Kassidy frowns, "You are entirely unhelpful."

Alex smiles to herself as she resumes sketching, she finishes the drawing and then begins shading.

Alexandria and Kassidy couldn't be more different. Kassidy was born in raised in Iowa City. She was blonde and beautiful and everyone loved her. She was already well known throughout the campus simply because all the guys were gunning for her. On their first night in the dorm, Kassidy showed her all of the guys that had slid in her DMs. There were Iowa football players, basketball players, soccer players, even swimmers.

Kassidy was loud and outgoing and wasn't afraid to call anyone out. Kassidy walked into a room and commanded attention. Alexandria was the opposite. She tried to shrink herself and make herself smaller. She hated attention. Arguably the worst day of her life was when she realized she was good at soccer and the attention that was going to come with it.

"Finally, let me say this: if you ever find yourself in trouble or in a tough spot, don't be afraid to ask for help. Whether it's your coaches, academic advisors, or teammates, we're here for you. It's better to ask for help early than to make a mistake that could cost you your future."

"That concludes my speech-"

People began rising from their seats after that and began making their way out of the auditorium.

Kassidy leans close to Alex, nudging her, "Ready?"

"Yes," Alex responds as she shoves her sketchbook into her bag and slings it over her shoulder.

As they stood to leave, Kassidy and Alex made their way through the sea of new athletes, trying to make their exit. That's when someone moving quickly through the crowd ran directly into Alex, knocking her bag off her shoulder and sending the contents to the floor.

"Oh crap, I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention," her assailant says.

Alex doesn't respond as she drops to her knees and tries to gather her sketches. She grabs a paper and notices a name at the top of the paper.