Finding 4

Chapter 40

Callum

"Over here!" Grady shouts, waving his hurley around like a mad man.

I'd rather play chicken with a train than pass to him.

So instead, I ignore him. That was the worst decision I've made all day.

It was bad, because I can't even focus out here tonight. For the entire match my mind has been swirling about my girlfriend and the current predicament she's in.

"Callum!" I hear someone shout, and I look up just at the same time one of the larger players from the other team barrels into me.

My body flies back when he makes contact with me, and my head bounces against the hard, mowed down pitch.

Immediately my ears ring, and my vision goes blurry. My mind goes blank, and I feel myself rolling over to my stomach.

Pain is ricocheting off of every wall in my head, and the ringing is so loud I physically cringe at it.

"Callum," I hear Jumbo—that's the nickname for our trainer—say. "Can you hear me?"

I feel a pair of hands pull me over to my back, making me face everything around me. I'm blinded by the stadium lights, and I wince again, feeling a flash of pain in my head again.

When I finally bring myself to open my eyes again, I scan my surroundings. Dad is knelt next to me, a worried expression on his face. Jumbo is on the other side of me, and I can see the flashlight he's pulling out of his kit. Niall and Finley are behind Jumbo, staring down at me, along with the rest of my team behind them.

Jumbo flashes the light in my eyes and I quickly squint them, trying to make the pain stop.

"Where are you, Callum?" He asks.

"Ireland." I reply with a strained voice.

Dad snickers "No you idiot. Where in Ireland."

"Tommen." I reply.

"Good lad." Jumbo nods. "Do you know what you're doing here?"

"Trying to win a hurling match." I try to stand up, but I can't get myself up.

Dad and Jumbo pull me to my feet, and I hear the crowd clapping, but it still doesn't register. My head starts to pound again and Dad wraps my arm around his shoulders. Jumbo takes my other arm.

"You ready?"

I just nod. At least I think I nodded.

We start to walk off the field, my feet hardly even moving at all, and instead they mash together in way that somehow keeps me moving forward. I feel myself starting to fall over again. Good thing Dad is there holding me up, because if he wasn't, I'd be face down in the grass again.

"Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Let me play."

He looks over at me "Absolutely not. Get your ass in that locker room."

"Please." I beg.

"No." He shakes his head, and lets Jumbo take me from here. "Not until the doctors say yes."

Doctor? Hell to the no. I am not going to the doctor.

Before I can argue, Jumbo starts to help me down into the locker room. Before we disappear into the tunnel, I look up into the bleachers, scanning for Marley.

My eyes land on her, and she's already looking at me. I can tell she's worried, but my view is blocked when the old man sitting in front of her stands up.

We walk into the locker room, and after Jumbo does several other tests, I'm left alone. I can hear the crowd cheering just above me, and it makes me want to run back out in the pitch and play, no matter how badly my head is pounding.

The door creaks open and I look over, seeing my mam walk in. She immediately walks over to me, and I prepare myself for all sorts of questions.

"Before you start, I'm fine." I hold up my hand.

"Fine?" She pinches my jaw with her pointer finger and thumb, and twists my face around as if she can see the injury inside of my head. "You could have gotten killed. This is your head we're talking about Callum-"

"Ma I'm fine." I reach up and take her hand off of my jaw. "Wheres Marley?"

"She's out with Kennedy and Flynn." Mam sits down next to me. "Are you sure you feel okay?"

I nod "I'm okay."

She sighs and rubs my back. "Okay. Well I better go get your brother and sister before they give Marley a hard time."

I smile slightly and she mirrors it. She stands up and walks for the door, but I stop her before she pulls it open.

"Mam?"

She twists around to face me.

"Thank you."

She smiles "For what?"

"For loving me." I shrug.

She smiles again, and I can see the tears forming in her eyes. Well shit. I didn't mean to make her cry.

"I'll always love you, pet." She pulls open the door. "Now let me go wrangle these kids."

The locker room falls silent again, and I lean back in my stall. My eyes flutter shut as I sit there, breathing through the throbbing of my head.

I'm so lost in thought that I don't even know someone else is in the room until I feel a small hand on my thigh.

My eyes open and I see Marley. For a second, all of the pain goes away as I stare at her.

"Are you okay?" She asks softly.

I just nod.

"You scared me." She huffs with a smile.

I smile slightly "Sorry."

"Are you injured at all?"

"Jumbo thinks I might have a concussion." I roll my eyes. "They're all being dramatic. I'll be fine tomorrow."

She chuckles "Just listen to them. They know what they're talking about, and they'll make you better."

"Maybe you should do that too." I say cautiously. I know she doesn't want to talk about it, but it needs to be said.

"What?" She tilts her head.

"Therapy, Mar." My words make her stop smiling, and I watch as she turns her head to look straight.

I sigh and lean forward, looking over at her. "I'm serious. I don't want to watch you struggle anymore."

Her brown eyes meet mine, and I can see a little bit of her old self in there. That's why I'm pushing for this, because I know I can have her back. I know that.

"How about this." I sniffle and then add, "I'll listen to the doctors, let them tell me when I can and when I can't play. But that means that you have to talk to your therapist. At least just try."

For a moment, I think she might turn the notion down, but then she looks back at me. "Okay."