FRIDAY'S GIRL ·ϿʘϾ·

Chapter 52

The afternoon sun beat down hard on the soccer field, sweat dripping down my face, tense with concentration. My legs felt heavy—not so much from physical effort, but from the bad vibes I could sense all around me. Ever since practice had started, my teammates hadn't stopped showing me open hostility. From averted glances to whispers between plays, unnecessary shoves, and tackles that were way too aggressive, it was like everyone was out to get me.

"What an asshole," someone muttered near the sideline.

I tried to keep my head up, pretending it didn't bother me. I managed to trap the ball, but some idiot intentionally slammed into my leg—the same one I'd fractured earlier this year.

"Watch yourself next time," I muttered, taking a deep breath to keep my cool.

"It was an accident, dude. These things happen," the guy replied with a smug grin.

Everyone knew Maddison hadn't been to school all week because of what happened at my birthday party and my so-called "cheating." Rumors were flying about me and the mystery girl I'd hooked up with at The Weeknd concert. Speculation about her identity was everywhere. Some people swore it was April Storm, but most dismissed that as a dumb rumor. Apparently, they couldn't imagine someone like me trading the gorgeous head cheerleader for the outcast photographer from The Theresean Chronicles.

When another brutal tackle nearly knocked me over, I clenched my teeth. I didn't want to show weakness, but frustration was building inside me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Oliver on the other side of the field, high-fiving the big guy who'd just taken me down. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but their looks made it clear enough: they were gunning for me.

During a pass, I lost focus because of all the weirdness going on, and the ball went flying into the bleachers.

"Again, Owens? Are you gonna focus on the game, or do you wanna head home?" one of the defenders snapped, elbowing his buddy like they were in on some joke.

I kept my mouth shut, swallowing the urge to fire back. I knew if I reacted, things would only get worse. The pressure in my chest kept building, the heat rising in my face along with the anger and helplessness choking me.

During another play, I felt an especially hard shove. I hit the ground face-first, pain shooting through my leg. I shut my eyes for a moment, trying to focus on anything else to keep the pain from taking over. The stifled giggles of my teammates, paired with their sneaky glances at each other, felt like a dagger to the chest. They were freezing me out.

"Hey, Brad, need a hand?" one of them called, grabbing his crotch crudely. "Here, grab this!"

The quiet snickers turned into full-blown laughter, hitting me like a wave of humiliation. I felt completely isolated, cut off from the group. This was the price I had to pay for ditching my girlfriend without coming clean. As much as it sucked, I'd rather face this than the shame of everyone knowing I'd been betrayed in the worst, most humiliating way.

"Everyone who laughed, ten laps around the field! I don't know what's gotten into you all today, but I won't tolerate bad vibes in this team," Coach shouted, jogging over to me. "You okay, kid?"

I nodded as a large group of players started running, glancing at me with annoyed expressions, like I was to blame for their punishment instead of being the victim of their bullying. They were all working together to make me feel out of place, and the worst part was, they were succeeding. Our friendship had vanished in the blink of an eye, leaving me as public enemy number one.

Maybe they were never really your friends, I told myself, stretching a bit to ease the tension in my muscles. When my eyes met Oliver's, who was also running laps with the others, I saw the resentment in his face. Unbelievable. Of all people, he was the last one who had the right to be pissed at me for cheating on Maddie. Seriously, what a joke! He was sleeping with my girlfriend, I was practically handing her over to him, and instead of being "grateful," he was mad at me? Some people are just impossible.