According to Plan

Chapter 13

Heat throbbed alongside my face. It seems I had slept out here on the bleachers all night.

I stood up and stretched, my back aching and legs asleep. I stumbeled down the metal benches, but noticed the equipment was still out since yesterday. It was only about 6 in the morning.. perhaps I could sneak in some private game time before coach or anyone else got here.

I lugged the oversided football dummy from the pile and practised my tackles, this time with my arms.

"wow, it works," I muttered to myself as I gazed down at the dummy on the grass.

Grabbing a football, I held it properly; Cameron's voice repeating over in my head, "your last two fingers in the lace." And with all my might, I threw the football and made it almost halfway across the field.

"Yes!" I screamed and lit up, clapping and celebrating.

Next I moved on to the basic drill I'd seen coach make the boys do. The tires, crawling under bob wire in the soaking wet mud, and shuffling through pylons. Since Cameron's help, my footwork... and everything for that matter, had gotten a hundred times better.

I jumped when I heard someone clapping slowly behind me.

"Coach Henry!"

He nodded and spat black tabacco on the grass, flinging his cigar along with it and stomping on it, "ya improved."

I gulped, "for real?"

He raised a brow, "well would I lie, sonny?"

I nodded and picked up the football, getting ready to leave, "thanks."

"Wait," he muttered in his thick Texan accent, "join the team."

My brows rose, "Shut the front door!"

He frowned, obviously confused, "I want you to join Team A. Never has someone went from waterboy to Team A... but I don't know how you got this good.. now don't get me wrong, ya ain't the best man on the team but--"

I shrieked, "eeeh! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I won't dissapoint you!"

With that, I ran off to Dorm 3A to tell Cameron the good news.

I danced into the dorm, people were still snoring while I heard an assistant coach filling a bucket of cold water outside. I shook Cameron.

"I'm on the team!" I laughed, excited.

He gave me a look, glanced at his watch, then his eyes turned to slits.

I gulped and backed away.

Okay, obviously not a morning person.

"Good mornin' to ya gentlemen," coach shouted over the line up.

I felt proud standing there in Chad's oversides football gear.

"Routine practice today boys. Captains of Team B, pick your teams. And captains of Team A, pick your teams."

The crowd of boys split up and I proudly followed the A-teamers. I noticed Billy strolling over miserably alongside Reese to the B-Teamers.

Jason Brent, a tall brown eyed boy with a buzz cut and massive calf muscles stepped forward, juggling a football in his hand. I guessed he was the first team A captain. But where was the other one?

"DiMarco! You're late! Is this what I get for making you captain of the entire team?! You know I can easily give Brent your spot!" coach shouted over his coffee.

Cameron flashed coach Henry an apologetic grin and slipped on his jersey.

"First dibs," Jason smirked and pointed a finger at the unforgettable Byron Bosniac, "I will take you as my O line."

Cameron rolled his eyes. I peeked my head over the crowd of guys, trying to be seen. No use, I was at the back.

"I'll take Steve."

I lit up and ran to his side, my helmet bobbing madly above me.

I heard people snicker and some call out unnecessary insults.

So the teams were devided and Cameron discussed the gameplan on a board.

"Steve, Luke will hand you off the football and I want to see you run! Got that?"

I gulped and nodded at him. How many broken bones could I afford?

"Okay break on three!"

"Break!" I shouted after three, a bit panicky and nervous. And this corset wasn't helping out either.

"Hut, hut!" Braidon shouted and tossed the ball to me. Surprisingly, I caught it.

"RUN! RUN!" Cameron shouted.

I gulped, a dozen men were running towards me and I freaked out. I ran the other way, screaming my head off, still being chased by a mob of big angry men. I passed the goal post on our side and finally they stopped chasing me.

"Are you crazy?!" one guy pulled me up by my helmet and I stumbeled to my feet.

Oh no.. what did I just do?

Cameron trudged up to me, ripped the ball out of my hands, and pointed furiously to the bench.

"No, wait, give me a chance! Please! Okay, I freaked out a little and i'm sorry, but it won't happen again, I promise!"

"You just scored on our side!" Cameron shouted

"I know, and I'm sorry!"

He gritted his teeth and held up a finger, "one more chance, Morner. And then you're gone to the bench!"

I gulped and muttered, "thank you kind sir."

And yet again, I somehow managed to get a hold of the ball. But this time I bolted full speed to the oncoming guys. Sure, they were faster than I was, but they couldn't move like I could. I swung around them, hopped over their backs when they fell, and even slid through some guy's legs at some point. Of course this was with the help of my team mates tackles. But atlast, I reached the endzone and thrusted the football to the grass and did a victory dance.

Someone patted me on the back, hard! Almost making me loose control of my bowels.

"Good job, man!"

I flashed them a grin, and noticed Cameron smiling too. Like all his hard work had not gone to waste afterall.