An Exchange

Chapter Forty-Three - Rough Night

Ryan

I sat on the couch watching TV, bored, and wondering why I was sitting at home on a Saturday night.

"Mom!" I called through the house, but she didn't hear me. I sighed and changed the channel.

"Hey, Ryan. What are you up to tonight?" Dad asked as he entered the kitchen and opened the fridge.

"Nothing, remember?" I said with as much attitude as possible.

He leaned over the back of the couch. "Drop the attitude, kid."

I scowled and folded my arms.

"How about you and I do something. It's been a while."

I scoffed. "I'd prefer not to."

"How about it's not a request it's an order?"

"Fine." I grumbled, standing. "What are we going to do?"

"Go get your gym clothes on."

We drove to the University of Utah campus where we parked by the football field and climbed out. He pulled his ball from the trunk and tossed it to me. "Do you think you could out play your old man?"

I rolled my eyes and smiled. "Easily."

We went out onto the field and threw the ball between us, slowly moving further and further away from each other. Then he gave me pointers on my game. He ran some drills with me, before he called me in and patted my back proudly. "Very good, Ryan. You may be even better than I was."

"I doubt that, Dad." I'd seen tapes of him when he had played for the Cowboys in the eighties. To be as good as he had been was a goal of mine, and for him to say that to me was a huge compliment.

"I wish I'd stayed in Texas with you. They would have really challenged you there."

"Why didn't you?" I asked.

He tossed the ball high in the air over his head. "I like it here."

"No you don't. You hate all the Mormons."

He faced toward the mountains. "Look at the way the sun hits those mountains as it sets. You would never see a sight like that in Texas. Utah is full of beautiful things."

“Mom and you both grew up in Texas, and all our family is there, but you came here because it's beautiful?" It didn't make sense to me. Dad was not the type to admire nature.

He looked me in the eyes and said very seriously, "Ryan, one day very soon you will be gone at college and I won't get to see you as often. Then, hopefully you will get recruited by the NFL and go pro, and you will get to live life exactly how you want."

I took the ball from his hands. "Dad, you sound like you're trying to tell me you're dying."

He chuckled. "No, I'm fine. Just don't let yourself get distracted, okay? You could be something incredible."

"Thanks, Dad." Smiling, I tossed the ball in the air and caught it again. "But don't worry. I know what I want and I'm going to get it."

He patted my shoulder. "And what might that be?"

"I'm going to UCLA and I'm going to study hard and play football the best I can. Then I'm going to play for the Cowboys like you did. Then I'll retire and become a high school football coach."

"High school football?" His brows furrowed. "If you played for the NFL you could do at least college."

"No, I want to do high school. I want to help boys like me get ready for college and reach their potential."