One Of The Guys

Championship Game

The Monday after our visit to Oxford, we walked into school holding hands. It was official. I was dating one of my teammates, one of my best friends.

Signs were posted everywhere in the halls, in the cafeteria, and in all the classrooms. All sporting some kind of support for the football team. "Take state!" or "Bring home the trophy again!" and many others.

The weeks fly by with hard practice and our last game, that secures our ticket to the championships.

On Friday morning, the whole school stands in the parking lot as we stand in front of the bus, our names and numbers spray painted on the windows. The kindergarteners hand us goodie bags with our numbers on them as we load the bus. I smile at all of them, Jake being in that class. He waves widly at me and I blow him a kiss.

We get on the bus and we put all the windows down as we wave at all the students and they cheer and clap as we start to pull off. They've done this every year, it's my fourth and final year riding this bus and heading off to state.

I'm settled in the back and Noah sits down next to me for the three hour bus ride.

BJ is already taking a nap in the two back seats. Parker and Wyatt are playing some card game in the seat across from us and Ty is napping in the seat in front of us.

I fall asleep on Noah's shoulder, and when we get to the field I stumble off the bus, still kind of tired.

I change in the girls locker room and rush the field with the guys.

The stadium is already packed. We are playing against Westside Wildcats. But most of the fans are for us. Lakeview Lions!

Of course I'm put in first. After shaking hands and flipping a coin, we are home and get the ball first.

Parker scores a touchdown at the end of the first quarter. By the second, it's 14-7.

Coach shocks me by sitting me down during third quarter. He usually waits until the fourth! But now I have to keep up with my promise to Noah.

Coach doesn't look like he's gonna put me in. So I run into the locker room and change into my cheer uniform. And then join the girls on the sideline.

Half the time I forget some of the cheers because I'm focusing on the game. We are still in the lead and I couldn't be happier.

I turn around so I can focus on cheering. The crowd is screaming and I have to refrain from turning around.

In the last few seconds of the game I turn around. Noah has the ball. He makes a perfect pass to Parker and he catches it in the end zone. The clock stops and all of our fans stand up, cheering loudly. The cheerleaders rush the field and some of them jump on their boyfriends.

I drop the Pom-Poms and sprint towards Noah. He has taken his helmet off, and he looks a little shocked that he threw the winning pass.

Parker looks shocked also, but Reagan takes care of that. She comes up to him and suddenly they are kissing. I stop a little. When did they get together? Oh who cares, I'm happy for them!

I turn back looking at Noah and he has a second to react before I'm jumping on him, my legs wrapping around his waist and my arms around his neck.

"We won." I say quietly, a huge smile on my face. His smile is bigger.

"Yes, we did." And he leans in. The kiss gets pretty deep, but the team breaks it apart. BJ suddenly puts me on his shoulders, Noah and Parker on two other linebackers shoulders.

The trophy gets passed to us as we stand in the middle of the crowd. "We are the lions and hear us roar!" One of the guys shouts and we all let out are stupid lion roar that we do.

They don't know it, but this is the thing I'm going to miss about high school the most. Being with my team, my family.

___________________________
Sorry about it being so short, love y'all!