Page 22 of With Every Breath

“It was in the kitchen. I assumed you had it when you were fixing breakfast and then forgot you set it down.” I shrugged as I went back to my coffee.

“Probably. God, I’m losing my mind today. Too much going on.” She glanced at her watch.

“You know all of this is going to be fine,” I reassured her. “The game, your appointment… all of it.” I moved to sit beside her.

“You don’t know that,” she mumbled.

“I do know that. You are a strong woman, Bailey French, soon to be Slone. Nothing can stop you.” I draped my arm around her shoulder and pulled her into my side.

“You’re going to meet me after the game, right?” She turned to look at me before staring off in the distance.

“Yes. I’ll be there.” I squeezed her shoulders before releasing her.

“It’s the first time I’m doing this without my mom.” Her voice quivered.

“Hey.” I tapped her knee to get her to look at me. “It’s gonna be fine. You’re fine. It’s a formality. How many of these have you done over the years to be told you’re fine?”

“Four.” She sighed. “It never gets easier, though. You have to understand that. It’s never gonna be easy for me.” She turned to look at me, unshed tears in her eyes, lip quivering.

“It’s ok to worry, but you need to be positive.” I kissed her forehead. “Now, go show Tom Nasier how to win a soccer game.” I smiled and she couldn’t help but smile too. “I love you.” I gave her one final squeeze before she stood up, bag in hand.

“I love you, too.” She gave me a little wave before disappearing out the door.

oooooooo

I arrived at the soccer fields during halftime. Bailey had her team huddles over by their bench. I could see her pointing and smiling as she gave directions for the next play. The kids were nodding in understanding, a few kicking at the ground. It was a warm day. I didn’t envy these parents sitting out here at all.

“Alan!” a man I could only assume was his dad, Tom, shouted from the row of chairs along the field. The kids were running back to get into position. A boy waved in the direction of the shout. I couldn’t tell if he was waving ‘hi’ or if it was a ‘leave me alone’ wave. “Why are you on defense? You’re a forward!” the father shouted again.

Against my better judgement, I made my way down to the parents. I didn’t know a lot about soccer, but I knew that Bailey had a reason for putting this kid where she did.

Alan lifted his arms in a shrug, and then the ball was put into play. Our team was good; we’d been asked to travel this summer, so I knew that Bailey had found a well-rounded team. They were all between the ages of twelve and fourteen. As the ball made its way toward our team’s goal, I watched Alan charge forward and clear it. Bailey cheered from the team bench as Alan’s dad dropped his head. I couldn’t understand how a parent could be upset by this. His kid protected the goal, that was his job.

I jogged over behind Tom. “Hey, your kid just had a nice save,” I offered. I wanted to understand this.

“He’s not a defender. He shouldn’t even be back there.” Tom shook his head as the whistle blew, ending the game.

All the other parents cheered as the kids jogged off the field. We’d won by a goal. “If he hadn’t blocked that goal, it would have been a tie,” I stated in disbelief.

“Women shouldn’t be coaches,” he grumbled under his breath.

I knew I should stay out of it, but I couldn’t help it. “What do you mean by that?”

“Exactly what I said.” He stared at me. “This league shouldn’t allow co-ed play. They won’t play together in high school or college. The girls need their own team.”

“If that were the case here, we probably would have lost. Some of the team’s best players are girls. You’re lucky to have Coach French. She was a division one soccer player who led her school to the championships two years in a row.” I could feel my anger boiling. I needed to walk away. I didn’t want to cause Bailey any grief with this guy.

“You must be the boyfriend, or brother.” He shook his head.

“What does that matter? A good coach is a good coach.” I walked away. I could have stayed, proved this guy wrong, made him look like an ass, but what good would it have done? None.

I made my way back to my Jeep to wait for Bailey. I’d promised her that I’d accompany her to her appointment today, and I needed to calm down.

oooooooo

“You ready?” I placed my hand on her knee. We were sitting in the parking lot of Summerfield Medical Center.

“Not really.” She swallowed as she stared at the brick building in front of us. “I’m never ready.”

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