Page 26 of Game On

The next morning, I wake to several texts. The first is in a group message from the Ballers along with Matt and Shawn. We’re expected to sit with them at the homecoming game. My gut clenches. After the dance, this is the last thing I want to do. No doubt today will be filled with teasing, snide remarks, or even worse. Who knows, maybe they’ll put up the same picture at the game so instead of just being humiliated at the school, I can be humiliated in front of the whole town, too.

The other texts are from Dawn and Chase. I sigh, inputting his name into my phone instead of just the number it’s been coming up as. He’s really sweet, but how will I ever be able to face him again?

Dawn, however, tells me if I don’t text her back, she’s going to kick my ass. I actually think she might try to do this, so I tell her I’m okay. I also tell her I have to go to the football game today. She replies back with smiley faces that she’s going too, obviously going to see David as a Wide Receptor. I laugh just thinking about her. Then, I pull myself out of bed and head to the shower. When I get out, there’s a text from two of the numbers that were in the group text.What time do you want to meet at the parade?

Parade?

10:45?

Sure.

I tap out a response.What are we talking about?

The homecoming parade. We have to drag the float…

Another text comes in from one number, but it’s just to me.Tessa, it’s Matt. You weren’t on the other text the guys sent out. It’s tradition that the recruits pull the basketball float with the Ballers on it every year in the homecoming parade.

I look at the time.What the hell?It’s 10:30 already. I have just enough time to throw clothes on and get to the school.Shit. Where are we meeting?

By the baseball field. That’s where everyone lines up.

Thanks.

I scramble, throwing clothes on that look somewhat good, then run a brush through my hair. It can air dry. I take a hair tie, though, and wrap it around my wrist in case I need it. Then, I quickly put on a little makeup, head to the kitchen to grab a Pop-Tart, and I’m out of there without even seeing my mom. I send her a text about what’s going on today, so she won’t worry about where the hell I’m at, then peel out of the driveway. I hug the curves way too tight on the way down the mountain to Rockport. When I get into town, there’s people already lining the streets for the parade. My dad usually goes to the football game, but as far as I know we never went to the parade unless they did when I was too young to remember. I have to park a block away down a side street and then sprint to the area where everyone is lining up. I see Hayes towering over everybody in the distance and head that way, dodging others in the crowd. By the time I get there, I’m a minute late. No one says anything though because for all they knew, I wasn’t even going to show up. When Ryan sees me, he just turns the other way.Asshole. They deliberately tried to fuck me with this recruit thing.

“Fuck me,” I say when it’s just me, Matt, and Shawn. Shawn just raises his eyebrows. “Not like that, obviously.” I run my hands through my hair, trying to get it to dry a little more. “What exactly do we have to do? Drag the float?”

Shawn points to the area just ahead of the flatbed on wheels. All the Ballers’ girls are putting last minute touches on the float, but when I look past them, I see three ropes jutting out from underneath the flatbed trailer.Yeah, this is safe.

Every other float is being towed by a vehicle or the vehicle is their “float.” The basketball team’s is the only one that isn’t. “How do we want to do this?” I ask. I size each one of them up. I’m the smallest, but that doesn’t mean I’m the weakest.

Shawn glances us over. “I’m thinking Dale in the middle with Dempsey and I on either side.”

I shrug. “Fine by me.”

Someone with a bullhorn starts telling us to get ready. The voice sounds like Vice Principal Holden, which makes me cringe. No wonder things like this are allowed to happen on his watch. I’m pretty sure he’s in the Ballers back pocket. A few seconds after that, fireworks go off near the front of the line. The people lining the streets cheer. Matt, Shawn, and I walk to the ropes as the Ballers hop onto the float and the girls get down. I wrap the end of the rope around my midsection and tie it off. I have more strength this way than if I were to try to tug it with my arms. Matt and Shawn follow suit. It’s almost our time to start moving when Sloan yells down, “What do you think, Recruits? Time to start pulling us.”

I look over my shoulder and see all five of them looking down at us. They look like royalty staring down at their peasants. The only one not smirking is Hayes and that’s just because he looks too bored to care. Which could be worse? Or better? I’m not quite sure. Each one of them is sitting on metal chairs decorated with orange-brown balls of tissue paper that’s supposed to look like basketballs. Maybe they do, but they also look like giant balls of shit. I do, however, like the sign they use on the sides of the float that says RHS State Champions with all the years they earned that honor underneath. Butterflies spur inside me. I only hope I can help them make the same distinction this year.

“You’re up Ballers,” Miss Lyons says. She waves us forward.

Matt, Dave, and I start walking. The float pulls us back automatically. The hardest part will be getting this thing going, but once we do, we shouldn’t have any problem keeping it going. At least, I hope so. Who knows what the Ballers will do if we can’t carry them around Rockport like pack mules.

“On three,” Shawn says. “One, two,—”

We all push forward at once. The float creeps ahead. We push harder and harder until we’re finally moving.

“Great job, Recruits,” Ryan says. I sneak a peek behind me because I just can’t help myself. The ridiculous jealous side of me likes seeing them without girls hanging all over them or perched in their laps. He’s waving to the crowd with that delicious smile of his. His true smile does something to me. It makes my heart jittery and my throat tight. His eyes slice toward me. “Keep looking straight ahead. You’re not Ballers yet.”

“If they ever will be,” Lake says just loud enough for us to hear. “I hear Dale sucks.”

I turn back around, my face heating. I hear chuckles behind me, so I let the burning anger fuel pulling on this damn rope. If they think they’re going to break me, they’re wrong. If they think they’re going to cheat me out of this, they’re wrong.

By the time we get to the end of the three blocks and are going to make the right toward Main Street, my calves are killing me. The suicides last night coupled with towing this flatbed today are giving me a really great workout. Instead of thinking of this as having to pull these assholes around for their own amusement, I start thinking about using this opportunity as my workout today. I lean into the rope and the float picks up speed.

“Damn, Dale,” Matt says with a grunt. “Where do you get all your fucking energy? Those lines killed me last night.”

“Regular training sessions with my dad since I could walk,” I deadpan. I don’t want to bring up my dad, but I don’t want to lie either. A part of me also wants them to know that I mean business. I’ve been working on this since I was a little girl. I didn’t just wake up one morning and think,I’ll transfer to Rockport to try out for the basketball team. That’ll be fun.

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