Page 3 of When It Burns

I walk into my office feigning confidence. At thirty, I know he took a chance hiring me last month as the youngest fire chief in Springside’s history, so I feel like I owe him. Mayor Jones was my older brother, Jake’s, college roommate. They both attended the University of Alabama on a full ride for football, and by Jake’s sophomore year, it had felt as though Brian was a part of our family. But all of that changed the night our world was turned upside down, and I fell out of touch with Brian until a few weeks ago when he called me about the job.

I can feel my heart rate picking up and my skin growing clammy as it always does when I think about that night, but I know I can’t think about that right now. Attempting to shift my attention back to Brian, I give him an apologetic grimace. Damn, I really need a beer and some fresh air.

We shake hands and I sit down at my desk. Considering all of my things are in boxes I'm grateful that I have somewhere to sit. I add unpacking to my growing list of things to do ASAP.

I can tell by the way Brian is waiting for me to get comfortable that he has something to say. I have a feeling I won’t like whatever it is either.

“Theo, you know I hired you because I believe in you right?” Brian starts. Damn, I do not like the way this is starting, but I nod at him to continue. “But can I just say I don't think you could have gotten off to a more rocky start if you tried? You have been here less than twenty-four hours, and I’ve gotten at least forty calls today asking me about the outsider I hired who yelled at a teacher and committed blasphemy in the eyes of the town. Dude, do you realize you insulted the most beloved man in a hundred-mile radius on your first day?”

“Well I didn’t, but I’m well aware now,” I say more to myself than him.

He nods at me looking a little more sympathetic than he did when I walked in. “Listen, Theo, I know you take fire safety seriously, and God knows I understand why. It’s part of what makes you so great at this job. It’s why I brought you here. But we have a major problem now. Springside is a small town. And they’re going to take your insult to Huey personally. We need to get ahead of this before they’re trying to run both of us out of town.”

“I’m assuming you have an idea of how we can do that?” I ask him skeptically.

“I do but I don’t think you’re going to like it,” Brian warns. “It’s the beginning of fall and you know how big football is to a town like us. I thought about it during my meeting with the coach this morning. I know you know the game better than anyone, thanks to Jake. So you’re going to volunteer as a coach. I talked to the head coach this morning, and he wasn’t happy but I got him to agree to let you help out. One of his assistants decided to move to Mobile last month so there is an opening and he needs help.”

I feel like I can’t breathe. I haven’t touched a football since the night my world fell apart. My chest tightens, and my vision blurs. I know what I'm feeling is the start of a panic attack, but I try to calm down enough to focus on what Brian is saying.

Football? The mayor can’t be serious. But the more he talks the more I realize he is. I zone out as he starts talking about practice schedules and ways to make it fit into my job at the station, then mentions team dinners hosted by the local church and community pep rallies at the high school followed by bus rides and pregame warm-ups.

Brian looks at me and must realize I am lost to the demons of my past because he gives me an apologetic grimace. “Listen, I'll email you all of the details. But you need this Theo. I need you to do this. And it’s what Jake would have done.”

“Brian, you can’t ask me to do that!” I say, feeling the panic rising in my chest. “Plus none of us have a God damn clue what Jake would want! He’s gone and he’s not coming back!”

“Theo, I know this—Jake cared about you more than just about anything. He was so excited about the idea of getting to play at Bryant Denny with you. And he couldn’t wait to start coaching. Right now, you’ve got two options: stay in Springside and make an effort with the community and the team, or live out of boxes for the next two weeks while the town does everything they can to make you quit,” Brian says, and I see the sincerity in his eyes. “And just in case you need a reminder, you aren’t the only one who lost their best friend that night. We’re both just trying to make him proud.”

Any rebuttal I have to this idea dies at those words. Usually, comments like that do nothing but piss me off, but Brian was almost as close to Jake as I was. And I know he’s right. Jake loved anything to do with football and had planned to give up his chance at the NFL to coach younger players.

Knowing that there’s nothing else I can say, I nod at Brian and tell him, “You're right. So when do I start?”

“I’m glad you asked. Coach Thompson is expecting you at practice in an hour. I am gonna warn you. He’s really protective of Miss Caroline, the woman you yelled at today. So don’t be surprised if he doesn’t give you the warmest welcome. That being said, you won’t find a guy that cares more about his team and his players. It took a little bit of convincing to get him to agree to this, so please don’t screw it up. Otherwise, your time in Springside will be a lot shorter than planned.”

Great,I think to myself, as all hopes of a quiet evening unpacking with a beer in my hand quickly vanish from my mind. “Well, I’d better get ready for practice then,” I say to Brian. He stands from his chair and goes to shake my hand.

“Listen, man, I know you got off to a rockier start than you hoped, but it’s gonna be alright. You’re damn good at your job, and I know once the town gets a chance to know you this will be something we laugh about later. We just have to get them there first.”

“Yeah, you’re right. Thanks,” I tell him, standing to shake his hand as he rises from his chair.

“Don’t sweat it. Gotta love the small-town politics, am I right? You head on to practice and maybe one night next week we can grab a beer once you get settled in,” Brian says as he walks out of my office.

“Sounds good,” I call out down the hall.

Crap. I guess I have a practice to get to. And after fourteen years of running from my past it looks like today might be the day that I have to face it.

* * *

I pullup to the high school stadium and take a breath. I haven’t stepped foot on a field since the accident. I gave up the game I loved more than anything at sixteen and haven’t looked back, but it looks like my time of avoidance has come to an end.

Knowing I have no other option if I want to keep my job, I sigh and get out of my truck. I try to ignore the sinking feeling in my stomach as I make my way down to the field. I attempt to pretend the late August Alabama heat is the cause of the sudden sweat I can feel breaking out over my body, but the reality is, I know better.

I can see the team on the field as I make my way down, and suddenly each member stops and looks up at me. I can feel the distrust and general dislike for me coming off them in waves. Once I make it to the field, a dark-headed man, who looks to be in his mid-twenties, looks me over, and yells to the team. “Alright guys, as you know Coach G had to move for his wife’s job down to Mobile last month, so we had an opening on our staff. After speaking with several of the stakeholders of our team, Chief Johnson will be our new Wide Receivers coach. He’s gonna observe practice today and will get started working with y’all tomorrow.”

I should have known better than to expect a warm welcome after Brian’s warning, but I wasn’t expecting these high schoolers to absolutely hate me. The look on their faces says they would rather bear crawl over rocks every day for the season than have to listen to anything I have to say. The tone of the man, who I'm assuming is Coach Thompson, didn’t give me much hope that he’s happy I’m here. I would have liked to meet him without all the players’ eyes on us, but considering the fact that I came straight from my meeting with Brian, there hadn’t been time.

A boy steps forward that I recognize from my encounter with Miss Caroline this morning. “Hey Coach, you know he insulted Huey this morning and he was a total jackass to Miss Caroline in front of everyone. You really think he’s what’s best for our team?”

I look over to see several of the boys nodding along in agreement with him. Coach Thompson’s face grows grim as he looks at his team. “Well Wesley, as much as I appreciate your desire to take up for Miss Caroline, I don’t recall asking for your opinion. And since the rest of you seem to agree with him, why don’t y’all start at the end of the field down there and roll until you don’t doubt my coaching abilities anymore.”

---