Page 16 of The Alternate Captain
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
The snoring starts after that. And once I make sure he’s still lying on his side, I leave the door ajar so I can listen out for him.
“It was the pizza,” Hutch says from the bathroom. His cheek rests on the toilet rim, arms clutching the porcelain for dear life.
“Can I get you anything?”
“It needs to come out,” he says. “It was that pizza we had, Kelly. Someone ordered a pizza, and it must have been bad. The cheese. It must have been the cheese.”
I wince as he vomits. I haven’t long met the guy and I’m standing here in my pyjamas watching him puke, with no clue how I can help him.
“Are you okay?” I ask.
But he gags again, and I take that as my cue to leave, heading back to my makeshift bed to settle myself down for a night of terrible sleep.
There’s a banging onthe door that jolts me awake. It’s an ‘I’m pissed off’ sort of banging that grows louder and firmer with every knock. It takes me a few moments to realise where I am and what I’m doing here. My back aches and I struggle to sit up, so I roll over and hug my pillow, willing myself to move.
Then the shouting starts. I can’t make it out, but there’s a scrambling from the hallway and then I hear the door fling open.
Footsteps.
“Ah, shit,” Hutch says, then my brother’s name is called out in a yell. “Betts? Johnny’s here.”
My heart virtually stops in my chest. I lay perfectly still, hoping he doesn’t move any further into the apartment. I mean, it wouldn’t make any difference if he did see me here. It’s not like he knows me. But the shame sits heavy in my chest.
“Fuck’s sake. What did I tell you?” A deep and authoritative voice causes my skin to prickle. Is he talking with an accent? I can’t quite tell.
“What’s the shouting for?” Mike’s voice this time.
Then there are more footsteps.
“I told you we had an early start. How much did you guys drink last night?”
Canadian, I think, by the sound of the vowels. But I’m not a linguist, so I can’t be sure.
“Yeah, yeah, we’re coming,” Hutch says, then more footsteps ring out, as if someone’s moving further into the apartment, and my heart picks up speed.
“Nah, no way are you coming upstairs like that. You have dried puke on your face. Take a damn shower.”
“Hey, calm down, Cap. We just had a bit of fun and—”
“I knew I couldn’t trust you,” Johnny says.
More footsteps, then my brother speaks again, his voice closer this time. “Do you want a coffee or something?”
“No, I don’t want a damn coffee—” That’s when the ranting starts. Back-and-forth between Johnny and my brother. It’s as if Mike has played outside too late and Dad is telling him off.
Who is this guy? I get he’s the team captain, but what right does he have to barge in here and shout at the guys? I guess it’s a good thing that this Johnny isn’t the same person I was speaking with, because he’s a complete dick.
“You need to chill,” Mike says firmly.
“You need to realise what’s at stake here—because we sure as hell aren’t going to win with the way you guys are acting. You’re not just letting yourself down, you’re letting the whole team down.”
I can almost feel Mike wincing at that one. The words cut through the air, but Mike snaps back straight away.
“It was one night.”
