Page 69 of Everything's Better With You
Joe
Joe absolutely adored his first day of classes. There was something so organic and joyful about seeing kids push past their limits and discover new possibilities. The students had been bright-eyed and willing to try anything he asked, and man, was it fun. No attitudes, no challenges to his authority. He could learn to love this.
He was still on a high when it was time for cheer practice. He’d texted Marti that morning and said, “Call the judges and cancel. We’re taking them all.” She’d texted him back a thumbs-up.
He grabbed a quick dinner to go at the Buzz and ate it while standing up in the corner of his makeshift classroom. The common room had proved to be a great space. The floors would be professionally waxed this weekend by Leslie’s network crew from Des Moines, but it was already close to perfect. Cheer needed a gym, though, when they started doing stunts. They needed more headroom.
Joe had his laptop on a bookshelf he’d moved out of his apartmentand into the common room and was watching some recent championship dance teams while sucking down electrolytes not quite fast enough to replenish his system with as much as he’d sweated that day. Marti came in and set down her bag and he immediately scooped her up and lifted her over his head.
“I see someone is still running on adrenaline.” She batted his hands away and laughed. “Terrell said you were a little…zealous in your instruction today.”
Joe did a series of pirouettes and a leap without spilling his drink and Marti laughed at him.
“Pure adrenaline. I’m sure I’ll crash soon. You think we’re good, taking them all?”
Marti nodded, crossing her arms. “I suggest you come up with some policies and put them in writing, including how they can earn their spot on the competition squad.”
“You’re right. Good plan. Let’s do that.” He snapped his fingers and clapped his hands together, then did a little spin. “See, this is why you’re here.”
“Wow, this is easier than I expected. You can tell me later what’s got you in such a good mood.”
He wiggled his eyebrows at her, unsure where all of this energy was coming from, especially considering the fact that he’d not had much sleep the night before.
Oh, Leslie.
If Joe was being honest, his high had just as much to do with taking care of Leslie as it had his teaching day.
Caring for Leslie came so naturally. Being in his space felt...right. He knew he couldn’t give it too much weight since Leslie had been pretty out of it, but when they’d walked into his rooms? Apartment? Joe felt so comfortable walking through the door with Leslie’s arm around him. He hadn’t been weirded out about meeting his mom or anything. Even seeing Sandy when he left hadn’t been awkward. The twin had thanked him for taking care of Leslie, although he’d seemed sad.
Joe planned on asking Leslie about the frequency of his migraines and what sort of medication he was on. He’d been surprised when Leslie seemed to be hiding the fact that he was taking medicine when Joe cameout of the bathroom. Was it because Joe mentioned not taking pain medication? Did he think Joe would think less of him? That was so not the case. Joe knew Leslie’s body had taken a beating as a football player. Even though he’d had a great defensive line that worked hard to protect him, Joe knew he’d had a few bad hits. They hadn’t known each other as well during Leslie’s years playing with the 49ers, but he’d seen a few montages of Les’s greatest plays, and worst hits. It was terrifying to watch, especially when all of the information came out about concussions and their lasting impact on NFL players.
Joe had breathed such a sigh of relief when Leslie confided in him that he’d be announcing his retirement soon and he’d wanted Joe to be the first to know outside of his family.
Of course, he’d also panicked. Because Leslie had started talking about where he was going to settle down, and what did Joe think about it, which meant Joe ran away from Hawaii instead of finally consummating their…whatever it was. He knew it was a shitty thing to do. One he wasn’t proud of. One of the many times he wasn’t pleased with his behavior when it came to Leslie, but the previous night? He’d done everything in his power to make it up to the man he admired so much, cared for so much, and he’d do it every night if it meant having Leslie in his life.
That thought scared him less than he thought it would, which made him smile.
“All right, Jackets! I have good news and bad news for you. The bad news is we’re not having tryouts tonight.”
The kids slumped a little and murmured amongst themselves. Joe counted and there were twenty-six kids there, meaning a few hadn’t shown up; probably they’d changed their minds after his chat the night before. Good.
“The good news is that we’re taking all of you who showed up today! Now,” he said, holding his hands out to quiet the excited chatter. “That doesn’t mean you’ll all perform at every game, nor does that mean you’ll all be on the competition team. You’re going to have to earn your spots, but having reserves is good for us in case of injuries or emergencies. We’ll have contracts for you to sign tomorrow, if you agree, and we’ll get measurements. Then on Friday our returning cheerleaders willlead us at the game. The rest of you are there to learn. We’ll have ten more games for the whole team to perform together. Regional Competition is in November, and depending how we place, Nationals are in February. Any questions? No? Then let’s get to work!”
They spent the next two hours going over basic cheers and Marti and Joe let the previous year’s captains, Sidney and Franklin, lead the group. Joe and Marti made their way around the room helping out where kids needed help, but mostly just watching.
Joe was happy to see his dancers Gino, David, and Ivan keeping up. They made a few faces at each other and it was obvious they felt out of their element, so Joe pulled them aside. “I have plans for you, don’t worry.”
They nodded and gave him a secret handshake which he tried not to totally screw up, then he directed them to pay attention with a mock frown.
When he got up next to Terrell, he leaned in. “You got this?”
Terrell smiled at him and didn’t lose a beat doing the cheer. The kid was such a natural. Since childhood, he’d taken dance lessons at the studio where Marti had worked, which started out Marti’s idea but the kid took it to the extreme. He played football, too, city league, which Terrence coached, and then high school. He never stopped moving, worked hard, and soaked up choreography like a sponge. A coach’s dream. Thank goodness he’d picked cheer.
Joe and Marti met up at the back of the group and shared a fist bump.
“Everything ready for the next phase of fundraising?”
“We’re doing the joint jogathon, but I have a feeling the football team will beat us.”
