Page 34 of Quarterback Crush
Dad’s frequent commentary texts had kept me in the loop when Mom insisted on bringing me to the hospital. Mrs. Foster’s instructions had been clear before the game—no pyramids, no basket tosses, no tumbling maneuvers because of the slippery field. The rain, though not drenching, was incessant and annoying, especially for our hair and makeup.
Bowen’s cheers were loud, and I mean loud. They had their supporters chanting and on their feet. That’s the only reason I can think that Savannah called us to do the pyramid.
“Shall we do it? Let’s do it,” she said and no one dared say we shouldn’t. We moved into formation quickly, a stunt we’d done over and over—but not in wet weather.
All was going well. As the flyer, I was standing firmly, performing my arabesque, but Emily, one of my bases, slipped and I went down with her, my ankle buckling beneath me when I landed. We both jumped up in a flash, but pain seared through my right foot and I couldn’t put any weight on it. I had to wait till the end of the chant before I could hobble away. Savannah’s glare was icy enough to start another ice age, Emily was in tears,shaken though uninjured, and Mrs. Foster reappeared with an umbrella.
The walk to the locker room seemed like a marathon, my ankle ballooning with every step. When Mom arrived, she examined my elevated foot wrapped in an ice pack, and without hesitation said we were going to the emergency room. There was no option; it might be broken. Yes, I would miss the end of the game but I could watch a replay later. Dad assisted me to the car, but Mom told him to stay; there was no need for all of us to wait.
Hence the updates from Dad, but it was still bittersweet when the Owls stole a 14-7 victory in the fourth quarter because I’d missed Oliver’s biggest sporting moment. Knowing the team would be celebrating, my heart flipped when Oliver’s text came through and the pain seemed to ease after that. It was a relief to be informed that there was no fracture, just a grade 2 sprain. I was taken to a room for strapping. I’d have to keep the weight off of the foot, ice and elevate for the next 48 hours—not a fun way to spend my weekend.
But somehow Oliver was here in the hospital, going above and beyond the fake boyfriend duty, showing true concern. He should’ve been with the team, unless he was putting in an extra effort for Savannah’s sake. If she knew that he had come to see me, it would seem more convincing that we were in a relationship.
Whatever, I was beyond amazed and when he kissed me while my mother waited in the car, I could only applaud his dedication to the role. I mean, I’m not sure why he kissed me as it wasn’t Mom we were putting on an act for.
“Oh,” she said, when Oliver closed my door. “He was really worried about you.”
“Yeah.” For some reason, I couldn’t stop smiling. Even though my ankle throbbed and I was going to be immobile for days and miss cheering the final, I was deliriously happy.“I thought he might’ve been injured since he’d come to the hospital.”
“It was thoughtful of him to check on you,” Mom said with a smug smile.
“He’ll be celebrating with the team now,” I said, trying to downplay it, hard when my whole body was buzzing with an electric energy.
Mom set me up on the couch, pillows under my foot, waiting on me hand and foot. That part was okay, but it was excruciating to follow the Cheer Chat and see the celebrations happening without me. I sent a photo of my leg and all the girls wished me a speedy recovery. Even Savannah reacted with a ‘care’ emoji. Unfortunately, the only thing I could do was wallow in self-pity and munch on the bowl of buttered popcorn that Mom had provided.
Dad arrived home with a full and detailed report of the game, and up in my room, I video called Sammy, who’d been surprised that Oliver had shown up at the hospital.
“That’s kind of weird, isn’t it?” Sammy asked.
“I’m guessing he did it to let Savannah know,” I said. “You know, be the supportive boyfriend.”
“I didn’t even see you fall,” Sammy said. “We had no idea.”
“Thank goodness,” I said. “It happened in just a split second. Poor Emily. She was really upset.”
“I bet,” Sammy said. “But why do those stunts when it’s raining?”
“Bowen were crushing it. Savannah said we needed to up our game.”
“Savannah?”
“Yeah. Coach had said not to.”
“Savannah knows you’re a flyer.” Sammy took a thoughtful pause. “And she knew it could be potentially dangerous...”
“What?” I frowned at her insinuation. “You think she wanted me to fall?”
“She put you in danger!” Sammy shrieked.
“It was an accident,” I said. “She couldn’t have known that Emily would slip.”
“No, but she put you in the position to fall,” Sammy retorted.
“Harlow and Jessa were in the same position,” I said in fierce defense of Savannah. As cheer captain, I couldn’t believe that she would want any of her girls hurt.
“I think your loyalty is misguided,” Sammy muttered. “Remember, I told you to watch your back.”
“Well, I’m going to be fine,” I said sulkily, refusing to believe there was any truth in Sammy’s accusations. The cheer squad was like a sisterhood; we all looked out for one another. Telling Sammy I was tired, we said goodnight, but my stomach was in a knot. Because I hadn’t told her how Savannah had glared and hissed at me after I’d fallen, like I’d embarrassed the squad and let everyone down.
