Page 17 of Silent Count
“Do you have other clothes here?” he asks.
“I mean, nothing a whole lot different than what I have on, I guess.” I shrug.
“Dude, you’re fine. You’ll be sitting in the chair the whole time anyway. It’s not a big deal.” Casey ruffles my hair. “You might want to run a comb through that mop though.”
“Dick,” I mutter.
“Bo, I’m not sticking around, if that’s okay. I have a few things I need to take care of before practice.” Coach places his hand on my shoulder.
“Yeah, I’m good.” I nod.
“I’ll keep an eye on him, Coach. I’ll make sure he doesn’t discuss the playbook or anything.” Casey wraps an arm around my shoulders.
“Whatever.” I laugh and push his arm off of me.
“You’ll have fun.” Coach chuckles. “Emily, from our media department, will keep an eye on you in case you need anything or feel uncomfortable with any questions.” He turns and walks away.
I head over to my stall to fix my hair that Casey messed up, and he follows.
“Bo?” A woman in a pantsuit and pin-straight hair approaches me. “I’m Emily, one of the producers from the Sports Network. I’ll be working with you onGridiron Stallions. We’re excited to be highlighting the team and following you throughout the season.”
“I’m honored you chose our program.”
“Between us, you were a big reason why we did. There were a lot of teams being considered. Hopefully, we’ll be able to end the series with a big announcement, like maybe where you’re going next year.”
I clap my hands and nod. “Yeah, I’d like to know the answer to that myself, but I need to get through this season first.”
“Right. We’ll need you in five. Can you be ready?”
“Yes, ma’am.” I nod.
“Ew, don’t call me ma’am. I’m, like, two years older than you,” she says as she walks away.
Casey and I look at each other and laugh.
“Oh, so, hey, Noelle and Chelsea’s apartment building needs to get fumigated, so they’re staying with us for a few days. Is that cool with you?” he asks.
I nod, maybe a little too eagerly. “Yeah, man. Not a problem with me. Totally sucks about the building though.”
“Right? So gross. I guess it was the guys upstairs having the problem, and then the super decided it was best to treat the whole building, which is smart. Noelle would flip if they got roaches in their apartment.” He grimaces.
“I don’t think anyone wants to have roaches. Pretty disgusting.” I shake my head.
“Exactly.” He puts his hand on my shoulder. “So, I wonder what they’ll ask you about.”
I pull a deep breath in and exhale. “I’m assuming about the upcoming season, no?”
“Yeah, I just wonder if they’ll ask us all the same questions or if they’ll be different for each player.” He drops his hand and starts walking toward the center of the locker room and the cameras.
I check my hair in the mirror inside my locker and swipe my hand through it quickly to smooth it back the best I can. My phone buzzes in my pocket, so I take it out and see a text from my dad, telling me to have fun with the interview and keep my answers geared around the season. As if I don’t know what I’m doing. I give the text a thumbs-up and set my cell on the shelf in my stall. If it buzzes when I’m getting interviewed, it will distract me.
When I walk over to the makeshift set, the producer gestures to the chair in front of the cameras. “Hey, Bo. I’m Kyler Bozeman, the producer for the show.” He has an iPad in one hand and holds his other hand out to me, and I shake it. “I’ll go over the whole process with you, then answer any questions you might have. Sound good?”
“Yep, sounds good to me.” I look over at Casey, who’s still standing nearby. “You sticking around for this?”
“Nah, I just want to make sure my QB is all set.” He winks at me.
“Okay, Bo, so you’ll stay in that seat for the interview today. We’ll ask you questions, which will be edited out so the viewer won’t hear the questions, and you’ll answer. Don’t say my name in response to any of my questions either. Ideally, we want it to be as conversational as possible and less interview-style. Does that make sense?” Kyler asks.
