Page 30 of Flip the Field
Amerie
Brady’s timecommitment as a backup paled in comparison to being the starter. Duncan had sprained his ACL and was done for the season, but the team had two more games. The week of Thanksgiving, I barely saw Brady. He stayed in the dorms, something about being around for his guys. I gave him his space. We met in the dining hall on Wednesday before class.
The temperature outside had remained under freezing, but the snow had stayed away. It wouldn’t last long. I spotted Brady as I arrived at the dining hall, walking through the quad. He held his head higher than he used to and now he talked to people as he made his way across campus.
“Hey, beautiful,” He pulled me into his arms and held me. “You feel good.”
“I missed you,” I leaned back and he followed and kissed me.
“I’m sorry,” He let go and opened the door to the dining hall, guiding me inside. “It’s been crazy. You’d think we were going to the championship or something. We still lost six games this year.”
“That was before the mighty Brady took over.” I took his arm and we went through the lines to grab breakfast.
We sat next to each other at one of the round tables in front of the floor to ceiling windows looking out across campus. Brady dove into his omelet. “Want some?” He held out a forkful for me. I bit off half of it and he shoved the rest in his mouth.
“How do you only eat cheese pizza, but have everything in your omelet?” I pushed an errant mushroom between my lips. He chuckled.
I bit into my buttered cinnamon bagel and offered him a bite. He ate half of it and grinned. I shook my head. “I need my strength,” He chuckled. “I worked on drills with my receivers until coach made us go home last night.”
“It’s hard work being so talented.” I tousled his sexy bed head. “Without sounding like one of those clingy, annoying chicks, I missed sleeping next to you.”
“Me, too,” He leaned in and whispered. “You miss that D, too, don’t you?” I pushed him away. He laughed. I rolled my eyes. He wasn’t wrong, though.
I looked at the clock on my phone. I had class in fifteen minutes, so I had to go. I handed Brady my keys. “You can drive it while I’m gone this weekend.”
“You sure?” He put the keys in his pocket. “Wow. Not to sound like one of those corny, mushy guys, but we’ve at least seen each other every day since we met,” He pouted. “I’ll miss you.”
I leaned in and kissed the pout off his lips. His lips were salty from the food. I pulled back, but Brady followed and deepened the kiss.
“I’m going to miss you, too,” I whispered. He sighed and laid a final peck on my cheeks. “Finish your breakfast.” I stood and pointed to his plate. “You need your strength to be great.” I took one step away, but Brady grabbed my arm as he stood up and pulled me into his arms. I rested my head on his shoulder.
“I’ll see you on Sunday.” He kissed me one more time before letting me go. I ran my hands through his hair and left for class.
I had two classes before meeting my dad and Emmy at Pizza My Heart about a mile from campus. It was a Thackeray staple. My father insisted on going whenever he was in town. They were both already there when I arrived, sitting across from each other in a booth. My dad’s driver/security guard stood near the door.
“Hey, James,” I squeezed his arm. He’d been with my dad for years.
“Hey, Ms. Amerie.” He was a man of few words, but he had a nice smile when he wasn’t trying to intimidate everyone.
“Hey, Amerie,” Emmy stood quickly. Her eyes blinked and dodged back and forth. She looked behind me and then back at me.
“Hey.” I gave her a quick hug.
My father stood. His stoic frown threw me off. My father was, if nothing else, almost always approachable.
“Sweetheart,” He shook the frown off quickly and enveloped me into a hug. My father was tall, six four, and was as casual as he got in slacks, a button-down white shirt, and a blue sweater. “Pizza will be here in a minute.”
“Sorry, I’m late,” I pulled off my jacket and sat next to Emmy.
“No problem,” He laid his hands on the table. “Emmy was just telling me about the young man you’ve been seeing.”
All the air suddenly left the building. I blinked and sat back against the soft cushion until my brain pulled out a good reason for his frown. I didn’t think it was me seeing someone that had him upset. It was the fact that I hadn’t told him. My father preferred to paint us as being as close as a father and daughter could be. I played the role of daddy’s girl, rationalized by the fact I had no other parent to cling to, while he embraced it for his career. Apparently, fathers who were close to their daughters played well in Northern Virginia.
Emmy whispered ‘sorry’ under her breath. I shook my head.
“Maybe you’ll tell me all about him this weekend,” My father sat back. “But now, we are here to talk about Emmy and her future.”
My dad threw Emmy his brightest smile, the one worth a million votes.
Emmy soon forgot her faux pas as my father actively listened to her aspirations. Emmy was smart and strong in her beliefs. Maybe she could be the appropriate daughter my father never had.
My phone beeped. It was a text from Brady.
Brady: I miss you already. Have a safe trip. Call me tonight. [heart emoji]
My heart raced and a smile snuck up on my face until I looked up and found my father staring at me with a frown. I put my phone away and concentrated on Emmy’s words.
I dreaded the car ride in my future.
