Chapter 54 #2
Yeah. I’m definitely starting. But before I can stand, I hear a familiar voice behind me.
“Jesus, Lex. You’d think the Bills were playing here tonight.”
I turn just as my dad walks down the steps toward us, looking like he just stepped out of a Manhattan architect’s boardroom instead of pulling up to a college football game.
Black button-down with sleeves rolled to the elbows, sunglasses tucked into the neck of his shirt, designer messenger bag slung over one shoulder like he didn’t just spend twenty minutes circling for parking.
“Hey, Dad,” I say, standing just long enough to pull him into a quick hug.
“Cade.” He nods. “Good to see you again, son.”
“You too, Daniel,” Cade replies with a respectful smile.
Dad drops into the seat beside me and glances around the packed stadium. “This place is a damn zoo. How many people go to this school?”
Cade shrugs. “Not this many. They’re not just here for football.”
He nods. “Right. You said your girl’s dancing tonight. So where is she?”
I point toward the field. “Right there, Dad. The one on her back being stretched out by Captain Too-Happy-With-His-Hands.”
He follows my gaze, “Damn, men. Your girl’s hot.”
“Mmhmm,” I nod, eyes still locked on her. “Black hair, long legs, cherry red lipstick, a goddamn dream.”
We watch her for a beat in silence. She looks over and catches us staring. Her eyes land on me first and then slide to the man sitting beside me. I can see it instantly, the flicker of nerves across her face. She tries to smile, but it falters at the edges. Still, she gives us a little wave.
I raise my hand in return, giving her the softest look I can manage, silently telling her she’s okay. That we’re right here.
She looks back at Josh and says something I can’t hear. And yeah, I’m still watching his hands. But now I’m watching hers too, and I see that little tremble in her fingers.
“She nervous?” Dad asks, softer now.
“Yeah, first time meeting you has got her twisted up.”
He exhales slowly. “She’s got nothing to worry about.”
“You’ll like her,” I say without looking at him. “But she’s been through hell, Dad. And somehow, she’s still soft. Still fire. Still standing.”
He places a hand on my shoulder and gives it a firm squeeze. “Good. You two deserve a girl like that.”
I feel the tightness in my chest ease. Even though I still want to break Josh’s fingers.
Dad leans forward, elbows on his knees, eyes scanning the field like he’s trying to understand what all the fuss is about.
“So explain this to me,” he says, nodding toward the cluster of girls stretching near the end zone.
“What makes their dances so special? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m all for tight uniforms and a little choreography, but this… this feels different.”
“It is,” I say, already half-smiling. “This isn’t just cheer or dance. It’s a performance. A full-blown production. Think halftime at the Super Bowl meets a damn Broadway show.”
Cade chuckles. “He’s not exaggerating.”
He points again, this time at the three girls in different crop tops. “Why do those three look different from the rest?”
“Because they are different,” Cade says. “That’s The Trifecta.”
Dad raises a brow. “Sounds like a great bourbon.”
“Sounds like trouble,” I add with a grin. “But nah, it’s Bella, Ellie, and Haley. Coach Javi started grouping them together their freshman year and couldn’t separate them after that. They’ve got chemistry no one else can touch.”
“They choreograph most of their own routines now,” Cade adds. “They draw crowds to practices and trend online every time they perform. There’s a reason the rest of the team wears matching basic gear and the three of them have their own. They’ve basically become their own brand around here.”
“They’re not just dancers,” I say. “They’re the act. Legacy’s the team, but The Trifecta’s the show.”
He watches for a beat, then leans back in his seat. “Damn. No wonder you look like you’re ready to throw hands with the guy stretching her out.”
Cade laughs under his breath. I just shrug.
“I’m fine,” I lie, eyes narrowing at Josh again.
“You’re in love, son” he says, not even looking at me. “That’s what that is.”
The stadium lights dim just slightly, enough to make the jumbotron glow brighter, casting a cool electric haze over the field. The crowd’s already loud, but when the PA system crackles and Hugh’s voice booms out across Kingsley Field, the whole place vibrates with energy.
“Alright, Wexley fans!” Hugh’s voice is pure stadium hype, loud and smooth. “We’ve got a sold-out crowd tonight for the first home game of the season here at Kingsley Field!”
Cheers erupt, echoing through the stands like thunder.
“Your Wolves are taking the field against the Northvale University Titans, undefeated last year, and ready to prove they’ve still got it.”
Booing breaks out in the student section.
Hugh’s voice cuts through the roar again, this time with a grin so wide you can hear it. “Hey, Bella! You girls about ready to get this show on the road?”
On the sideline, Bella turns and flashes a wicked little smile toward the announcer’s box, blowing a kiss in Hugh’s direction. The camera catches it and plasters her face across the jumbotron, larger than life.
Right next to me, Dad leans in with a raised brow. “Wait, are the girls mic’d up?”
“Hell yeah, they are.”
“You serious?”
“I told you,” I say, jerking my chin toward the field where the girls are finishing stretching, shaking out nerves like they’re about to walk into battle. “It’s a whole damn show, Dad.”
The girls start heading down to the walkway in front of the stands.
Right in front of us. Bella takes the center.
Hair in perfect waves, black and burgundy top hugging her like a damn dream.
Ellie and Haley on her left and right, all three of them standing with that signature Trifecta confidence, like queens about to burn down a kingdom.
“Hey there, Hughy!” Bella calls, strutting across the walkway in front of our row. “God, I’ve missed you. It feels so good to be back at Kingsley Field.” She pauses for the crowd to react.
She’s close now. Too close. One arm’s length away from me in that little crop. I nearly grab her ass and pull her onto my lap where she belongs, but I restrain myself.
Barely.
She starts pacing slow, owning the space like a born performer. “So, Hughy, how have you been? How was your summer?”
“It was great. The wife and I took the kids to Ireland for a few weeks. What about you girls?”
Bella twirls with one of her curls and flashes a smile. “Oh, nothing major. Just the usual—dancing, laying out by the pool at The Row working on our tan…” That gets a loud pop from some of The Order sitting in the student section.
She pauses. “Oh my God, Hughy, I totally forgot to tell you!” She says with the sass and excitement of someone gossiping with a girlfriend at brunch. “So, you know how we get to perform at The Row parties, right?”
“Yeah, of course!” Hugh says. “The Order should be grateful you girls show up. Y’all make their Row parties worth something. I hope they are paying you well.”
Bella laughs. “Right? Make sure you tell that to Cal and Augie,” she says pointing over her shoulder. “Anyway, we were at the end of summer pool party and guess who showed up.”
Ellie takes the cue, stepping forward. “The disgusting Revenants.” The stadium boos on instinct.
Haley adds, “Yeah. Maddie Rae stomped up like, ‘You girls are so mean, you took Fight Night from us!’ Blah blah bullshit. Then challenged us to a rematch.”
Hugh chuckles. “So, what’d you do?”
Bella flips her hair and steps center. “What we always do, kicked ass while shaking ass.”
Cade laughs beside me.
“Three rounds. Three wins. You should’ve seen it,” Ellie beams.
“I’m honestly not surprised,” Hugh says. “But hold up girls, did you just say you stole a Fight Night?”
“We didn’t steal it, Hughy.” Ellie cuts in.
“Yeah, we earned it. We were invited to dance by one of their Hollow Kings. It’s not our fault that The Revenants suck.” Haley says eyes on me now as she points in my direction. “Just as Bella’s new boyfriend, he was there.”
Right then, Knox steps up to the girls. “Excuse me, what exactly are you all doing?”
Bella rolls her eyes. “What does it look like, Knox. We’re having a conversation,” she says in an annoyed tone. The crowd roars again.
“Well, how about we dial back the girl chat and get a little more dancing, yeah?” Knox says, dry as ever. “You’re supposed to be hyping up the Wolves, not hosting late a night podcast.”
Ellie groans. “Ugh, buzzkill, you’re no fun. We haven’t seen Hughy all summer!”
Bella sighs, “Sorry, Hughy… duty calls.”
And with that, all three of them take off toward the student section while the rest of The Legacy gets into formation on the field.
Knox shakes his head and as he walks off. An exasperated mutter comes over the speakers one last time, “I swear to God, these girls…”
Dad shakes his head in disbelief. “What was that?”
I laugh. “That was part of the show. They don’t just dance. They run the field. Interact with the crowd during timeouts, halftime, you name it.”
The second the girls take their places in front of the student section. Bella motions for them all to sit down. They listen to her.
Cade leans over beside me, watching the crowd sit down with a brow arched. “I guess they all know something we don’t.”
Pitbull’s “I Believe That We Will Win” hits the speakers—loud, electric, and pulsing with adrenaline. The Trifecta doesn’t move at first. Bella just steps forward, and lips Pitbull’s lines to the student section.
Her mouth syncs perfectly to the lyrics about fear and what they are going to do about it. She paces in front of the students, eyes fierce, chin high, and locking eyes with the shirtless Order guys on the front row with W-O-L-V-E-S painted on their chests.