Chapter 3
“As we announced a few weeks ago, Coach Lisle has taken a head coaching position at another university. He was an integral part of this team, and we wish him well in his new endeavor. However, after a country-wide search, we found someone we think will fill his shoes right here in Black Elm. As alumni and former lacrosse player, we couldn’t have found a better fit. ”
My teammates and I cheered and applauded at his announcement.
It had been weeks, and all of us were anxious about Coach Lisle’s replacement.
Coach Crawford proceeded to run down the accomplishments of our new assistant coach.
Based on his resume, he had a great deal of experience and was well-decorated.
I had no doubt he was capable of helping us reach and win the championship. However, I prayed his personality and coaching style would work with our team.
“Without further ado, I introduce to you, our new assistant coach, Randi Sampson.”
We clapped as we watched the door, anticipating who would enter the small lecture hall we used for team meetings. I was confused when I saw a face that had become all too familiar because it had appeared in my dreams for the past several nights.
The claps died down once my teammates and I realized the woman standing before us was the new assistant coach. We stared in disbelief because Coach Crawford’s hiring a woman to replace Coach Lisle was the last thing we expected.
“Coach Crawford, thank you for such a wonderful introduction. I’m truly grateful for this opportunity and excited to start the season. Umm, besides that, Coach Crawford has given you my background, so I don’t have much to add unless you have questions.”
It was so quiet you could probably hear a pin drop. I looked around, and most of my teammates were looking at me. The shock they felt was apparent from the looks on their faces.
I was the oldest person on the team, as well as the team captain, so everyone looked to me for guidance. However, in this scenario, I was as shocked as they were and had no words. The silence was more than awkward, so I had to think of something to say.
“Welcome to the team,” finally fell from my lips, gaining her attention.
It seemed she hadn’t noticed me before that moment, and it was her turn to be shocked. I began clapping again to cover up the awkwardness, and my teammates followed suit. Coach Crawford spoke again when the applause stopped.
“Well, since it seems you all have lost your ability to speak, you’re dismissed. I’ll see you at three o’clock on Monday.”
The lecture hall was emptied in a matter of seconds, but Coach Crawford asked me to stay back. Begrudgingly, I did.
“Coach Sampson, this is Niko Kemper. He’s one of three seniors on the team and our team captain.”
She offered her hand and said, “It’s nice to meet you.”
It bothered me that she pretended as if we hadn’t met on two previous occasions, but I followed her lead. “You too.”
“Niko, would you mind giving her the rundown of the team? Here’s a list with everyone’s name, picture, and position, but I want you to tell her what’s not on this paper.”
“No problem, Coach.”
“You can use your office or the conference room,” he suggested to Coach Sampson.
“My office is a mess at the moment, so the conference room would be best. Lead the way.”
“Coach Sampson, meet me in my office when you two finish. There are a few other things I want to go over before Monday,” Coach Crawford said as we left the lecture hall.
Neither of us spoke until we were behind the closed doors of the conference room.
“I can’t believe this,” she said.
“You can’t? Did you realize you were applying to coach the men’s team?”
She frowned. “Yes. Is me being a woman going to be a problem?”
“Are you sure your capa?—”
“Were you listening, or do I need to run down my credential for you again?”
“Just because you sound good on paper?—”
“First of all, nigga, before you start with your chauvinistic bullshit, google me. I’m outta here.”
“But we’re not done.”
“Until you change your attitude, I’m done.”
She snatched the list from my hands, yanked the door open, and stormed away. I refused to chase after her and watched her until she disappeared around one of the corners.
The way I saw it, I didn’t need anything from her; she needed information from me. She would be the one looking foolish when she didn’t know anything about the players.
“I love it! Kudos to Coach Crawford for hiring the best person for the job and not allowing her gender to make a difference,” my mother said.
“It sounds like you have an issue with having a woman coach,” my father commented.
“Umm, I do.”
“Niko! We didn’t raise you to have those kinds of views,” my mother fussed.
“What kinds of views, Ma? I’ve never had a female coach, and the idea of having one has never crossed my mind.”
“First of all, don’t call her a female. She’s a woman. Secondly, as long as she’s qualified for the job, you shouldn’t have an issue with what’s between her legs.”
“And if you do have issues, get over them by Monday. She’s the person who was hired to do the job, and you’d better give her the respect she deserves.
You’re the team captain, and your teammates will follow your lead.
If you’re an asshole toward her, they will be as well.
As your mother said, we didn’t raise you that way. ”
I sighed and released a deep breath. My parents were right. I was also surprised by my feelings, considering I had been in the Navy and had plenty of women as my superiors. Not once did I have a problem with them or feel any kind of way about taking orders from them.
As I gave it more thought, it wasn’t that I had a problem with being coached by a woman. I just didn’t like that it was a woman who I’d been fighting my attraction to for several days. How would I take instruction from someone who was the object of my fantasies?
“Y’all are right. I don’t know what got into me. I’ll admit, I wasn’t expecting Coach Lisle to be replaced by a woman. Coach Crawford wouldn’t have hired her if she wasn’t qualified.”
“That’s what I like to hear. I knew it wouldn’t take you long to remember who raised you,” my mother said with a satisfied smile.
“I feel kinda bad, though. Coach Crawford asked me to meet with her to review the roster and positions we play, but she walked out before we could get that far.”
“What did you do?” Ma accused me.
“What makes you think?—”
“Because I know you, Son. You did or said something that offended her, and she didn’t tolerate it. Spill it.”
“Spill it, Daddy!” Deuce said out of nowhere, making us laugh.
He’d been sitting in the middle of the family room floor, playing with his toys since I’d arrived, but obviously paying more attention than I thought.
“I may have said something to upset her,” I admitted.
“Sounds like you owe her a meeting and an apology,” Pops said.
“I’ll—hold on. This is Coach Crawford calling. Wassup, Coach.”
“Nothing. I wanted to make sure everything was okay. Coach Sampson said you had an emergency you needed to take care of, so you didn’t have a chance to meet.”
“Oh, yeah. Umm, everything is good. Something came up with Deuce that I had to take care of.”
“I figured as much. If you can reach out to her over the weekend and see if she has time to meet with you, I’d appreciate it.”
“No problem, Coach. I’ll take care of it.”
The call ended, and my parents looked at me expectantly.
“Well, what did Coach Crawford say?” my mother questioned.
“Apparently, the new coach told him we didn’t get a chance to meet because I had an emergency. He wants me to reach out to her to see if she can meet this weekend.”
“Hmm. So, she could’ve thrown you under the bus and chose not to?” my father pointed out.
“I guess.”
“That means you owe her a meeting, an apology, and a thank you. I can’t wait to hear how it goes,” Ma said.
Yeah, me too.