Epilogue
Vonte, look at me.” Jade squatted so she could be eye level with the boy.
His helmet was on the bench next to him, and his face dripped with sweat. She didn’t need to take in the way his shoulders slumped or the stains coloring his uniform to know that he was knock-down, drag-out tired. But when he caught her eye, there wasn’t even a glimpse of the same exhaustion his body showed. They were up against West Beaufort again, this time fighting for the title of season champions.
“I’m good, Coach,” he nearly growled around his mouth guard. “I’m good to go back.”
“You’re looking tired, boy.”
“Coach, I’m telling you I’m good. I’ve got this.”
Jade spared a glance at where Sam Coleman, their best JV linebacker, was waiting in the wings to be put in the game. The kid was good, but he was a newly recruited freshman and not nearly as strong with his tackles as he could be. They were working on it. Jade had faith that he would get it. She just wasn’t sure if now was the time to test that theory.
“We’ve got twelve seconds left on the clock and we’re up by six. We could take this whole thing, but not if they make it to the line. Not if we let them past. You’re telling me right now that you have the energy to make sure that doesn’t happen?”
Vonte’s breaths were still coming in deep. His chest pads moved with every single one. There was doubt in his eyes when he caught hers again. “I… I don’t know.”
“Tell me how you’re really feeling, then.”
“Tired,” he said. “My legs are burning, and my lungs are on fire. I feel like I can keep pushing, but I… I don’t know how hard I can actually go.”
Jade swallowed, her heart thudding even harder in her chest than it had been the past few hours. “Jaxon,” she called out, and within seconds, the lithe red-haired kicker was at her side.
“What do you need, Coach?”
“Run over and find Coach Lim for me. Tell her I need her over here immediately.”
It was a request that felt incredibly familiar, and Jade made a quick note in her mind to look into getting some walkie-talkies. That was a thing that could be handled for next season, though, not while they were trying to finish this current one as champions.
Lim and Jaxon were jogging toward her within moments. Franny’s cheeks were flushed from the cold, and her fingers were clutched tightly around her clipboard. Franny was her offensive line coach, but Sam had grown close to Alonzo Holton, which meant that he’d grown close to Franny as well. He might have been on defense, but she trusted Lim’s opinion on the matter—whatever it was.
“We’ve got one minute left on this time-out,” Lim reminded her. “We’ve got to get them back out there.”
Jade rose out of her squat to speak more closely with her. “What do you think of Sam Coleman?”
The boy in question was sitting on the bench, biting at his lips and shaking his knee like there was something trapped under his pants. She watched Lim look him over.
“He’s a solid lineman. Vonte’s been helping him a lot this season. Every time we’ve put him in to sub, he’s done a good job.”
“I’ve watched him in practice, though he misses a lot of his tackles.”
Lim nodded. “This is his first year as a linebacker. He needs to have his fundamentals drilled into him, but he can do it.”
“We don’t have time to waste, not even a second.”
Lim looked past her, expression pensive. “Sam, come over here a second.”
“What? Coach?” Vonte’s tone was alarmed, but when he tried to stand up, he hardly made it a few inches off the bench before his own weight forced him back down.
“Yes, Coach Lim?” Sam was incredibly soft-spoken, and his voice cracked on every word. He was big for his age, but Jade didn’t know if what she saw in his eyes was determination or apprehension.
“How are you feeling tonight?” Lim asked him.
“I’m feeling great.”
“Do you think you can handle subbing in for Vonte?”
The kid swallowed hard. “There’s only twelve seconds, right? I can handle that.”
“That’s going to be the longest twelve seconds of your life,” Lim said, beating Jade to the punch. “They’ve got the ball, so we’re going heavy. A four-three defense, something classic, no tricks. But we need you tight out there. We need you on your game and ready. And when it’s time for you to take some of them to the ground, I need you to do it right. I need to be able to trust that you can get out there and make it happen. Can I?”
Sam looked back and forth between his two coaches, the stadium lights glinting in his hazel eyes.
“You can trust me.”
He sounded sure, and Jade knew that she had no other choice, so she took a deep breath of her own and nodded once. “Get your guard in and your helmet on, and get out there. Tell them what I said about four-three.”
The boy barely had time to get himself together before the referee blew the whistle, signaling that the time-out was over.
“Vonte,” Jade called out. “You keep an eye on him out there. No matter what happens tonight, that boy is your responsibility from now on. Think of him as your own little mentee.”
Vonte’s grumbling was an agreement, but Jade knew she’d be hearing an earful about this from him later.
She and Lim stood side by side with their arms crossed.
“You scared?” Franny spoke just loud enough for her to hear.
“Terrified. If we lose after all this…”
“We won’t.”
“We’d better not.”
“We won’t.”
A 4-3 defensive strategy called for four down linemen and three linebackers. The players were aligned so they could try to control the gaps in West Beaufort’s offense, which would allow Greenbelt to aggressively keep them from moving up the field with the ball. This type of play was less popular these days in favor of showier ones, but Jade figured that just meant the other team wouldn’t expect them to use it.
They’d spent months running this defense in practice, but she’d never had them bring it out in a game before. It was a risky move, and she was betting everything on her boys having it down to a T.
The second the scrimmage started, West Beaufort’s quarterback took off with the ball tucked. Greenbelt’s two outside linebackers spread to protect their gaps, and the down linemen in the middle spread just enough for coverage. West Beaufort’s QB stalled for a moment, his feet skidding on the turf as he attempted to decide which way he was going to try to run the ball.
This was all the time Sam needed to charge forward, an unexpected force taking over the field. The seconds ticked by, the number on the clock growing smaller and smaller. Jade held her breath as Sam sprinted closer to the quarterback; any sudden movements or changes and the kid’s trajectory could be thrown off. If he missed this tackle, it could mean missing out on their last chance to keep West Beaufort from scoring again.
They were only one touchdown away from Greenbelt’s lead becoming a tie, and they damn sure did not want a tie. They wanted a win.
The sound of the bodies impacting seemed to process faster than actually watching it happen. One moment, Sam was throwing himself into the air, taking the other player down to the ground, and the next, the final buzzer was going off.
Jade’s heart thundered in her chest, and her stomach heaved like she was about to throw up.
“Jade!” Lim’s voice was frantic. “Oh my God, Jade. They did it. They did it, Jade.”
Jade couldn’t speak. Her head was filled with static as blood rushed to her ears. All she could do was nod.
The players ran onto the field, but she couldn’t follow them. All she could do was stand on the sidelines and watch as the joy overtook her team. All the sounds of the world faded out as she watched them jumping through the air, arms wide, mouths grinning. They had all worked so hard for this. Grueling hours on the field practicing in the cold and heat until blisters formed on their hands and their bodies were too tired to stand upright.
Coaches who had forgone family dinners and time at home to travel the state for games all season. Folks who had worked tirelessly with her to foster strength and camaraderie among these kids. All of them watched on as their players were unabashed in their exuberance.
She couldn’t help but think about herself too. All those years of waiting and hoping and pushing. The fighting and clawing she’d had to do to prove to everyone that she was fit to coach football at all, let alone as head coach. Just for her to bring the team to their first championship win during her first year as head coach. No, she hadn’t done it alone—and she would never claim that she had. But this win was hers too.
All her senses flowed back into her body slowly, and the first thing she heard upon coming back to herself was the announcer’s tinny voice through the booming stadium speakers.
“And there you have it, folks! Greenbelt is our new 2024 South Carolina state champion.”
It was one of the most beautiful things she’d ever heard.
Jade had been coming to Minnie’s for the better part of three decades and never once had she gotten to sit in the giant half-circle booth in the back. That table had always been reserved for large parties and, well, she’d never been part of a party large enough to earn a seat at it.
Until now.
It was a Saturday night in January. Too hot for the time of year in Greenbelt but still beautiful out. Instead of being out at a bar or hanging around someone’s backyard, her friend group was sitting around a table at Minnie’s Diner eating peach cobbler like it was their last meal. Truthfully, she wouldn’t have had it any other way. She was sandwiched between Franny and Miri, with Aja and Walker Abbott on Miri’s other side. Across the table, Olivia and Leo Vaughn sat in chairs. In the center of the table were two whole cobblers and half a gallon of ice cream. Their waitress had simply left them with the scoop and told them to go nuts. Which they had, judging by the tightness in Jade’s belly.
In one week, Olivia would be moving. Not just from Beaufort either but out of the country completely. She’d taken a teaching job in South Korea with a contract that would keep her away from them for an entire year. They’d spent the past few weeks shedding their tears and reveling in their sadness. Now it was time to send their girl off in style. With good company and Greenbelt’s finest.
Truthfully, it had been a while since they’d all gotten to spend time together at once. Work was hectic, and everyone trying to cultivate their own relationships took time. They still made sure to get together plenty, but it often meant that all their schedules didn’t align and someone was left out. They’d all made time for this, though, and it felt incredible to have everyone together in one place. Even Leo with his big-ass head made her heart feel full enough to burst.
“I will never forget the first time I had this cobbler,” Aja said, giggling. “Walker brought me here and made me try it.”
“Mm-hmm.” Walker’s voice was calm and quiet, like it always was. “Now she knows all about them peaches. Ain’t that right?”
“I’ve still never had any better than this.”
“I have,” Walker said quietly, and judging by the way Aja tucked her face into his chest and laughed, they were being too horny for their own good.
Jade decided to let it go without ragging on them. She was in too good a mood.
“Nothing’s better than Minnie’s,” Leo said. “And I’ve been to a lot of damn diners.”
“I have to agree,” Franny added, prompting Jade to throw an arm around her bare shoulders. “I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about this place that just won’t let up.”
“Well, that’s because Old Minnie was on her witchy shit,” Miri said.
Everyone else at the table groaned, and Miri just cackled.
“I’m serious as a heart attack too. My mama said that before she opened this place, Minnie put all kinds of wards and shit around the property for protection. I mean, when was the last time you saw anybody get into a fight at Minnie’s? Or even try to get nasty with one of the servers?”
They all went silent for a few moments, thinking.
“Well, never,” Olivia huffed. “But that doesn’t mean Minnie cast spells on all of Greenbelt.”
Miri shrugged. “People in this town fight at church picnics, girl. But somehow, they never fight at Minnie’s. The vibes are always right, the food is always hot, and the cobbler always hits. That feels like witchcraft to me.”
“Wait a minute. When did this place open?” Walker asked.
“My folks came here when they were in high school,” Leo said. “So… a long time.”
Walker’s blond brows furrowed. “My granny always told me Minnie herself was back there cooking. How old could she be?”
“Wait, I thought Minnie’s was just named after someone’s mama,” Jade interjected. “I didn’t think there was actually a woman named Minnie behind it all.”
“Mama said that it’s owned by a Black woman named Minnie and that these are all her original recipes.” Miri’s tone was incredibly sure.
Leo chuckled, not unkindly. “Well, if Ms. Patrice said it…”
“Oh, hush,” Miri said, smiling. “She’s right most of the time.”
“I don’t know if she’s right about this one,” Olivia said, phone up to her face. “The website says Minnie’s was opened in 1962, but it doesn’t say anything about who opened it or where it got its name.”
“That’s weird.” Franny pulled her own phone out, tapping on the screen. “This website looks like it was started in 1962…”
“Ooh,” Jade said, pulling her arm from around Franny’s shoulders and putting her elbows on the table, leaning forward. “Maybe we should investigate. Let’s get to the bottom of the Minnie’s mystery.”
The entire table went silent for a few moments, and Jade’s excitement grew as she assumed they were all taking her idea into real consideration.
“You want us to run around town like Scoob and the gang?” Leo laughed. “What happens if we find out the place is just an old chain restaurant run by an evil conglomerate or something?”
Jade pouted, throwing herself back against the booth, arms crossed. “Is it your life’s goal to ruin all my fun, Leo?”
Leo’s dark eyebrows shot up his forehead in an instant. “Oh, it’s me ruining your fun now?”
“Yes, just like always.”
Miri reached across the table, putting one hand on her husband and one hand on Jade. “Behave, babies. You know Mommy has plenty of love for you both.”
Across from her, Leo swallowed hard at the words, immediately averting his gaze and shifting in his seat some.
“Maybe we should just let the lore stay lore,” Aja offered, ever the diplomatic one. “Maybe Minnie is back there right now rolling out pie dough, or maybe she died and left her recipes to her family. Hell, maybe she was never a real person in the first place.”
“Yeah,” Miri interjected. “And maybe she’s the greatest witch Greenbelt has ever seen.”
“Anyway,” Aja continued. “All I’m saying is that, maybe Minnie is whoever we need her to be. As long as we can come in here, sit down, and eat food in this place, that’s what matters.”
“Keeping the mystery alive.” Olivia nodded. “I respect that.”
While they all mulled it over, Jade took her spoon, scooping up a big hunk of cobbler and ice cream, and offering it to the woman next to her. Franny’s eyes were soft like dandelion buds when they landed on her. Jade let the warmth of her gaze float over her skin. It was hot but gentle, and when Franny opened her lips, Jade didn’t hesitate to feed her.
She watched as her girlfriend savored the flavors of the dessert, swallowing it down and running a tongue over her pink lips for just one more taste once it was done.
“The cobbler abides,” Franny said to the group but didn’t take her eyes off Jade’s.
“Damn right it does.” Jade grinned.