3. McKenzie
THREE
MCKENZIE
Being up close and in person with Coach Danvers is more nerve-wracking than I expected. Or maybe I’m just thrown off by seeing him and Kylie together. It’s so obvious now, as I see them next to each other, that they’re related. The dark hair and dark eyes. Even their noses are similar. I wasn’t expecting Coach Danvers to have a daughter my age. He must’ve been a teenager when Kylie was born.
Not to mention, I had no idea that Tyler Danvers is absolutely gorgeous. I’m almost certain that’s one reason game attendance has skyrocketed since he started at La Vista and that most of the new attendees are women.
I take a few steps forward before I plant myself in the chair Kylie just left. “Thank you for agreeing to meet with me.”
“I didn’t,” he states matter-of-factly. His tone stings a little, but I school my reaction.
“Ok,” I say slowly. “Then thanks for allowing me to barge in on your morning.”
The corner of his lips tip up into an almost smile. Not that I’m looking at his lips or anything. “Sure.”
“As I said, I’m in Professor Moore’s Television Sports Reporting class this semester, and I’m the lucky student who got assigned to the football team.” Begged for the football team, actually. It’s a huge responsibility since it’s undoubtedly the most popular sport at the school, if not the entire state of Nebraska. But it’s also the most exciting. To me, anyway.
“I’ll also have a camera operator with me occasionally. Especially on game days.”
“Fantastic,” he says flatly. “So, what is it exactly that you need from me?” He looks at me with those dark eyes, and I almost forget why I’m even here.
“Access to practices and players for sound bites. Introductions to the other coaches. I’ll want to be on the sidelines with the team for the home games. Interviews at half time and after each game.” His shoulders go rigid as my list goes on, so I decide to stop there. It’s becoming extremely clear that this man doesn’t want me in his office and definitely doesn’t want me buzzing around the football team for the next few months. But that’s ok. I don’t need him to like me. I just need him to let me in the door so I can get my job done and ace this class. I won’t let one sour coach derail my plans of becoming a sports journalist.
“Fine. I’ll show you around the department, introduce you to my coaching staff, and then you can do your thing. You don’t need me to babysit you, right?”
“Nope. Absolutely no babysitting required.” I stand up and smooth my blouse down.
I swear his eyes track my hand as he stands and walks out of his office and down the hall.
I shake off the thought and quickly follow, careful not to let my gaze drop to his backside. It’s extremely difficult when his jeans fit him so perfectly. And it doesn’t seem fair that someone with such an attitude can be so attractive.
He stops abruptly, and I almost crash into him. That would’ve been embarrassing. I follow him through the door into the weight room.
“This is the weight room, obviously. During the season, the guys lift weights in here and do conditioning Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Practice is on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday afternoons so the team can have classes in the morning. Special teams have more of a focus on Tuesday and Wednesday. Sunday is a mandatory rest day for the team. Friday we review the playbook, watch game reels, and do a light practice to prepare for the Saturday game. If it’s a Friday game, we rearrange.”
“Ok.” I grab my little notebook and start jotting down info as he talks. He quickly turns, not giving me a chance to finish my notes, and walks back out of the gym. I walk and write as we take a turn down another hall. Coach knocks on the doorframe of an office and the man behind the desk lifts his head up.
“Coach. What can I do for you?”
“Hey, Zach. This is McKenzie. She’s a journalism student who’s going to be following the team around for the season.”
Zach smiles. At least there’s one friendly face around here. “Well, alright. Welcome to the team, McKenzie.”
“McKenzie, this is Coach Zach Beckham, our offensive coordinator.” Of course, I already know who he is. I’ve followed the team religiously. Tyler hired Zach to be his offensive coordinator his second year at La Vista and the two of them really work well together.
“It’s nice to meet you, Coach Beckham.” I take a few steps forward and shake his hand.
He points to Danvers. “Don’t let this guy give you a hard time.”
“He’s certainly trying his hardest,” I tell him and turn just in time to see Coach Danvers roll his eyes.
“We’re pretty sure it’s only child syndrome,” Coach Zach says with a laugh.
“Ah, yes. It all makes sense now.”
Coach Danvers doesn’t seem pleased with our little exchange, but I don’t really care. If he can dish it out, he’s got to learn to take it.
“See you in a few, Zach.”
Zach nods, which is my cue to leave.
We move on to the next office, and I’m introduced to the Defensive Coordinator, Travis Fisher. Coach Fisher has been at La Vista a few years longer than Danvers and was one of the only members of the previous coaching staff that Coach Danvers kept around. It was a good decision because the team has done nothing but grow.
While we’re standing in Travis’s office making our introductions, Hayes Manning, the star quarterback for the Bobcats, rounds the corner.
“Hey, Coach.”
“Hayes. What’s going on, son?”
“I was just thinking about that play from practice last night, and I want to talk to you about it.” I sense the moment Hayes notices me for the first time. Unfortunately, his gaze is nothing I’m not used to, but I do my best to ignore it.
“And who might you be, beautiful?” Oh God. He’s attractive with his messy blond hair and blue eyes, but I’ve heard the rumors of all the women he hooks up with, and I refuse to be one of them. I have standards, and throwing myself at a football player to be his girl of the week is not on my college bucket list.
Thankfully, Coach Danvers interjects so I don’t have to reject his quarterback in front of an audience. “Hayes, keep it in your pants. This is McKenzie. She’s going to be following the team this season for her journalism class.”
It’s good to know Coach isn’t a complete asshole. At least he wants his players to be respectful. After our less-than-stellar introduction, I was expecting the worst.
Hayes puts his hands up defensively, but the sly smile that exposes his dimple doesn’t fade. “Ok, ok. Excuse me for admiring a beautiful woman. I will do my best to keep my thoughts to myself during all future interactions.” He winks at me, and I can’t help but laugh. He’s charming, I’ll give him that.
“Alright, McKenzie, I’ve got to go work with Hayes. Feel free to do what you’ve got to do around here, and you know how to get in touch with me if you need me.”
“Clearly not through email.”
To my surprise, he chuckles. “Guess you’ll have to track me down. But try not to need me.”
“Got it.”
Without another word, the two men head back to Coach Danvers’ office. I look through a few more rooms, but there isn’t anything of interest. The players are either already gone or in the locker room, so there’s not much for me to do. I’ll come back tomorrow afternoon for practice so I have something for my first news segment.
I text Kylie, find out that she’s in the library, and meet her on the second floor. She’s sitting at a table by herself, surrounded by books and typing away at her laptop.
“Hey, how’d it go with Dad?” she asks to greet me.
“Eh. It was alright.”
“Oh no.” Her shoulders slump. “He wasn’t rude to you, was he?”
“Not rude per se.”
“Listen, I know he can come off a little gruff and unfriendly, but he’s not a bad guy. I can talk to him if you want. Get him to lighten up?”
“It’s alright. I can handle him. I guess I wasn’t expecting such a frosty interaction.”
She nods. “He’s not always like that. At home, he’s totally chill. But when he’s around football, he’s laser-focused.”
“Makes sense. But I shouldn’t have to deal with him too much.”
“Did he at least give you what you needed for today?”
“Yep. I’m going back tomorrow afternoon to watch the practice.”
“That sounds so boring,” she says and crinkles her nose.
I laugh. “Wait, you don’t like football?”
“No, not really,” she admits.
“I’m sure your dad loves that.”
“Yeah. I’ll watch the games every now and then, but I’m just not into it. I don’t know. It might be because football took him away from us for so long.”
“Oh, really?” I ask. She hasn’t talked much about her family yet, but I guess I haven’t either.
“Yeah. He got drafted to the NFL when I was really young. I think this is the first time we’ve actually lived in the same state.”
Wow. I truly couldn’t imagine not being with my dad. “Why didn’t you go with him?”
She shrugs. “I stayed in Georgia with my mom. That was the deal. He visited a lot or flew us out to see him. And I spent summers with him when I was younger.” I nod, listening intently, even though it’s none of my business. It’s hard to imagine what growing up as Tyler Danvers’ daughter would’ve been like.
“Hey, do you want to come over for dinner tonight? Dad won’t be there. He’s working late.”
“I wish I could, but I’ll have to take a rain check. I have to work tonight.” I’ve been working as a server at Alessandro’s since my freshman year. It’s a family-owned place and pays decently. They’ve always been very flexible with my class schedule, too, which I appreciate.
I wish I didn’t have to work at all, but it is what it is.
“Aww, bummer,” she pouts.
“I know, but let’s definitely plan something for the weekend.” Her face lights up at my suggestion.
“Ok, yeah. Dad isn’t home much during football season, so I have a feeling I’m going to be spending a lot of time by myself in the coming months.”
“I can imagine. I guess football becomes all-encompassing when your dad’s a coach.”
“Oh, yeah.”
We study for the next hour before heading to class.
After I’m done for the day, I head out to the parking deck and grab my work uniform out of my trunk. I make sure no one is looking before slipping off my top and swapping it for the black Alessandro’s polo with my name tag hooked in the top left corner. I awkwardly shimmy out of the black pants I wore to school and put on the jeans I have specifically for work. I don’t want my everyday jeans to permanently smell like garlic and marinara sauce.
I fold up what I wore to classes and add it to the pile I have sitting in my back seat. My entire closet is in my car since I technically don’t have a place to live at the moment. I was able to sleep on Sabrina’s couch last night. I met her in one of my classes last semester, but I certainly don’t want to take advantage of her kindness. I’ll likely stay in my car tonight since I have a closing shift at the restaurant. I’m already dreading it because this front seat is not as comfortable as I was hoping it would be.
I know it’ll all be worth it when I get my diploma and land my dream job as a sports reporter. Hopefully, getting to that point won’t burn me out first.