Chapter 26 #2
I remember Nicole behind me. “This is my best friend, Nicole.”
“Lovely to meet you! Come sit by me for the game. It should be a good one!”
Seeing the stadium full of cheering fans is a different vibe than when I was touring around the practice campus previously.
Could that have been less than a month ago?
It feels like years have passed since Noah had his arms around me; since we kissed on the practice field, the white lines spreading out from us in every direction.
When the announcer starts to bring in the home team, we get to our feet. The stadium lights dim, spotlights appear, and the announcer’s voice booms over the speakers. In the home corner, the cheerleaders shake their pom-poms and smoke floats away from the tunnel.
“ANNDDD NOWWWWWW,” the announcer begins. “YOUR HOUSTON HURRICANES STARTING LINEUP!”
Chrissy, Nicole, and I are full-on screaming.
Polite, lady-like cheering is forgotten as the announcer calls Noah’s name.
“From Houston University, tight end, Noah Fox!” My heart soars.
It’s so light I almost can’t take it. I have no idea what he will say when he sees me. I just know it can’t be goodbye.
My feet hurt from stomping and my hands sting from clapping as the rest of the team comes out of the tunnel.
Finally, Colin is announced and runs in carrying a Texas flag while classic rock blares through the speakers.
We continue to scream at the top of our lungs as the guys meet on the field and do an extensive handshake.
The game holds my rapt attention. This is my first time at a professional football game and it’s so much more hardcore in real life.
I watched Noah’s last game on TV and was shocked at the brutality of it all, but hearing the hits in person as they collide is a bit horrifying.
Noah on the field is not the same man I know who cooks homemade dinners and has a crush on Lara Croft.
He’s aggressive. He seems sure-footed. The grit and power he displays when he blocks is overwhelming to watch.
I know level-headed, thoughtful, careful, balanced, loyal Noah, but the Noah on the field is all athlete, all competition.
It’s driving me wild.
I’m practically vibrating in my seat as the half comes to a close.
It’s tied twenty-two to twenty-two. I’m watching the team run into the locker room for halftime when I see a girl I’ve never met standing next to Chrissy.
“Nash! Wyatt is doing great!” We all rise to let the new girl into our row, and I realize how freaking tall she is.
She’s easily six feet, built lithe and long.
She clasps her hands in front of her. “I know, I’m so glad!
He was a bit nervous about this game. The Cleveland Vultures are nothing to joke about, even though we’re favored by three-and-a-half points in the spread.
” Her eyes fall on me (and it’s a long way down to my height).
“I don’t think we’ve met.” She sticks out her hand for me to shake. “I’m Nash.”
I take her hand. It’s warm and friendly, like her smile. “Audrey, nice to meet you. And this is my best friend Nicole.”
“She’s with Noah.” Chrissy blurts out before I can say I’m a guest of Noah.
“Happy to have you! It’s always more fun when the WAGs box is full.”
I scrunch my nose. “WAGs?”
“Wives and girlfriends,” Chrissy explains.
I turn to Nash. “Who’s your boyfriend?”
She waves me off. “Not boyfriend. Wyatt and I have been best friends since college.”
My brows shoot up my forehead. “I see.” I look at Chrissy who has a certain gleam in her eyes.
My cheeks redden. “Oh, I’m not. I mean, we haven’t talked about… we don’t have a label really.”
How do I explain my complicated relationship and my very real feelings for Noah in what’s left of halftime? It seems too daunting to even try.
Chrissy is happy to step in.
“Oh, buckle up for this made-for-TV movie.” Her eyes are alight. As much as Chrissy likes to talk and be in everyone’s business, I can tell it comes from a place of genuine care. “He made her bleed, took her to dinner, and then she hit him up for money.”
I balk and look at Nash. My mouth opens like a fish. “It’s not what it sounds like!” Chrissy breaks into a giggle fit. “I can explain!” I’m exasperated but there’s a smile on my face as I fill Nash in on what’s actually happened between me and Noah.
Nash’s back hits the stadium chair. “Wow, that’s crazy. So you’re up here right now hanging in the balance, not knowing what he will say when the game is over?”
My shoulders slump. “Basically. I’m shooting my shot. YOLO or whatever the kids are saying these days.”
The music blasts once again, signaling the end of halftime. We all get to our feet to cheer on the men as they return to the field. I can see Noah’s eyes taking in the stands, but I can’t tell if he sees me or not. Maybe it’s better that he doesn’t. For him or for me, I’m not sure.
The game carries on, I know the basics thanks to Friday Night Lights, but Nash explains the rest to me.
She plays on a recreational flag football team, so she really knows her stuff.
Cleveland gets the ball back at the half, but can’t convert on fourth down, so they punt.
Noah runs back out with the offense, and we settle in to watch the possession.
The Hurricanes march down the field. They’ve got the Vultures defense on their heels and they aren’t letting up.
On the twenty-yard line, they line up for a go at the end zone.
Nash leans over to me, knowing this is my first football game. “They’re in the red zone now. If they don’t score here, they will have to punt it away to the other team, giving them another chance to score before the quarter is over.”
Noah is out wide. The ball is snapped, and Noah moves to block.
Once the quarterback steps out of the pocket, he rolls off the block and out toward the sideline, wide open.
Colin sees him and throws him a dart. Noah secures the catch and turns to run, toeing along the sideline toward the end zone.
Nash, Chrissy, and I are all on our feet screaming.
Just when I think Noah is going all the way, a safety comes out of the peripheral and gives chase.
He’s trying to stay in bounds for more yards but is on his way out.
A second Vultures player slams into him. The crack echoes through the stadium. My cheer is stuck in my throat along with the contents of my stomach.
Next to me, Nash is irate. “What the fuck was that? Fucking dirty hit! Throw the fucking flag, ref!” A millisecond later, the yellow flag hits the grass. “Finally!”
Nash got what she wanted, but Noah hasn’t gotten up. He’s on the ground, face down, knees tucked under him. The shape of him slumped on the ground reminds me of child’s pose, and I can’t help but think about how months ago he was a stranger in a yoga class.
And now he’s everything.
He’s holding his chest. The replay starts on the Jumbotron, and I see that Cleveland player’s helmet hit him right at the bottom of the rib cage as Noah’s foot touches the line. “That hit was late as fuck!” Nash finishes.
The referee steps on to the field, turns his mic on, and holds his arms straight out. “Unsportsmanlike conduct. Number thirty-seven. Defense. Fifteen-yard penalty. First down.”
Noah still isn’t on his feet. Trainers surround him, leaning down to hear what he’s saying.
My eyes are wide as I look at Chrissy. She’s already looking back, reading the panic in my eyes.
I don’t know what to do. Everything feels like too much.
The lights are too bright, the music is too loud.
I can’t think. I can’t focus. My heart is beating out of my chest, and tears sting my eyes.
I’m not used to having someone I care about in danger like this.
I’ve never seen the disparaging roughness of this game up close.
I’m going to toss the literal cookies I ate before coming to the game.
Chrissy puts her hand on my arm, and I suck in a breath.
We watch as Noah gets up on his own. The teams clap as he walks off. I watch as he’s guided back through the tunnel by one of the training staff. I meet Chrissy’s concerned gaze with my wild one. “Where are they taking him?”
“Probably to the X-ray room to make sure nothing’s broken.
” I can’t seem to get a full breath. My eyes are on Chrissy, but all I’m seeing is Noah lying on the ground.
“Do you want to go to him?” I nod, not trusting my words.
I can’t find my voice. Seeing a man I thought was invincible taken down has rattled me to my core.
I have to put my hands on him and see with my own eyes that he’s okay. I have to expel the minutiae of words beating the back of my skull. I’ve had enough tiptoeing and waiting. Being afraid and not taking my life into my own hands.
I know what I want.
Everything. I’m ready to fully trust him, say everything that’s on my mind.
Chrissy grabs me by the hand, and tugs me toward the exit.
The world blurs around me. It feels like it takes a million years to get down to field level.
Thank God Chrissy is here; though who would have thought I’d be saying that when I first met her because Noah was just my client I was trying to tamp down feelings for, and now look where I am.
I’m glad I don’t have to think. I just have to let her lead me to him.
Where I need to be. “Wait, what about Nicole?”
“She’ll be fine here. I’ll make sure she gets home safe,” Chrissy says.
Chrissy stops short at the door to the training area and gestures to me that this is where I need to go.
I drop her hand and take a deep breath. I was so sure two minutes ago, but now that only this door separates me from Noah, I’m losing my resolve.
Chrissy takes me by the shoulders. “You want him?”
“Yes,” I croak.
“You love him?”
I swallow hard. I wasn’t ready to admit it yet. Not until everything had been sorted out. “Yes.”
I mean, I didn’t figure out I loved him in the high times when we were laughing and joking—I found it in the worst times. Like finding out how important breathing is when it’s hard to inhale your next breath.
She shakes my shoulders once, clearing away the doubt. “Then go fucking get him.”
She kisses my cheek, turns on her towering heels, and strides back the way we came.