Chapter 2
CHAPTER
TWO
BO
We’ve just finished practice, and I’m about to shower when Coach Pettys walks into the locker room and calls a meeting. We circle around him in the center of the room. Coach’s hands are on his hips, and I can’t tell if the smirk on his face is a good smirk or a you guys are fucked smirk.
“Okay, boys, I’m gonna get right to it. At the end of last year, right after our spring training season, we were approached by the Sports Network about participating in a docuseries for this season.
It took some heavy paperwork, but the university approved it.
” He huffs a laugh, and my teammates clap, clearly excited.
Me? I have a feeling I know what’s coming, and I’m not exactly excited about it.
I suspect that the camera crews will want to follow me around specifically.
It’s not that I’m not used to the attention, but I really want to stay focused this season with minimal distractions.
But with me being ranked the number one quarterback in college football, they will likely want to interview me a lot at the very least.
“So, with that being said, we have some changes we’re going to be making before the season really gets underway.
Starting with a team curfew.” Coach’s assistant, Roger, hands him a paper.
“For our away games, the schedule will pretty much stay the same. You will have your normal check-in time. Home games, we will now leave campus the night before and stay in a hotel. We will have a team dinner and an activity, likely a movie night, then a nine p.m. room check. That means, you will be in your assigned room, ready to sleep. Not chatting with your girlfriends all night, not playing games on your phone.” He pauses and looks around the room.
“You can thank your previous teammates, Schuster and Smith, for this addition to the schedule this season. With all eyes on us, we have to stay disciplined and represent the school positively.”
Casey is standing to my left and nudges me with his elbow. “Did you know about this?”
I shake my head. “Not any more than you guys did.”
“I mean, I get why they’re doing it, and maybe I won’t hate it. But I like my girl staying with me before games.” Casey folds his arms across his chest.
“You like your girl staying with you any night, regardless of if we have a game or not.” I laugh and shove him playfully.
“Truth. Dude, Beck would have hated this so hard. Or found a way to get my sister in the room.” He laughs.
“Probably.” I smirk. “Honestly though, I don’t hate the idea of the curfew. I like quiet before games.”
Casey starts to speak, but Coach snaps his attention to us and looks over his glasses at us and raises his eyebrows.
Then he continues talking. “As far as the production schedule, you will be notified in advance if they want to record any of you individually. Roger will hand out the packet for you all to review. Look it over carefully, memorize it. You can direct any questions to Roger, and if he doesn’t know the answer, he’ll find it for you.
” He takes off his glasses. “That’s it for today.
Hydrate, eat, and get some rest. We’re going hard again tomorrow. ”
Coach looks over to me. “Callaway, meet me in my office after you shower.”
“Yes, sir.” I nod, then turn toward my stall.
Casey follows. “What’s that about?”
I shake my head and shrug. “Not sure. Could be anything really.”
He slaps my shoulder. “Better you than me, man. I’m gonna shower at home. I’ll see you there.” He grabs his gear and leaves the locker room.
I look over at Coach and see he’s talking to a few of the other coaches, so I grab what I need and make my way to the shower.
Sitting in the coach’s office feels like waiting for the school principal to come in and issue detention. My hands are a little sweaty, my knee is bouncing, and I keep checking the time on my watch. While I was in the shower, I thought about every possible scenario that might explain why I’m here.
Now, I’m a confident guy. I’m a leader on the field, and I like to think that carries into my personal life as well.
Things like school, sports, and friendships have always come easily to me.
Don’t get me wrong; I work hard, and I stay focused.
I’m a doer, not a sayer. Still, I’m not exactly sure why I’m here.
Could be the show. Or it could be the psychology class that I’m surprisingly struggling with.
I mean, I guess I can’t say struggling, but I definitely bombed the first test. In my defense though, I really don’t think I should be in the class to begin with.
It has absolutely nothing to do with my business major, but whatever.
I hear Coach talking in the hall. Then the door opens, and he shuts it behind him.
Shit.
“Callaway.” He nods, then takes a seat at his desk. “I’ll get right to it because my wife is expecting me home for dinner tonight since I haven’t been home all week.”
There’s a folder sitting on top of a stack of papers, and he takes it and sets it in front of him, then puts on his glasses. “You know why you’re here?”
“I have a few guesses, sir.” I fold my hands together, elbows on my knees. “My psychology class? Or the show?”
He nods. “Yes to both. But let’s do the class issue first. Son, how did you get a D on your first quiz in an introductory class? You’re one of the smartest kids I know. This doesn’t track.”
I swallow a lump in my throat before I answer, “Well, sir, I’m not exactly sure why. Honestly, I’m still shocked my advisor missed putting this required class in my schedule freshman year. And I’m also confused about why I need it for my business degree.”
“It doesn’t matter why. What matters is that it’s required, and you’re barely passing, which is a big problem for me, son.
I need you on that field for every game this season.
I want that trophy again this year. And I know you want to go out strong—am I right?
” He tilts his head and looks at me over his glasses.
“Yes, sir.” I nod.
“Good. So, here’s what we’re gonna do. You’ll be assigned to a tutor, and you’ll establish a schedule with her around your practice schedule while also being mindful of her availability. Am I clear?” He opens the folder and starts scanning the paperwork.
“Yes, sir, absolutely respectful of her time.” I sit back and grip the arms of the chair. “Is she a TA or something?”
He shakes his head. “I believe this is a paid job for her, so really, whether you show up or not, she’ll get paid, but Bo, you’d better be there for every single second.
If that grade isn’t moved up to at least a B on your next paper, I’ll have to pull you, and I really can’t afford to do that.
Understand?” He doesn’t look at me, but he takes a sticky note off a pad and starts writing.
“I understand.” I scoot forward in my seat to see what he’s writing.
“I’d also gather that your father monitors your grades?” He picks up the note, folds it, and hands it to me.
“That he does, sir. I’ll have to let him know about this and about my tutoring. It’s always better if he hears it from me first.” I chuckle uncomfortably and take the sticky note from him and put it in my pocket.
My dad is the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in California, and he keeps tabs on me pretty closely for multiple reasons.
“I can imagine so, which brings me to the next topic. The Sports Network wants to shadow you. The docuseries is about the team primarily, but they are specifically asking to have access to you during the entire season. Now, I have sent over all the paperwork to your father to review, and he signed off on the accessibility to you from a legal standpoint. But as your coach, I want to tell you that if at any time you don’t feel comfortable or you need a break from filming, just say the word.
Again, I need you to be on top of your game, and I won’t risk the distractions this might cause for you.
” He leans back in his seat, assessing me.
“Yes, sir. That shouldn’t be a problem. Just tell me what they need from me, schedule-wise.
Although I’d prefer they try to keep their filming at the field as much as possible.
Not that my personal life is all that exciting, but still, I’d like to have some downtime to myself, and I definitely don’t want them following me to tutoring. ”
He lightly smacks his hand on the table, signaling the end of our conversation. “I don’t think that will be a problem. Call this girl as soon as possible and get your time coordinated. I want an update by Friday on when your first meeting is.” He stands and walks around his desk.
I take that as my cue to also stand. “Yes, sir. I’ll take care of it right away.”
He opens the door and stands beside it, waiting for me to leave. “See you at practice tomorrow, Bo.” He holds his hand out for me to shake.
“See you tomorrow, Coach.” I release his hand and walk out the door.
I can hear one of my roommates still hanging around in the locker room, so I head in the direction of his loud voice.
“Sup, Callaway. I didn’t realize you were still here. I thought you’d left with King.” Silas finishes packing up his bag, zips it, and heads in my direction.
“Nah, I had a meeting with Coach real quick. You riding with me?” I don’t really want to tell him I need tutoring right now, especially not in front of my other teammates.
“Yep, let’s roll. I’m hungry, and I always love it when it’s Charlie’s night to cook.” He laughs and rubs his stomach.
I hold out my fist for him to bump. “No doubt it’ll be good. Her nights are by far my favorite.”
We live in the same house with one of our other teammates, Casey King, and his twin sister, Charlie. We all take turns making dinner one night each week and eat together. It’s a nice tradition they started a few years ago when Charlie moved in.
Silas and I make the walk to my SUV, chatting about practice and some of the new plays we’ll be running this season. We’ve been practicing for a month now, but the season is just getting started, so new plays and adjustments are usually made once the coaches see how we work together as a team.
When I get to my car, I put my gear in the back seat, then get into the driver’s seat.
I pull out the note from my pocket so I don’t forget about it and wash it.
That would be bad. I open it to stick onto my phone and see the name written on it.
She just so happens to be the girl I can’t stop thinking about since I met her.
But she doesn’t know it because I’ve never made a move. She kinda intimidates me, to be honest.
Silas hops in the front passenger seat after tossing his bag in the back seat. “What’s that? You get a girl’s number?” He smirks.
“Uh, yeah, something like that.” I quickly put the note on my phone and set it in a small compartment on the left side of the wheel, out of view from Silas.
Our ride home takes minutes, and I pull up behind Casey’s girlfriend, Noelle’s, car on the street in front of the house. I pocket my phone, and then we both grab our bags from the back seat and make our way to the door, still talking about football.
Silas walks into the house first and announces our arrival. “Daddy’s home!” He drops his bag by the door, right in my path.
A round of laughter rings out.
“Ew, Silas. Don’t ever say that again!” Noelle calls out.
I move Silas’s bag out of my way with my foot, then set my bag down next to his. When I walk around the corner and into the kitchen, I stop in my tracks.
She’s here. The girl I can’t stop thinking about. Chelsea Sullivan. My new tutor.