Junior Year Box Set

The self-satisfied expression on his face told me this guy was a jerk. I needed to take control, or this would get out of hand.

“Of course they did. Do you even know who Bo Harrington is?” I asked.

“No. Should I?”

My turn to get a self-satisfied expression on my face.

“Have you heard of …” I started and then listed several college and professional quarterbacks. “Something they all have in common is that they were having some problems and Coach Harrington was called in to help them. He’s the guy you call if you want to get better. He helped me become Co-MVP at Elite 11.

“Believe me, Coach Harrington got the job at Alabama on his merit and not because of any relationship we had. In fact, I had no idea he’d been offered the job until he told me he’d been hired. So, can I pick up the phone and call him? Of course I can. Does what I have to say hold any sway over what Alabama does with other recruits? Probably not, but Coach Harrington will give me a listen and then investigate it for himself. The only ‘special’ access I have is that we’re friends,” I said.

“Kyle Moore with the Indianapolis Star. You and Todd Davis seemed to go after each other both verbally and on the field. Are you always that competitive?”

“First, I want to apologize if I said anything to offend anyone during the game. ESPN put a microphone on me, and I simply forgot it was there. Guys trash-talk each other to get into their heads. I’m usually a target for such talk. Personally, I think most of it’s just stupid, so I decided to think of the most juvenile things I could come back with. My favorite one was the village idiot comment, but I’m afraid that may have gone over Todd’s head,” I said. I received the appropriate mild chuckles for my bad joke.

“But it seemed you two went at it on the field as well. I noted three times in the first half when you didn’t pitch the ball and seemed to go directly at him. Was there something going on?” Kyle asked.

“Can I tell you something and you not tell Todd about it?” I asked.

Kyle snorted, which got everyone else to laugh.

“On our first offensive play, Todd blasted me so hard I wasn’t sure if I was hurt or not. Then I handed off to Ty, and he had to leave the game after Todd hit him. I worried that Todd might kill some of us. So I decided that if he were to be involved in the tackle, I better be the one he tackled,” I admitted.

“You actually thought it would be better to let him tackle you than your teammates?”

“I’m pretty tough,” I said with a big smile.

“Chill, or I’ll have my daughter kick your ass,” Coach Hope said.

I meekly sat back.

“Yes, sir,” I said.

That resulted in a room of confused looks.

“See what I have to put up with?” Coach Hope said in an exasperated voice. “To think, he’s scared of a little girl.”

I just nodded and acted like I was looking for her. Sometimes my acting classes came in handy.

◊◊◊

After the press conference, the team loaded onto buses, and we drove to a pizza place. The Booster Club had arranged everything, and we had pizza waiting for us when we arrived there. The pizza place also had a huge arcade room, and the Booster Club gave us all tokens.

I was kicking some Donkey Kong ass when I felt arms go around my waist. I looked to identify the culprit and promptly died. Cassidy.

“I hear you’re scared of me,” she said.

I might act stupid, but I really wasn’t.

“Of course I am,” I said as I reached around her and squeezed her butt.

“My dad’s in the other room,” she warned me.

In response, I leaned down and kissed her. I guess I became lost in the moment because it startled me when I heard Coach Hope.

“Dawson!”

“She made me,” I said as I released her.

“Cassidy, did he force his affections on you?” he asked with a stern look on his face.

“Of course not, Daddy.”

He gave me a hard look.

“You can hurt him if you want,” he said.

I took a step back and bumped into Donkey Kong. Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out all my tokens and gave them to Cassidy. She smiled at me and left to play pinball.

“You’ll never hurt her, will you?” Coach Hope asked when we were alone.

“No, sir. I’ll never hurt her, and I promise not to do anything you wouldn’t approve of. I’d hate to lose her friendship or your respect.”

Since I now had no tokens and didn’t feel like buying any more, I went back for more pizza. Mary Dole, Tracy’s mom, saw me and motioned me to come sit with her.

“Have you talked to Tom since the weekend?” she asked.

“No. I thought everyone needed some time.”

“I think he might leave the firm. He wasn’t happy when he found out what Roy and Don had done.”

“I really can’t say anything about that,” I said.

She gave me a sad look, and then her lips tightened.

“I hope this doesn’t hurt your friendship with Tracy. Both you and Pam are her best friends.”

“We’ll be fine,” I assured her.

I yawned. The clock had just passed midnight, and I needed my sleep. I found my dad, and he and Mom took me back to the hotel so I could go to bed.

◊◊◊

Chapter 4 – I Can Do This All Day Thursday November 5