“Let’s run the play one more time.” Coach Vaughn claps his hands together and I walk with him to the sideline. He holds his clipboard out in front of him, mumbling to himself before blowing his whistle. Practice isn’t going as well as he hoped.

Craig, the backup quarterback, hikes the ball and runs back. His eyes look down field for the open receiver, and he’s about to launch the ball when he gets tackled to the ground. There’s an audible groan from everyone.

“For fuck’s sake,” Coach Vaughn yells and shakes his head. He drops the clipboard on the ground and runs out. I follow behind. Coach Vaughn grabs Craig by the shoulder pads and picks him off the ground. “You have to be aware of your surroundings all the time. Not only be looking down field.” Craig nods along with Coach’s words but I know none of it is sticking.

I’ve been out here with the team for the last two hours and they’ve been running the same play over and over with no improvement. The team’s chances of progressing to the finals without me as head quarterback are looking dim. They are struggling with the plays that we had down at the beginning of the season.

Coach Vaughn blows the whistle and everyone rushes to form a circle around him. “That’s it for today, guys. Go home and get some rest. We’ll pick it up tomorrow at the usual time.” He raises his hand into the air and everyone reaches out to it. “Team on three! One! Two! Three! Team!” Everyone yells and breaks the formation to run back to the locker room.

I help Coach pick up the cones on the sidelines, waiting for the perfect opportunity. I’ve been running this idea since the start of practice. I know it’s going to be a long shot but I’ve gotta try.

I rush to the end of the field, where Coach Vaughn is holding a white mesh bag open for me. I throw the cones in and he tightens the bag, throws it over his shoulder, and puts his hand on my shoulder, guiding me in.

It’s now or never.

“Coach?” He takes his eyes off the floor and looks at me. “How about I run a couple plays with the team each week? That way when I get back on the field, the team will still be fresh,” I stammer out. Coach nods his head and I can feel him warming up to the idea. “If I practice with them, it could boost morale for the team. Make sure that we’re going into the games with a clear head.” I’m rambling now, but it seems to be working.

Coach opens the door to the utility closet and throws the bag of cones inside. He slams the door shut and looks at me for a long time. The wrinkles on his forehead are getting more defined by the second. He lets go of the handle and walks off without saying anything. I catch up to him, unsure if I should say something or let him think.

When we get into the locker room, it’s empty. Everyone rushed out of here faster than usual. Probably didn’t want to be reminded of their shitty practice today. Or be yelled at by Coach.

“David, come inside.” He holds the door to his office open and offers the seat in front of his desk for me. I hadn’t been in his office since he broke the news to me. It’s been a little over two months. At the time, I was sure that my football career would be over. In my mind, there was no way that I would pass all of my classes before the end of the season.

That is, until I met Casey Boone. A mental image of her flickers in front of my eyes and I can’t help but smile. So much has changed in two months and all of it is because of her.

I’m doing better in my classes than I ever did. So good, in fact, that my teachers are skeptical that I’ve hired someone else to write my papers and take my exams. I’ve all but stopped going to every frat party on campus, spending my time on homework and reading. Things I would have never considered doing if it weren’t for her.

I’ve also stopped my one night stands. The thought of being with any other girl beside Casey makes my stomach hurt. Hell, just thinking of her makes me harder than any other girl I’d ever been with. Hannah has been on my ass all last week, trying to get me to go this party or that gathering, and I’ve rejected her every time. She’s been pissy about me ditching her, but I don’t care. I saw the hurt in Casey’s eyes the last time Hannah dropped by our tutoring session, and I don’t ever want to do that to her again.

“How are your classes going?” Coach Vaughn leans in his armchair, propping his feet on the table.

“They’re going well, sir.” I rub my palms down the side of my jeans. My foot bounces off the floor a couple times, drawing Coach Vaughn’s attention.

“Nervous?” He smiles.

“A little.”

He brings his hands to his face and rubs at the corners of his eyes, clearly holding something back. “I’ll need to speak with your tutor. If everything is good there and you’re making progress like you say, then I can consider letting you back on the field.” He opens his mouth and closes it quickly, getting out of his chair. He starts to pace from his cabinet at the back of the room and back to his chair, alternating between looking at his feet and at me. There’s something that he wants to tell me. I’ve never seen Coach like this before.

“What is it?” I lean forward in my small chair and it creaks under my weight.

He looks at me before nodding to himself and grabbing a folder off the top of his cabinet. “I wasn’t going to tell you about this.” He drops the folder in my lap and sits back down in his armchair.

I open the folder and my mouth nearly drops. “How long have you known?”

“A friend of mine sent it to me a couple days ago.”

I stop my foot from tapping and grip harder on the sides of the folder. Coach Vaughn didn’t have to tell me this. I’m sure that he’s been wrestling with how to even bring it up with me ever since he found out. This is life-changing information.

On the top of the paper in bold red letters it reads ‘Confidential.’ The rest of the page is a list of upcoming games. And at the bottom, highlighted in neon, is our next home game.

“Lester Fleming is coming to that game,” Coach Vaughn says. “He’s the top recruiter for the professional league. And rumor is, he’s coming to see you play.” Coach gets out of his seat and pours himself a glass of cogonac. He holds out a glass for me, and normally, I wouldn’t take it, but I can feel my nerves coming back. “This is your best chance to get recognized. And I can’t do anything to get you on the field.”

The hard liquor hits the back of my throat and burns my nose. I haven’t drunk anything this strong in my life. Frat houses don’t buy top shelf liquor for their parties. I let the simmering in the back of my throat die before I consider saying anything.

Coach Vaughn breaks the silence. “Right now, it’s up to you. If you do well on your next exam, then I can probably talk to Melissa and convince her to let you get on the field. Even she’ll know how important this is for you but I can’t do that until you put in the work.” I slide the crystal glass across his table.

That’s all I need to know. I put the folder on his desk and grab my backpack. I’m almost out the door when Coach Vaughn shouts at me, “Where are you going?”

I peek back inside the room and smile. “To study.”

I run all the way back to my dorm room. If anyone saw me running across the quad, they probably thought I was rushing to a party or to some girl’s room. I’m positive none of them would think that David Cooper was running to his room to study.

Coach Vaughn has given me the information I need to jumpstart my professional career. All I have to do is make sure that I pass all of my exams with flying colors. Easier said than done.

I open a power drink, turn on my flimsy desk light, and open my textbook to the first chapter. This is going to be a long night.