The Touchdown

by Bishop, K. M.

  “So, what are we here today to do? We are here today to show them that we will be victorious no matter what. We will not be beaten, even if this is their house. Being the away team we will always have that challenge stacked against us. We have fewer fans here, but if you look out there you will see the stadium packed with many, many “Indiana Panthers” fans. They are not used to having that many people in their house who are rooting for the other side. That is the benefit of an in-state rivalry. Our house is only a two hour drive from theirs.”

  I wanted to laugh, but I somehow kept it together.

  “Today, you will go out there and show them who you are. They don’t deserve to be on the same field as us. We will show them why that is. It will not be easy. They are seriously going to underestimate us. We will never make that mistake with them. They are strong; we are stronger. They are fast; we are faster. So, let’s go out there and get another win.”

  We all joined together and screamed as loud as we could. This was one of the most motivational things we could ever do. There was just something about releasing that vicious war cry together that united everyone against the common enemy. They were ours. We would be victorious.

  As I followed the team out on the field, I had no idea just how much of a victory I would have that day. It was one that would change my whole life.

  Chapter Two

  Ro

  I did a full lunge and then moved back to the starting position, wincing slightly as I did so. When would the pain in my ankle stop? It had done pretty well all week at the cheer practice, but now that it was game day, it just felt so tender. Ah, well. I guess I could chalk it all up to game jitters. No matter what, it always seemed that on game day any injury or even mild illness you might be experiencing (like cramps, ugh) would become so much worse.

  I’d loved cheerleading since I was a young girl. It was all I’d wanted to do since then, was make it as a college cheerleader and then maybe go pro after that. But it was such a long road ahead of me. Yet, I was determined to make it happen.

  That was if I didn’t do something stupid to injure myself. Over the summer I’d injured my ankle when I was riding horses at my grandfather’s ranch. I loved going there and enjoyed it all my life. I’d become a pretty good rider at an early age and I had even considered working hard to go into that field one day, but in the end cheerleading had won out. All of my friends did that and there was something about cheering in front of the crowd that got me so amped up and pumped. Nothing in the world had ever quite grabbed me that way. It was my passion. It was my life.

  But after I hurt my ankle, it had become questionable. I’d torn a ligament and it had taken most of the summer to heal properly. And now that it was essentially healed up, it still hurt from time to time. But I did not let anyone really know about the injury, except for Allison Brown, my best friend. Still, occasionally my coach would ask me if I was feeling alright when she caught me wincing with pain. My doctor had ordered me to not put any undue stress on the ankle for several more weeks, but I had to report to cheer practice right away. The show must go on.

  “How is it?” Allison asked as she stretched and practiced a few routines beside me.

  “Not bad,” I lied. “I’ll manage.”

  “Good. Make sure you do. Dawn is eyeing you with hatred. She is looking for any reason to take that head spot.”

  I looked over quickly at Dawn Price, the meanest bitch I’d ever met, and my official rival for head cheerleader. Our last head cheerleader, Nicole Douglas, had been injured and was out for the season when she broke her kneecap, leaving the spot vacant. Our coach Miss Douglas had yet to select the replacement. I desperately wanted that spot. It would be a huge leap up in terms of ever being considered for going pro.

  I wanted the experience and I knew I could do it. But this was all provided I didn’t let this stupid ankle injury slow me down. I had to buck up and plow on.

  I quickly jumped up in the air and down on the ankle a few times ignoring the pain and proving that I was ready for the battle. This was the biggest game of the season for Purdue University, against our in-state rivals Indiana. They had beaten us the past few years, but we were hoping to change that this year. They were always so smug. Well, our team was brutal this season and we were about to take the wind out of their sales.

  I smiled as I looked around at the beautiful crowd in place. The sight of that many people was just staggering, and they would all be cheering soon for their team to emerge the victors. I could only imagine the amount of pressure on the team to deliver. They’d been working night and day all week long in preparation for this game and the cheerleading squad had as well. We were vital to boost morale for our players and our fans. It was an important job and one that we all took very seriously.

  And it was the most fun in the world. I loved it more than anything.

  As my eyes scanned the crowd I accidentally landed on the face of Josh Mason, my ex-boyfriend. Oh, wow… he was here of course. And he was with Julie Mcabe. That idiot? The girl was an airhead and said to be very easy (at least half the football team was rumored to have slept with her) and that was probably why Josh was with her. He was angry that I wouldn’t put out for him. I was very selective about who I shared my body with. We’d dated for almost six months, and I liked Josh a lot. We enjoyed each other’s company and we had a lot of fun, but something between us was missing. I just didn’t feel that spark for him that I should have felt. There was something there that was just not quite right. I hoped it would happen and that missing ingredient might eventually fall into place, but it didn’t. Instead, Josh had sent me a Dear Jane letter by email and that was the end of us.

  At first I was a bit devastated, but then I actually felt relieved. I didn’t see a future with him and there was no real reason for us to continue on. It was what it was. We were done.

  Allison helped console me during this period. She was such a good friend to have. We did practically everything together. We’d been fast friends ever since we’d first met freshman year when we were assigned to be roomies. Now we were both seniors and still roommates in an apartment off campus. She helped me see what a jerk Josh was and that I was so much better off without him. I already knew this and thought this, but it still hurt that the jerk would break up with me so swiftly and by email. That was the most cowardly thing I could ever think of.

  “Dawn can suck and egg,” I said.

  Allison laughed. “She would love to break some eggs over your head. Have you ever thought that she was responsible for Nicole’s injury?”

  I paused and thought about it. It hadn’t actually occurred to me until that moment. Was it possible? Surely not. “Um, no…”

  “Well, Nicole has mentioned it to me a few times. Dawn was supposed to be in control of that side of the pyramid right under her.”

  “But we were all there; Nicole lost her top balance. Her feet never moved.”

  “How sure can we really be, though? I wasn’t looking at her. Were you?”

  “Come to think of it, no.”

  “There you go. I wouldn’t put it past Dawn to do something that nasty. She probably figured that coach would just give her the spot. And when she didn’t, it infuriated her. Steph was telling me that after coach said she had narrowed it down and would make a final selection in a few weeks—Dawn went completely nuts and almost trashed her whole room. Steph said it was frightening.”

  “Is that why she and Dawn aren’t friends anymore?” I asked.

  “I imagine. I heard the fear in Steph’s voice. Dawn is crazy.”

  I laughed. “Yeah. It wouldn’t surprise me if she was certifiable. But I don’t have any proof that she orchestrated Nicole’s injury. And I will keep my wits about me. That bitch comes for me and she is going to get it.”

  Allison chuckled. “I wonder what a fight between you two would look like?”

  “Dawn does not want to find out.”

  “Ok team, line up. It’s almost time.”

  The co
ach yelled for us to get in line and get ready to form the tunnel for the players to run through onto the field from the locker room. We waited while the Panthers team ran out onto the field from the other side, coming from their locker room. Damn, they looked big. And I couldn’t help but feel some strong attractions to those players as they ran out there ready to do the battle. It was like gladiators getting ready for a war in the pit. Football players had always done it for me. They were so strong and athletic. I just wanted to grab them and let them manhandle me for a bit.

  I was one of the few cheerleaders whose boyfriend was not a football player. Josh ran track, but was not interested in football. I actually kind of liked the fact that he was not involved in football at the start of our relationship. It gave us a bit of a break from each other, which was nice. Sometimes tt was good in relationships not to share absolutely everything.

  But as I watched those warriors strutting their stuff out on the field I could not help but marvel at how sexy they all looked, like wild and with untamed aggression. I loved it. That was the thing that turned me on more than anything else in the world.

  But right now I had to get my mind on the game. We all lined up at our tunnel and cheered for our own players as they ran out onto the field to take their places and continue warming up before the coin toss. It was such a huge spectacle, the football games. I had been drawn to the sport ever since I was a kid, and even though I had played Pop Warner football as a child, and our high school even had a girl’s football league, cheerleading really drew me in.

  I suspected it came from my love of gymnastics, which I did as a young child. Tumbling and flips. I was a natural at it. So when I discovered cheerleading, it kind of combined my love for football along with my love for gymnastics all into one thing. I knew at the age of ten that I had found what I wanted to do with my life. Even if by some awful twist of fate, I didn’t meet my goal of becoming a pro NFL cheerleader, I would absolutely find some way to incorporate cheer into my life as a coach or a mentor in some capacity. It would never leave me.

  After the coin toss and the handshake between the teams, it was decided that Indiana would receive the kickoff first. A few minutes later we were underway.

  “So, what do you think? Those guys look savage big,” Allison said.

  “Yeah,” I replied. I had noticed that a lot of the Indiana players just seemed a little larger than life than our players did, but our guys were definitely hungrier and were fighting for it more. And by fighting, I mean they were doing some underhanded dirty things right from the start. I loved my school and I loved my team, but at times some of them could be total jerks and would do anything to win at all costs. That was not something I was always proud of. If they considered you their enemy, then they would do whatever it took to rip you apart. Penalty or not, that would pick a team apart. And the referees were often obviously biased and paid off, even though they were supposed to be from out of the area and completely unaffiliated with either school.

  But we all knew that people with deep pockets could get to anyone and pay them that magical price to alter their minds just right. And if the referees were against you, that made winning so much harder.

  And all of it started with the new coach Bryan Easton, who had become coach of the Boilermakers the previous season. I hated him, and was glad he wasn’t my coach. But it was fairly well known the guy was a dirt bag.

  I was glad that this was my last season with Purdue. I just wanted to get out of it and move on with my career. There were too many bad elements around and I was really glad that I wasn’t considered their enemy.

  “I really wouldn’t mind taking a ride on Chance Atkins,” Allison said with a devilish grin.

  I smiled. “Yeah, he would be fun, but don’t let Tyler hear you say that…”

  “Oh, hush. Tyler knows I would never cheat on him.”

  “But if he heard you say that, wouldn’t it hurt his feelings? Or are you close enough to being married?”

  Allison grinned. Her boyfriend Tyler Mack was a musician. He was a double major in English and Music. He was an artist through and through and spent most of his time playing with his band and hardly attending classes. Of course this was easy to do when your father was rich as hell and you never really had to worry about graduating and getting an actual degree or doing something practical with your life in the off chance that your musical ambitions did not turn out the way you hoped they would.

  That was the life. I on the other hand really had to knuckle down and study hard to keep my grades up, or else my grandfather would stop paying for my education. My grandfather was a rancher and business owner. The man lived to work and after he sold his business in his fifties, he focused on the ranch. It was a place he loved and I did too. I’d spent every weekend and several days a week in the summers at his place learning as much as I could about ranching.

  My parents were both public accountants. They loved what they did, but neither made more than a middle class living. So, my grandfather was happy to pay my tuition and I was free to study what I wanted, but I had to make it worth his money. Luckily, I loved studying business and I didn’t have to force myself to try too hard to stay motivated.

  Still, occasionally it would have been nice to know that I could goof off a bit if I wanted to.

  “Doesn’t it make you feel a little bit taken for granted?” I asked.

  Allison looked at me with a curious expression. “What?”

  “To know that your boyfriend trusts you so much that you could flirt with other guys or they could flirt with you and he doesn’t get a bit jealous. I mean, nobody wants some crazy, jealous Neanderthal, but it’s nice to know that he cares enough to be jealous.”

  Allison scrunched up her face and shook her head. “I never really thought about it that way, but you are making some valid points.”

  We shared a laugh before we launched into another routine. Shelby Lynn was leading for the time being. So far coach had been trying a few of us out at various spots and then choose one to be the team leader. I thought I’d done my part pretty well. I loved being up front and guiding the rest of the girls through the routines, keeping everyone on point, and feeding the reaction from the crowd back and forth. I wanted to be there always.

  I had to be patient and just continue to show the coach that I was the person for the job. That was my spot; no one else belonged there. Soon, I felt that she would see that. Unless, Dawn found some way to sabotage things first. I did not trust her in any way. I hadn’t since the first day I met her a few years before. She’d always been so difficult to get along with and since she saw me as a threat, Dawn targeted me right away. That was fine; she could bring it on until the cows came home. I was not backing down from her. I was ready for whatever fight came my way.

  We finished the routine and the crowd erupted with enthusiasm. Again my eyes caught Josh in the front row making out blatantly with his new girl. It was a rather disgusting display of public affection. I was fine with people being affectionate and even kissing, but they were hardcore making out and groping. It was a bit weird. I was very glad I had never agreed to go farther with him. I was just sorry that I had wasted that much time on him.

  It was fine. It gave me much more time to dedicate to cheer and to achieve my goals. That was important to me. I didn’t really have time for, nor did I want a relationship at the moment. But my desires had been growing crazy out of whack lately. It was like not having Josh in my life, or not having the possibility of regular sex was enough to make me wish I had that strong connection in my life right now.

  It was funny. When I had Josh with me, I was fine with controlling my desires, but now that he was fulfilling his desires with someone else, I suddenly felt helpless to control myself.

  “Watch out!”

  Allison’s voice yelled at me.

  I looked up and turned around just in time to see a large Indiana football player rushing out of bounds towards me. His eyes were up in the air watching the ball and nothi
ng else in his surroundings. He was tall and broad. His long arms were outstretched above him as he moved forward.

  Suddenly, he looked down and I saw the fear in his eyes as he realized what was about to happen. I willed myself to get out of the way, but I could see that there wasn’t going to be enough time. We were going to collide.

  My thoughts were focused on my ankle right before we connected. I wondered what was going to happen next.

  Chapter Three

  Bobby

  The game was halfway through the first quarter. This Purdue team was tougher than I even thought. Every time that we tried to move forward they would plant us a few yards back with tackles. And for every pass that Chance was able to get off under the maddening pressure he was facing from defenders, I was able to grab the pass and then I was being immediately tackled to the ground with no room to move. I had to keep counting their players to make sure that they did not have too many men on the field. It really felt like we were totally being outnumbered. Those guys were just everywhere. They were big, strong, and most importantly they were crazy fast.

  I dusted myself off from a big hit and felt a twinge in my back. It had started earlier that week during practice but now it was a full-on pain. I grunted through it and jogged back to the huddle.

  “Ok,” Chance said. “Let’s try something different this time.” He pointed at me. “Bobby, go right and I’m going to fake a throw to you, and then I’ll fake a handoff to Joey, before finally throwing it to you on the left side. So after the fake, fade into the group and then run around behind everyone to come out the other side. Sprint like mad. I’ll throw a bullet to you. Then hustle for that first down.”

  “Great,” I said.

  We broke the huddle and lined up. Before I knew it, the play was being set in motion. I ran to my right and grabbed the fake handoff. A group of defenders rushed at me until they realized I did not actually have the ball. Then they turned their attention back on Chance, who was scrambling in the backfield. He was hustling with everything he could muster moving right and left, and then backpedaling. We had to hurry before the play clock wound down and we’d get a penalty.