Page 21 of On Her Team
“Shouldn’t we be reviewing the footage the way Coach asked us to?” I suggest.
“Bor-ing,” Tanner sings.
“It’s not boring. It’s important to learn from our mistakes. I don’t want to get knocked out after the first game in the playoffs again.”
We’ve had fun bantering, but it’s time to get down to business. Football isn’t merely a game. It’s serious business.
Football saved me. It got me out of my foster home when I was in high school. It got me a scholarship to college. I would have never been able to attend college otherwise.
“I’m with Gage,” Nolan says. “We shouldn’t have lost the playoff game. The Seals were the favorite to win by seven points.”
“Instead, we lost by seven.”
The loss still hurts. I thought last year was our year to make it to the Super Bowl. I want a Super Bowl ring more than anything in this world. It’s my goal. It’s what I’ve been working for since seventh grade, when the gym teacher said I’d make a good running back.
“Shall I restart the game footage?” Coach asks.
“Please. I want to watch the play in the third quarter when Nolan got sacked.”
Nolan cringes. “Thanks.”
“Maybe I could have blocked you better.”
“I like your thinking.”
Coach switches off the lights and rolls the footage. As much as I try to pay attention, my mind keeps drifting to a certain redheaded singer. I wonder what she’s doing today. Did she sleep well? Are her siblings driving her crazy?
I can’t wait to message her and find out.
Chapter 7
I wasn’t looking for a muse. Then a football player showed up.
Addy
Iignore my phone when it beeps with a message. Mom is home with the kids now. If there’s an emergency, she can handle it. This is my time.
Too bad my time is becoming my frustration. I can’t figure out the lyrics to this song. Probably because it’s impossible to write a break-up song when you’re crushing on someone.
Hold on. I am not crushing on anyone. Gage is not my crush. He’s just my friend. I have firmly friend-zoned him. And he should understand zones since he’s a football player.
I strum my guitar and sing the lyrics I’ve been working on.
You said you’d stay, but you walked away
Left me standing in the same old place
I gave you everything I had to give
Guess love’s not enough to make you live
I scowl. These lyrics are not working. Generic. Unsurprising. Dare I say it? Boring.
Back to the basics. Emotion. The lyrics aren’t emotional enough. But how to make them more emotional? I tap my pencil on the desk as I try to come up with words that don’t sound cliché.
Ugh! I’m beyond frustrated. Sometimes a song appears to me nearly complete. And sometimes writing a song is more difficult than getting Mila to take a bath.
There’s a knock on the door and I check the time.
