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We watched the rest of the third quarter in silence. I was lost in my feelings while Mom was on the edge of her seat. The other team had gotten fired up during halftime and they were giving the guys a fight. They went into the final quarter tied.
“I swear to god if they lose this game, Ella, I’m going down there and I’m going to kick all their asses.” Mom stood up and took over my pacing. “I want to see a national championship with a team I have ties to. Even if those ties are a little loose currently.”
“Loose? Mom, they’re not loose. They’re non-existent.” I turned my glare on the TV as they showed Fisher throwing a perfect touchdown pass to Vaughn. “Yay. Touchdown.”
Mom winced at my sarcastic tone. “Ella, I’m not sure you-”
“There’s nothing to talk about, Mom.” I was being an ass but seeing the guys was cutting deep. I’d celebrated almost every win with them. I knew how much they loved the cookies I baked for them. They came home after each game, happy to see me and my baked goods.
“The second this game is over, you and I are going to have a hard talk, young lady.” She could barely look away from the screen as the Crocs defense fought the other team’s offense from moving down the field. “Interception! Interception! Holy shit! Yes!”
I nearly had a heart attack from her sudden screaming. Holding my hand over my chest, I watched as the camera panned to Vaughn and Fisher walking onto the field and I saw what a massive contrast there was between them and the rest of the team. The rest of the team was losing their minds in excitement. Vaughn and Fisher looked like they were marching in a funeral procession.
I sat there with that image in my head for the rest of the game. Mom lost her mind as our team won and then she sat down calmly next to me like none of it had happened.
“Okay. Time for that hard talk.” She reached to mute the TV but we both froze when the shot switched from an overview of the field, where students had run onto the green to celebrate, to a close up interview with Fisher just to the side of the chaos. Confetti rained down behind him, some of it catching in his sweaty hair. He was red-faced and his uniform was stained with grass and dirt. He was the picture of the champion athlete, if you didn’t look at his eyes too closely.
The journalist interviewing him was a pretty blonde in our school colors. “We just watched you break the passing record for your division, Fisher. How are you feeling right now, after this win?”
Fisher stared into the camera and I saw him catch his breath before speaking. “Honestly?”
55
***Ella***
Mom looked my way but I couldn’t tear my eyes away from Fisher.
The journalist smiled at the camera and looked back at Fisher. “Of course! I’m sure you’re elated. This is a big win for you guys. I know you felt cheated last year and you’ve surely redeemed yourself now.”
“Yeah, sure.” Planting his hands on his hips, he ducked his head. “Redeemed.”
“Fisher, I couldn’t help but notice that your usual flair was missing during the game today. The announcers pointed it out a few times. We’re used to seeing your signature grin after every score. Was today just a matter of being serious and staying focused for you?”
Mom swallowed so loudly that I heard it over the TV. “This kid’s making me nervous. He looks like he’s ready to cry.”
Fisher lifted his eyes to the camera. “You know, it’s hard some days to not let personal life get to you on the field. I fought for my team but I struggled today.”
I sat up, my heart lodged securely in my throat. What was he doing?
“Oh?” The journalist seemed as lost as I felt.
“Yeah. There’s this girl… She should’ve been here today. Usually after the games, she bakes me and my roommates cookies with our names on them. I never knew that someone could make a cookie taste so goddamn good.” Fisher was so in his head that he didn’t notice the panic on the woman’s face at his swearing. “She’s not here, though, and none of this is very much fun without her. It’s crazy how someone can come into your life and make things that seemed amazing before look so dull without them. You know? What’s the point of all of this if she’s not here?”
I couldn’t breathe. I wasn’t sure Mom was breathing, either. The journalist looked thrown as Fisher just turned and walked away, leaving the interview as if he’d forgotten he was even doing it.
“Well, folks.” The woman was a trooper. She shook her head and smiled at the camera. “It seems that even the best quarterback in the division can’t escape love’s fickle ways. Let’s all hope that Fisher Hayes gets his happy ending because everyone here in Starn Stadium is cheering for him today. Everyone except for the Hanover Hooks, that is. This is…”
Her voice trailed off as Mom lowered the volume. She turned to me with wide eyes. “Okay. Wow.”
I wasn’t sure I remembered how to breathe.
“I mean… Wow.” She shook her head. “That changes things. I mean, this entire day changes things. I was imagining them playing today and being out there like a bunch of little shits, having a blast even though they hurt my baby, but they didn’t look like they were having fun, Ella Rae. They looked like they wanted to run away.”
I finally sucked in a shaky breath. “Stop.”
“No. I said we’re going to have a hard talk and we’re going to have a hard talk. Don’t interrupt me, either.” Mom turned so she was facing me head on. “I taught you that Daughton women never take men back. We are strong women who don’t need men and we don’t forgive easily. We suck at apologizing and we don’t do second chances. I accidentally taught you that men are not all that great most of the time. I brought home a lot of duds over the years. You never saw me have a reason to forgive a man, Ella. After your father left… I guess I just started going for men who I couldn’t love. Paul was almost the exception but even that was doomed before it started.
“I like my life. I like changing men like I change my panties. It’s fun and it keeps me on my toes. You’ve never been like me in that way, though, honey. You’re steady and strong. You crave something real and rock solid, probably from years of seeing man after man pass through here without any semblance of normalcy. I still don’t believe that most men deserve second chances. But…”
