Nothing Lasts Forever

Hell of a night

Hell of a night- Dustin Lynch

Ford POV:

They say that love is for children.

That's at least what my old man always told me. Without a shadow of a doubt, I believed him. But I couldn't quite get why.

To him, Love was a four letter word. To me, it meant so much more.

She was proof of that.

          2 years ago-

7 minutes.

There were exactly 7 minutes left in my college career.

We had made it to the National Championship game against the Clemson Tigers. We were down by three so naturally, now was the time to give it all I had.

A field goal would tie it but a touchdown would put us in the lead.

I always liked to reminisce how I got to where I am now. Just a kid who grew up in Georgia, with dreams to make it big. Like every kid believed.

But I wasn't like any other kid.

I had been through two foster homes and landed back in the orphanage by the time I was six. I was suffering with severe medical issues. And obviously, no one wants to adopt a kid if they're medically expensive.

No one seemed to want to adopt me at all. That was what it looked like and I truly believed I would be stuck there until I turned eighteen.

I wasn't alone in it though. I had my sister with me, her and I were a packaged deal.

Still are.

But despite all the doubts, all the talk, I stood playing the sport I loved with all of America watching.

That broken kid inside me healed. Because to me I had made it further than I ever thought I would.  My last name was plastered on the back of my jersey and in that moment I was proud.

But back to the present. The clock was ticking down to snap the ball, when the whistle blew. Coach Smart waved me over, pulling me by the shoulder.

"Shepard, we are down by 3 and I'm counting on you. The balls at the 50 yard line so here's what we're gonna do. You're going to fake the run to Chubb and instead throw it to Stanley. But just be aware of the crossfire on the defensive side" his southern accent rang out.

I nodded as he patted my back. I then jogged back out to the field and relayed the message of what coach had told me. We then get set up on the 50 yard line. I shake out my sweaty hands so I won't drop the ball.

"Hike" I shouted, clapping my hands together. Before I knew it, I had possession of the ball. Out of my peripheral vision, I saw my wide receiver Jayson Stanley hit his crossing route going long.

This was it. This was the moment I had waited for my entire career.

The defender trailing behind him as I shoot a side armed pass as he reached the 30 yard line. As always, he caught the pass and took off running towards the end zone for the touchdown.

He looked back at me with a smile on his face which soon faltered when he saw me laying on my side clutching my knee. After the pass was complete two of the DL players slammed into me. One grabbing my leg, the other going for a head-first collision to my chest which blew me backwards.

When Stanley scored, they retreated off of me. I pretty much got crushed underneath them considering how big they were. I laid on my side gritting my teeth together to try and somehow reduce the throbbing pain from my knee. However, it quickly becoming hard to breathe after having the wind knocked out of me.

I was met with 3 members of the training staff and they rushed out to my position on the field. The training staff helped me sit up from my previous position and examined my knee.

"My knee" I gritted, my eyes falling shut as I try to take my mind off of it. They began asking a whole bunch of questions but I couldn't seem to think straight. The pain becoming almost unbearable.

The training staff must've signaled for a cart because the next thing I know I'm being rushed to an ambulance. My chest began to hurt but at this point everything did too.

"Hey Ford,my name is Jeremiah Dukes I'm the director of the SEC's medical program. We're looking what we believe a collapsed lung, which is why you aren't able to breathe properly. Now as for your knee, your muscles are swelling around it which makes us think there is a massive tear to your ACL" he explained.

My eyes widened in surprised, unable to fathom the diagnosis."What?" I practically yelled tearfully from all of the pain, not to mention still having trouble breathing. "We're going to run some official tests once we get to the hospital, but for now just try and relax" he tried .

I nodded praying the pain would soon reside soon. An oxygen mask was soon placed over my mouth and my knee was being propped up by some paramedics. My eyes felt heavy, wanting the darkness to take over.

I blacked out immediately after.

A few hours later:

I woke up with a groan, trying to grasp my surroundings. I am met with the image of my knee with a large metal brace around it.

"Ford you're awake!" Sadie shouted, walking cautiously to my bedside.

Just then my mom came in with the doctor. "Mr. Shepard glad to see you're awake, I'm Dr. Jacobs. How are you feeling?" He asked.

"Like I've been hit by a train" I responded. "That tracks" Dr. Jacob's chuckles, shooting a look at my mom. "What's going on" I asked, seeing the uneasy look in his eyes.

"The thing is, due to the extreme injuries you suffered I have some bad news he started, studying my face for a reaction. I looked down at my leg and back at the monitor that was keeping track of my heart rhythm.

"You can't go back to playing the game of football" the doctor explained. "What? Like until I recover?" I question, confused.

"Forever, Mr. Shepard" he clarifies. My heart sank a bit in my chest. My mouth ran as dry as a desert.

I couldn't come to terms with never getting to fulfill my dream.

My scholarship, my reputation, the draft. All reduced to ruin's because of a stupid play I couldn't outrun.

I was angry.

Disappointed, to say the least.  I knew that my future was football but at least I had a degree to fall back on. I asked to be alone so I could process the information, flipping through the channels of the tv when I landed on Avengers: Age of Ultron.

I'm a big movie guy what can I say. You probably couldn't tell by looking at me. But my hidden talent is that I have the entire monologue of the scene where the Avengers meet the twins and Ultron down to a T.

My mind wandered to what my life would be like now that talking to countless NFL coaches, I looked to the side and saw my sweatshirt with the university's name placed on the front. I sighed deeply, just wishing that my life would go back to normal.

My thoughts were interrupted with I heard the buzzing from my phone. I reached the small movable bedside table which my phone laid.

There was a picture of my entire team with the National Championship Trophy, sent by teammate Nick. A video was attached to the caption, my screen lighting up.

" Hey Ford we heard that you were undergoing major surgery and we wanted to wish you luck, we wanted to dedicate this win to you. We hope to see you back on the field soon, bye buddy!" My teammates, smiled in the video.

Puffing on cigars that symbolized their obvious win. I'd still be there too, if only I had run out of the pocket.

The video made tears weld up in my eyes. My dream became a memory of the past now. The little kid within, again sat sad and alone.

Waiting for his chance to prove to the world that we was something they hadn't ever seen. Maybe in time that day would come, but for now ice chips and hospital food would only provide me comfort.

Moral of the story? I guess nothing lasts forever.