The Foxhole Court

Chapter 11

Thursday's excitement had nothing on Friday's. The whole school got decked out overnight with vibrant orange and white streamers. Ribbons and banners hung off every sidewalk lamp. Live student bands took over the amphitheater for short concerts and the student newspaper released that morning gave details for the afternoon parade. Cheerleaders roamed the campus in small packs, flaunting their short skirts and bright smiles and revving up school spirit wherever they could.

Traffic around campus that day was horrendous as spectators flooded in and settled down for back-to-back weekend opening home games. None of the Foxes expected to win that night, as they were opening the season against their longtime rivals Breckenridge. Until Edgar Allan made its move, Breckenridge was the largest and first-ranked school in the district. Fortunately the football team's chances for Saturday afternoon's game were much better. It would be too much of a downer if Palmetto lost both opening games.

Campus police were out in full force that day, helping direct traffic and making sure guests didn't interrupt classes. Neil hated the sight of their blue uniforms, but having them around was better than dealing with the press. He had enough problems getting along with his classmates now that he was wearing his Exy jersey.

He caused a small disruption wherever he went. Neil wanted to cut class and hide at Fox Tower until game time, but athletes weren't allowed to call out without a legitimate medical excuse. Someone from the athletics committee went around all day counting heads through classroom windows, and Wymack would be the first to hear Neil was absent.
Luckily Neil's teammates had anticipated trouble. Matt was waiting for him outside his Spanish classroom to walk him to his next class. It didn't matter if the school rallied behind their Exy team or not; Neil was a secret finally let out of the bag.

Anyone who followed the school's news knew the ERC had bent the rules to protect Neil's anonymity. Neil had checked the internet periodically throughout the summer to make sure it was working. As of this morning, though, his name was everywhere.

Almost as disturbing was finding out Andrew hadn't lied to Neil back in May. In almost every article that talked of Neil's pathetic experience Kevin was quoted as having high hopes for him. Kevin really had said Neil would one day be Court. It was a bold statement from a former champion, and it only added to the intrigue surrounding the Foxes' tenth player. The looks Neil kept getting made his skin crawl, but Matt kept them moving through the crowd without a problem.

After math Renee took Neil to history, neatly bypassing a group of cheerleaders before they noticed the jerseys in their midst. Allison found him after his history class. He had an open period, so she dragged him to lunch with her and Seth. Neil's nerves killed his hunger, but he obediently put food on his tray and sat with them.

It was the first time Neil had been alone with them, and it went better than he expected it to. They were in an "on" stage in their relationship, which helped. They talked mostly to each other, sparing only a few words for him, but Neil was content to watch. Seeing Seth act something other than completely hostile was fascinating, but he still didn't know what Allison saw in him. A girl with her money and connections could have had anyone and anything, but she chose to be a Fox and date Seth. Neil didn't think he would ever understand that decision.

"Well?" Allison asked, startling Neil from his thoughts. "What are you going to do about a date?"

They'd spent most of lunch talking about the Exy's kickoff banquet. Every school in the southeast would put in an appearance, including the Ravens. Neil wasn't planning on attending, but he hadn't yet figured out the logistics of skipping it.

"I'm not bringing one," Neil said.

"That's stupid," Allison said. "Even the monster's got a date."

Neil wasn't expecting that, but he could guess. "Renee?"