endgame - UW series

chapter 7 - the bar

Josie's Pov

I'm sitting in the stands of the stadium watching the first game of the season. My dad hooked me and Mindy up with season seats right behind the player's bench, and conveniently they are right next to two seats that are joes. He let me borrow one of them so Fina could join us and not having to sit in the overcrowded student section. Fina and I have quickly become friends, so I appreciate getting to bring her. It's hard to make friends around here, especially now that the gossip headline has spread like wildfire all over school.

"Is it bad if I say I've never been to a game my first year here?" Fina says, and my eyes widen for a split second "Really?" it's surprising that anyone at such a football-focused school hasn't been to a game before. "Yeah, I'm not really that into football," she says biting her lip before turning to look around the stadium once again. It's surprising, but not uncommon. It's not like everyone comes to UW and is a football lover. I'm just biased after having grown up so involved in the sport. However my sister is a ballerina and I'm not a fan of that, so I guess I wouldn't have to like football unless I wanted to.

"Mama" Luna coos with her cute pink earphones on. Joe got some for her so she could come to a game without being too bothered by all the loud sounds. She wasn't too enthusiastic about wearing them, but once she realized it took away the roar of the crowd when the cheerleaders started their routine she didn't complain anymore. "Yes, that's right, I'm mama. And soon you'll see Daddy" I tell her even though she can't hear me much through the headphones. They aren't completely soundproof, so she hears some of it at least because she coos for her dada next.

"The boys are up," Mindy says and the crowd roars as the football team makes their way out of the tunnel. It's incredible seeing my brother on center stage in such a huge stadium. It's no secret that the quarterback is seen as the most important player on the field, the one leading the team, the one that gets the most attention. It's not that the other players aren't just as important, but it's the culture created over decades.

I spot both my brother and Joe in their full gear. My brother has Nr 5 on the back of his jersey while Joe has Nr 12. The huskies color scheme is purple, gold, and metallic gold that kind of looks like yellow to me. That's their home jerseys at least. Their away jerseys are the majority white with purple and cold writing. The color scheme matches all the UW team's uniforms, and the logo for the school is purple as well but not as bold as the Huskie's logo.

School spirit is real around here, over half of the stadium is in purple or white jerseys as they play against Boise State Broncos. The goal of the season is always to gain as many points as possible to make it to the pack12 championship, and then hopefully be invited to a bowl game. You can still be invited to a bowl game without winning Pack 12 if you have a good enough season, but if you will you're more or less guaranteed a spot at one of the big bowl games.

The crowd roar when my brother scores his first touchdown as a starter quarterback. Mindy and I are almost in tears seeing it, but I keep it together for the most part. Mindy however can't keep it together and is silently crying happy tears. I pat her knee and she chuckles "I tend to get so emotional" she snuffles. "I get it" I comfort her.

"That was your brother, right? He is nr 5?" Fina asks and I nod "Yeah, that's my brother. And little Miss Munchkins daddy is nr 12" I don't know why I felt the need to add Joe to the conversation, but it just felt natural.

The points keep rising and I get more and more excited for the team. It looks like this is a home run for them. My brother must be on cloud nine, and my dad must be so proud.

"After the game, I'm taking Luna home for the night. You deserve a night out to celebrate with the rest of the school" Mindy says and I look at Fina "You want to head out and do something?" I ask and she shrugs "Sure could be fun."