My Marine Man *Editing Time!*

Chapter 11: The Game

So, guess what? Thanks to two snow days, you've got yourself an all new Chapter 11! Enjoy!

*Edited*

Chapter 11

Nathan's P.O.V.

"Nathan, honey? Could you come down here, please?" Mom yells from downstairs.
I flip off SportsCenter in my room and head into the kitchen.
"What's up, Ma?"
"Jack is having trouble with his homework and you know I don't do math--even 2nd grade math. Do you think you could help him?"
I glance over at my little brother sitting at the kitchen table. His nose is all scrunched up in concentration.
"Mom," he says, "I don't think 1/4 of 10 is five..."
"It's alright, Nate will be able to help you honey," she replies, and I nod bravely in confirmation.
I pull up a chair to the table.
"Ok, let's see what we can do here."
We finish up fractions pretty quickly, but precents are another issue all together.
"Look, Jack, you know what 1/4 of 100 is, right?"
"Yeah, that's easy, it's 25."
"Well..." I pause, not sure how to explain this in simple, second grade terms. Heck, when I was in second grade, we were still learning to add with marshmallows.
"Put it in military terms, Nate-o."
I pause. A horribly familiar feeling rushes over me. Deep breath in, deep breath out. C'mon, Nate. But I can't help it. The terror rushes over me again.
Vaguely, I can see Jack look at me curiously. He shakes my arm, and calls out "Nate?" in a small, frail voice.
But I'm not here anymore, not at the kitchen table in California. I can't respond to Jack, I can only hear the rumble of the Humvee's motor on that hot day in Iraq.
I don't know how much time has elapsed when I finally pull out of it.
Mom and Dad are standing over me, concered looks etched on their faces. The rest of the house is quiet.
"Nate?" Mom asks tentatively.
I shake my head. "I'm fine, I'm fine."
"No, you aren't, Nathan." Dad responds gruffly.
"Ok, no, I'm not. But what can I do about it? Nothing. I just have to keep trying to live normally."
"We can't have you lapsing off every few days like that, Nate. Jack was scared out of his mind when he came to get us. There has to be something you can do." Mom says.
Dad just shakes his head. "Unfortunately, Marcie, there really isn't much. Maybe it'd help writing your memories down or telling someone else, Nate, but you're going to have to learn to live with it. It'd the price we pay for serving our country."
"Do you still get flashbacks, Dad?"
"Occasionally. It gets slightly better with time."
I sigh, and get up to hug my mother.
"I'll try to make sure it doesn't happen in front of the kids again, ok?" I whisper into her hair.
"We're here for you, Nate, we love you," she whispers back, kissing my cheek.
I'm still feeling slightly shaky from the experience, and I know won't be able to spend the rest of the day with my family. I need something to take my mind off everything. Almost as if he heard me, I get a text from my high school friend Jason.
"Hey, a group of us are going to play some soccer on the green in a few. Wanna join?"
Without hesitation, I pick up my keys and head out the door.

Zoe's P.O.V.

I am stiffled. Three people with big personalitites in my little appartment is too much.
"I'm going for a run," I announce to anyone listening.
"Have fun, darling!" my grandmother responds.
My normal route won't take as long as I want it to, so I decide to change it up and head downtown. It'll be 8 miles roundtrip, a distance I haven't completed in a while.
It's a gorgeous day out, sunny and clear and crisp, just like a September day should be. My ponytail thumps in rhythm with my feet, and stress drains out with every step. In seemingly now time, I find myself circling the city's park, called "The Green" in the center of town.
"Hey! Zoe!" a familiar voice calls as I'm rounding the far end.
I pause, catching my breath, to see who it is.
It's Nathan.
"Hi there!" I reply, a warm feeling spreading all over me.
"What are you doing down here?"
"Just running. Our normal path wasn't going to take long enough," I reply, smiling.
He grins back. "I got you. Family can be a little overwhelming sometimes, can't they?"
"Oh, yes. What about you? What's going on?"
"Just a some friends of mine playing soccer. Actually, do you want to join us?"
"Oh gosh Nate, thanks for the offer, but I haven't played in years! And I wouldn't want to interrupt your guy-time. I'll see you later, ok?"
I'm starting to jog off when another guy catches up to me.
"Jason Dela Cruz, my lady," he says, sticking out his hand.
"Zoe, nice to meet you."
"You are going to join us, right?"
"Oh, well I don't want to break into your guy-time. It's fine."
"We actually have uneven teams and need another player. You up?"
I sigh exaggeratedly, then break out a smile. "If you insist, Jason."
I'm put on Jason's team, consisting of 2 other players who I'm hurriedly introduced to. I really hope I remember how to play.
The game starts. We get the ball first, and Sam passes it to me. I begin to run and dribble downfield, but before I know it, I don't have the ball anymore. Nathan's laughing as he streaks the other way with the missing ball, which is quickly shot into the net.
Jason comes up to me. "Hey, don't worry about it, it's a learning curve."
I nod. A long-forgotten competitive fire relights inside me.
The next hour is back and forth. Slowly, my footwork from high school comes back, and I can show off a little. These guys are good, though. It's easy to tell the goalies of the day are not use to being in the net, so the games are high scoring and fast paced.
After 90 minutes of play, we've completed 5 games. Nathan's team holds the lead 3-2. The guys all have huge sweat rings on their shirts, and I can feel my face dripping.
"I think that's all I can do," I say, plopping down on the grass.
Nate joins me. "I'm exhausted."
He nudges my leg with his. "Need a ride home, or do you want to run back?"
I groan. "Ride, please."
Nate stands up, then offers his hand to me. I let him pull me up and reward him with a peck of a kiss. Still, we hear hoots and hollers behind us from the other guys.
Nathan rolls his eyes. "C'mon, let's go."
"Bye, guys, thanks for letting me play!" I call out.
Climbing up inside of Nate's truck, I immediately roll down the windows. We cruise down mainstreet with a sweet breeze blowing in.
"I had a lot of fun today. Thanks for letting me join in," I say after a while.
"Of course, Zo, it was a blast having you."
I sit back contentedly in my seat. Everything about today feels so normal. No stress, no worries, just a boy, his girl, and their friends having fun together. I don't want it to end.
Nate breaks the quiet after a few minutes, when we're nearing my place.
"I wish every day could be like this."
His brown eyes pierce me, searching for something. I return his gaze, smiling slightly.
"Me too, Nate, me too."