I'd Love To See You Try

1| Lincoln

I tied my spikes, readying myself for the afternoon soccer practice we had for the upcoming tournament. My fingers pulled both the loops I created with the shoestrings with a bit of force, before I began hearing faint footsteps and slow clapping. Deep, painful throbs suddenly invaded my head, causing me to put a hand over my hair. The headache was too intense that I had to close my eyes shut.

Not again.

I forced myself to look up at the silhouette who slowly approached me. The outline of his perfectly pressed suit sent a wave of nostalgia within me, like the feeling of holding an old teddy bear you used to have years before. Only, it was a way more sinister type of feeling. There was no warmth nor any kind of happiness. It was neither a void of emptiness. Rather, a sight of overwhelming emotions filled with negativity and pain.

"Oi Nerds!" A familiar voice suddenly called out, snapping me out of the weird trance. Olee, still in his normal clothing, approached me waving a piece of paper. His uncut hair bobbed up and down with every step he took.

I rolled my eyes at him. "You'll get your ass whooped by Coach Moore again if he sees you out of your shinguards."

He snorted. "Puh-lease, the old man loves me." He then proceeded to hand me the paper he held. "And, you're part of that stupid play."

My eyes widened in disbelief. I grabbed the piece of paper and studied the content. A small smile crept on my face before looking at my friend. "I actually got the lead." I fist pumped the air and my smile widened.

I gazed back at the print and my eyes landed on the female lead. My expression faltered as it was replaced by a look of confusion. Both Olee and I stared at the blank line besides Dorothia. They haven't picked a student for her yet? An uneasy feeling bloomed at the pit of my stomach. Somehow, it gave me a bad feeling that something big might happen.

"Maybe all the other girls who auditioned suck, and they're still fighting over who'll play Dorothia." Olee whispered behind me, bending his torso forward.

I frowned. It was unusual for the school to do so. They were always so strict with systems and punctuality, so when did they start with their incompetence? Shrugging it off, we heard the sharp sound of a whistle signaling that it was time to do warm ups. I stood up and looked at Olee with a look of what-the-fuck-are-you-still-standing-around-for.

At first, his eyebrows only furrowed. "Oh shit! I'm not changed yet!" He hurriedly ran inside the boy's locker room. "Cover for me!" He yelled before closing the door.

I jogged outside to the field and lined up with my team. Coach Moore blew his whistle once again, catching everyone's attention. "Deiderich, where's Harper?" He asked in a stern voice making me flinch a little.

I scratched the back of my head. "Stomach problems," I pronounced. Coach rose an eyebrow, obviously making me elaborate. "Explosive diarrhea, Mexican food,"

Mekhi, our team captain, and a few of my other teammates couldn't hold back a small chuckle. He rubbed his nose slightly with the side of his forefinger, trying to hide his amused smile. The muscles at the sides of his strong jaw flexed a bit from trying to suppress the emotion.

For some reason, Coach Moore believed my excuse and didn't notice the childish giggles my friends created. Olee came running towards us a few moments after. Coach approached him and patted his shoulder. He whispered something inaudible to him which made Olee's face create a look of confusion.

"He told me to lay off the extra chillies." Olee took a spot next to me, keeping his look. I chuckled as a response and we started practice.

Soon after, practice was over. After washing up and changing we started to make our way outside of campus. I couldn't take my mind off of the play as we did so. It even affected my performance slightly in the field. With all the theatre stuff, I didn't think that incorporating soccer in my schedule would be beneficial. Plus, it was our third year in college and I guess I could use the break with sports.