“CONNOR!”
Connor turned to see Marc coming his way, not surprised to see him with a trio of pretty girls. There was no bottle of water in sight.
“Did you get lost?” Connor regarded Marc with arched brows.
Marc didn’t even look ashamed when he replied, “I had something more important to take care of. Let me introduce you to Cindy, Amanda, and Kayla. These poor girls have the misfortune to attend school in Jasper. Can you imagine? I’m trying to convince them that they really have to give Green Valley a try. I mean, come on, it’s Green Valley.”
One of the girls giggled and tossed her long blonde hair over her shoulder and made eyes at Marc. She was the epitome of the all-American girl next door with her honey-blonde hair and big blue eyes. He couldn’t swear to it, but Connor thought she was the one Marc had introduced as Cindy. Which would make the petite, elfin-looking girl with the spiky black hair Amanda. So Kayla must be the brunette wearing a blue ball cap.
“I can’t fault his logic,” Connor said. “Green Valley is Green Valley. I don’t know what that means, but there’s no disputing the geography.”
“Hey, we’re on the way to the center field. Their team is playing in the final match.”
“Perfect,” Connor said with a smile. “Our team is also in the finals.”
“Excellent. We can get a rivalry going.” Marc leered comically at the girls. “Maybe a bet is in order.”
“The terms?” the blonde, Cindy, asked with a sly smile.
“Well, if we win….” Marc leaned over and whispered something in her ear that caused her to blush and giggle.
“You’re so bad!”
Connor shook his head. Marc’s flirting style bordered on ridiculous, but once in a while, it worked. From the corner of his eye, Connor saw Kayla roll her eyes. She, at least, wouldn’t fall for Marc’s gimmicks. She caught him watching her and smiled.
The five of them squeezed in as close to the field as they could get. There was a much larger crowd gathered for this match than the others, which made it hard to find a place with a decent view. The Vikings, a mob of green jerseys, huddled around Coach Mullin not too far in front of him. The players looked wrung out. Not surprising after playing two matches already.
A whistle blew in the distance and the team broke apart, most heading to the field, the rest standing near the edges. Connor tried to find Graham. He finally saw him jogging toward the goal box.
“Go Vikings!” Marc shouted, his voice booming out over the spectators.
Graham jerked his head in their direction. When he saw Connor and Marc, a wide grin split his face and he waved. Connor quashed the little bubbles of happiness that came with the knowledge that Graham was pleased to see him. No, not him. Them. Graham was only excited to see some familiar faces, not his in particular.
Connor wished they sat closer to the field. He wanted to see if Graham wore his eyeliner even while playing. Somehow it wouldn’t surprise him.
A couple of minutes later, the two teams faced off at center field and the game was on.
Connor lost track of the surroundings. He focused on the movement of the ball and, more often than he cared to admit, the movements of a certain goalkeeper. No one would guess Graham was probably exhausted. He played with the same focus and energy he showed in the last match. Even from where he sat, Connor heard Graham’s shouts to the other players. Graham bellowed encouragement and, when necessary, warnings about events in different parts of the field. Graham’s role as goalie was a lot like Connor’s role as catcher, he realized. They both had to know what was going on at any part of the field and direct the other players if it came down to it.
By the time the first half ended, the score was one to zero, Vikings leading. Once again, Graham didn’t let any ball past him. The other team was good, though; they didn’t make it easy for the Green Valley players to make progress.
Realizing that he’d been completely caught up in the match and the goalie, Connor turned his attention to Marc and the girls. Marc sat with Cindy and Amanda on either side of him, both vying for his attention. None of them watched the match. Kayla, who sat on Connor’s right, looked like she was actually into the game. He recalled hearing her shout occasionally when the Jasper Bulldogs did something well.
“Wow, your guys are good,” she said when she caught Connor watching her.
“Yeah, I think they are. This is the first time I’ve ever actually seen them in action. I don’t generally pay attention to other sports when baseball is in season. I’m a catcher,” he added, his attention drawn back to the field. To Graham.
“I’m on the girls’ soccer team.” Kayla paused to watch something on the field. Connor didn’t know what exactly happened, but it caused a chorus of groans and cheers—depending on which team a fan supported—from the audience. “I’ve heard of your goalkeeper, Parker. It’s kind of cool to see him in action. He’s amazing.”
“I think so.” Connor coughed in an attempt to disguise the wishful note that crept into his voice. “I was sitting next to this guy at the earlier match who turned out to be a scout. I think he was here to watch Graham. He had his picture and stats and everything.”
Kayla looked away from the field to stare at Connor. “Really? College scout?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t see enough to tell where the guy was from. Do soccer players see a lot of scouts?”
“Players like Parker do. I’m surprised he’s as good as he is, given he had to take the last year off. After everything that happened to him, to see him out there and in top form, it’s completely inspiring.”
“What happened—” Connor started to ask, but a whistle blew and a flag was thrown.
“Penalty kick.” Kayla leaned forward, her elbows braced on her knees. “C’mon, Jennings,” she muttered, staring intently at the players.
A strange hush settled over the crowd. The blue-uniformed player and Graham faced each other like duelers in the Old West. Graham did a couple of knee bends and settled into a ready stance between the posts. The Bulldog rubbed his hands down the sides of his shorts. After a long count of ten, the sharp trill of the whistle pierced the air. The Bulldog sprinted forward, shifting at the last second before booting the ball. Connor could barely track the ball it flew so fast. Its trajectory angled low and to the side. Graham dove and slid along the grass. The ball made a loud smacking sound as it slapped against Graham’s gloved hands.
The crowd cheered as the players on the field surged forward to continue play.
“Ouch.” Kayla pursed her lips. “Jennings is going to be ticked.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. With the time to set it up and aim, and with no one between you and the goal, penalty kicks usually score, even up against good goalies. Players hate it when they actually get blocked. It’s like missing a free throw in basketball.”
Conversation stopped for a while as they focused on the field.
“I was going to ask,” Kayla said later as the halftime break wound down. “Does your school have a Gay-Straight Alliance? We’ve been trying to get one set up at Jasper, but we keep getting stonewalled. We’re looking at other smaller schools to see what they have in place for LGBTQ students.”
“LGBTQ?” What on earth was she talking about?
“You know, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual—”
He cut her off. “I know what it means. I don’t think we have anything like that at GV. I’ve never paid it much attention.”
She goggled at him. “How do you not know?”
“Do you know every club in your school?” Connor couldn’t figure out why she seemed so shocked.
“I know the ones that pertain to me. I figured that since you were gay, you’d at least know about the club, even if you weren’t a member.”
Connor’s throat spasmed. “What?” He glanced over to make sure Marc was still occupied. He was, thank God. He turned back to Kayla, his whole body tight, ready to spring.
“Oh no. You’re not out, are you? I don’t think your friend heard me.” She bit her lip and looked toward Marc.
“I’m not gay,” he bit out. “Why would you say that?”
She blanched. “No? But I thought… aren’t you and Parker an item? I thought… the way you watch him, even when the ball is on the other end of the field….” Her voice trailed off.
“Jesus, we’re friends. That’s it. You can’t go around saying stuff like that. People will get the wrong impression. I’ve got a girlfriend.”
“I’m sorry,” she said a little uncertainly. “Really, I’m sorry.”
“Let’s drop it and watch the game.” He turned away, but instead of the game, he replayed Kayla’s assumption. He wasn’t gay. He couldn’t be. Gay didn’t fit into his plans. And gay sure as hell wouldn’t make Dad happy.