The Deep End

18

Chapter Song: Sound of Walking Away- Illenium & Kerli

My knee broadcasted a huge scrape. It hurt to bend, and would sometimes open if I bent it too much. My dad made me wear gauze and wrapped it up every day for me before school. I guess that was the perk of having a surgeon as a dad.

All the guys would take turns carrying my books around, which was a really sweet effort. It was a really nice gesture and I had to admit I would miss it once the scrape was gone. I didn't think it would be for a while though, so I'll enjoy it until then.

Today was the first day in a long time that I got to watch Liam's lacrosse game. I was a little too excited, to say the least. Especially since it was their state championship game, and it was on our field. We had to convince our coach to let us have the day off for school spirit. To support our local classmates for their state championship match. 

We had the first snow this past week, and parts of it still remained on the field. It actually snowed some more earlier this morning at school, and they thought about postponing it until further notice. By some miracle, everyone was able to clear enough snow for the game. I saw the guys had some snow in their hair after lunch. My guess was that they went and shoveled it during lunch.

It was kind of a huge deal for us to have the state championship game on our field. For one, lacrosse was the big sport at our school. A lot of sports were, but lacrosse was number one. We also never had a state game on our field. It was an honor to host it.

I still hadn't gone after Cal. It had been a few days since I talked to my dad, but I think both of us were finally making peace with everything. Or at least trying to. It still hurt to look at him. I couldn't help myself though. Everything about him drove me crazy.

The way he ruffled his fingers through his hair during class. When he smiled and his dimples became more prominent. How he would always ask if I was okay. How he was so carefree but in reality was very detail-oriented and actually cared about everyone. Not to mention how annoyingly smart he was. He also had great abs.

I was still torn between what to do. I didn't think Cal and I could go back to being just friends. Not after that kiss, or kisses, I should say. There was something there. I knew there was. I just hate how guilty I felt about the whole thing. It shouldn't have to be that hard. A girl likes a boy, a boy likes a girl. Bam that should be it. Instead, it was messier.

I shrugged thoughts away to focus on the game. Riley and I were sitting next to Tyler waiting for the game to start. We were snuggled up together shivering from the cold and also the nerves for our team. This was supposed to be a three-peat. That is if we were to win.

Riley and I spent the whole afternoon setting up streamers and balloons at her house. She was in charge of throwing the after-party. If we won it would be a celebration, and if we lost it would be a let's-forget-this-ever-happened party. Tyler gave us a ride since her house was on the way to the school.

We cheered with the rest of the crowd as soon as the team came running out. I found Cal in the team instantly. Somehow I just knew where he was, and the number on his jersey confirmed it. I bit my lip to hide a smile. I was so excited to see them play. I used to come to their games all of the time before swimming got more intense.

We sat and watched the first two rounds cheering when necessary. We watched as the fireworks shot off anytime we scored points. It was all good fun. The game had nail-biting intensity. Every time we scored the other team seemed to score right back. Mason tried his best to deflect the shots but some of them were just too fast.

At half-time, Tyler went to grab the three of us some coffee to keep us warm. I was grateful for the gesture since it was freezing out. We sipped our coffees making small talk. Tyler flirted with Riley.

The funny thing was though,  Riley flirted back. Suddenly I felt like the third wheel. I sipped some more of my coffee watching the guys stretch. A few of the swim team girls came to say hi to me. Of course, they flirted with Tyler on their way to their seats.

As soon as the third quarter started I wanted to scream. The other team had just scored putting them ahead. I wanted to gouge out my eyes. The team was playing dirty too. They kept shoving and stick checking everyone not in their gloves or on their sticks. The refs just kept looking the other way.

Just as I thought the other team was finally calming down, I was wrong. I watched with horror as the opponent stick checked one of our players in their back. Suddenly another player from their team came and shoved our player to the ground with a loud earsplitting crunch. Our player was face down on the floor.

As soon as it happened half of our team rushed the field and so did theirs. It was an all-out brawl meanwhile the guy from our team just played there. I didn't know who to look at. There were punches being thrown and everyone was screaming including the crowd. It was a mess.

I couldn't find Liam or Cal anywhere. I was just hoping they were okay. I scanned the field again and saw that even Mason had left the goal post. It took five or so minutes for the refs and coaches to get everyone to calm down. Luckily no one was kicked out. If they were we wouldn't have had a game to watch.

"Get up." Tyler hissed through gritted teeth. The pain was prevalent in his eyes.

I turned my attention back on our player. It seemed as though the fight made everyone forget about the guy laying on the field. I wondered if he'd be able to finish the game. My heart ached for the player. I was seriously hoping it wasn't any of them.

The crowd grew silent. When the opponents were dragged off by their coaches I finally saw who it was. Instantly I stood up needing to be closer to the field. I knew I couldn't be on the field, but I got as close as I could.

I shoved my way through the crowd so I was closest to the fence. I could feel the crisp air against the grass on my face. It was always colder on the field than in the stands. I gripped the railing until my knuckles were as white as the snow.

"Cal," I whispered.