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Chapter One – Felix
“Felix will be in charge of the Valentine’s Day event, and Max, you’ll help him.”
I had just entered the locker room where the entire New York Leviathans football team was seated on the benches. Coach Kramer was standing in front of everybody with his characteristic clipboard in hand. As I strolled over to find a seat, he immediately turned his fire-eyed attention to me.
“It’s a good thing you’ve decided to join us on time, Felix,” Coach griped, his voice echoing off the walls and a tinge of sarcasm in his tone. Everybody else looked up as I made my way to stand next to my vice-captain.
I sat down, anticipating some foul language coming in my direction from the coach. I was already late, and not for the first time, but I was warmed up and ready for practice. I wanted to ensure that I was completely ready for the upcoming Super Bowl.
“I was just telling everybody that we’ll be having a matchmaking event on February 1st, just like the ones y’all experienced in high school.”
Some of the players snickered.
“I believe that fostering good relations among the New York Leviathans family is crucial for winning any game, don’t you agree?”
There were a couple of groans throughout the room.
“Felix,” Coach Kramer continued, turning to face me squarely, “I have put you in charge of this event. Make your teammates proud. I want to see good interactions between you and the cheerleaders.”
“Why me, coach?” I whined, unable to keep from asking.
I was in no mood to play matchmaker for anyone. In fact, I just wanted to quietly find a Valentine’s Date, spend a long night in bed, and never see her again. I didn’t need my teammates’ help, or my coach, for that matter, to assist.
“Look at this one, everybody,” Kramer taunted, turning the attention of the entire room on me. “How many hearts have you broken in your time here, Felix? How many?”
I frowned. There had been quite a few.
“Think of this as a way of making up for your past indiscretions,” said the coach to the laughter of everybody else in the room. I felt my cheeks burning red hot, a little frustrated that the coach had to bring up my past love life in front of my teammates.
“I want all of you to remain focused,” he continued, “if this matchmaking is a success, it will improve morale. We’re going to win the Super Bowl, and I need all of you functioning at your best. I don’t want anybody distracted during the game, looking at the girls, or thinking about a broken heart. I want everybody on the same page.”
“I hope Cupid does a good job, then,” said James, one of the linemen from the other side of the room. He was looking straight at me, and the entire room burst out in laughter once more. Even the coach had a rare smile on his face.
“Cupid, huh?” he chuckled, scratching his chin. “That’s a good name for you, Felix.”
Everyone was laughing at me because my well-documented past with women was always a source of amusement. I was openly a player, and commitment was not my game. I simply couldn’t manage to date a single woman at a time.
My teammates always looked at me differently since I was perpetually single. While some were single, some had steady girlfriends or were married. Family life was big for Leviathans, most of them understanding the importance of stable relationships. However, I was the total opposite.
Whenever one of my married teammates had a family gathering at their home, they would invite the rest of the team but not me. I only got phone calls from my teammates when it was time to party or go for extended overseas holidays. That was just the kind of guy I was.
Cupid, huh?
It was time for a new job. It was just as well that I was chosen to do matchmaking duties for this stupid, early Valentine’s Day thing. There was no point in me letting my teammates down. After all, they had been there for me in the past after some of my more disastrous decisions.
There was this one girl, Mel, who I met after a game in Chicago. She was beautiful and approached me as the team was leaving the stadium. We exchanged phone numbers, deciding to meet later that evening.
She came directly to my room, but she also brought two friends along with her. I was surprised, but after a while, I accepted that they were excited about being around an NFL star. We ended up having an explicit night, all four of us, and the following morning, the team flew back to New York.
However, once we landed, I realized trouble had been brewing in the few hours we were in the air. Media stations across the country were splashing the girls’ image from last night and me on all the networks. Soon enough, it was a scandal.
