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“Yes, sir.”
“Oof, and let's cut the sir thing. We’re starting fresh next season and sir is off the table. I’m not that much older than you. Jeez.” He huffed and shook his head a little, reminding me that I hadn’t gotten to know this man the way I should.
“Yes, s— I mean, yes, coach.”
“Good. And spread the word. Next season, all that uptight shit is done. I didn’t wanna make too many changes mid season when so much needed to change already. But you know what? I’m excited for next year. Forget everything that happened, we’re a new team. I’ll have you do ice breakers the first day like we don’t even know each other.”
“I think a few of the guys will enjoy the theatrics of that.”
“Brooker?” he asked with a little laugh. And when I nodded, said, “Yeah, it’s taken me a bit, but I think I’ve got everybody’s personalities down. That’ll make next year better too.”
“Yeah, next year will be great.”
“Good.” Sharma clapped me on the back. “Now go make sure the boys keep their spirits up, I’ve got a complaint to file.” We gave each other tight nods before going our separate ways. And when I got back to the main part of the locker room, the boys had moved on from their worm training to food planning.
“We’re not that far from Seattle, right? Let’s find a club,” Fuller suggested, only to be knocked on the head by Taylor.
“Dude, Leah’s pregnant.”
“I thought that just meant she couldn’t drink?” he asked innocently.
“And she can’t be around smoke.”
“Oh.” Fuller stared ahead for a while, eyes narrowing as he thought. “Chili’s?”
Taylor tilted his head, then shrugged. “Yeah, Chili’s wouldn’t be bad.”
“Nah, closest Chili’s is in the airport,” Gallagher said, squinting at his phone. “How the hell are there only two Chili’s in this whole fucking state?”
“Is there a Ruby Tuesdays nearby? Or a Fridays?” I cut in, happy to contribute to such a benign conversation.
“You’re aging yourself there, Cap,” Brooker said. “Pretty sure those don’t exist anymore.”
“Nah, there’s still Ruby Tuesdays, there’re a couple near us,” Alvarez said.
“Well neither exist in this city. There’s a Red Robin though, that close enough?”
“I could do burgers,” Kean said, pulling his phone out of his duffle. “I’ll see if Kodi can call ahead and get us a table. Brooker, don’t spend an hour in the shower this time.”
“I can agree to that, but only because I’m not gonna meet anyone in a Red Robin.”
The Panic Attack in a Red Robin
Leah
“Did you hear what that announcer said?” Kodi asked, shooting out of her seat the instant Olli and the others rounded the corner to the large series of tables we’d gathered to fit everyone. We took up a good portion of the dining room, but thankfully late Saturday night wasn’t a hopping time for this random chain restaurant.
“About what?” Olli asked, brow furrowing as he pressed a kiss to Kodi’s forehead before sitting.
“That all the social media stuff distracted the team. That’s not true, right? Did I cut into anyone’s practice time or stress anyone out?” In the presence of her comfort person, her anger dissolved to vulnerable anxiety.
“No, baby. I would’ve told you if it was.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and shuffled her closer. “Besides, I’m going to learn the worm.”
“What?” She pulled back, confused, and they became entrenched in their conversation about dance moves as soccer moves.
On the other side of the table, Rosa and Carmen cuddled together. She wiped tears from his cheeks and said something that made him laugh. They were soft and comfortable with each other, you could practically see the years they’d spent like this. She knew exactly what he needed after this loss, how to support him, all that cool shit.
Meanwhile I was drawing a blank. I hadn’t been in a relationship for years, I didn’t even really have friends until a couple months ago. I didn’t know how to support anyone and of all people in this Red Robin right now, Niall needed the most support. And as his partner or girlfriend or whatever, I should know how to do that.
