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Una had put Flow and Jett on patrol. They were expected to stop anyone from seeing us. We were supposed to be safe, knowing they were keeping watch.
But then again, how could they stop every car that came through? They could have alerted us, but nothing had come through while we were playing.
It was a foolish plan. Not that Una was foolish, but we should have known better. We could have easily explained being at a restaurant or the aquarium by saying we were working on a school project or something.
But being caught scrimmaging and making out in a soccer field, on the outskirts of Teller… that couldn’t be explained away. At all.
That area of Teller was off the normal roads, in a spot I had never been to or heard of before. For someone like Navin to have found it… either he was spying or it was a stupid stroke of luck that meant bad news for us.
“Navin, you can’t—”
But Coach blew the whistle before I could finish my sentence. I stared at Navin with panicked eyes, but he just smiled and jogged down the field.
I followed him, somehow moving even though my body felt like it was made of lead.
The rest of practice didn’t go well either. My mind was in a million directions. I needed to tell Navin that he couldn’t tellanyonewhat he saw. Una had to be notified as well. I couldn’t keep this a secret from her.
My focus was shot the entire afternoon. I lost a pass, took off in the wrong direction after a turnover, and completely missed the goal when attempting to score.
When Coach finally ended practice, it was like being put out of my misery. I had never played worse in my entire life, and everyone around me knew it.
To no one’s surprise, Coach Andersen called me over as the team hustled off the field. He was the punishment giver. Our head coach liked to stay on everyone’s good sides, allowing Coach Andersen to dole out the penalties.
“Five laps, Charlie,” he said first, gesturing to the goals. I groaned, but picked up speed and started my routine, circling each goal with a slap to the posts for counting.
By the time I finished all five, my legs screamed, all the energy sapped from my body. I limped back over to Coach Andersen, sweat pouring down my face, my shirt soaked.
He leaned against the fence next to the bleachers and looked at me. “What’s going on with you lately, Charlie? Your focus has been off. You’re missing easy passes. Your head isn’t here.”
I stayed quiet, knowing there was no way I could tell him exactly what had my head in the clouds these days.
My pause gave him the answer he was looking for, though.
“Girl trouble? It’s always girl trouble,” he said, shaking his head. He stood up straight, slipped his phone in his pocket, and put on a serious look.
A veryUnalike serious look. I froze, having seen the face before me many times over the past few weeks. When Una thought I was being cocky. When she looked at me after I said something cheesy. It was also the expression she gave me after I handed her the contract.
The sudden blow to my chest was a reminder of who I was dating. Whether it was for a contract or not, she was still my coach’s daughter. The guy who held my future in his hands.
He could bench me if he was pissed. I could sit out a game if he didn’t think my performance in practice was up to par.
And if he got wind of me dating his daughter? It could very well end everything for me permanently.
“Look, I’m not going to ask what you’re up to. You’re a teenage boy. I was a teenage boy once. But, for the next few weeks, I have to recommend you stay away from the girls who give you trouble. You need to focus on the playoffs. After that, it’s open season again, Charlie. Go wild—to an extent.”
I stared at him, not really understanding what he was saying, but nodding like I did.
“Hey, even I have to avoid some girls during playoffs. I haven’t seen as much of my own daughter as I would like.” Coach chuckled, but the joke fell flat to me.
“Why doesn’t Una play soccer anymore?” I blurted out, cringing the second the words left my lips. She was on my mind again, and somehow it slipped. When it came to Una, I seemed to have no filter keeping her off my lips. First with Navin, now with Coach.
Coach turned around slowly, having had already started heading toward the parking lot. The look of pure confusion on his face had me wanting to run with my tail between my legs.
I shouldn’t have known that. In no circumstance should I have that sort of information about his daughter. She and I weren’t friends when she played. We didn’t compete against each other. We didn’t live in the same town to be on the same teams.
The question itself was out of the blue, no matter how I tried to spin it.
Not unless I had become friendly with her recently…
