Trapped Nerves

Chapter 1-3

Mason found himself swept up in all the

excitement and razzmatazz of the pre-game entertainment. He watched

as the cheerleaders took the field enthusiastically waving their

pompoms to the accompaniment of the school band. Much to his

surprise, he was enjoying himself, and the game hadn’t even

begun.

Even though he’d seen a number of

professional and college games on TV, he was still surprised at the

many stoppages in play.

Number 82 seemed to be on the field for most

of the game, Mason had to restrain himself from leaping up every

time Parker was tackled. He could have sworn several of them were

late hits. Mason’s cup of joy overflowed when Parker scored a

touchdown in the third quarter. Even the ebullient announcer seemed

to increase his level of excitement when he announced Parker’s

achievement. Mason found himself on his feet cheering loudly, but

then so were many of the other home fans. Parker and his team mates

congratulated each other in the end zone with high fives and helmet

pats. As he ran back to the bench on the sidelines, he took off his

helmet and waved in Mason’s direction. Mason couldn’t help but

think the gesture was meant just for him. It felt odd to be sitting

amid his fellow students, many of them female. He soon realized

they were girlfriends and family members of the players. Mason

couldn’t decide if this excited him or made him feel uneasy.

Though he found the game interesting, he

didn’t think he would ever become a dedicated fan. He was kind of

relieved when the game was over; he’d grown cold sitting on the

bleachers. He had to admit that other than Parker’s being on the

field, he had enjoyed the half time performance by the marching

band and the view of the buns of the players in their tight pants

more than the game itself. The game, which had been tightly fought,

the lead changing hands a number of times, ended in a 24-21 victory

for the Falcons. The game was won by a last minute field goal set

up by Parker catching a pass and running it to the 20 yard line.

Then they ran three more plays to run down the clock and keep the

opposition from gaining possession. Despite football not being his

sport of choice, he had to admit the Falcons were one hell of a

team.

The band struck up an enthusiastic rendition

of the school’s fight song as the team began to leave the field.

Parker stayed behind to accept more of the crowd’s appreciation of

his efforts. Jumping the players’ bench at the 40 yard line, he

came to the stands and yelled to Mason. “Wanna go and get something

to eat later?”

“Uh,” Mason didn’t know what to say.

“If you haven’t got anything else to do, or…”

Parker seemed somehow nervous.

“Yeah, sure.” Mason tried to play down how

joyful he felt.

Parker’s face lit up in a wide smile. “Can

you hang for half an hour, then come round to the locker-room

exit?”

“Sure.” Mason couldn’t help returning the

smile.

“Cool,” Parker said, turning to follow the

last few of his team members off the field.