A grin slips over my face, and I step through the door she holds open for me, a big, fake smile on her rosy lips.
Only once we’re through the gate and taking our seats in the stadium, do I turn to Cameron.
“For the record, I don’t want you to stop asking.”
She glares, but a glaze falls over her eyes and she nods, reaching out to squeeze my hand. “You’re just… I’m worried, you know?”
I swallow past the knot in my throat. “I know.”
She sniffles and straightens her spine. “Okay, so think we can convince those guys over there to buy us beer?”
We laugh and face forward.
Twenty minutes later, the crowd is roaring, the stadium packed full of blue and gold.
It looks like half of the student body made it out tonight to catch the opening game of the season.
It’s a little bittersweet to look around, knowing none of our families are here, something the boys have never experienced before. There wasn’t a single game as kids where at least one parent wasn’t in attendance, and ninety-five percent of the time, both were. We were lucky like that.
They were always there for us, so the moment we got to campus, they took off to travel through Europe, something they’ve been planning and saving for the last four years. As soon as Brady’s dad was given the okay to take the leave, they put everything in motion. Once my parents knew Kenra was okay, they left, but I have no doubt they’re huddled around a TV or computer right now, wherever they are, watching.
The very first play of the game is a wicked fifty-yard pass, the kind that gives you chills as you trail the perfect spiral, and your entire body lights up when it falls effortlessly into the waiting hands of an Avix U receiver. It only gets more exciting from there.
The air is electric, the crowd passionate, and the team feeds off the hype.
It’s exactly what I needed, a bit of normal. Game nights have always been a favorite of mine.
Time flies as we stand, shouting and cheering under an entirely new set of Saturday night lights.
Being the beast he is, Brady’s lucky enough to be in for the majority of the game, while Chase and Mason had most of their playing time in the third and fourth quarter. Chase didn’t get to touch the ball, but he laid some good blocks, and while Mason didn’t get to show off his arm, his hand off in the backfield was on point, his footwork even better.
My brother has always been slick on his feet and from the few minutes he was on the turf today, it’s obvious he’s only gotten better.
But the timeclock is almost out and the starters are back on the field now, nearly the entire stadium on their feet as we watch, waiting to see what the play call will be.
It’s a quarterback keeper, and the man wearing the number nineteen steps and jukes past a corner, who threatens to take him down, spins off the shoulder pads of the second defender, and the crowd erupts, chills breaking out over my arms as I push onto my toes in time to watch as he leaps over a swarm of determined Sharks, who drive the defending team into the backfield.
The buzzer sounds right as the quarterback jumps to his feet in celebration, and it’s touchdown number four. Avix University takes the win with a one-point lead in the last five seconds of the game.
Cam and I jump up and down with the rest of the crowd, hugging and cheering.
Tears fill my eyes, and I pull my lips in. This is a day Mason, Brady, and Chase will never forget. Hell, I’ll never forget it. They worked so hard to get here, and I’m so proud of all three. I can’t wait for them to earn more time on the field.
Cam squeals, pulling me alongside her through the crowded tunnel. “That was so cool, Ari!” She high fives a random group of guys that run by chanting in playful drunkenness. Laughing, she turns back to me, her tan cheeks flushed with excitement. “You have to wait with me and congratulate them!”
“I am.” I smile, but even I realize my nod is a little overeager.
She squeezes my arm. “You got this, sister.”
“Yeah.” I inhale deeply.
Maybe.
It’s a good forty minutes before the team begins to file out from the stadium tunnels and the tailgaters erupt in cheers once more. Our boys’ smiles can’t get any wider as they glance around at the madness they didn’t get to see on their way in. Still, through the roar of the crowd and beyond the half-naked girls, they spot us perched against the light post and make a beeline right for us.
My smile’s uncontainable. I push off the cement pole and throw my arms around Brady’s neck when he comes at me full speed. He picks me up and whirls me around, laughing into my neck.