New Girl in Town Pt. 15

"And Jake?" Sarah asks.

"Especially Jake." Grammy laughs.

"I can do that easy," Sarah announces as she scampers to the SUV and hops up onto her seat.

"Jake! Check my belt!" Sarah shouts after she buckles up herself.

"I'll check it, Sar-bear." Jessica answers. "Jake's got to get his hug."

"She's right about that, Jake. Get your behind over here so I can give you a hug!" Grammy says extending her arms towards Jake.

He steps in and they share a hug.

"Thank you for taking care of my grandbabies, Jake." She whispers to him.

"Thank you for welcoming me into your home and for... not killing me over the other night." He whispers.

"The smile on my little Jess's face when she looked at you yesterday morning told me all I needed to know about that night, Jake. Well, that and Sarah pointing out Jess's sparkly eyes over breakfast that is." She giggles.

Jake blushes and shakes his head.

"I may not make Raleigh after that." He tells her. "I was lucky to make it through dinner last night."

"Val and Tim know and now so do I, that you take great care of my first grandbaby." She assures him.

"I try, Grammy." He says.

"You succeed from all I've seen. Now you let them take care of you too and you'll go far. I know it." she advises him.

"I know it too, Grammy." He answers then gives her a squeeze. "I wouldn't have made it this far without them."

She kisses his cheek then sends him to the car.

"Where am I sitting, Sar-bear?" He asks.

"Right beside me!" Sarah tells him. "You sit between me and sissy and hold my book so you both can read to me."

"You heard the lady, Jake." Jessica giggles as she steps over and hugs her Grammy.

"I love you my little Jessica," Grammy tells her.

"Grammy, I'm taller than you now." Jessica points out.

"You will always be my little Jessica." She tells her as she squeezes her.

"And you'll always be my Grammy. I love you too." Jessica tells her and kisses her cheek.

"Get on the road now and get Jake to his game. If he's anything like you when you win, I hope you've got a less squeaky bed at home." Grammy giggles.

"Grammy!" Jessica exclaims blushing furiously.

"Mom, what did you do?" Dr. Golden calls out.

"I just told Jessica to make sure to bring some WD-40 with her next time she and Jake visit. Oh and some sunglasses to cover her sparkly eyes!" Grammy laughs.

"MOM!" Dr. Golden exclaims.

"Sparkly eyes!" Sarah shouts gleefully.

"Oh, I told you the same thing when you started bringing Tim around all the time," Grammy announces with a laugh.

"And we're leaving." Dr. Golden says as the color in her cheeks rushes to match her daughters.

Jessica hugs her Grammy then jumps into the car beside Jake who is also blushing. Everyone waves their goodbyes as Dr. Golden backs out of the driveway and heads for the highway.

****

"Hey, Patrick, are we warming up or not?" Ray asks as he and the rest of the receivers stand around on the field.

"I'm saving my arm for the game," Patrick says. "I overuse it in pregame and that's why I've played like shit in these past few games."

"That's the reason, huh?" Mitch asks with a chuckle.

"So just because everyone's new friend, Jake isn't around to throw to you, suddenly I'm good enough again, huh? I knew you'd come running back to me." Patrick sneers.

"No one is running

back to you, Patrick. Do you believe this guy?" Kendall asks the receivers.

"Someone's got to throw us some passes. I guess that's going to be me since the diva here has gotten used to riding the bench." Ray says picking up a ball.

Patrick glares at them, leans back on the bench then tries to chat with Somer but she pretends not to notice him and goes back to cheering. Staci gives C.C. and Michelle a look then all three laugh before shouting out their cheers.

"I wouldn't let Ray throw if I were you, guys. I hear that his are real ugly." Jake says as he jogs onto the field.

"Jake! You made it!" Monte calls out.

"Oh good! Jake's here!" Patrick calls out sarcastically.

Jake shakes his head and chuckles while the others just ignore him.

"You would know. You've thrown enough ugly passes to all of us for sure!" Ray shoots back with a laugh.

"Yep, I'm an authority on them," Jake says. "Still want me to throw the ball or not?"

"You might as well let him, Ray." Mitch chimes in. "It's not like we've got a better option and he's all dressed up for it."

"I guess we don't." Ray agrees and tosses Jake the ball.

"Okay, we all get it. Jake, you were sorely missed. Can we practice now?" Kendall chuckles.

"Let's line it up over here!" Yates shouts as he walks over to the group. "I see that you did show up, Jake. That's nice of you to join us but you still aren't playing, son. Rules are..."

"Rules are rules, I know, sir. I just thought I'd help the receivers warm up since Patrick is... resting I think?" Jake asks.

"Patrick, what in the hell are you doing on the bench?" Yates snaps at him.

"Resting my arm," Patrick answers causing the guys to chuckle and Staci to call out.

"You called it, Jake. Smart guys are really sexy!" She calls out.

"Staci, stop flirting with my man!" Jessica calls out playfully from the stands.

"Never!" Staci calls back with a laugh and wave at Jessica and her family.

"Mr. Fucking popular." Patrick angrily states.

"Why in the hell are you resting your arm?" Yates asks ignoring the rest. "You've barely used the damn thing in the past few games."

"Dad says that's why I haven't been playing well. You overwork me at practice and in warm-ups." Patrick shares.

"Overwork? I overwork you!" Yates shouts then shakes his head and walks away to avoid cussing Patrick out.

Coach Pennington and the defense, who are all loosening up, look towards the shouting and the players shake their heads. Even Jamie shakes his, feeling fed up with Patrick's latest bout of woe is me attitude. The pussy party started these little bitch fits of his. It wasn't a bust for Patrick, he got laid but when it was over the girl was less than impressed and laughed at his performance so Patrick pulled Jamie out of the there. The worst part for Jamie was that he was beginning to hit it off with a girl there. One that he actually liked talking to using more words than bedroom, you, me and now but Patrick ruined it for him. He had pouted and complained about how Jake and Jessica had caused all of his problems this year. Jamie pissed at being interrupted, dared to suggest it was his own fault for not changing when his shortcomings were pointed out to him. Patrick fumed for a few weeks after that but came back around when he realized that he didn't have many friends left. Those few weeks showed Jamie that he didn't have so many friends himself. Eventually, the two started hanging out again due to the lack of any other options but Jamie had felt less and less inclined to go along with Patrick's crap.

"I guess we're still working out?" Ray asks.

"Yeah, I've been cramped in a car for nearly three hours. Let's run some routes and loosen up." Jake tells them as he tugs on his helmet.

They run some simple routes up until Yates waves them all over when the pregame warm-up period ends. The teams retire to their respective locker rooms to prepare for the game. Coach Yates gives his game instructions and speech to fire up the team. Ever the leader, even if just in his own mind, Patrick jumps up to lead the team out onto the field.

"Let's get'em Wildcats!" He shouts as he and most of the starters run out onto the field.

Jake and the other's jog over to their sidelines with the coaches and trainers.

"Nice to see that you dressed out, Jake." Coach Pennington comments as the pair of them stand on the sidelines as the coin toss is being held.

"You can thank an unnamed coach for that. I hear that he insisted that my gear get put on the bus even though I'm not playing." Jake says.

"Your friend Ray has a big mouth." Pennington chuckles.

"If you hadn't made him carry my gear he wouldn't have had anything to complain to me about." Jake laughs then asks. "Are we ready for this, Coach?"

"As ready as we can be." He answers then adds. "Why do you think I brought your gear?"

"Just in case our other two quarterbacks go down?" Jake asks with a laugh.

"I'm pretty sure that you're still the number two guy tonight, Jake," Pennington tells him.

"I doubt Yates will see it that way." Jake shares. "It's his way or the highway and I chose the highway this week."

"Was it worth it?" He asks with a sly grin.

"Definitely." Jake smiles. "Even with getting punched in the face. Jess is worth this little dust-up and a whole lot more."

****

The Wildcats receive the opening kickoff and Des returns it to the twenty-five-yard line. The offense takes the field and after a couple of decent runs from Kendall are looking at a third and short. Yates sends in a short pass play that should easily have net them a first down. Patrick decides to go long instead of the sure short pass but it sails well over Monte's outstretched hands.

"What the hell was that?" Yates shouts as the offense comes off the field.

"I saw a shot. I took it." Patrick answers. "It's not my fault that the kid is too slow."

"Slow? Slow?" Yates shouts then glances at Jake before turning his attention back to the game.

"I guess that rest he took didn't help him very fucking much," Ray comments to Jake as they watch the punt.

The Wildcats punt the ball to the Newport Knights who break into the open field and take it back for the first score of the game.

"Just relax out there, Patrick," Jake tells him as Patrick sits on the bench near him. "It's still your game. Just get into your rhythm and..."

"Fuck off, Shadow! The day I take advice from a loser like you is the day I join your little band of misfit losers." Patrick snaps.

Jake shakes his head and walks over to watch the kickoff.

"He's just trying to help out, Patrick." Jamie points out.

"When the fuck have I ever needed Jake Gibson's fucking help?" He snarls. "Marty should have caught that pass."

"His name is Monte and he might have had a chance at it if his arms were five feet long," Jamie mutters to himself.

The Knights kick off and Des takes a knee in the end zone giving the Wildcats the ball at the twenty. Yates sticks to run plays and Kendall winds up breaking off a big run on second down. He makes it to the Knights thirty-yard line before being forced out of bounds. Yates sends in another pass play to give Kendall a break but when Patrick throws it, it again is too high for Steve to snag.

"Keep the ball down!" Yates yells at Patrick before he sends in the next play. "He rested his arm for this horseshit."

A block from Ray springs Kendall into the secondary and another from Steve gets him into the end zone. Martin's extra point ties the ballgame and it's the last point scored in the first half. The Wildcats head to the locker room at halftime with Patrick going three for twelve on his passes for eighteen yards. To say that Yates isn't pleased is an understatement since those three completions are on screen passes. Yates and others that are on offense try to talk Patrick up during halftime but he just shrugs them off, preferring to sit alone and sulk.

The second half of the game becomes an offensive stalemate with neither team able to get past their own forty-five-yard line. The Wildcats defense clamps down on the Knights while their defense has an easier time defending the stagnant passing game of the Wildcats offense. With time winding down in the fourth quarter, the Wildcats are forced to punt. The Newport Knight returner fields it and begins to run to his right. When the Wildcat defenders close in, he turns and laterals the ball to another Knight that takes off into the clear field. Jamie has a shot at the carrier but a shove from behind sends him falling to the ground.

"Throw the flag!" Jake and several other Wildcat players shout having seen the infraction occur.

"Reverse!" Pennington shouts as the new ball carrier breaks into the open field. The only player between him and the goal line is the Wildcat punter who misses the tackle badly. Newport jogs into the end zone for the go-ahead score with time running out.

One referee indicates a touchdown but another runs down the field waving it off, pointing to his yellow penalty flag that is near the spot where the ball was first received. The referees confer then the head ref jogs over to the Newport sideline. Their coach goes ballistic as the referee explains then jogs to the center of the field with the call.

"Illegal block in the back. Receiving team. Ten-yard penalty from the spot of the foul. First down, Newport. Timeout."

The Wildcat fans breathe a sigh of relief while the Newport fans hurl boos and insults down at the referees.

"We need a stop here, defense!" Pennington tells them as they jog onto the field.

Newport's offense tries to go big on first down with a deep pass but Des knocks it away from the receiver at the last moment bringing up second down. The clock is stopped at fifty-two seconds left in the game. Newport's next play is a handoff that gets them four yards and takes the clock down to forty-six seconds to go when they call for a timeout.

"The smart play here is for them to play for overtime but I think they're looking to go deep on us again. They want to knock us out with a surprise play here and we can't let that happen." Coach Pennington tells his defense. "Jamie, come off the end and try and get in the quarterback's face before he can throw it. Tank, you spy the halfback for the dump off. We're going with prevent coverage for the rest of you. Not one of their players gets by you! Got it?"

"Got it!" the defense answers loudly.

They start to jog back on the field but Jake grabs Jamie by his jersey.

"What the hell do you want, Jake?" he snaps at him.

"I've noticed that their quarterback has a long windup when he wants to throw it long. If Coach is right, they have to go long here if they want to win so if you get to him you can try to knock the ball free instead of sacking him." Jake tells him. "We get the ball down there, we kick a field goal and we're still playing next week!"

Jamie almost tells him to fuck off but he stops himself when it hits him that Jake is trying to help despite their sordid history.

Instead, Jamie nods as he pulls on his helmet.

"I'll give it a shot but if I miss, I'm blaming you." He chuckles.

"I'm not that well liked anyway." Jake jokes.

"Bullshit." Jamie smiles. "Thanks for the tip, Jake."

Patrick watches the exchange from the bench and glares daggers at their backs. He vows to have a talk with Jamie on the bus ride back home.

On the field, Newport lines up in an I formation. At the snap, they fake a handoff to the up-back and the quarterback drops back to pass. Jamie bull rushes off the end then pulls an inside spin move on the tackle that peels off to block him.

The quarterback feels the pressure and tries to rush his throw but his windup is too long allowing Jamie to get there first. He swings his arm at the cocked football and connects. It pops free and begins bouncing on the grass. The quarterback turns and tries to drop on it but it takes a bounce off his helmet and rolls back towards the Wildcats end zone.

"Fumble!" Pennington shouts pointing towards the ball rolling on the ground.

The Newport halfback runs towards it and tries to pick it up instead of falling on it but he's hit by Antoine at the same moment and ends up knocking it further down the field. The tackle that tried to block Jamie dives for the ball but it rolls just out of his grasp and into the end zone. He crawls for it and as he gets to it he's fell upon by Jamie, Des and a couple of his own players.

The whistle's blow and the ref's start to try and figure out possession. They start pulling bodies off the pile of players until one ref holds up the signal for a safety putting the Wildcats up by two points. The Knights tackle did recover the fumble but just inside the Wildcats end zone resulting in a safety.

"Receiving team!" Yates shouts to gather them up. "Fair catch it. No heroics, you all hear me? Get that arm up and catch that punt!"

They all nod, head for the field and when the punt comes Des does as instructed, calling for a fair catch at the Wildcats thirty-two-yard line.

"Victory formation!" Yates tells the offense who take the field and manage to escape with a nine to seven win over the Newport Knights sending them on to the next round of the playoffs.

****

After the game, Buck Greene grabs Patrick before he gets into the locker room and introduces him to the man waiting with him.

"Brock, this is my son Patrick. Patrick, this is my old fraternity brother, Brock Bergen. Brock here works in the athletic department for the Tarheels." Buck introduces them.

"Nice to meet you, Patrick. Heard some great things about you." Brock says extending his hand to Patrick.

"Yeah?" Patrick asks as he shakes the offered hand.

"Yeah, you were lighting it up the first of this year. The football department was all abuzz about you." Brock shares with him. "Get rid of these Yips you picked up and they'll be back, knocking down your door."

"Yips? What the hell are yips?" Patrick asks.

"It's a golf term, son," Buck explains. "You lose your something in your swing and can't hit a ball straight to save your life. You've lost something in your throwing motion."

"And you can't hit a wide open receiver to save yours," Brock concludes. "You need to get those under control or you'll be trying to walk on to the team instead of being recruited."

"He's working on it, Brock. You know how it is." Buck states clapping him on his shoulder. "Just needs to get a few more cheerleaders under him and everything will be all right."

Brock chuckles. "Just wait until you get to college, Pat. You think these little high school girls are something, just wait until you pledge our old frat. Those sorority girls will blow your small town mind!"

"I'm counting on that." Patrick answers. "Can I get a ride back with you, dad? I don't feel like riding the bus."

"Afraid not, son. Brock and I are heading out to a... well someplace you can't tell your mother about." Buck chuckles.

"The Buck and Brock show are on the prowl tonight, Patty boy!" Brock laughs.

Patrick's eyes narrow at his new nickname but he keeps his mouth shut. Buck chuckles and claps his son on the back.

"You should be glad to be on the bus. You won the game and that Gibson kid didn't even get to play! I knew Yates would smarten up." He tells his son.

"Did you say Gibson?" Brock asks. "Jake Gibson?"

"That's the one." Buck answers as Patrick simply grunts in the affirmative. "He's the back up to Patrick here. Decent but not on par with my boy."

"Probably a different kid then." Brock states. "Our coach got really excited about some Gibson kid. Had a monster game for his homecoming or some such. Anyway, he didn't play like no back up so it can't be him."

"Definitely not." Buck nervously laughs.

"Jake couldn't hold my jock. Carolina can forget about needing him." Patrick boasts. "Just wait until my next game. I'll light up whoever we end up playing."

"Just remember that there's an old saying, Patty Boy," Brock says. "Something to do with checks and how you shouldn't write ones that you can't cash."

"He'll cash them, Brock. Carolina doesn't need to worry about that one bit." Buck assures him. "He's getting his head on straight and anyone in his way had better look out."

****

Jamie, on the other hand, is having a very different conversation with a recruiter from Florida State.

"We're loving what we're seeing from you this year, son. You have been damn impressive." The recruiter is telling him. "That heads-up play of yours tonight won you this game. That's the kind of thinking we like to see from our players."