Playing For Love

by Dana Burkey

  “Time to get up Fiona,” Jordan said, shaking me gently. He clearly must have already tried to wake up me unsuccessfully since he was now holding my car door open. Ross and Skyler were nowhere in sight. “Looks like someone had a late night.”

  “Oh my goodness,” I gasped, quickly unbuckling and standing up, just managing to miss hitting my head on the roof on the way out of the car. “I can’t believe I fell asleep!”

  “Don’t worry,” he laughed as he grabbed my backpack and phone that I had left sitting in the car. “Skyler was drinking the biggest cup of coffee I've ever seen or else I’m sure she would have been asleep too.”

  “Why didn’t I think of that?” Taking the items from Jordan I tried to brush my hair out of my face, suddenly wishing I had at least taken the time to put it up before I left the house.

  “Maybe I can help,” Jordan commented as we began walking towards the school. “I’ll see what I can do.”

  “What does that even mean?” I asked. I glanced at my phone and was happy to see we still had a few minutes to get to class. In fact, I was going to even have time to run to my locker so if I stayed awake in class I'd actually have my books with me too.

  “You'll just have to wait and see,” he replied, holding the door open for me.

  And with that he walked away. I went to history class and had to focus super hard to pay attention and stay awake. There were a few close calls, but I managed to take notes and even give the right answer when called on once. I knew I needed to be awake for the game later, so I more or less forced myself to act awake. Even still, all during class I was praying that I'd magically get more energy later in the day.

  “There you are Fi,” a voice called to me as I was walking out of class. Turning towards it, I was shocked to see Jordan standing there with a Starbucks cup in hand. “Here you go, a nice cup of wake up magic.”

  “How did you get this?” I asked, taking a long sip right away.

  “My friend Nate was running late to school, as always, so I asked him to pick me up some coffee on the way,” Jordan explained as he started walking me to my class. Somewhere in my mind I was a little shocked that he not only knew where my first class was but also seemed to know where my second class was as well.

  “You're a lifesaver,” I grinned, in between taking sip after sip.

  “Glad I could help keep you awake,” he smiled as we finally reached my next class. “I better get to Spanish. See you later.”

  Jordan turned and raced down the hall, turning to head to the far end of the school. It was likely he wouldn't make it in time to miss being late for class, but it meant he could give me coffee. Taking another long sip, I turned to go into class but first caught of glimpse of Taylor, who was walking into the classroom across the hall. She was staring me down, clearly displeased by the cup in my hand. For some reason though, I flashed her a big smile before taking another drink of my coffee and walking to class. It was maybe a little mean, but at the same time I was getting sick of her acting like I somehow stole Jordan from her. If he wanted her, he clearly could have had her at the dance when she was all over him.

  Anyways, I made it through the rest of the day thanks to the coffee and then also two cans of Dr Pepper at lunch. It helped me stay awake the rest of the day without any major issues. I made sure to report the good news to Jordan on the way home. He was happy to hear it, the wished me good luck on his way out of the car. An hour later I was climbing into Skyler’s car as we headed back to school to warm up for the game.

  “So I heard Jordan brought you coffee today,” Skyler mentioned as we rode to school.

  “Who'd you hear it from?” I asked, a little shocked that word about it got around.

  “Lizzy was complaining to someone about it one of my classes,” Skyler explained. “I guess she thinks it’s really lame that he's hanging flirting with you instead of Taylor.”

  “I don’t know if it was really flirting,” I said as my face began turning red.

  “Well, whatever it was,” she smiled at me. “I’ve never seen him do it for anyone but girls he's dating.”

  That little comment kept my spirits up and happy the rest of the way to the school and then through warm-ups. It helped me to keep from worrying about the game too much, that is until we started. Within the first few minutes of the game, it was clear why we had been running so much during our recent practices. North Lake proved to be a team with a lot of endurance on the field. It felt like they were running laps around us, although we more or less managed to keep them from scoring. Thankfully, the training at practices allowed us to dig deep in the second half and come out with a win! It was only 2-1, but a win's a win when it's against such a hard team!

  Varsity won their game as well, so there were plenty of hugs to go around when I made my way to the bleachers and onto the field for a little post game celebrity with both teams. I was happy to see that both Beth and Corra made it to the game and that apparently Trey, Jordan, and Ross had been sitting with them. In fact, Trey was right next to Beth the whole time we stood chatting about the game. My mom and dad were also there, complete with nose guards I didn't know they'd even bought! I shouldn’t have been too shocked since at least 75% of the fans in attendance were wearing the guards. But all of that was nothing compared to how good it felt when Jordan gave me a big hug when the game was over and told me that he was happy to see I was awake out there the whole time.

  Sadly, I couldn't stand there and hang out all evening. I was hungry after the long game and long time sitting watching the varsity match as well, so getting home to eat and head to bed became my focus quite rapidly. Jordan gave me one last hug before I followed my parents to the car, leaving Ross to ride home with Skyler so they could have a little alone time. We also took Beth and Corra home, and on the way to Beth’s she admitted that at one point during the game Trey held her hand! That was all she said on the subject since we were in the car with my mom and dad, but I'll be getting more out of her tomorrow for sure.

  That’s all for now, though. I'm starting to get pretty tired just writing this, so I should try to get some rest before I end up falling asleep while writing like I did last night! Hopefully by tomorrow I'll know more about the whole Trey and Beth situation and also have a chance for more moments with Jordan. And honestly I wouldn't mind the chance for Taylor to see any moments I might have with him so she will see that glaring at me isn't going to help her at all!

  OCTOBER 10TH-FRIDAY

  I can’t decide if today was a good day or a terrible one! First of all on the way to school I didn’t really get to talk to Jordan since I was busy talking to Skyler about lunch. Today's her birthday so she invited me to join her table at lunch since her mom was going to bring cupcakes for everyone celebrate. She also let me know that she was planning a group day at the pumpkin patch on Sunday. I was pretty excited for both of those options since it meant I'd likely be hanging out with Jordan during both. And, since Beth was getting pretty close with Trey, Skyler told me that her and Corra were for sure invited to join in on the fun as well!

  The rest of the morning I was just counting down until the lunch. I knew it was sure to be a chance to hang out with Jordan, and I was also excited to hopefully see Beth and Trey together since I hadn't heard any of the latest from her last night after the game since I headed to bed after writing. So, when I got to the lunch room, I headed over to Skyler’s table and found a spot that was open. I was sitting next to Corra and across from Beth and Trey. Seats were filling in fast since most of the soccer players were joining in on the lunch party, but somehow Jordan managed to arrive just in time to sit next to Trey, meaning he was sitting almost right across from me as well.

  Through most of lunch, we all chatted about the plans to go to the pumpkin patch and whether or not people were going to the football game tonight. Since it's an away game and Ross had plans with Skyler I wasn't planning to go, and I soon found out a lot of people were planning other things instead of making the trip on The Grizzl
y Bus.

  “Since you aren’t going to the game tonight we should work out again,” Jordan commented to me as everyone around us snacked on the cupcakes Skyler had passed out.

  “That could work,” I nodded. “I’m free tonight and all day tomorrow so far.”

  “I’m helping my dad with some stuff around the house tomorrow, but we could go to the gym tonight if you want,” Jordan offered. “My dad has a membership to the one by the mall and I could use his guest passes. That way we don’t have to worry about getting rained out or anything.”

  “Sounds good.” I tried to say it really calm, but I was starting to freak out at this point. Not just because we were talking about hanging out and training together, but also because we were chatting about it front of a lot of people. I glanced over and noticed that Beth and Trey were oblivious to our conversation since they were huddled together looking at something on Beth’s phone, but I could tell out of the corner of my eye that Corra was watching us while trying to make it look like she wasn’t actually looking and listening in.

  “Perfect,” Jordan smiled. “I should be able to get my dad’s truck so I can pick you up a little after school gets out so you have a chance to change and everything.”

  We went over a few more details, and when the bell finally rang for lunch to end, I reluctantly said goodbye to Jordan and everyone else at the table and then headed to my next class. I got there early enough to take a minute and text Beth and Corra all the good news. They were, of course, happy for me and gave me a lot of advice on what I should wear. It was going to be different working out on equipment instead of outside, so I wasn't sure what the best clothing choice would be so I could look cute and also still be ready to work out. On the ride home, Jordan let me know that he had talked to his dad and would be back to pick me up around 4 o’clock. It gave me plenty of time to eat something and get changed.

  The only problem was that I didn't actually use that time to eat and also get dresses. Instead, I spend the whole time trying to do my makeup so it looked like I was wearing nothing while still looking cute, put my hair in a cute French braid, and then pick out an outfit that would look good even while I was sweating. I went with a pair of my white soccer short with my green team socks and then a new long sleeve green shirt I got to wear under my new team shirt since it was getting colder outside. The outfit seemed a little warm for working out, but at the same time I looked really cute so I didn't let it bug me too much. I finally grabbed a protein bar right before Jordan drove up in his dad's truck, although I only managed about two bites before setting it aside. So, I left it at home as I walked outside and ran to Jordan's truck to get out of the rain that was just starting to fall.

  The whole way to the gym we chatted about our game plan for the workout, so as soon as we got to the gym I dropped my purse and phone in the locker room then met Jordan on the track to run some laps. The track is up above the rest of the gym, so it's actually kind of hot up there. So, we just did a few laps, only reaching a mile at most, before we went to lift some weights. The whole time we more or less just chatted casually since we were breathing pretty hard and working a lot. I was okay with it though since even having this time to just do normal stuff with Jordan was nice. Like, the fact that we can hang out and have comfortable silence was super cool.

  After we did the weights for a while, we decided to do some of the other machines to work on lower body and then a few that were kind of core workouts. By this point, I was getting more and more tired, but trying to drink water and push through. My body was heating up from all the work and it kind of wished I hadn't gone for the high socks and long sleeves. Sure, I looked cute or whatever, but it was way too hot for working out inside without any breeze or even just open air. Pushing up my sleeves helped some, but not nearly enough.

  I think if I was working out on my own, I would have called it quits at this point. Jordan, however, thought it would be good to do a longer distance run. So, we headed to the treadmill and decided that we would shoot for at least a 5 miles! After all the running I'd been doing all week I thought it was going to be easy, but only a few miles in I could tell something was wrong. My stomach started hurting in this weird way and I was getting a lot of chills. Up until this point, Jordan and I were chatting and commenting about the show that was on the TV in front of us, but once I started to feel sick I stopped talking completely, so it was easy for him to tell that something was wrong.

  “Do you want to take a break?” he asked me, both of us still running at the same pace. I just shrugged in reply, not sure what else to do or say. When I didn’t say anything, Jordan made the choice for me. “Let’s take a break.”

  Jordan immediately slowed down and turned off his treadmill before reaching over and doing the same for mine. When I stepped off the treadmill, I kind of lost my balance and started to fall but Jordan caught me. That was great and all, but the weird jerking movement kind of make my stomach flip or something and I knew things were about to get bad fast! I covered my mouth since I felt like I was going to puke, and thankfully Jordan understood what was going on so he all but picked me up and moved me to a nearby trash can. It was literally perfect timing since as soon as I was right in front of the can I leaned in and threw up the snack I before Jordan picked me up, as well as all the water I had been drinking at the gym and also what looked like most of my lunch from school, cupcake and all!

  “Here, take a sip,” Jordan once I was done with at least the first round of throwing up. He placed my water bottle in my hand so I could use it to wash out my mouth. I was going to take an actual sip to swallow when the second round of puking decided to arrive. Thankfully it was only followed by one more small episode. I held my head over the trash can for a few more minutes after the last time just to make sure I was really done. Throwing up was bad enough, I didn't want to risk getting it all over myself or Jordan as well.

  The one really sweet thing was that the whole time Jordan stood right there with me and had one hand on my back to comfort me. He was encouraging me to drink water or breath and that kind of stuff too, but I was mostly focused on the fact that he was rubbing these soothing circles on my back. If I wasn’t so sick, I would've been about melting from the sweet gesture. Instead, I tried to get my body to calm down then sat down on the cold gym floor for a minute while I waited to make sure I wasn't going to throw up anything else.

  Finally, when I knew I was done puking Jordan helped me up and then found a girl that worked at the gym who could help me in the changing room. It wasn't that I really needed help to grab my purse and phone, but he wanted to make sure if I got sick again there was someone there since he wasn't allowed in the girls locker room. The girl that helped me was really great and even grabbed a shirt from the gym store for me to wear since my long sleeve shirt was a little speckled with puke. It was super gross, but hopefully Jordan would forget that fact once he saw the red “Fitness Planet” t-shirt I had replaced it with.

  When I finally walked out of the locker room a little while later, I was feeling better, but I knew that getting home and showering would really help. I also felt like a total idiot, since I totally ruined our workout by getting sick. Well, thankfully, it looked like Jordan didn't care too much about the workout, and instead only cared about me.

  “Are you doing okay, or should I carry you to the car?” he asked with a smile. I could tell he was joking but totally would have if I needed him to.

  “I’ll be okay,” I said with a sigh. “Sorry for all that.”

  “You have nothing to apologize for,” he corrected me immediately. “I’ve gotten sick way worse at basketball doing half as much as we just did. Right up until you puked you didn’t slow down one bit!”

  I just smiled at that one, thankful that he wasn't grossed out by my sudden sickness. I think the fact that I had on a new shirt instead of my puke covered one helped some, but in a way I don’t know if it would've mattered. Jordan really was just trying to make sure I was better now. The whole drive h
ome I blasted the air conditioning on my face and took sips of water. It helped that we had to walk through the rain to get in the car, but being in the smaller space with Jordan was not as fun as it sounded. Suddenly it felt smaller than before and a little stuffy. Thankfully the drive to my house was pretty quick.

  “Alright, let’s get you inside!” Jordan announced when we finally pulled into my driveway. I kind of thought he was just going to drop me off at the curb and watch from the driver’s seat until I was inside. Instead, he got out and held onto me so I wouldn't slip while racing inside. The rain had gotten pretty heavy since we got into the truck, so it was nice to have him there as we ran across the sidewalk and up onto the porch.

  “How are you feeling sweetie?” dad asked the second I was in the door. I must have given him a confused look since he added, “Jordan sent me a text.”

  I managed to mumble an “I’m okay,” but all I could really think about was the fact that Jordan sent my dad a text! It was kind of weird that he had my dad’s number, but I guess it also made sense since our parents are friends and all that. Well, I plopped down onto the couch while my dad thanked Jordan before heading into the kitchen to “get you something to settle your stomach.”

  “You going to be okay?” Jordan asked, sitting down next to me.

  “Yeah, I think I’ll be okay once I rest for a bit,” I said taking a long sip of my water for emphasis.

  “So, do you think you'll ever work out with me again?” Jordan leaned in and bumped his shoulder with mine, a smile on his face.

  “Of course,” I began with a grin. “Next time we get to run until you puke.”

  “I don’t think I like that plan….” he laughed scooting away from me on the couch.