"Sorry about that," Ryan grinned. "I just had no idea. I was certain that Mia was as straight as I am gay."
Jordan gave her a puzzled look and commented, "You ought to spend some time talking to her, Ryan. She’s really fascinating when you get past the airhead façade."
That’s a façade?
When Ryan got home from her run she noticed that Mia’s door was open. She walked in and started looking around the room, eventually poking her head in the closet. "What are you looking for, Ryan?"
"You’re not hiding any of my other teammates or any of my brothers in here, are you?"
Mia looked at her carefully for a moment. Her face broke into a wide grin as she said, "Hey, Jamie’s right. Your eyes do twinkle when you’re kidding!"
True to her word, Jamie came barreling into the locker room at 5:30 that evening bearing a small gray plastic box. She wasn’t surprised to find that Ryan was the only one present, since she knew her partner would feel calmer at the gym than at home. "Hi," Ryan said happily upon glimpsing her face.
"Oh, my," Jamie murmured as she caught sight of her lanky lover in her uniform. "You certainly fill those shorts out," she said softly as she trailed just the tips of her fingers up her strong quadriceps and then down her firm cheeks. The uniform certainly did flatter Ryan’s build. The short-sleeved white nylon jersey with the bold "Cal" in gold outlined in navy blue emphasized her strong, broad shoulders. The shirt was tucked into the tiniest, tightest shorts that Jamie had ever had the pleasure to see her lover in. Even though Ryan often wore compression shorts, she usually chose the nine-inch inseam to keep her thighs warm. But these little navy blue Lycra shorts with the tiny "Cal" logo on the thigh were no more than three inches long, and Jamie quickly decided that three inches was the perfect length for her long legged lover.
"Can you tell I’m not wearing anything under my shorts?" Ryan asked as she bent over a little.
"Not with my eyes," Jamie purred as she snuggled up behind her and ran her hands all over her muscled rear, and then dragged a fingernail right up the rear seam of the shorts.
"Jamie!" Ryan shouted standing up abruptly. "The rest of the team will be here any minute! I don’t want you feeling me up in public!"
"They all know we’re lovers," she reminded her.
"But that doesn’t mean they want to see us be lovers!" Ryan was still flustered, and Jamie found her expression endearingly adorable.
"Why, Ryan O’Flaherty, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you worry about anyone’s reaction to us. Do you think it makes your teammates uncomfortable to have me around?"
"No, no, that’s not it," she said with a blush. "It’s just—I don’t know—it’s like too personal or something. I’d feel the same way if you were a guy. Athletes just tease each other a lot and I know I’d be harassed if anyone saw you grabbing my ass."
"Okay, I promise to keep my hands to myself. But that’s asking a lot when you prance around in that adorable uniform!"
"Do you like it?" Ryan asked a little shyly, looking down at her body.
"I love it," Jamie replied sincerely.
"I thought maybe I’d look too skinny in it," Ryan considered, showing more of her vanity than Jamie had ever noticed. She was staring at herself in the mirror, running her hand over her now concave stomach.
"Uh-uh," Jamie insisted. She braced herself against the door to prohibit it from swinging open and said, "Come over here so I can show you how much I like your outfit." Ryan gave her an indulgent grin and walked over to receive a very hot kiss. Jamie’s hands ran all over her body, sending delightful shivers down Ryan’s spine. "Even though I like you with a little more bulk, you look fabulous in this. Your weight loss got rid of that nice soft layer I love, and now all that’s left is muscle." She gave Ryan a devastatingly sexy smile as she reminded her, "You know how I feel about your muscles." She grasped two hands full of butt and whispered, "For hugging, and touching, and making love, I like a little softness. But from a purely visual perspective you look as hot as I’ve ever seen you—or anyone else for that matter," she added, meaning every word.
She spent a few minutes kissing Ryan with a quiet passion, knowing that being slightly aroused always relaxed her partner. As she released her, Ryan shook her head to clear it as Jamie added, "Now I have to give you my good luck wish." She wrapped Ryan in a massive hug as she said, "I know you’ll do well tonight, Baby. I’m so proud of how hard you’ve worked to be able to play."
"Thank, Jamie," she softly replied. "It’s only because of your support that I got this chance. I appreciate this more than I can say."
After several heartfelt kisses Jamie pulled back and said, "How did you get your hair up that tightly?" Ryan’s shoulder length hair was pulled up into a very snug ponytail, and it sat much higher on her head than she normally wore it.
"I had to have it this high to keep my bangs pulled back," she said. "And I still had to put clips in to hold it in place. It took me longer to get my hair tamed than it did to get dressed!"
"Well you look very cute. Although I would prefer to have that dark mane flying around, your ponytail is quite neat. Now let’s get down to business. You get to be my first victim. Where do you want your tattoo?"
"Tattoo?"
"Well, it’s a fake one, but I can make it look pretty real," she promised. She opened her art supply case and showed Ryan her nontoxic body paint and the other implements of her craft. "Now what do you want and where do you want it?" she asked with eyes dancing.
"Can you do a volleyball?"
"Sure. Do you want the logo on it?"
"No, how about the gold script ‘Cal’ in the middle of the ball."
"I can do that easily," she said confidently. "Now where do you want it?"
"How about the side of my arm, right by the bicep."
"That would be my recommendation," she agreed.
By the time Jordan and Michelle sauntered in Ryan was flexing her colorful new tat. Jamie was extremely pleased with her work and within a few moments everyone was lined up to receive their choice. Jordan chose the ‘Oski Bear’ head but she wanted it on her cheek so the Stanford players would have to see it when she was at the net. Michelle wanted a big ‘Cal’ script just above her sock. Jamie smirked to herself when shy little Heather Clark asked for Ryan’s advice on what she should choose. It was all Jamie could do to not chuckle when the young woman approached and asked Jamie to give her one just like Ryan’s. Within a few minutes everyone was decorated, and even Jamie noticed the mood in the locker room lighten perceptibly as everyone stood around voicing their opinions on the style and placement of each new tattoo.
Jamie noticed that everyone wore their hair pulled up severely and it took quite a while for the entire team to be satisfied with their ‘dos. But by 6:20 they were ready to take the court, and Ryan surprised her partner when she gave her a big kiss for luck as they wandered out to begin warm-ups.
When Jamie emerged from the locker room there were no more than 30 people in the stands, but as she expected at least 20 of them were O’Flahertys. She made her way to the section that they were claiming and spent a few minutes greeting each relative. Just as she finished, Tommy and Caitlin came in with Maeve and Kevin, and a few more warm greetings were exchanged. "Oh my," Maeve said when she got a look at her niece, "doesn’t she look big and strong in that little outfit."
"She gets annoyed when you call it an outfit, Maeve," Jamie knowledgeably informed her. "It’s a uniform." Caitlin was fidgeting to get to Jamie so she set her painting supplies down and took the gurgling infant in her arms. Things went smoothly for a few minutes, but when the baby caught sight of Ryan she vocally demanded access to her favorite cousin. Since there were so few people in the gym Ryan paused in her stretching routine and trotted up into the stands for a sloppy kiss. As long as she was there she stopped to give every aunt, uncle, cousin, and brother a kiss and a hug. But when she tried to return to the court, Caitlin put up a whale of a fuss. She hadn’t been seeing as much of
Ryan as usual because of Ryan’s illness and her hectic schedule. So when she got her hands on her cousin she did not want to let go. Since it was early, and Stanford was still in their dressing room, Ryan ran down the stairs holding the baby so she could meet the other players. Everyone made over her for a few minutes, and Caitlin delighted the women by kissing each of them on command. The fun was over much too soon, but when the coaching staff came onto the court it was time to get busy. Ryan raced back up the stairs and deposited a cranky baby with Jamie and gave her a small shoulder shrug as she raced back down.
The stands began to fill quickly, and then Jamie noticed the members of the band begin to straggle in. Soon there were a good fifty members of the group squeezed into the stands, and as they began to tune their instruments, Jamie realized this was going to be a very noisy experience.
She had never watched a women’s college-level game, and as they began their drills, she realized that the game she had played in elementary school and high school gym class had nothing in common with this sport. This one was all about speed and quickness and jumping ability and athleticism. The women threw their bodies around with little regard for their safety, but Jamie was somewhat heartened by the resilient surface that had been put in place over the hardwood floor. That might keep Ryan from a few trips to the emergency room, she mused as she watched her partner hit the floor hard and do a little somersault to bleed off some of the force.
Catherine arrived to the great pleasure of Caitlin, who was fully placated by the arrival of her new friend. The happy baby climbed into her lap immediately to play with Catherine’s face and her heavy gold necklace. Warm greetings were extended from all of the O’Flahertys with Maeve leading the way. "I’m glad you could make it, Mom," Jamie said as she placed a kiss on her cheek. "Ryan will really appreciate it."
"I wouldn’t have missed this for the world," she said sincerely. "I can go to the symphony any night."
Jamie knew that the San Francisco Symphony was one of the favorite events on her mother’s busy schedule, and she was quite touched that she would give it up just to watch Ryan play volleyball.
Catherine looked about and commented, "Interesting look for the band, Honey. Where on earth do they even purchase straw hats any more?"
Jamie shrugged, rolling her eyes a little as she said, "They’re called the Straw Hat Band, so the hats are mandatory. They must have a secret supplier." Both women gazed at the members of the band, clad in their straw boaters, navy blue vests and jeans. Even though they were making a tentative attempt at uniformity, the fact that each person covered nearly every centimeter of the vests with patches, badges and pins allowed them to maintain their individuality.
Catherine leaned over and asked, "Do you know much about this game, Dear? It’s been many years since I’ve seen a volleyball match."
"No, I don’t know much at all. Ryan talks about it with all of this jargon, and I’m embarrassed to admit I don’t know what she’s talking about. I don’t think that will hamper my enjoyment, though. Heck, I get pleasure out of watching her work at her computer!"
"That doesn’t surprise me in the least," Catherine chuckled. "I’ve seen you watch her in rapt fascination when she’s studying a menu at a restaurant!"
The younger woman shrugged her shoulders and said, "What can I say? She’s inherently fascinating." As Jamie surveyed the court, she decided, There’s only one thing I really need to know to enjoy the game—that Ryan is playing. That decided, she went back to her favorite activity of watching her partner like a hawk. Ryan was a blur of activity during their warm-ups; and when she wasn’t actively hitting or slamming or blocking the ball, she was animatedly talking to the younger players.
At seven o’clock Stanford came running out of the visitors’ locker room and took over the court. Jamie thought it funny that the Cal players acted like they didn’t know the other side was there. Ryan’s team just casually walked off like they had all decided it was time to take a break. But when they got to their own sideline, they spread out and watched Stanford with rapt attention. Both of Cal’s assistant coaches went out on the court to shag balls for the Cardinal, and Niall informed Jamie that they provided that service mainly to get a good feel for how the other team stacked up.
Jamie didn’t know much about volleyball, but it was clear that this team was good. They were very tall, very agile, and very athletic, and all of those skills were displayed during their warm ups. "They look good," Jamie mused to Niall.
"They are good," he said seriously. "They are very good."
They watched the Cardinal go through the same types of drills that Cal had gone through, and at 7:10 Cal got the court back for their final warm ups. Ryan ran over to the curtain that separated the court from the rest of the large gymnasium and poked her head through. She was obviously speaking to someone, and when she popped back out loud music started coming from the public address system. The players seemed to get into the music, and Jamie noticed that they were all speaking to each other in an animated fashion. As the songs changed, they looked like they were trying to guess who had chosen each particular one. Then it dawned on Jamie why Ryan had called each of her teammates the night before. She had obviously asked each of them for their favorite song and had arranged to have them played during the warm up.
After a few minutes Stanford took the court at the same time, and the teams each stood back on the service lines and simultaneously hit serves at each other. There were 30 balls flying in the air and Jamie could not understand how someone did not get hit in the head, but they all seemed cognizant of where the balls were at all times. Amy’s song was obviously cued up because she started hopping around when Cyndi Lauper started to wail out "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun." She forced Ryan to stop serving for a moment and dance wildly with her behind the service line, looking very loose and carefree.
Jamie happily noted that the antics of the upperclassmen seemed to visibly relax the younger players, and they began to dance around a bit also. It was almost 7:25 by this time, and the teams stopped their serving practice and paired off to warm up by tossing the ball back and forth. Most of the pairs passed the ball in a leisurely fashion, but Jordan and Ryan made the game a little more interesting. They started off like everyone else, but within a few tosses they were hitting the ball with more and more velocity. They were standing about 20 feet from each other, and as the game escalated Ryan’s song came on. She had chosen "Jump" by Van Halen and as she and Jordan tried to kill each other, she began to jump as high as she could every time the word was sung. It was truly mesmerizing to watch 15 women hitting the ball back and forth while they jumped in the air in time to the music, and they all got into the game quickly.
Catherine leaned over and asked, "Is that Ryan’s friend you’ve talked about?"
"Yep. That’s her," Jamie smirked. "Good thing I’m not the jealous type, huh?"
Catherine chuckled and said, "Oh, Jamie, you have nothing to worry about. If those two were together they’d be dead in a week!"
Watching them play their little game, Jamie had to admit that Ryan and Jordan could never be a couple. They were far too competitive with each other to ever be vulnerable enough to open up to each other fully. But as she watched she realized that even though she had never been jealous of Jordan sexually, she did envy her athletic ability. As she watched the interplay, Jamie saw Ryan’s eyes take on a familiar glow, and she whispered to her mother, "Buffy’s back."
Just when the gleam came into Ryan’s eyes, Jordan’s song came on. She had chosen "Hit Me With Your Best Shot", and they watched with rapt attention as Ryan began to spike the ball at Jordan’s knees with as much power as she could generate. The sharp smack of the ball echoed through the auditorium as the entire crowd focused on the two women who looked like they were trying to hit the ball through the other rather than to the other.
It was obvious that neither woman would back down, and the other pairs started to move further and further from them to avoid being hit. The pair
switched roles, and now Jordan was doing the spiking, with Ryan digging. Jordan kept hitting hard knuckleballs right at Ryan’s feet, but no matter how low or how hard she hit, Ryan dug each one out and returned a scorcher. Jamie was beginning to worry that they would hurt each other, and the assistant coach obviously was worried about the same thing since she gingerly approached and told them to knock it off. Ryan gave her a sheepish grin and immediately started to play nice. But as the song ended and they started to walk back to the bench, Jordan had to zing a hard serve right into Ryan’s butt. The rest of the team had to wait for a moment as Ryan tried to chase Jordan down, but the blonde ran onto Stanford’s side of the net and tried to get into their huddle. The entire crowd laughed at their antics, and even Coach Placer seemed to get a kick out of it. The Stanford team pushed Jordan out of their midst, then watched Ryan put a firm headlock on her and drag her back to their own side.
"You’re certain that they’re friends, Dear?" Catherine asked as she watched the drama unfold.
"Yep. She’s used to a lot of rough play from growing up with her brothers and cousins, but I think Jordan is the only woman who brings out that rough side of her."
"Lucky for you," Catherine laughed, knowing that her daughter would be no match for the wild side of Ryan.
The band performed a reasonably professional rendition of the Star Spangled Banner at 7:30 on the dot. The starting lineups were introduced by the very enthusiastic announcer, and Jamie smiled at the exaggerated way that he pronounced each player’s name. He emphasized Jordan’s first name, calling out, ‘Joooor-dan Ericsson’ as she was introduced. But he clipped Ryan’s first name and called out ‘Ryan O’ Flaaaa-her-ty’ when it was her turn. Martin turned around and smiled up at Jamie as he said, "He did that well, didn’t he, Darlin?"
"He certainly did, Martin," she agreed wholeheartedly.
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