Kickoff for Love

by Amelia Whitmore

  "That would be so cool!" He exclaimed. Ashley and I laughed as he tugged her away. She quickly latched onto my hand and pulled me with her. We ended up at a couple probably about ten years older than me.

  "Excuse me Sir, ma'am. Is this your son?“ Ashley asked.

  "Jonah, what did you get yourself into?“ The woman asked angrily.

  "Oh, no, he's not in trouble. He was asking my date for his autograph, and we were wondering if he could sign his shirt. I've known a lot of parents who weren’t' okay with that. So I decided we should ask.” Ashley explained. His parents looked up at me, their eyes going wide with recognition.

  "You're Andy Richmond.” The husband said in awe. I stepped forward. "Nice to meet you Sir, Ma’am.” They both shook my hand. I ended up signing Jonah's shirt, his mom's receipt for something and the father's cap.

  We walked away and I looked down at Ashley. "That was really cool of you.”

  She blushed. "I remember when I was little and every football player I met was my hero. I still have the t-shirt that was signed by the first player I ever met.” She shrugged.

  I turned her towards me and kissed her. I love how whenever I touch her lips, she melts under me. I wrapped my arms around her waist and squeezed lightly, kissing her forehead.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Ashley's POV

  Kissing Andy always makes me feel like another person, indestructible; nobody could ever hurt me as long as his lips stayed on mine. The feeling lingers when he hugs me, reminding me that I'm not a random hookup for him.

  "Oh my God, just go get your shoes! You two disgust me!" I heard Lindsey's voice through the chaos around me and Andy.

  I rolled my eyes and went up on my toes, giving him another small kiss before grabbing his hand and pulling him to the shoes.

  "So, are you any good?" I asked as I stood up and grabbed a ball.

  "I'm decent. You?" He asked, standing behind me.

  "Amazing," I said right before throwing the ball straight into the gutter. I turned around and grinned. "I did that on purpose.” I told him, even though I didn’t.

  He grabbed a ball and walked up to me. "Mhmm, sure.”

  He gave me the ball and turned me so I was dead center to the pins. "Now, when you release the ball, make sure to keep your arm and wrist pointed towards the front.” He slowly brought my arm back and led it back down. I closed my eyes and released the ball.

  Seconds later, I heard the unmistakable sound of pins hitting pins. I peeked through one eye and saw that only two pins remained. "Oh my GOD!" I yelled and spun around, throwing my arms around Andy's neck. Without realizing what I was doing, my mouth found his and our lips started moving together. His arms wrapped securely around my back, keeping my torso pressed against him.

  Just as his tongue brushed along my bottom lip, we heard Lindsey and Bryan clearing their throats obnoxiously. I huffed in frustration and twisted my head to glare at them, not breaking contact with Andy's body. "Would you two knock it off? I've spent the past six months watching you horn dogs attack each other. You can deal with a kiss.”

  I turned back to Andy and smiled. "I've never come that close to a strike before.” I said excitedly. He smiled and kissed my nose before pulling back.

  "If that's how you react to eight pins, I can't wait until you get ten.” He wriggled his eyebrows and put on a mischievous grin.

  I scoffed and went to sit by Bryan. "That's what Bryan is here for.”

  Lindsey nodded. "He does give very good celebratory strike kisses.”

  I winked at Andy to let him know I was only joking. Bryan was like a brother to me. Anything beyond that made me feel a little sick.

  Of course on Andy's turn, he got a strike. "Oh yeah, decent.” I said, mocking him as he walked over to sit by me. He just shrugged and wrapped his arm around my shoulders, pulling me to lean against his chest.

  As Andy was bowling, Lindsey started making out with Bryan. His hand was now slowly working its way up her thigh. I smirked and leaned forward saying loudly, "maybe I should send your mother a picture of this. I'm sure she'd think it was cute.” They ripped apart and glared at me.

  "You wouldn’t.” Lindsey said darkly.

  I laughed. "Of course, I wouldn't, but it's your turn. Go.” After two games, both of which I lost horribly, we decided to head over to a bar and grill attached to the alley. Lindsey and I slid into the booth and the guys sat on the outside.

  Lindsey was in the middle of telling me about Paul. "So I haven't spoken to him or anything since it happened. Mom keeps going on and on about it, but I refuse to tell her.” She explained.

  I felt bad suddenly. "Lindsey, he's your brother. You need to talk to him.” I said softly.

  "How could I talk to him after he did that to you? You're my best friend Ashley.”

  I gave her a soft smile.

  "I appreciate that, but what he did, didn't affect us. You're still my best friend too. As far as I'm concerned, he was a random person doing it, not your brother. I don't blame you. You shouldn't blame him by not talking." I said.

  She pouted. "But I like fighting for a cause.” She said disappointedly.

  I laughed. "Then find something that he did to you. Don’t use me as a buffer.” Andy, who had been in a hardcore discussion with Bryan about hockey, wrapped his arm around my waist.

  "What are you two talking about?" He asked.

  Lindsey glared at me. "She's telling me that I need to forgive my boneheaded brother for molesting her.” She grumbled.

  I shrugged. "I forgave him, you should too.”

  Andy's eyebrows knit together. "How could you forget about that?" He asked.

  I looked up at his face. "I never said I forgot what he did. I said I forgave him. I can't forget and I won't. Like I told Lindsey, as far as I'm concerned, he's a random person now.” Andy kissed my head and squeezed me tighter.

  "Sometimes I don't understand how you can be so rational!” Lindsey exclaimed.

  I rolled my eyes, ready for another conversation. "Linds, if I didn't forgive him, there would only be anger inside of me. I'd always be unhappy and I'd never move on. It hasn't exactly affected who I am as a person, or what I do with my life. So I'm moving on." I said with an angry edge coming to my voice.

  A waitress came just in time to take our drink orders. I was a little surprised when Andy ordered a beer. He must have noticed the look on my face because he whispered in my ear. "Is that okay?"

  I nodded. "It's fine. Um, are you having more than one?" I asked warily. He is twenty-one. I couldn't exactly tell him that it was against the law. I wasn't going to be comfortable riding with him if he drank more than one. At his body weight and height, one beer wouldn't impair his judgment or anything excessively.

  "Do you want me to only have one?" He asked.

  I looked into his eyes. "I want to know what you want.” I told him, trying not to sound too pushy.

  He gave me a light kiss on the lips. "Unless I'm at a party, where I won't be driving home, I only have one, ever.” He told me. I felt my whole body relax into him.

  "Alright then.” I told him with a smile.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Andy's POV

  After dinner, we walked out of the restaurant and Ashley challenged Bryan in a race around the building. They’d both been whining about how full they were. Lindsey and I walked to the car. "You know, you passed a major test in there.” She told me.

  I looked at her. "How so?" I asked confused.

  She stayed silent for a minute, deciding if she should really tell me. "Ashley's mom is an alcoholic. She grew up with her mom being drunk all the time. She won't talk about it. I only know because the first party I brought her to there was drinking. I pushed her to try some. She broke down and I haven't brought her to a party since.” She looked upset with herself. "She kept saying no thank you and I would just say 'Come on Ashley, you need to loosen up'. I felt so awful.”

  I felt horrible. No wonder she was so concerned. How could I h
ave been so insensitive? Clearly, she was worried when she asked me earlier. I just thought she was worried about our ages. "Wow.” I finally said.

  "She can't know I told you, though.” Lindsey told me seriously.

  I nodded. "I won't tell her you told me.” Just then, Bryan and Ashley race around the corner. Ashley winning by about a meter.

  "HA! Suck it, Bryan!" Ashley yelled victoriously. She jumped onto his back and made him carry her over to us.

  "Whatever, I let you win.” He grumbled.

  Ashley laughed. "Keep telling yourself that.” She kissed his head playfully before jumping down and coming over to my side. She smirked. "Bryan here runs like a girl.” She teased. He glared at her.

  "I do not.” He said stubbornly.

  She nodded. "Oh, but you do. What else would you call it when I beat you, and I'm clearly a female?” She asked.

  Bryan pouted. "Isn't it time to go yet?" He asked.

  Lindsey and Ashley laughed. Aw, Bry, you're such a sore loser.” Lindsey rubbed his arm.

  "Oh, just get in the car.” He said, trying not to laugh, as he rolled his eyes.

  We all got in and Ashley scooted over to the middle seat, leaning against me. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and she played with my fingers. "Did you have a good time tonight?" She asked, twisting a little so she could see my face.

  I leaned down a little so our lips were almost touching and whispered. "That was the best time I've had in a while," before kissing her. I don't know why, but this kiss was different from the others. We had more passionate ones, some less intense than this one, and others exactly like it. Somehow it was different. I think that more emotion was in it. Something that couldn't be seen by an observer, but we knew it was there. I felt closer to her somehow after learning about her mother. I felt like I could be there for her, to make it better. I would guess, but I don't know. Ashley made it different because she could trust me. I wasn't like her mom and I would never be.

  My free hand moved to her hair. It felt so soft between my fingers that I just couldn't pull it away. I brushed my tongue along her lips. She tasted like lemon and sugar. Most likely from the sprite, she drank at dinner. She opened her mouth and our tongues met, making chills go up and down my spine.

  Suddenly, she pulled away, laughing. I was about to feel really insulted, but she held up her hand. "I'm sorry, there's a cramp in my back.” She tried to explain. It made sense. Her body had been twisted for a good ten minutes. I laughed too and pulled her back to me. The moment was lost, but that didn't mean it couldn't still be special. My fingers kept brushing through her hair, marveling at how soft it was.

  "I think you should come to the game tomorrow.” I whispered. I felt her smile, not even having to see it to know it was there. "Okay.” She whispered, still playing with my fingers on my other hand.

  We pulled up to Lindsey's house. Ashley sat forward. "Guys, we're going to head out. Lindsey, be ready to go to a football game tomorrow. You too Bryan.” She said before we slid out of the car.

  "What if they don’t want to go?" I asked as we walked towards my car. She shrugged and grinned. "I didn't give them a choice.” We laughed and got in the car.

  At her house, I walked her to the door, kissing her once more for the night. "I'll see you tomorrow.” I told her, only pulling away a little bit.

  She nodded. "Good luck at the game.” She whispered.

  I grinned. "As long as you're there.” I winked at her and she rolled her eyes.

  "Don't put that kind of pressure on me.” She said playfully.

  I shrugged my shoulders. "I'm getting all of the guys to rub your head at the next practice if we win tomorrow.”

  Before she could respond, I pecked her lips softly once more and ran towards my car.

  "I'm not some kind of Buddha doll that you can rub for good luck!" She yelled to me. When I got to my car, I blew a playful kiss at her. She pretended to catch it and threw one back.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Ashley’s POV

  I waited until Andy pulled away from the curb before going inside. My two little brothers were playing on the floor in the living room. Perry is four and quite talkative. He's got curly dark brown hair and deep chocolate eyes that get him just about anything he asks for. Louis is two years old and just learned how to say 'Ash' which is my nickname. I was shocked, to say the least. My nickname was the first word he decided to actually pronounce correctly.

  A year after I moved in with my Dad, he surprised me with a vacation to Paris. It was possibly the best two weeks of my life. I loved seeing the Eiffel Tower. We waited two hours in a line to see the Mona Lisa, even though; it was the size of a computer sheet of paper. On the flight home, I got the window seat. Dad sat in the middle. On the outside, was a woman named Angela. She was moving from France to Oregon to live with her sister. I was fascinated by her French accent. Actually, I still love listening to her talk. They talked the entire time. When the flight was over, Dad walked away with her number and a date for the next weekend.

  They married about six months later. Perry was born nine months, to the day, after that. Things had moved pretty fast. Angela was more of a mother to me from the start than mine ever was. We're all very close now. Every now and then, I catch myself calling her Mom.

  When Louis and Perry saw me, they both came running over, well Louis wobbled. "Ash!" They both cried, flinging themselves into my arms.

  "What are you two sillies doing up?" I asked, walking us all into the living room where Dad and Angela were watching TV tiredly.

  "Momma let us sleep a long time.” Perry explained.

  I glanced at Angela, who sighed. "I accidentally fell asleep at nap time too, missing the one hour maximum by about three.” I laughed. A four hour nap in the middle of the day made for two very awake little guys.

  I crouched down to them. "I'll tell you what. If you guys go upstairs and get ready, I'll read you stories until we're all sleepy.” They loved when I read them stories. I wasn't surprised when they both raced up the steps. Perry stayed behind Louis, making sure he didn't fall.

  I sat beside Dad. "Hello.” I said sweetly.

  "Oh god, what is it?" He asked, knowing I only pulled the sweet voice thing when I wanted something.

  "Can I have three tickets to the game tomorrow?" I asked.

  He looked away from the TV, giving me a raised eyebrow. "You want three tickets to the game? You never come to games.” He said, stating the obvious.

  I blushed a little. "Yeah, I know that. Andy asked me to go. I invited Lindsey and Bryan to join me.” I explained. He smirked and I knew I was about to be teased.

  "So your Dad asks you and you're too busy. The second your boyfriend does it, you're ready to go?" He asked.

  I rolled my eyes. "Don't even say it like that, and he's not my boyfriend.” I groaned.

  "He's not?" He asked.

  "No, we're dating, though. It’s not a random hookup, so don't go talking to him about it.” I told him sternly.

  He held his hands up like he was innocent. "Hey, it's your life.” I rolled my eyes.

  "Yeah, because that stopped you the first time.” I said sarcastically.

  "Do you want the tickets or not?" He asked.

  "Yes, I do.” I told him, sighing.

  "Alright. But you need to come with me in the morning to get them. I won't be able to meet you once practice starts.“ I smiled and kissed his cheek.

  "Thanks, Dad.” I said softly.

  My Mom would never have cared. She would have just said 'no' without a second thought. Oh well, she's my past. This is my here and now.

  I ran upstairs and ended up reading 'Everybody Poops' about a hundred times. It probably didn't help that the book made them giggle every time I read it.

  I don't even remember falling asleep that night. The only thing I know is I woke up in my bed, fully clothed. My hair was every which way. My makeup was smeared. Finger lines could be seen on my face where my hand had been resting. Then I rea
lized that the only reason I woke up was because Dad was banging on my door.

  "Ashley, you have one hour.” He yelled through the door.

  I grumbled something that sounded like "iwbedowinaminu" to him. To me, it was perfectly clear that I'd said, "I'll be down in a minute.”

  I quickly showered and blow dried my hair, which took forever, and put on a little bit of makeup. I slipped on leggings, flip flops, and my Dad's old Cal Poly Mustangs jersey, which reached mid-thigh. He’d given it to me when we first moved here.

  I hopped downstairs. "Are you ready yet?" I asked with a smirk on my face.

  Dad rolled his eyes and looked at me. A smile formed when he saw what I was wearing.

  "You're wearing my jersey?”

  I glanced down. "Well yeah. That’s okay, right? I can go change if you don't want me to wear it.”

  He just shook his head. "No, it's fine. Let's go.” He said as he led the way out the door.

  "Bye Angela.” I called out, my Dad having kissed her goodbye already.

  "Au revoir Ashley,” She called back.

  When we got to the stadium, which was hosting the game later in the day, it was already packed. Nobody was allowed to go inside, though. Maneuvering around everybody wasn't so difficult once we got past the doors.

  Andy was standing by the water cooler on the field. He was already dressed in his uniform, unlike most of the other guys. I suppose that's because he was the captain. He had to set a good example for the rest of the team. I snuck up behind him and put my hands over his eyes.

  "Guess who?” I asked, making my voice go as deep as possible.

  "Wow, when did I start dating men?" He asked as he covered my hands with his before pulling them down.

  "Since I play football better than you,” I said giggling. He twisted around while keeping my hands in his.

  "Is that so?" He asked a twinkle in his eyes.

  I narrowed mine. "Yes, it is.” I said confidently. His lips met mine, without breaking eye contact. He said, "That’s probably true.”