Team Hate

by Hart, Rebel

  “Jane?” Jim appeared out of the corner of my eye and let out a sigh when he saw my face. “Hey, come on. It’s gonna get better.” I didn’t respond. I had nothing to say. Jim put his arms around my shoulders and gathered me into a hug, but I couldn’t lift my arms to reciprocate. I felt like a malfunctioning machine. If I couldn’t be a coach, I didn’t want to be anything. “I told you they were terrible.”

  “They make terrible look like a sweet sixteen.”

  Jim rubbed the back of my head. “Men hate when women try to do what they’ve done exclusively for years because they’re afraid they’ll do it better.”

  “I can’t force them to like me.”

  He put a hand on each of my shoulders and pushed me back so that he could look into my eyes. “Says who? I’ve seen you do it before. I’ve seen you bring men three times your size to their knees. You’re a fucking Panesse and…” Jim’s voice trailed off, waiting for me to finish his sentence.

  “…messing with us is a big mistake.” I imagined my dad muttering the words with me and smiled. He would give me the exact same speech if he were still around. I looked up at him with fire burning in my belly. “Permission to get nasty?”

  Jim parried my smile. “Slash em’ across the face if you have to.” His grin grew and eyes narrowed. “And I know just the way to do it. How would you like to get to know your teammates a little better over lunch?”

  Determination covered me like a blanket. “I was just starting to think I was a little hungry.”

  4

  John

  I hissed a litany of swear words under my breath as I changed out of my workout clothes and back into my street clothes. I had no reason to stick around and do nothing when I could at least use my home gym or get together with my personal trainer to feel like I was doing at least something productive. My plan was to tell Jim to shove it and call me when he was ready to get serious about football. Our next game determined whether or not we were going to move on to a playoff game and we didn’t have time to mess around with red tape. I finished changing and pulled my bag over my shoulder, but when I turned around, I ran right into Jim.

  Jim put his hand on my chest and pushed me lightly back into the locker room. “Stick around for a minute.” He had a mischievous look in his eyes and I couldn’t quite place it, what I could place was that Jane was nowhere in sight. “Guys, huddle up, I have an announcement.”

  Isaac Grayson, one of the starting tight-ends to start to chortle.“Where’s the uh,” he held up his hands to make air quotes, “‘Assistant Coach.’”

  Jim shook his head. “Don’t worry about that for now.”

  Jack moved over to my side and elbowed me with a chuckle. “That didn’t take long.”

  I shrugged. “I knew it wouldn’t. I’m all for women making advancements, but this isn’t the place for her.”

  We gathered around Jim, squeezing in like sardines into the tight locker room. He seemed in oddly good spirits for someone who just had to console his crushed sister.

  Jim crossed his arms and smiled wide. “I know that we’ve had a big change around here, and it’s not easy to adjust to change, so I’ve decided to order out for you all for lunch. Cattlione’s calzones!”

  He turned without saying anything else and made his way out of the locker room and we all followed without hesitation like cartoon rabbits floating off the ground and letting our noses lead us towards a beckoning, steam-created finger. Cattlione’s was one of the best Italian places in all of North Carolina and they were known for their massive, ingredient packed calzones.

  “That’s pretty nice,” Jack murmured over my shoulder.

  I was starting to imagine a crispy calzone stuffed with multiple different kinds of cheeses, a few different protein options, and baked mushrooms. “It’s only right. He’s been doing nothing but wasting our time for two days. Feed us a good lunch and then we can get to some actual work. This Sunday is a huge deal.”

  The training facility came complete with a high-end kitchen and dining hall. We didn’t often eat together. We had an array of family makeups and football, especially the playoff and super bowl season could demand a lot of attention, so a lot of the guys went to be with their families or just, in general, spend some time away from their teammates. It was nice for those of us who were ‘workaholics’ and chose to stick around, but I’d gotten bored with the options offered over the years and often opted to eat off-campus. Still, I wasn’t going to deny Jim his olive branch, especially not one drenched in the freshest tomato sauce in the East Coast.

  We entered the dining hall and my jaw dropped. The tables were covered in Cattlione’s, but standing dead center among them, was Jane.

  I forced my way through the crowd until I was up to Jim. “What the fuck is going on?”

  Jim side-eyed me. “Oh, didn’t I mention. Anyone who wants food,” he fanned out his arm towards Jane, “will have to ask your new assistant coach nicely.”

  Jane waved her hand at us with a fake smile splashed across her face. “Who wants to eat, and I swear to god, none of you better make a sex joke.”

  Jack took a step forward from the group and I glared at him. He looked over at me and shrugged. “What? I want to eat.”

  I whipped my head back towards Jim. “Is this some kind of joke.”

  “Not at all.” Jim slapped his hand on my shoulder so hard that it hurt. “And I should also mention that the starting lineup has to join her.” His eyes narrowed and, though his smile didn’t fade, his expression suddenly seemed much more menacing. “No fellowship, no food.”

  All around me, the team started to mutter and mumble, no doubt enticed by the smell of fresh calzones, pasta, and pizza surrounding us. What a cheap, dirty trick. Did they honestly think that that’s how simple we were? That all it took was some good food to get us to fold on what we truly believe in.

  “Did you get fettucini?” I looked over my shoulder and Wyatt had his hand in the air.

  “Of course!” Jane picked up a single-serving, foil bowl near her. “It’s my favorite.”

  Wyatt muscled his way through the group and walked up to Jane. He put on a big smile and held out his hand. “I look forward to working with you coach.”

  Jane shook Wyatt’s hand. “And I, with you.” She handed it over to Wyatt and he let out a small squeak. “Where we sitting?”

  Jane tilted her head. “You’re kicking off, you decide.”

  “Cool.” He ambled his way over to one of the center tables and sat down and immediately dove into his food.

  Rage filled my body as, one by one, the guys started to walk around me and approach Jane. They had various levels of fakeness to them as they greeted her and asked for food, but they may as well be pulling down their pants and bending over.

  “I know you want some.” Jim looked at me. “Trust me, brother. This is not a fight you want. I’m not even saying this as her brother, I’m warning you as a fan.” He pointed at Jane. “That woman would have been burned at the stake in Salem. She’s a chihuahua. Small but bites big.”

  “Yeah, you’re gonna have to forgive me for not being afraid.” I turned my back to Jane and the food. “I’m not falling for it.”

  “Then how about this?” Jim said. “You go over there and get a fucking calzone from my sister or I’ll bench you in Sunday’s game.”

  I felt like a volcano about to erupt. “You can’t do that.”

  Jim shrugged. “I guess we’ll see on Sunday.”

  I stared at him, seething with anger. He certainly knew my only weakness; football. I wanted to call his bluff, I really did, but I knew he was a top pick for coach, and he hasn’t had one single issue with anyone on the team since he started. If I tried to claim he was blackmailing me, I’d gain absolutely no traction, besides I wasn’t about to run crying to the owner like Jane clearly did with Jim.

  I shook my head. “This coin flips two ways. I’ll go eat her bribery calzones, but you can’t afford not to have me in the game. If I’m n
ot out there, you lose, and you know it.” Jim’s shoulders dropped a bit and his previously haughty smile was gone. “Because I don’t feel like wasting anymore of my day arguing with you or your useless sister, you win for now, but if you think I’m ever going to respect her as a coach, you’re wrong. If anything, all she’s doing is pulling the respect I thought I had for you.”

  I left him without hearing a response. I said what I needed to say. I walked over to Jane and I could see her bubbling up with pride. She knocked back her shoulders, pointed her nose in the air, and grinned.

  “What can I get you?” I walked around her and reached for a calzone. To my complete and utter shock, she shoved over, placing her body in between me and the food. She put her finger up and tutted it to either side. “Ah, ah, ah. That’s not how we ask nicely.”

  “I’m already being forced to do this in order to be able to do my fucking job, I’m not risking any more of my dignity for it.” Jane’s jaw dropped and she looked over at Jim. Ah, my window. A smile rose to my face. “Oh, were you not aware. Your brother is threatening us to interact with you. You think this food is why we’re doing it? We don’t want to get benched.”

  While Jane was standing leering at Jim, I grabbed my calzone and walked over to the table. It helped a little to know that I was causing rifts in the Jim/Jane alliance. I didn’t want her around, I didn’t need him coming in and forcing me to do stuff I didn’t want to. I was figuring out that Jane was the kind of woman who didn’t like having stuff handed to her. I could start by getting her to keep Jim from making more baseless threats and then I could muscle her out and get back to my life as it should be without this disturbance.

  I sat down next to Jack, shoving my shoulder into him as he stuffed his face full of calzones. “Thanks for your help.”

  Jack held out the calzone with a bit of sauce covering the edge of his cheek. “What? It’s Cattlione’s dude.”

  Jane came over to the table and sat down next to our right guard, Cinder Stone. “Sorry to have to play dirty guys.”

  Cinder came up from his food for a breath. “No worries. You can play dirty with me anytime.” He winked at her and then went back to eating. At least I could trust them to remain pigs after being turncoats.

  “Come on,” Jane said. “I know you’re not used to seeing breasts very often, but those who are can be around them without losing all of their brain cells.” A bunch of the guys started to laugh at Jane’s diss and she beamed. “All I’m asking is for you to act like decent humans. Treat me like you would your mom or sister?”

  “Can we pick someone specifically?” Roland Vevo, the left tackle, said with his cheeks full of food. “I’m perfectly fine treating you like John’s sisters.”

  My head slowly crawled up from my food. This was the reason why I hated that they came to the field. I didn’t need them treating my sisters like they treat Jane. “Watch your mouth.”

  “Oh come on.” Isaac was just emptying his plate. “Your sisters are hot! I know they’re twins, and Bethany is good looking, but that Bailey—”

  Jack slammed his fist on the table. “Knock it off!” All eyes dropped to him. I turned to look at him as well, unaware of what caused the sudden outburst. Jack went sheepish, bowing his head and averting his gaze. “Er, come on guys, let’s not be assholes.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “What was that about?”

  Jack’s face turned a light shade of red. “Um…”

  “Hey! What are we eating?”

  Julian Avarro blew the wind out of his nose. “Speaking of assholes.”

  I looked over my shoulder and rolled my eyes. As if things weren’t chaotic enough, Dax Cellius, the starting fullback, had finally decided to show up after two days of absence. Jane jumped up from the table and rushed over to where she’d stacked all the food.

  “Hi! I’m Jane, the new assistant coach.”

  Dax’s gaze wallpapered her body. He let out a shallow whistle and stepped up to her, completely disregarding her personal space. “Daaaaamn. I am alright with this.”

  He held out a hand. Being way too trusting, Jane placed her hand in Dax’s and he pulled the back of her hand to his lips like some fancy gentlemen. Just as Jane was smiling, thinking that she’d encountered the only civilized one of us, Dax pulled her arm, yanking her body flush against his and wrapped his other arm around her back. He dipped his head towards her, almost as if he was going to go right in for a kiss. Jane used the hand of hers that was still tucked inside Dax’s and whipped it outward. She spun out of his grip and locked his arm up behind his back. She slammed him face down onto the table of food, covering him with sauce, cheese, and pepperoni.

  She leaned down over him. “I wouldn’t recommend pulling any of that shit again. I’m not afraid to ditch being a coach altogether to kick your ass.”

  She released him and stood back up, straightening out her shirt as she did so. “I’d say help yourself to some food, but you don’t need any help in that area.”

  Dax stood up and turned around and the team erupted with laughter. Even I had to admit I was a bit impressed. People didn’t shut down Dax that easily, even the other guys on the team. She walked back over to the table and sat back down in her spot and continued to eat her food as if nothing had happened. No one could say anything. All playful jabs came to a close and all anyone could do was just sit there and eat with her.

  Julian chuckled. “Huh, maybe I was wrong about you.” Jane’s head whipped up and her eyes widened exponentially. He nodded. “It’s like having a guy with boobs around.”

  Jane tilted her head to one side and then giggled. “You know what? I’ll take it.”

  The rest of lunch passed like Jane was just one of the team and I couldn’t be more miffed. All these guys were proving is that they were easily bought. Jane thought she was a different animal? It looked like we were going to be in an all-out dog fight.

  5

  John

  For the first time in my life, I was dreading going into the training facility. I couldn’t get much sleep again, so despite the fact that the sun was only just peeking over the horizon, I was already in the lot. I figured if I went early, I could get some workout time in without certain assistant distractions, but thinking about having another day with her there made me anxious. I loved football and I loved playing for the Knights. It wasn’t fair that she got to just come in and change all of that.

  I climbed out of the car, grabbed my duffel bag, and trudged towards the door. I took deep, even breaths as I walked, trying to convince myself that things weren’t so bad. Jane had to be running short on patience with me and the team and now that Dax was in the mix, it was only a matter of time before she was gone. I just had to wait it out. As I navigated the complex web of hallways in the facility, I ran plays in my mind. I planned to try and find some time to talk to each of my teammates out of Jane’s earshot at some point. We were on the official countdown to our next game and I hadn’t had any one-on-one time with them or Jim at all. How it was coming off that my request for that was unreasonable, I couldn’t figure out. I was a football player and Jim was my coach, we should be working together, not against each other.

  I walked into the silent locker room and breathed in the quiet. I was certainly going to enjoy not having anyone around for a few hours. I set my bag down near my locker and started to pull a few things out, when I heard a set of footsteps in the entryway. It seemed reasonable that a few of the other guys would be coming in early, especially the second and third-string, but before 6 am was early even for them. I moved into the entryway and Dax was walking in.

  He looked up at me and smiled. “Oh, hey.”

  I looked all around as if I was going to find a candid camera somewhere. “Am I in the Twilight Zone?”

  Dax chuckled as he passed by me and entered the locker room. “No, no. I just figured I better start taking things seriously. We have a game on Sunday after all.”

  I raised an eyebrow. That just didn’t sound right. “R
eally?”

  “Yeah.” He started to change with his back to me and I couldn’t decide if I wanted to press further or not. He was clearly lying, but I didn’t know why. “I’m surprised you’re here so early.”

  “You’re one to talk.” I sat down on one of the benches. “I needed some time away from that joke of an assistant coach.” Dax peered over his shoulder at me. “What?” I asked.

  Dax looked away and snickered. “Nothing.”

  As if beckoned by the conversation, I heard more footsteps in the entryway followed by a voice that sent chills down my back. “Hello?”

  Why on earth was Jane in already? I felt like crawling into a hole and dying. What god had I pissed off?

  Dax turned around with a huge, evil grin on his face. “Oh, didn’t you know? The assistant coach comes in early to study all of our playbooks.” That solved the ‘why was Dax here so early?’ mystery.

  My being disgusted by Dax and my being infuriated by Jane were in a celebrity boxing match in my brain. I was so close to just rage quitting, but at the end of the day, I wanted our team to be successful. Dax walked past me out into the foyer, and I took a deep breath.

  “I just have to wait it out.”

  I stood up and followed after Dax and saw that he’d already managed to back Jane into a corner. After the way she flipped his arm behind his back at lunch a couple of days ago, I was surprised he hadn’t learned his lesson. I side-glanced at her and she looked at me, and I was relieved not to be her area of focus for the moment. Looking at Dax push his body ever closer to hers, I did feel a little bad. Regardless of if she was out of place or not, no woman deserved to be lorded over by a man who felt entitled to her body.

  “Dax.” I tapped his shoulder. “Come run snaps with me.”

  “That’s a good idea. I’ll monitor.” Jane was shifting uncomfortably under Dax’s wolf-like gaze.