“Stephen? Are you still there?”
“Wait…” I say, “what?”
“Stephen, unless something drastic happens to change the coach’s mind, you’re going to be the starting receiver who replaces Isaac.”
“You mean… no… really?”
“Yes. You’ve impressed me at training, and you work well with Marcus and Jordan, you’re ready.”
“I’ll be starting…” My mind is buzzing; thoughts are flying but they’re jumbled… “But wait, what about Joel? He’s been a reserve for longer.”
“Well, it’s my job to put forward the best team, and right now that means you and Jordan. You can’t be worrying about Joel, if he’s got a problem, he can come to me.”
“Ted…” Tears well up in my eyes as it really dawns on me what’s happening. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“You’re welcome,” he says. “Now, like I said, Coach will confirm it all tomorrow so look out for the invite. And free up your day, there’s going to be a lot of admin considering you’re not full-time with us yet, which will no doubt have to change.”
“Uh… yeah, tomorrow is free.”
“Alright, try and take it easy today, and get a good night’s sleep, because tomorrow, your life is going to change.”
“Yeah,” I chuckle, “I guess it is.”
We hang up and I’m left staring at my desk. This is it; I’ll be playing in the NFL, a starting player for the Tynerston Warriors. Not watching from the sidelines, or from the bench, actually playing. Holy shit… I’ve done it.
My first thought is that I want to tell Donovan, but he needs to focus on his own stuff today, so instead I call my parents, knowing how excited they’re going to be after being on this journey with me for so long.
The video call appears on my laptop and I quickly answer. Once everything loads, I’m met with the view of Coach Matthews, Rick Winters, and Ted, all sitting in one of the briefing rooms.
“Morning, Stephen,” Coach Matthews says, grinning at me through the screen.
I wave awkwardly into the camera. “Morning Coach, Mr. Winters, Ted.”
“Please, Stephen, call me Rick, there’s no need for that Mr. Winters nonsense,” he chuckles.
“Thank you, Rick.”
“I won’t actually be on the call for long,” he adds, “I’m just here because I wanted to give you the good news myself, well, officially at least, I know Ted gave you a heads up.” I nod in response. “Well, Stephen, it’s official, you’re the new starting wide receiver for the Tynerston Warriors!”
“Thank you,” I say, letting my grin cross my face, the confirmation making this a tiny bit more real. “Thank you so much, you have no idea how much this means to me.”
“You’re welcome,” Rick says. “Ted made a compelling case, says you’ve been doing great in training and you’re working well with Marcus Grant, so hopefully we can expect some spectacular touchdowns from you.”
I laugh, “I’ll certainly try my best.”
“Alright. You’ll be getting contracts and all the official documents through tomorrow once the legal team is back in the office; they’ll confirm salaries and everything we discussed before you signed. Today, I’ll leave you with Coach Matthews so you can start planning, and then later we’ve arranged forsome media training for you, once we announce this you’ll be doing lots of interviews and press.”
“I’m ready,” I nod. The thought of talking to the media terrifies me, but it’s part of the job, and something I’m going to have to get used to.
“Great,” Rick says, standing and moving away from the table. “I’ll catch up with you when you’re here, which will hopefully be soon.”
“See you then.” I give another awkward wave to the camera, and I’m left with Coach Matthews and Ted.
“How’s Isaac doing?” I ask. “I didn’t have his number to message him, and I’ve been worried.”
“He’s doing fine,” Ted says. “He’s going into surgery tomorrow, it might take a couple, they’re not sure yet, but then it will be rest and healing, before rehab.”
“All signs point to him coming back next year,” Coach says, “and of course we’re worried about him, but he’s with the right people now. It’s our job to focus on the team, and with pre-season games starting in five weeks, we need to get you to Tynerston and training full-time.”
