The smell still couldn’t put a damper on Hailey’s mood. Playing soccer was the highlight of her week for a few reasons.
First, it gave her the opportunity for some stress relief. Between kicking the ball, running up and down the turf and rough contact with her opponents, she was able to let out some pent-up rage she refused to admit she held. Of course, the other team usually noticed.
The second reason was she could simply shut downher brain. There were no problems she was dealing with. No annoying patrons at tables, no boyfriends striking her last nerve, and a little bit of freedom from the dark cloud that usually followed her around. She just got to turn off her brain for a while.
Ever since she started playing sports, she looked forward to that time between whistles, where all that mattered was what happened on the field. The game moved so quickly that even if you made a mistake it was easy to get past it because you really didn’t have time to think about it. It also helped that indoor soccer was just plain fun.
The third reason Hailey looked forward to soccer every week was a little bit harder for her to admit.
She made her way through the facility with ceilings towering above her, passing the hockey rink on her right and turning left toward the soccer turf. The turf was surrounded by tall white walls that you could use to your advantage when you played, passing around the other team when the situation presented itself.
“Hailey Bills!” her group of friends shouted from their spot on the floor behind the field, donning their shinguards and indoor soccer shoes while the game before theirs finished up. They loved shortening her name from Williams to Bills. She was fine with either at this point.
“Hey, who’s ready to kick some ass?” she responded as she sat down among her teammates in matching redjerseys. They all grew up in Cherrywood and most of them still lived in the area, if not nearby. After a particularly lively post-game celebration years back, they decided to call themselves the Cherry Stems, even though Cole didnotlike to talk about the night that influenced it. But, that was another story.
She heard a lot of yeses, but Avery gave her a serious look.
“I’m not sure I can play, I’m just too nervous about the vital importance of these games,” he said sarcastically while trying to contain a smile.
“Oh c’mon, if you can get up in front of the whole school and sing “Hungry Like the Wolf” dressed up like a wolf—”
Avery couldn’t hold back his smile anymore, “You remember that?”
Hailey hesitated for a beat realizing she may have shared too much so she turned it around.
“Only because it scarred me for life, Avery. I still have nightmares of wolves singing Duran Duran.”
He looked like he was wrestling with a thought until he shrugged and decided to say what he was thinking. “I’m just so honored that you’re dreaming of me.”
Now, Hailey knew her cheeks were getting red. Those bitches were always betraying her. “Oh, shut up!” She giggled and threw one of her long socks at him. He chuckled and threw itback.
Hailey had Avery Stratford on her mind since her last therapy session. He was always such a sweetheart, even in high school. They were never single at the same time so they never got the chance to explore a relationship. Plus, they were just friends. Why would he like someone like her likethat? But, Hailey couldn’t help wondering what it would be like, especially after last night’s disappointing anniversary with Gage.
Avery was one of those men that got better as he got older. In high school, he had an impressive display of muscles and a baby face. Now, a bit of scruff gave him a rugged look that made Hailey wonder what his cheeks felt like. She had peeks of his torso throughout the years and she knew he kept in good shape. His soft, sandy blond hair fell over his forehead and his gray-blue eyes were focused on Hailey, making her breath hitch.
She turned and caught eyes with Abby who had a raised eyebrow aimed at Hailey. So, Hailey did the mature thing and stuck out her tongue at her. Abby just shook her head, letting her super curly, blonde hair bounce all over the place and drawing attention to the constellation tattoo behind her ear.
“I’m so ready to destroy this team,” said Cole, their team hype man. “I can’t believe they beat us last time. Not tonight, motherfu—”
“Dude, there is a kid five feet away from you,” Elena broke in, shaking her head at Cole and pointing to a kidsitting at a table nearby. “It shocks me you’re able to keep from swearing all day in front of your students.”
Cole and Elena were both teachers at their alma mater. No one really understood why they were always so annoyed with each other, but no one could blame them after dealing with high schoolers all day.
He ran his hand through his long dark locks that practically reached his chin, rolling his piercing ice-blue eyes at Elena. Avery may have had the comforting gray-blue eyes that were just plain welcoming, but Cole’s had this mischievous twinkle like he knew a secret about everyone around him. Knowing him, he probably did.
“Ah, my bad. Not tonight, mother fudgesicles.”
“Oooh, we should go get victory fudgesicles after we win tonight,” said Hailey.
“Or liquor. Liquor would also work for me,” added Abby. She was one of three girls on the team. The co-ed rules required at least two females to be on the field at all times, keeping the men from hogging all the playing time. It was a far cry from when they played at the high school level together, when wins mattered to a whole school.
She tried to distract herself with getting ready. After she finished tying her shoes, she took off the long-sleeve shirt she wore over her jersey.
“Holy shit, Hailey, what happened?” Abby gasped, staring wide-eyed at Hailey.
She looked down at herself wondering what she was talking about when she noticed the bruises on her arms. Bruises in the shape of fingers wrapping around her biceps.
Now, she could feel the heat reach her cheeks and knew her face must be bright red.
