Within seconds I was making my way into the end zone before anyone else could catch up to me and within seconds the offensive line was with me celebrating and Runt lifted me off my feet.
“That’s how the fuck you run,Fast Money! ‘Bout to add your girl to the list of MVP Wives. Just gotta get that ring on your finger and then hers to make it official!” He dapped me and stepped back to let me spike the ball. I wasn’t about to do a crazy celebration and lose it because it was going in my trophy case as soon as we got this win.
The whistle blew and I clutched the ball in my hand prepared to toss it to the ref to show I wasn’t trying to get a penalty for excessive celebration. Instead, the ref, who had been in the end zone was attempting to break up a skirmish that was happening closer to our sideline. When I looked up, I saw that Marcel was locked up with one of their defensive lineman and I immediately started to run over to see what was up. I was stopped short when Runt’s big ass grabbed the back of my pads and kept me from getting over there.
“Let me go, bruh!”
“That shit already handled and that muthafucka about to get tossed out of the game. You see Stew big ass holding Jacoby back? It had to be serious if Murda was in the mix.”
I looked over to the sideline and sure enough, Stew and our defensive line coach were trying to restrain Murda’s ass. His tan face was red and he was all but snarling and spitting, trying to break free and get over to the defensive lineman who was now on the ground. Damn Marcel must’ve put him on his ass.
“The fuck is going on?”
Runt and I trotted over to the sideline and I was pissed because the last thing I wanted was for Marcel to get tossed.He’d been in the gym with me and Ant every day working on getting better. Getting ejected would fuck with him and that was the last thing I wanted.
By the time we got back to the sideline, one of the equipment guys had taken my ball and tagged it for me before putting it away. More whistles blowing drew our attention to the refs and then the announcement was made.
“Personal foul, unnecessary roughness on the defense, number 93. Because of the foul, number 93 is ejected from the game.”
The fans of theSt. Louis Bisonsthe team that we were playing started to boo loudly and I swear this was unprecedented.
“The fuck he do to get ejected from the damn game?” I was walking closer to where everything was going on while the player from theBisonswas losing his shit on the field. He looked like he was trying to refuse to leave and now my ass wanted to know what happened even more.
“Muthafucka had the nerve to fucking spit at me by our sideline because he couldn’t handle getting scored on. Was talking recklessly out his mouth about you and I told his ass to suck it the fuck up. He kept jaw-jacking and I pointed to the scoreboard and told him all that yappin’ wasn’t putting up points. He kept saying shit and the ref was right there but he couldn’t handle the fact I ain’t give a fuck so he spit at me. That shit hit the ref instead and Murda ‘bout tried to take that man’s head off.” Marcel’s face was frowned up and I could see he was still pissed off about what happened. He didn’t have his helmet anymore so he kept flexing his hands like he wished he’d been able to swing on the defender.
“Jacoby getting bent out of shape about refs?” Runt was laughing because normally Murda hated refs because they were always trying to call him for penalties he didn’t commit. Wouldswear he was fucking with the snap count just because he was quick as hell.
“Nah, he did that shit so that I wouldn’t lose it and go after that man. Said that he already did what he needed to do this game and he’d take the ejection for me cause he was about to beat that boy’s ass.”
“Fucking right. My daddy white but I ain’t. The fuck he think he doing his big white ass spitting at a Black man? That shit made me snap. I was about to take that muthafucka’s head off.” Coby walked over because apparently Stew was going to make him sit out this series so he didn’t act up. He was pacing back and forth next to us but he wasn’t as flushed underneath his tan skin as he had been before. I knew he’d been adopted by some fucked up white people before he found his birth family so I could understand why a white dude moving like that would’ve pissed him off.
“Nah, that’s understood. I know his teammates gonna beat his ass when they get to the locker room. That was dumb as hell.” Runt’s arms folded as we watched the refs and league officials try to control theBisons’ sideline.
“It was and they about to pay for it though. Watch Ant run this shit back.” Marcel was grinning at the field. The ball was kicked off and sure enough Anthony ran that shit straight back like no one else was on the field with him. It was like that ejection had taken the fight out of them but we weren’t about to ease up on them.
The next time we got the ball back I happily took advantage of the switch-up in the lineup because of the missing lineman. They could barely handle the offensive line when he was in, but now? We could run and throw up and down the field after he went out of the game at will. By the end of the third quarter, I’d racked up over two hundred yards, another two touchdowns and could sit out the rest of the game without feeling bad aboutit. I knew that Chris and DJ, the other running back, were going to handle business and keep the pressure on and they did more than that.
By the time the clock ran out in the fourth quarter we had won the game by twenty-three points. It felt good as fuck to feel the royal blue, white, silver and black confetti come down from the ceiling. The team was handing out the championship hats as Parker walked around and congratulated everyone he saw. When he got to Stew, they embraced in a way that only friends could and I knew that he reserved that level of affection for a select few. His lady was standing behind him with her arm around her cousin Rachelle, Stew’s wife, who had Stew’s youngest son strapped to her chest. Their two oldest were jumping around catching the confetti as it fell before tossing it back in the air.
Seeing them together made me want to get to my family even faster and I knew they had to be somewhere close by if Rachelle and Tiana were already on the field. Glancing around I saw Jacoby with Billy’s long ass legs wrapped around him slobbing each other down like they didn’t already have four kids. Those kids were unmoved by their parents display as the twins were each being held by their grandmothers, Destiny was holding Sampson’s hand as she stood between him and his wife and Mac was there holding Ascher’s hand as he seemed to soak in the celebration.
My eyes continued to move, as did my body and I saw Grant and Lyric damn near fucking on the sidelines. Her brother and his wife couldn’t make it because she was too close to her due date and he refused to let her fly but his people were somewhere pretending they couldn’t see him being fresh. Lyric’s other brother was standing next to Grant’s sister who was talking to some herb ass nigga who kept looking like the grass was gonna fuck up his loafers.
Antwan and Anthony were of course right next to each other with Rye and Aphrodite hugging them. I knew my girl had to be close by and when ‘Phro saw me, she pointed behind her and I nodded my appreciation because she understood I wanted to see my people.
“Congratulations, bruh!” I’d shaken off all the words from everyone else but I stopped to dap up Runt who of course had Reece right by his side. He had the most people here even though he was from South Carolina. Them folks had rolled so deep they damn near took up an entire section of tickets.
I grinned looking at him before embracing him back. “Thank you for everything, Runt. I couldn’t have done this without you.”
“Just remember to say that shit when you go up there for that trophy ceremony.” He was grinning but I wasn’t too sure about his proclamation.
“Bruh, Grant's gone get that shit, watch.” I was smiling but now my heart was racing at the idea of getting a different trophy today.
“I wouldn’t be too sure about that if I were you.” Runt’s face was intense and as he always did, his eyes stared like he was looking into the future or into your soul.
“I win it I got you and the entire line.” It was the least I could do since they definitely were a big part of my success.
His face broke out into a grin and he nodded. “Bet.” He leaned down and pulled Reece to him and with the easy way she stood next to him, customDesperadoscowboy hat on and all, I had a feeling he wasn’t going to need to trap her at all.
