“Bro, what the fuck are those glasses?” someone asked, laughing condescendingly. I clenched my jaw, my shoulders tensing.
I turned my head, glaring at Ralph, one of our linebackers. “Watch your fucking mouth,” I warned him, pressing Jaxon a little closer to my side as if I could somehow protect him from the asshole’s harsh words. Jaxon was dealing with enough without someone making him feel like shit for his glasses. Sure, they looked a little weird, but they also helped him. And that was more way more important than making some bullshit fashion statement.
Ralph mockingly held his hands up. “Oh, my fucking bad. I forgot when he got his head injury, he turned into a fucking weird ass fag?—”
I swung around to face him, and not even Jaxon’s hands curling around my thighs to try to tug me back kept me from punching Ralph in the face. His head swung to the side, and blood immediately dripped down his chin. My chest heaved, and my finger shook as I jabbed it in his face. “You got a fucking problem with men being together?” I snapped. “Thought you would’ve learned your fucking lesson when Hunter beat your fucking ass for your homophobic bullshit a few weeks ago.”
I hadn’t heard Coach come in, but suddenly, he was in both of our faces. Jaxon’s fingers tightened on my thighs. “Both of you get the fuck in my office!” he shouted before turning on his heel and storming back out. “Everyone else, get your fucking asses on that field!”
I looked down at Jaxon, only to find him frowning at me, his hands dropping to his lap. Sighing, I shook my head and followed after the head coach. Once I was in his office, I dropped into the chair next to Ralph and crossed my arms over my chest, my jaw clenched so tightly, an ache started in my molars.
I wanted to punch the son of a bitch again just because he was too goddamn close to me.
Coach Wilson dropped his clipboard onto his desk, and it clattered loudly in the otherwise silent room. “What the fuck happened?” he demanded.
Ralph scoffed. “He fucking punched me.”
“Really?” I growled, swinging my head around to glare at him. “Maybe tell the whole fucking story, dipshit. Tell him how you made a stupid ass comment about Jaxon’s glasses?—”
“Didn’t realize he couldn’t take a good ribbing anymore,” Ralph sneered, interrupting me.
I lurched forward in my chair, but Coach slammed his hand on his desk, halting me. I bared my teeth at Ralph, fucking seething. “Do you know how hard shit’s been for him, asshole? The past few months have been absolute hell for Jaxon. He went from being a star player known across the fucking entire nation, his whole life revolving around that goddamn ball, to everything being ripped out from beneath him. He can’t play anymore, and he suffers short term memory loss now, and his comprehension skills, which were once so goddamn good he didn’t even have to study, are now in the shitter.”
I drew in a deep breath, trying to keep my voice from raising more than it already was. “I will not let you or any other fucking asshole make him feel bad for doing what’s good for him, you fucking hear me? So whether he could take that joke or not doesn’t fucking matter because I’m the mother fucker you contend with when you’re targeting him, you hear me?” I jabbed my finger against my chest. “Me, asshole.”
“So where does the punch come in?” Coach drawled.
“When he called Jaxon a weird ass faggot,” I snapped, sitting back in my chair once more.
The look Coach Wilson set on Ralph even made my blood run cold. “Do you know who the fuck I am, Ralph?” Coach asked. Ralph remained silent. “I’m pansexual. Being married to a woman doesn’t somehow change my sexuality. And I’m poly. My wife is, too. We regularly share men and women, and sometimes, we even keep them long-term. This is not the team to be on if you want to flaunt your homophobia around, and I’m goddamn sick of dealing with your shit. There will not be a third time.”
Reading between the lines, Ralph suddenly went very pale. He swallowed thickly. “Sorry, Coach.”
“Sorry isn’t cutting it this time. You’re benched until I can take this to the board and have you removed from my fucking team and your sports scholarship revoked.” He pointed a stiff finger to the door. “Get the fuck out of my office.” I rose from my chair as Ralph did, but Coach swung his pointer finger to me. “Sit the fuck back down, Blaze. I’m not done with you yet.”
Biting back a sigh, I dropped back into my seat. Once Ralph left the office, the door shutting quietly behind him, Coach rounded his desk and took a seat beside me. We sat in silence for a long moment, and I sure as fuck wasn’t about to be the one to speak up first.
“I know things haven’t been easy since Jaxon’s injury,” he finally said, his tone much calmer. I nodded stiffly. “And I know you’ve been juggling football, school, and taking care of him. Trust me when I say I understand that kind of love. I have it for my wife.” He looked over at me. “But fighting isn’t the answer, Blaze. When someone’s being like that, bring it to me. Let me handle it.”
“He crossed a line,” I muttered.
“I know,” Coach agreed. He gripped my shoulder and gently shook it. “But you’re well on your way to the NFL, which I know is a dream of yours. Don’t let homophobic assholes like Ralph ruin your chances. Keep your record clean and focus on graduating. Keep your eye on the ball, Blaze.”
I nodded once. Coach stood. “Get out on the field. Ralph is benched, and I’ll be letting the other coaches know to keep you two separated.”
I snorted. “Think that’ll work?”
Coach chuckled. “If it works for Hunter, it’ll work for you.” I barked out a laugh at that because Hunter was even quicker to throw his fists than I was.
When I made it onto the field, my eyes immediately sought out Jaxon on the sidelines. Our eyes met, and he narrowed his eyes at me. His shades were missing, and my gut dropped to my feet. Had Ralph’s comment made him take them off?
I jogged over. “Your shades?”
“Headache is dimmed down.” He focused on the field. “Go practice, Blaze. I’m not in the mood to talk to you right now.”
My heart clenched. I stared at him for a long moment, but he wouldn’t look at me. Cursing, I spun on my heel and ran back out onto the field.
Hunter clapped a hand to my shoulder when I neared him. “Focus on practice, then deal with the fight after, yeah? Feels like the end of the world to have him mad at you—I know that—but it’s not. I promise. Samuel and I fight all the time. It’s normal.”
