I walked over to him and then handed him the card.
He frowned, then took it, and I watched as his entire frame froze.
“Wha.. wha... what is this?” he asked.
I told him about a man named Marcus DuPointe who had approached me at his game.
“Holy. Shit.” He said.
I chuckled. “Think about it. Yeah?”
He nodded, “Yeah, but... I’m going to go to college first.”
I winked, “Proud of you, son.”
Cole
As dad walked down the stairs, I counted down in my head,‘Three, two, one,’and there she was.
Madalyn came bursting into my room. “Have you called her about it yet?”
I shook my head, “No. Think it’s too late?”
Madalyn snorted, “For us? Yeah, no.”
I chuckled, nodded, then pulled my phone up and scrolled to Lila’s name.
I put it on speaker so Madalyn could hear too.
She answered on the fourth ring, “Hey, sorry, was talking to the girls. You okay?”
“Yeah. Madalyn is here, too.” I told her.
She giggled, “So, what’s up?”
“Dad got handed a card tonight,” I said as my thumb traced over the words on the business card.
“I know. How do you feel about it?” she asked.
“I mean, I’m floored. You know?” I asked.
“Yeah, I would be too. But do me a favor. Yeah?” she asked.
I nodded, “Yeah.”
“Okay. This is something my Mom told me to do a long time ago. Close your eyes, take a deep breath, and then let the silence invade your system, and if you see nothing but a career in football in your head, then that’s the path you take. If it’s not, then it’s not the right path for you.”
I looked at Madalyn, and then we both did what she said.
And through it all, she didn’t speak.
Not until she heard me say, “I can see it. But I also see other stuff.”
“I get that. But at the end of the day, the only thing that matters is what will make you happy. You never work a day in your life if you're happy with what you do.”
But what neither kid knew was that at the sound of soft feet running across the hall, Bronson was walking back up the stairs, leaning his back against the wall, and eavesdropping.
And he, too, did the same thing she had suggested to Cole.
