Lamar Anderson:I have some news. Give me a call as soon as you can.
I saw his text as I was leaving school after an ordinary Tuesday. It was almost three o’clock, and the text had come in around lunchtime. It was his off day, but he’d never texted me during the school day before. I made the call as soon as I backed out of my parking spot.
He answered on the first ring. “Jazz!”
Just hearing his voice put a smile on my face. “Hey! What’s going on? Everything okay?”
“I’m good. I’mrealgood.” He let out an enthusiastic laugh. “How are you?”
His excitement was infectious. “I’m ready to hear your news!”
There was a dramatic pause. “I’m being elevated to the main roster for Sunday’s game!”
I gasped and started banging the steering wheel. “What? Oh my God, Lamar! That’s amazing! Congratulations!”
“Thank you! I mean, I’m hype. I didn’t think it was going to happen, to be honest. This is just some wild shit. I’ll be the backup’s backup now that they’ve activated me.”
He was talking so fast, I giggled.
“This is amazing!” I exclaimed. “You put in that work, so it makes sense that they would call you up and activate you. You should be so excited and so proud of yourself. I know I am, and I know your family is!”
“Oh, they don’t know. Nobody knows.”
I scrunched my face in confusion. “Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait… what?”
“It’s taken everything in me not to call everybody I fucking know and tell them. I don’t even be on social media like that, and I wanted to post something. But it’s Tuesday. Sunday is a long way away. Things change all the time. I’ve been activated, but I don’t know if I’m second or third on the depth chart. It’s unlikely I’ll get any time on the field, so I’ll let them know at the end of the week. I wanna keep this thing to myself for a minute.”
“But you told me?”
“I know I can trust you.”
Feeling all fluttery inside, I bit my lip. “Yeah.”
“That’s why I told you. That, and since I’ll be traveling with the team Saturday, I have to cancel our date,” he continued.
My flutters dissipated.Damn.
19
Lamar was a professional athlete. He worked his ass off, so his elevation to the active roster didn’t change his schedule. We still talked every night, and he was prominently featured in my dreams. Even though I was disappointed I wasn’t going to see him, I was ecstatic that he was getting the opportunity of a lifetime. So, on Saturday after he landed in Florida, he sent me a text.
Lamar Anderson:We landed and now we’re on a bus to the stadium for a light practice. Then we check in to the hotel and have a position meeting and then I can call you. And I promise no jet skiing.
I snickered to myself.
Jazmyn Payne:Yes, please keep your phone away from any water. I’m glad you made it safely, #90. How do you feel?
Lamar Anderson:I feel good. I feel ready.
Jazmyn Payne:You are good. You are ready. I’m here if you need a pep talk. Have fun and do what you do. You got this!
Lamar Anderson:Thank you, I’ll call you tonight. How are you? You good?
Jazmyn Payne:I’m good! Excited for you!
Jay Channing was going to be out for the season with a severe meniscus tear and a Grade III ACL tear. They’d taken him to the hospital for surgery immediately after the game. The second-string tackle, Hoyt Bennett, was starting for the first time against theFlorida Crocs, and the commentators speculated that he would be targeted because of his youth and inexperience. The rookie had been a standout in college, but from week one’s performance, they had concerns. Not one on-air personality mentioned Lamar, the now second-string defensive tackle and the man who had me weak—in every sense of the word.
“I cannot!” I laughed hard and loudly that night while on the phone with him. Holding my stomach with one hand and the phone with the other, I doubled over. A tear formed in the corner of my eye from laughing so hard. “Stop!”
