40
Chapter forty
Mac P. O. V
The finals were here.
Everyone was preparing for the match, Noah and Justin had told I and Dan yesterday not to come back without coming out as the first runner-up.
Justin and Noah were both better at basketball than football and Dan was good at football unlike me. I can proudly say I am good at both football and basketball and it is all thanks to Liam for making me fall in love with both football and basketball.
And thanks to my hard work am the captain of both teams now both the football team and the basketball team.
Fixing up the laces of my shoes, I noticed someone’s presence, Seth, one of the best footballers on our team, was staring intently at me, and I couldn’t care less about his presence.
“What seems to be the matter, Mac? I noticed how particularly off you have been lately” I ignored his comment and continued.
“It’s Elena isn’t it?” he asked but I still didn’t reply.
“Look, If she is going to be a source of distraction to you….”
“No one is going to distract me!!!” I shouted back at Seth, Everyone in the locker room turned to look at us and I got pissed and yelled.
“What y’all looking at? Go on with your shits and leave me the fuck alone!” I beamed to the rest of my teammates once more.
“Mac” I heard the coach call my name out once he entered. “I heard you yelling at your teammate. What is the problem, son?”
Our coach is just like a father to me, he keeps pushing me to do my best in everything I do. He is one of the reasons I am this good in football today, even though he can be hard on us sometimes, he just wants the best for us as a team.
“Nothing coach, just irritated by Seth’s comment” From my Peripheral vision, I noticed Seth glancing at me in disbelief but I didn’t care.
“Anyways, you all know the rules for the final; it is either we win or we win” Everyone cheered at the Coach’s words, we all were as determined as our coach to win this match and we were ready to put in our best in order to do so.
“Forget how bulky Lakewood High School is, the game is all about technicality!!” The coach kept on speaking but I shun him out of my thoughts as I reminisced over Elena’s beautiful face. I miss her smiles and the way she tried to be unimpressed by anything I did.
I wish she would show up for the match I really wish she did.
“Mac??” I was brought back to reality when I heard my name.
“It’s time!” The coach stated. I took the captain banner and wrapped it around my arms and went out into the field.
Taking position at the center half of the field, I was met with a mischievous smirk from Liam who had the ball on his feet.
“You ready to get your ass bitten?” I shifted my gaze from him to the stand, in the hope to see Elena but she was nowhere to be found.
“Isn’t it a pity? I mean I can see clearly you like this girl but then again, she keeps breaking your heart over and over again, like your mother” Liam said in an attempt to get me annoyed I folded my arms tightly as his words struck a nerve. I knew I had to be professional but Liam was getting on my nerves.
When the whistle blew, the game was on. We were at the defensive end as Lakewood High School launched a counterattack with the ball. Each player of their team looked hungry as they played on.
Fifteen minutes into the match, we were two goals down, both scored by Liam. I could see the pride he exhumed as he watched me get frustrated with each ball I tried to shoot, which the goalkeeper had saved.
One of the team members from Lake High School threw the ball over to the corner stand and I tried to follow it up, in the hope of getting it.
When I got the ball, I heard a rather familiar voice calling my name. I tried to hope I wasn’t imagining things when I saw Elena amongst the crowd, shouting my name and urging me to play on.
Seeing her seated, fueled my motivation to play on.
I started playing with all the skills I had understood these past years of training, I did not know why I was so bent on winning now maybe because she came and she was watching me play.
She wasn’t the only one cheering me up. Even Tisha and other girls of ours were cheering me and our other teammates up but I couldn’t care less about others. My only excitement was that Elena was out there watching me play and I vowed to make her pleased.
Before the strike of halftime, we were leveled with Lake High School.
And I could hear the cheer from the audience even louder as I scored the second goal making us even.
The look on Liam’s face was still the same; he didn’t seem fazed by the fact that I had just equalized his goals.
But I have made a promise to myself that I am going to win these games no matter what. I just wanted to show Liam that he is not the only one who knows how to play well.ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .
At half time, while in the locker room, the coach was giving out new tactics to play, he talked about different ways in which we could win and he asked me and Dan to work together the best we were about to play as he kept on speaking Elena entered the locker room.
The moment I laid eyes on her, the smile on her face warmed up to me. Other team members were staring at her, even the coach had stopped talking.
“Can we talk for a few minutes?” She asked.
I looked at Coach with pleading eyes and he gave me the approval.