Bending Under Pressure (13 page)

The pressure I’ve been feeling grows a little heavier as we run out onto the field to mediocre applause. Even our fans are pissed. So much for having them pump us up. I guess that’s what cheerleaders are for because they most certainly aren’t lacking their voices tonight. My problem is that my mind should be here on the field and instead, it’s in the bleachers.

“What is going on with you?” Cameron asks from the sidelines as we watch yet another touchdown being scored. “Coach keeps glaring at you.”

Can’t blame him. I missed the pass, which is how Laney just scored.

“Nothing,” I shrug.

He grabs the front of my helmet, bringing it to his. “Well, focus. You know he’s going to call a practice at 6 A.M. tomorrow if we lose. We got this, Keelan.”

I play marginally better throughout the rest of the game, but it does us no good. We lose. I rip my helmet and shoulder pads off and place my helmet inside so I can hold both easily as we surround Coach in the middle of the field. He gives us each a good long stare, his arms folded across his chest. Some of the guys drop their gaze from his intense, pissed off eyes.

“Weight room. 6 A.M.,” is all he says before waving his hand in dismissal.

Dang. He’s going to kill us in the morning. We rise in unison and begin walking our separate ways. Cameron doesn’t say a word. He usually doesn’t after a loss. We both want a football scholarship. We have this year and the next to make an impression.

“Incoming,” Cam mutters right as Haley runs into me. He keeps walking, no doubt to find the cure to his blues: Jess.

She knocks the air out of my chest and my free hand goes to her lower back to steady her. I’m about to gently push her away because I’m wet, sweaty, and dirty, but then I notice two things. One, she’s soaked too since she was in the bleachers without an umbrella. Her V-neck shirt is glued to her body, and I have a nice view of her cleavage; her blonde hair hangs around her shoulders, looking darker now that it’s wet. Two, her eyes are wide and she looks worried. “What’s wrong, Hales?” I ask, unable to stop myself as I reach up to grab a thick strand of hair to rub between my fingers. Even wet, it’s so soft.

“Natalie’s here. I didn’t know if you knew, and I wanted to give you a heads up.”

I drop the strand. Because so much has been on my mind all day, I wasn’t exactly the most talkative person today.

“Yeah, I know,” I sigh. “I canceled yesterday, so she’s here today.” I lift my head to glance past Haley. Natalie and presumably Keira are standing underneath an umbrella only a few feet away from my parents.

“Are you going to be okay?”

My gaze drops back to Haley. “Yeah.”

Her voice lowers with her sincerity. “Sorry you lost. I wish we could go to Dead Man’s Curve, but I have to go with Jess and it’s raining.”

I dip my head. “Maybe Cam and I should sneak out and pay y’all a visit. Thanks for checking on me.” I kiss her cheek and take her hand in mine. “Let’s go face everyone.”

“What?” she squeaks next to me. “I’m going with you?”

“Yep.”

My parents’ eyes are on me when I don’t approach them first. I might not have told them about Natalie because I was hoping she would bail on me. No such luck.

“Hey, Keelan,” Natalie says with a smile. She touches my arm and adds, “I’m sorry about the game.”

“It happens,” I shrug, my eyes darting to the girl next to her. She looks a lot like Natalie, about the same height already. She would be an eighth grader, if she’s three years younger than I am.

“This is your sister, Keira. She wanted to come meet you.”

“Hey.” I give her a nervous smile.

The girl suddenly lunges forward and gives me a hug. “It’s so nice to finally meet you!” she exclaims while I stand frozen in shock.

I refuse to let go of Haley’s hand, even though she loosens her hold for me to, and my other hand is holding my helmet and pads, so all I can do is stand here. “You, too.”

She takes a step back with a large grin. Her eyes move to my left, so I add, “This is my friend, Haley. Hales, this is Natalie and Keira.”

“Nice to meet you,” Haley tells them.

They nod their head in agreement.

“So, did the Sandersons not come to your game tonight? I hope it wasn’t because of me,” Natalie says.

“Uh, no. My parents,” I might have emphasized that, “are here.” My eyes find Mom’s and I tilt my head with a lift of my chin for them to come over. But it’s not just them, it’s Cam and Jess too. Once they are standing next to me, I reluctantly introduce them. “Natalie, Keira, this is my mom, Octavia, and my dad, John.” I swear Natalie flinches a little. “Plus, my brother, Cameron, and his girlfriend, Jess.”

Mom and Dad are flawless with the usual pleasantries, even though I’ve totally caught them off-guard. The guilt is already eating me alive.

“It was nice of you to come to Keelan’s game, Natalie,” Mom says. “I hate to be the one to ruin any fun, but we should be getting home. The boys have an early morning tomorrow.” Plus, the rain is beginning to come down harder. It’ll be pouring any second now.

Natalie nods in agreement. “Yes, we don’t want them out too late,” she replies. Why is she saying we? She has no say in when I go home. She turns to me. “I’ll see you soon?”

“Sure.”

I get an awkward hug from her and then another breath-stealing hug from Kiera before they walk away. Who knew the girl had so much strength? At least she’s excited about me. Better than the opposite. Mom is eyeing me, and I just know I have some explaining to do when we get home. Mom isn’t much of a fan of surprises, especially ones like this.

“We’re going to walk the girls to Jess’s car,” I tell her. “Then we’ll be on the way home.”

“You better,” is all she says before Dad ushers her away with a laugh. He enjoys Mom’s behavior too much.

“Kiera looks like she’s dying for a brother,” Jess says halfway to her car.

“She did seem really excited,” Haley adds.

“How old is she?” Jess asks.

“I was three when she was born,” I answer.

Jess and Haley briefly talk about how it’s nice we’re kind of close in age before we reach her car. I open the door for Hales and hear Cam finally speak to Jess from the other side.

“Are you sure you need this stupid girls’ night?” Usually, after a loss, Cameron sneaks over to Jess’s house, crawls in her window, and hangs out with her. He’s obviously not happy he won’t be able to have her to himself while he throws a pity party. Because that’s exactly what he does. First, he’s pissed. Then he feels sorry for himself. Lastly, he gets over it and is ready to win games by the following morning.

“Yes, I’m sure!” Jess sounds annoyed, so I’d bet this isn’t the first time he’s asked.

“Keelan?” I drag my attention to Haley. God, she’s hot, especially when her clothes are soaked. I love the rain. It should rain all the time. “Let me know what time for tomorrow, okay?”

“Yeah, I will. Have fun.”

She grins and rolls her eyes as if she and Jess won’t actually have fun before getting into the car. Cam grumbles as we close their doors. It’s pouring now, so Cam and I are quick to make it to our vehicles. My stomach twists and turns with dread on the short trip home.

Mom and Dad haven’t even taken a shower or changed their clothes yet, which doesn’t make me feel any better. They’re obviously waiting for me from their seats at the kitchen table. I wordlessly have a seat while Cameron escapes upstairs.

“Now,” Dad surprises me by speaking first. “Did you know she was coming?” I nod, my eyes jumping back and forth between them. “We don’t mind if she comes to your games, son, but a little heads up would’ve been nice.”

I nod in agreement.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Mom asks, and I inwardly cringe at the touch of hurt in her voice. “All we asked was for you to keep us updated. This would have counted as an update.”

“I was hoping she wouldn’t show,” I answer quietly. “I didn’t know she was bringing Keira.”

I shift in my seat as they both analyze me for what feels like forever.

“Do you want to get to know her, Keelan? Because you don’t sound like you do. I know you’re at least curious about your sister.” All I do is shrug, and I know it irritates her because Mom can’t stand a shrug as an answer, but she doesn’t show it. “If you’re going to give her a chance, you need to actually give her a chance. Not this using homework as an excuse not to meet her, or not telling us she’s coming to your game because you’re hoping she won’t come. Keelan, honey, she wants to know you. She’s not going to disappear if you’re agreeing to see her.”

“I did have homework to do,” I point out.

“And if I recall, it took you thirty minutes to finish it,” Dad replies with the same tone. “We know you don’t like the idea of her coming into your life, but your mom is right. If you’re going to give her a chance, you need to do so fairly. We can promise you that no matter what happens, we’re your family and we aren’t going anywhere. Neither are you.”

Dad lets that hang in the air and I realize that’s what scares me the most. “Promise?” I ask. “She can’t somehow make me go live with her? She can’t get me back?”

“No,” Mom answers firmly.

I breathe a sigh of relief.

“Is that what you’ve been worried about, son?” Dad asks.

I nod. “She got Keira back. She doesn’t refer to you as my parents, and I don’t think she likes when I do.”

“That’s her problem,” Mom tells me. “Keelan, she never gave up her rights to Keira. Keira legally stayed hers while your aunt raised her. I promise; you have nothing to worry about.”

With Mom confirming it, I feel better. A lot better. Maybe my nerves about getting to know Natalie and Keira will lessen now.

“H
ave you ever had sex?”

My eyes widen, my hand full of popcorn freezes midway to my mouth, and I stop breathing for a minute as I stare at Jess. We’re sitting on her bed, munching on a big bowl of popcorn, and listening to music. So far, our conversation has been easy going while she constantly texts Cameron.

She laughs. “I’ll take that as a no. Me either, but that will change soon.” She pops another piece of popcorn into her mouth.

“You and Cameron haven’t done it yet?” I ask before finally eating some of the popcorn in my hand. Then, what she says hits me. “What do you mean; it’s going to change soon?”

Jess finishes yet another text to Cameron, and then leans forward for a conspiratorial whisper. “My parents are out of town next weekend, and Cam is coming over.” She wags her eyebrows. “It’ll be the first time for us both.”

“Wow. Are you nervous?”

She shakes her head. “Well, I mean a little, but I love Cam, and I’m so comfortable with him. That helps me be less nervous. Plus, it’s not like we haven’t done other things before. I’ve seen and touched his penis, Haley.”

I’m embarrassed when I start choking on the popcorn I just put into my mouth. Jess busts out laughing at me. After taking a sip of my drink, the popcorn slides down my throat.

“I didn’t need to know that.” Jess rolls her eyes at me, and I hurry to change the subject. “Why does Cameron tell you everything I do with Keelan?”

She smiles. “Don’t tell him you know this, but he’s a huge gossip. He can’t help it. He likes to talk about what’s going on with everyone. If you ever want to know about anyone in school, heck, even in town, ask Cam. He probably knows.” Her phone dings again. “Sorry,” she halfheartedly apologizes. “He’s needy after a loss. Normally, he’d sneak in, but...” she trails off.

Right. I’m here, so he’s not coming.

Another ding.

This time, Jess flicks her eyes up at me with a hint of uncertainty.

“What?” I ask.

“Since we can’t make out like usual, he wants to know if we want to go climb the water tower.”

I stare at her. “Climb a
water tower
?” She can’t be serious.

“Yeah, we do it sometimes. Do you want to go? We don’t have to, but it’d be fun. If you don’t want to, Cam can just wait until tomorrow to come over.” It’s obvious she wants to go.

“Sure, why not?”

Jess lunges over to hug me. “You’re the best!”

We change out of our pajamas and my stomach is a bundle of nerves already. “Will your parents check on us?”

She laughs. “No. Cam sneaks over all the time and we’ve never even had a close call. My parents are so laid back.” She stands in front of her dresser, which has a mirror, and brushes her hair.

“Keelan’s coming, right?” Sounds like a dumb question, but I’m nervous and he makes me feel better. We’re about to go climb a freaking water tower!

“Duh.” Her phone dings. “They’re here. Let’s go.” She unlocks her window, easily pushes it and the screen up, and then we’re climbing out. Jess lives practically next to the tennis courts. Cam’s truck is parked at the courts, so we have to jog over there to meet them.

I grin when I see the brothers leaning against the truck on the passenger side. One of these days, I need to let Octavia know how gentlemanly her boys are. She would be proud. The lights from the courts are bright enough that we can clearly see them and their grins. It looks like Keelan is in a better mood than before.

Jess wraps her arms around Cam’s neck and he leans down to kiss her while Keelan and I simply stand in front of one another.