Counting on Starlight (14 page)

“I don’t know what’s wrong. She wouldn’t tell me. But it’s serious, Jake.” Liann’s eyes had dark circles under them, but she still looked elegant. “Something’s going on with her and Tim and a Cassandra from the cheer squad.”

“Oh, boy.”

Their waitress appeared. “Coffee, right?”

He nodded. “Black, please.”

“Coming right up.”

Jake tried not to sigh. “Teenage drama. Tim and Cassie were an item last school year, but it seems like they called it quits over the summer. It happens. High school romances. Not many of them last. He really likes Maddie now, and I’m doing my best to keep an eye on her. As you know.”

“Well, I think it’s gone beyond a simple high school romance. She was crying tonight after talking to Tim. He looked frustrated, at the very least, before he stormed off. I followed her outside and offered to call you, which she refused. She settled for Justine picking her up.”

This time he did sigh. “I’m not surprised. She’s been so...different...this fall. First, changing her courses—not that I blame you for any of this.”

“I didn’t think you did.” She gave him a small smile.

“Then the whole dress thing for Homecoming. Last year, we had to practically drag her to the dress shop here in town to get her something for the Miss Starlight pageant. She wanted to earn a scholarship badly enough to agree to wear an evening gown. This year, she had a shopping strategy all planned out and wanted to make sure she shopped in Austin.” Jake shook his head. “And her emotions? She’s happy one day, in the dumps the next.”

“She’s growing up. Those teen-girl emotions are rough.” Liann nodded. “Oh, how I remember it well. But this, this is something serious. She’s starting to push you away. Me, I wasn’t surprised. I’m her teacher and a friend of the family. But when she didn’t want me to call you...”

“I’m sure she’ll be better in the morning.” The waitress slid a cup of coffee in front of Jake, and he smiled his thanks.

“That’s just it...she might act like she’s better in the morning, but the way this thing is brewing, I have a feeling it’s not the end of it.” Liann’s forehead wrinkled.

“Maybe I should cancel going to Kansas Tech.” He’d do it for Maddie, if she really needed him here. And it sounded like she did. “It’s a simple two-night trip, and I’ll be back before the next game.”

“It’s your call. I know you aren’t the only support system Maddie has. There’s Billy and Justine, plus Herb and Azalea.” She frowned. “I thought you’d like to know, and I didn’t want it to wait. You’re her guardian, and I take your role in her life as such very seriously.”

“Would you meet up with all your students' parents or guardians at the Koffee Kup after 11 p.m.?”

“No....” At this, a flush crept into her cheeks. “I probably wouldn’t. I care about all my students. But Maddie’s special. Um…you’re special. But you know that.”

He reached for her hand. “Please don’t pull away. I want
something
to work out for us. But I don’t want you to feel like you’re giving up something for me. Not like ole what’s-his-name. I still don’t know what’s going to happen with Kansas.”

“I’m not sure either. The band director told me tonight that she got a call for a reference for me from Ventura High. A friend of mine said they might need a cheer coach in January, so last weekend... I applied. I know it’s only September and I’ve barely been here two months, but it’s an opportunity.” Liann looked down at their coffee cups and their clasped hands.

His deflated mood surprised him as he released her hand. “You should go, if they call you for an interview. See if that’s the life for you still. You’ll be closer to your family. And maybe ole what’s-his-name will have gotten a clue.”

At this, Liann smiled. “Maybe. And you’re right. If I get that call to California, I’m going to go.”             

Chapter 12

“Jake Tucker, welcome to Kansas!” Mike Higgins enveloped Jake in a strong hug, pounding his back. “Good to have you up here.”

Higgins and Jake ran the ball during their years at Texas State. Higgins did more defensive blocking and sacking quarterbacks while Jake ran for the ball. “I’ve always got your back,” Higgins would say.

“Thanks, man.” Jake looked past Mike at the athletic complex of glass and steel. He definitely wasn’t in Starlight, Texas, anymore. “Wow, what a facility.”

“It’s the big time.” Mike had always been the size of a Mack truck. He still wore his physique well, even though his own gridiron days were long gone. “I was praying for you, man, that you’d get the chance you always wanted. So how’s life in Podunk, Texas?”

“Starlight, Mike. Starlight.”

“Right. So how’s your record? I know our guy flew down there to see you and y’all lost that opening game, but he liked what he saw anyway.” His friend led him into the brick and glass building. Activity pulsed inside. Jake could practically inhale the adrenalin flowing through the halls.

“We’re two and one now. Lost to Cove, which you knew about already, but we won against Waco West and Fisher Ridge.” He wondered when he’d wake up at the ranch and be smacking the snooze button. But nope, he was here for real.

“Well, I told them you’d make a solid contribution to the team here and were looking to advance.” Mike paused at a display case of awards. Kansas Tech had taken the title in their division four out of the past five years.

What Jake could learn, just being an assistant on the coaching staff. The position was similar to what he did at Starlight but miles above it in status. “That’s true.”

Mike led him into the offices, where he met a blur of faces and list of names. He did remember the head coach’s name. Coach Rather.

“Good to meet you, Mr. Tucker.” The older gentleman had a firm handshake. “I come from a small-town background myself. But one thing I believe, a field’s a field. Good coaching and good playing are important at any level.”
              By the end of the afternoon, Jake’s brain was leaking with all the facts he’d picked up about Kansas Tech. He even saw where his desk might be and met the coach he might be replacing.

That evening before sunset, he drove through the college town, looking at possible places to live. The idea of moving here alone made him look the apartments. However, he drifted into some neighborhoods with homes. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d lived in a place where the homes were so close together. He didn’t know how Billy slept at night, knowing that he had neighbors within a stone’s throw at his and Justine’s home up on the ridge inside town. He’d adapted. So could Jake, he supposed.

He could picture himself in a house, too, with a big front yard. With Liann standing on the steps beside him, even. But he couldn’t ask her to come here. He didn’t want to even hint at pressuring her. Then again, she might be heading to California,so Kansas would be out of the question for her anyway.

Jake drove until he found the Kansas Tech campus again and found a visitors parking spot not far from the campus park. The large lawn in front of the commons had winding brick paths, benches, and a large fountain in the center. He smelled food cooking, an aroma of fraying burgers drifting from a dining hall somewhere.

A few students clustered around the lawn, taking advantage of the remaining daylight and the cooler temperatures. Some boys were tossing a football around, laughing and hooting when they fumbled, cheering when they caught the ball. Now, those were the days.

Jake found an empty bench and sat down, stretching his legs. He leaned his head back to look for the first stars of the night and a sliver of moon. He could bow his head to pray, but when alone outside like this, he liked to look up.

“Lord, here I am. I’m thankful for this opportunity. I know every opportunity doesn’t mean a guaranteed yes from You. I don’t attempt to know exactly how You work. But I’m here. You see what I’ve done in the past. For Dad, Billy, and now for Maddie. I want my turn, Lord. I’m tired of being the strong one, the responsible one.

“I’ve always wanted to make a difference in the lives of young people. There are young men who don’t have a father like I did, who don’t see hope for their future. They don’t have someone to teach them the value of self-discipline and how to work as a team. But I can do that. I would love to work here. You know that. So please, if this is my chance or if there’s something else, make the way clear for me. Amen.”

Yes, he was tired of being strong and responsible. He wanted to go do something reckless and let someone else take care of the duties for a change. He didn’t know what the answer would be about Kansas, or how it would come. He did know enough about the nature of God that there’d be an answer. Like any good father, the Lord would be there for him.

Call Dad.

Jack checked his phone. Colorado was an hour behind them, but it was Wednesday evening, and his parents would likely be at Bible study. Maybe he’d call in the morning. Christmas in Colorado couldn’t come soon enough, to see them again face-to-face for real and not via a computer.

He almost decided to call Liann. It wouldn’t be fair, he reminded himself as he thought back to the day he kissed her at the river. As she would say, “so not fair.” He smiled at the thought of her face as she scolded him. The painful memory followed him back to his hotel room.

As he unlocked the door, his phone chimed with a message from Coach Blann. “Crisis. Call me ASAP. Rollins canceled his plans for TSU.”

#             

“Here, you crank for a while. I’m getting old, and it hurts my shoulder.” Aunt Chin Mae waved Liann over to the honey extractor sitting on top of a low table. “This might be all our honey this year. No more until spring. But we’ll see.”

“Oh, you’re not getting old.” Liann took her place in front of the extractor. She glanced into the top of the cylinder, as tall and wide as the yellow drink cooler they used during football games and band practice. Six hive frames spun on the inside, the motion drawing the honey out of the frames and into the holding tank at the bottom, where it filtered out the remaining wax particles in the honey.

Her aunt started dispensing the filtered honey into glass jars. “We finish this hive box and start the last one. Then that’s all for today.” She wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. “Those boxes are heavy.”

“I’m glad you didn’t try to lift them yourself. Forty pounds is a lot.” As it was, they’d had to load several boxes onto one cart and wheel the cart over to the covered pavilion where Aunt Chin Mae worked on her honey.

Liann grabbed the crank and turned it, as if she were operating an old-fashioned ice cream maker. Ten frames in one box and four pounds of honey per frame meant forty pounds of honey. Even with the summer drought, her aunt was proud of the bees’ production.

“I have enough jars to take to the last farmer’s market of the season.” Aunt Chin Mae beamed. “My bees did so well this year.”

The extractor’s spinning interior ground to a halt. Liann lifted the clear cover to get a better look at the frames inside. She definitely identified with the spinning motion. The girls on the color guard team had changed since the night of the Homecoming dance. Before, they would laugh and talk in front of her. Now, they did their practices but kept their chatter away from her.

Maybe it was best. Perhaps a few of them were upset or jealous over her friendship with Maddie’s family. If she were on the outside looking in, she’d tell herself to back off and keep a safe emotional distance. But truthfully, if any of her other girls seemed like they were struggling, she’d be there for them too. Kristen was having trouble with precalculus and was in danger of being ineligible to participate in the upcoming marching band competitions. Liann had made a phone call and helped her enroll in free afterschool tutoring two days a week.

No word from Jake, but he’d arrive home this afternoon from his Kansas trip. How he’d glowed at the idea of being invited for an interview and a visit at Kansas Tech. She prayed for him, that he’d find the answers he was looking for, just as she did for herself. Maddie had been on a tight leash with Jake gone, staying with Azalea and Herb Bush. The couple’s names made her smile.

“Azalea will be here soon,” Aunt Chin Mae said. “I told her to come get honey. It’s good for their allergies. They get four jars a year.”

“I’ve heard of honey helping with allergies.” She wasn’t a big fan of it herself but couldn’t help sneaking a stray drop of sweetness from the empty frames as she lifted them from the extractor. She took a deep breath. The cool breeze and longer shadows promised that fall was inching ever closer.

Azalea’s SUV came rumbling up the driveway, bouncing and bucking on the uneven dirt. It had rained two nights ago, so no more dust clouded around the vehicle. The vehicle came within inches of a column that supported the pavilion beside the garage.

“Good. You’re here, too.” Azalea looked at Liann as she slammed the door. “We’ve got us a real pickle brewing, a real pickle.”

“What’s wrong?” Liann and her aunt chorused.

“Maddie. That girl.” Azalea shook her head. “I don’t know but she’s fryin’ eggs when she says she’s scramblin’ them.”

“Huh?” Liann blinked at Azalea.

“She’s up to something, even though she’s been telling me for three days everything’s fine. She’s been real quiet, when most other times I can’t get her to find the
off
button and give us a little silence. Not that I mind. I do the same thing.” Azalea patted her flaming ’do. “Soon as I got out of the salon today, picked her up from her friend Kristen’s house where they were studyin’, I dropped her by her own house.”