Counting on Starlight (9 page)

Maddie spun the rifle, and a slow smile spread across her face as she concentrated. Then she mimicked Liann, bouncing it off one hand and reversing direction. The tip of her tongue poked out from the corner of her mouth. Liann would definitely have to work on
that
with Maddie.

“Great job!” Liann glanced over at Justine, who applauded.

“This is so cool!” Maddie reversed the rifle’s direction again, the spin turning into a white blur.

The front door opened, and the guys came out. One of them turned on the porch light. “Hey, we started cutting the pie,” said Billy. “We couldn’t take waiting anymore.”

The men stopped and stared as Maddie flipped the rifle up in the air a few feet, using one hand. She reached out and it snapped back onto her hands. She whirled to face Liann. “I did it! I did it! Am I a natural?” She flung herself at Liann in a hug, dropping the rifle in the process.

Liann hugged Maddie and tried not to shoot Jake a look of triumph. “I guess you are.” She had a feeling Maddie wouldn’t be in a hurry to quit anytime soon.

Maddie did a little jig in the front yard, now nearly dark as twilight settled in the west. “I don’t know what it was. It felt easier to spin the rifle. Maybe because it's shorter, more compact?”

“Well, you’ll definitely have a role in the battle scene. I think I’ll have three of you spin rifles, while five of you use the flags, or maybe sabers. It’s the final movement, so we want it to be dramatic visually.” Liann grinned at Maddie.

A pair of headlights shone down the driveway, and a four-door sedan rolled up to the other line of vehicles. Liann glimpsed the head and shoulders of a man. A young man.

“Hey, y’all,” he said as he left the car. He looked comfortable in his Yellowjackets shirt and worn-out jeans.

“Tim Rollins.” Maddie clamped her hand on Liann’s wrist. “Tim. At our house. And I feel and look like a sweat ball.”

“What brings you by tonight?” asked Jake, strolling up to meet Tim at the edge of the drive.

“Hey, Coach.” Tim dipped his head, making himself look shorter than Jake, even though they were of equal height. “I, uh... I wanted to say hi to Maddie. And you too.”

“Well, come on over, we’re about ready to have some dessert.” He clapped the young man on the shoulders.

“He came to see me.” Maddie gave Liann a triumphant look and raced for the front door. “Be right back, y’all.”

Liann felt unsettled in the pit of her stomach. Jake Tucker thought he could handle Maddie just fine while she finished school. Maybe last year had been smooth for the Tuckers. But Liann had the feeling that he hadn’t ever tried to corral a teenage girl when boys entered the mix. School started Monday, and with it, a whole new world and Maddie a year older.

“You ready for the game Friday night, Tim?” Jake and Tim stopped close to where Liann gathered up the color guard equipment. She figured practice was over for the night, what with the young football player showing up.

“Yep, we’re going to crush the Dawgs.” Tim smacked his fist on one hand. “I’m ready. I know that much.”

“I assume you’ve applied to colleges already?” Jake asked Tim.

Tim opened his mouth, but the front door banged open. “Hey!  Just had to freshen up. Ms. Rivers and I were practicing after supper.” Maddie stood on the edge of the porch, leaning on one of the supporting poles. Her dark ash brown hair was sleek and straight, a sky blue hairband holding it back. In the space of barely two minutes, she’d also changed into some dark blue capris and a white blouse with a wide ruffled neckline.

“Hi, Maddie.” Tim wiped his palms on his pants legs.

“Hi there.” Maddie sauntered down to ground level. “Tim, this is Ms. Rivers. She’s my coach. I can’t wait until opening game. I just wish you could see us perform.”

“Probably can’t.” The boy glanced at Jake then relaxed. “We’ll be celebrating being ahead at halftime.”

“That’s the way to think about it,” Jake said. “You two are working very hard this season. I’m proud of both of you.”

Maddie beamed, and Tim returned the look. Oh, boy. Liann would definitely pray for Jake, then warn him. He was going to have his hands full this fall.

#             

Jake stepped out onto the turf of Yellowjacket Stadium. The stadium’s lights glowed, even though sunset was still more than an hour away. Time for kickoff in thirty minutes.

There was nothing like the first home game of the season. The atmosphere crackled with energy as the metal bleachers filled with fans wearing yellow shirts. Restaurants in Starlight might as well shut down during the football game, because the crowd gathered here tonight. The familiar, heady rush of Texas football hit Jake as he scanned the turf stretching one hundred yards in the other direction. And a twinge of nerves too. Somewhere in the stands sat a coaching representative from Kansas Tech.

“You about ready?” Coach Blann, twenty-five years his elder, had been a fixture in Yellowjackets football for nearly two decades.

“Yes, sir.” The boys were back in the locker room, whooping it up, tying their cleats, straightening their pads, and waiting for their pep talk and a quick prayer before heading onto the field. They’d enter with a cloud of smoke and the crack of a cannon.

“We’re going to have a great season. Best ever.” Blann's gaze roamed the bleachers.

“I’m ready for us to stomp on some Dawgs tonight,” Jake said. He didn’t think about losing, or falling back. Every play sealed up nice and neat, every pass caught. No one would sack Tim Rollins, either. The kid was by far the best quarterback they’d had in recent years and was up for his final season. If he kept improving, one day they might even watch him on the NFL.

“Listen, Tucker.” Blann strode along the sideline to the nearest of three long yellow plastic benches where the team sat when they weren’t striving to gain yardage. “I haven’t made any official announcement yet, but I turned in my paperwork to the district this week. This will officially be my last season.”

“We’ll miss you, sir. You’ve made some great contributions to this organization.”

“I wanted to let you know that I’m recommending that the superintendent and school board appoint you as my replacement. There’ll be red tape and proper paperwork to file, but you’re my top pick. They’ll bat around some names for show, but in the end, I want the job to go to you. You’ve earned it. You’ve been a mentor to these boys, and I know they’ll respond to you.” Blann held up his hand. “I know Kansas is here tonight, and I’m mighty proud of that. But I can’t think of anyone else to be head coach of the ’Jackets.”

“I—I’m honored.” Jake couldn’t say anything else. He’d be the youngest head coach in the history of Starlight football. This year he planned to keep the State championship in his sights, and he wouldn’t let the team forget it, either.

“So, think about it. Before you start packing for Kansas and that junior assistant coach position you want.” Blann turned and faced back toward the cinder block structure at the end of the field that housed the locker rooms. “Those boys look up to you. They’ll listen to you without giving you much grief. You’re a symbol of hope to them, that they can put those skills they learn out here on the field to good use in their lives. Boys like Rollins, the world would say are a lost cause. Everybody knows his dad spends more time at the local watering hole than being a father.”

“I don’t consider him a lost cause. He’s a hard worker, and he’ll be ten times the man his father is someday.” Jake nodded. “Thank you, Coach.” The other night, he’d been glad to see Tim stop by the house. Even if the boy was using it as an excuse to see Maddie, it was yet another chance for Jake to be a positive influence on him. But... Jake wasn’t going to consider staying in Starlight. He wasn’t going to tell Blann that, just yet. And at least when he left, it wouldn't be a surprise.

The band was starting to file in and arrive, and he spotted Maddie and Liann with the color guard squad. Liann wore simple black track pants topped by a Yellowjackets shirt, but Maddie wore her full costume—white leggings covered with a simple, flowing yellow skirt.
Just like Belle’s in the movie,
Maddie had said.

One of the drummers on the line started beating on a bass drum, and the sound set the Yellowjackets fans into a frenzy, humming on their kazoos. The sound almost made Jake laugh every time he heard it—an incessant buzzing that mingled with the cheers. He figured that was as threatening as a Yellowjacket could sound. Considering they were playing the Copperas Cove Bulldawgs tonight, they needed all the buzz they could get.

Maddie waved at him from across the field and tugged on Liann’s arm. Liann gave a single wave then turned her focus back to directing the girls, pointing to where they should place their equipment.

The memory of Saturday night had followed Jake all through the week. Part of him wanted to ask Liann out on a real date, but he knew it wouldn’t be fair to her. Plus, she’d been engaged very recently. He wasn’t about to be her consolation prize. So here they were. Also, there was the Kansas Tech recruiter in the stands, holding binoculars.

Now the cheerleaders ran the length of the home side, waving and doing their back flips. Jake had warned the boys not to be distracted by the girls in black and yellow. They were there to focus on the game. Tonight was for winning, not finding a girlfriend. The game would help them better themselves. When those on either squad started intermingling, distractions could cost them games. Too many games could cost someone their future. Every decision could have lifelong consequences.

Blann had crossed to where the trainers were setting up the water stations for the home team and was bawling somebody out for something. He respected Blann, but sometimes the man was overly picky. He said he was old school, but Jake didn’t like how he talked about women as if they weren’t quite equal to men. That didn’t set right with Jake. Maddie had told him once that Coach Blann had yelled at her for putting the water cooler on the wrong end of the bench.

Jake knew if he were head coach around here, things would change. Not the standard of excellence that Blann promoted, but the politics of athletics. Jake wouldn’t play that kind of game. He sucked in a deep breath, blew it out, then looked at his watch. Time to head back to the locker room.

He left the field, crossed a small expanse of lawn, and entered the long narrow building. Shouts and locker doors slamming masked the sounds of someone’s iPod.

Jake whistled through his fingers and banged on the nearest locker with his fist. “Listen up, y’all!” The voices fell silent, and someone turned off the music. “We’re about ready to go. The Dawgs are tough, but they haven’t felt the Yellowjackets sting!” The boys roared in response. Jake felt the eyes of the kings of Starlight’s gridiron on him.

Coach Blann stepped forward. “Boys, let’s take a knee b’fore we head out.”

The boys in their black and yellow jerseys each sank to the floor on one knee, their helmets clutched in one hand.

“Let’s bow our heads.”

Jake felt the hush sweep through the locker room. Sure, they prayed before the games. It was tradition. It was Texas football. He didn’t know what all the boys believed, but he always prayed they sensed God’s presence in that room, that Someone much bigger than them took joy in their sportsmanship.

He remembered a moment during his senior year when an ordinary game turned into one that changed his life and firmly cemented his childhood faith. Over the years, he'd found himself the new kid in school. When he bowed his head as the captain prayed, back then he felt God's presence, and knew God was with him in Starlight. Everything would be okay. The memory made his throat catch even now as they waited for Coach Blann to pray. God, with him in Starlight... But that didn’t mean he was supposed to stay, because God was in Kansas too.

The boys rose up after the student-led prayer and started clapping each other’s backs and fastening helmets.

“Coach Tucker, talk to us.” Coach Blann looked at him. The clock was ticking closer to seven-thirty and kickoff.

Jake cleared his throat. “This is our first game of the season, but you play like it’s your last game. You seniors are looking ahead to graduation. You’re not graduating tonight. Some of you are thinking of that girl who’ll be waiting for you after the game. You’re not getting married tonight. You’re not cleaning your room or mowing your lawn. Tonight’s not about homework, or the television show you’re missing. Tonight, you are Yellowjackets. If you were to walk off the field tonight, and never go back on, what are you going to leave behind you?” The hum from the overhead lights accented his words. The undertones of the bass drums outside and the faint roar from the stands drifted through the windows near the ceiling. “Be all in tonight. Be here tonight. Be the kind of player that those younger boys out there should be watching.” He nodded at Coach Blann.

“Let’s go sting some Dawgs!” Blann growled.

Jake had more flickers of memory from more than ten years  ago, going out there in the same uniform. The years had flown, and Coach Blann had turned from his coach into his colleague. Jake and Coach Blann and the rest of the staff followed the team to the waiting area.

The cheers and screams rose up as the team waited inside the inflated black-and-yellow striped tunnel, with a paper barrier blocking them from the field ahead.