Disclosures - SF4 (24 page)

All of the other players were tall, lanky women, and they each looked very athletic. Jamie wasn’t sure if her partner had chosen her outfit to display her impressive musculature, but whether planned or inadvertent, it did just that. The other women looked a little gawky next to her—they looked as tall as they were, while Ryan looked shorter until she stood right next to one of them. Her body was so perfectly proportioned that it continually surprised Jamie how tall she was, until she had to stand on her tiptoes just to get her arms around her neck.

As the ball was tossed into play Jamie had to remind herself that she had seen her lover play this game on the beach in Santa Monica. Playing on a large hard court changed the game so much that it seemed like an altogether different sport. The players moved so quickly, and covered so much ground, that they were literally throwing their bodies all over the court. Fortunately, Ryan wore both kneepads and elbow pads, and Jamie was thankful that she had, or her body would be acquiring a mass of bruises. Ryan’s tight braid flew around her back and shoulders as she dove for ball after ball, making a play on most that she tried for, and giving an all-out effort on the ones she missed.

Within a very few minutes, Ryan was clearly dominating the game. She had a vertical leap that was hard to believe and her power was truly intimidating. The first time that she rose into the air to spike the ball into the other court, she let out such a powerful yell that the players on the other side froze for a second. Jamie couldn’t help but think of the Celtic warriors she had read about that beat their opponents with their blood-curdling war cries and physically intimidating style as much as their skills in battle.

Ryan’s powerful back muscles flexed as she brought her arm back to slam the ball onto the opposite court, sending it into a dizzying spin as it curved towards an open space on the floor. Jamie could see the women on the other side occasionally flinch as her arm came back and, even to her unschooled eye, that did not seem like a good tactic for returning the ball. After about ten minutes, they were dodging out of the way to avoid being hit by her powerful slams, another approach that seemed counterproductive, but understandable. The coach was getting frustrated with the two women and he finally asked Ryan's partner to switch with one of them; after getting hit a few times, she was looking for a safe haven as well.

The coach had finally seen all that he could stomach. He called a halt to the slaughter and called Ryan over. He spoke with her quietly for a few minutes and patted her on the back before he gathered the other three into a little group and spoke with them. She came back over to Jamie and flopped down onto the bench next to her. "That was kind of embarrassing," she admitted, rubbing her wet face with a towel.

"Were those varsity players?" Jamie asked.

"No, they were walk-ons like me. I think the roster is pretty well set at this point. My guess is that he’s only got one or two spots to fill this late in the year."

Jamie pulled the towel from Ryan and carefully dried her back, lifting her braid to get to her very wet neck. "It was really woman against girls, Honey. You looked All-World."

"I feel bad for them, though," Ryan admitted a little sheepishly. "They're trying for a spot, too."

"I know, Baby. But you still had to do your best, even if it made the others look bad."

"Did they really look that bad?" she asked, turning to look directly into Jamie’s eyes.

She fluffed the wet bangs out of the bright blue eyes that gazed down at her and wished that she could kiss her partner for being so concerned about the other women’s performances. She just nodded slightly, acknowledging that they did, in fact, look horrible, even in her uneducated view.

"I guess I can’t let that bother me," Ryan agreed. "But to tell you the truth, I liked the days of youth league where everyone got to play the same amount of time no matter how bad you were."

Unable to resist her need, Jamie leaned over and kissed her partner’s steaming hot head. "I love that you care about those women and how they feel about this, Love. You have such a good heart."

Ryan gave her a shy, almost embarrassed grin and went back to drying the rest of her body. When she was finished she stayed right where she was until Jamie finally asked, "Are we waiting for something?"

"Yeah, Coach Placer asked me to hang around for a few minutes. I think he wants to talk to the other coaches."

After a few more minutes Coach Placer came back onto the court and motioned Ryan to follow him. "Come on," she said to Jamie.

"Are you sure?" she asked as she trotted alongside. "Maybe he wants to see you alone."

"I don't want to go alone, so that's settled," she said with a smile. "We're a package deal, Honey."

They followed him down the hall to his office where the other coaches were already perched on whatever furniture they could fit on. They took the two chairs as the coach went to sit at his desk. He gave Ryan a broad smile and said, "I think it's clear after that little exhibition that we'd like to offer you a spot on the team."

Ryan smiled back and nodded, waiting for him to continue. "I know you only played volleyball for one year, but what else did you play at USF?"

"I played soccer for one year, volleyball for one and basketball for two. The other things I did were just club sports."

"You were a busy girl, weren't you?" he teased. "What years did you participate?"

"96 and 97."

"That should leave you with two more years of eligibility since you sat out last year. We'll check the records at USF and make sure everything is square with the NCAA If it all checks out, we'd like to have you with us. Are you interested?"

"Yes. I'm definitely interested. But Coach Greene wants me to play soccer this year and I'm considering one other sport."

"Are you just doing this for fun, Ryan, or is a scholarship important to you?"

She smiled at Jamie and said, "It’s important, but I’m not going to let it be a deal-breaker. I’ve decided that I need to play the sport that appeals to me most."

"Well, I don’t mean to put pressure on you, but I’d like to be able to let the other girls know as soon as possible. If you don’t join us, we need to offer one of them a spot."

Jamie piped up. "Are you offering Ryan a scholarship?"

"Why, yes, of course. We have one left to give. We've been working those three women out for weeks trying to determine which one we'd give it to. Luckily Ryan came along and made the decision easy for us."

"Were any of them scholarship players last year?" Jamie asked.

"No. They were all walk-ons from this year. Why?"

"I just wondered if any of them would lose a scholarship because of Ryan."

"Oh no. I don't yank a scholarship unless there's a compelling reason. If I convince a girl to come here to play, I feel like I have to keep my end of the bargain. If she comes to practice and tries hard, she keeps her ride."

Ryan smiled and said, "That's good to hear, Coach. I do have a few questions. Do you think it will be a problem that I'm openly gay?"

"Not for any of us," he said easily. "The only problem I've ever had is when two players are dating each other and they break up or have a fight. I trust that won't be a problem for you, will it?" he asked with a grin as he looked from Jamie to Ryan.

"Nope," she said happily. "I am permanently partnered. Would you have a problem if Jamie went on road trips with me?"

"We couldn't pay for her airfare, and she'd have to get her own room, but we don't do bed checks, so..." He smiled at the pair and shrugged his shoulders, indicating that his policy was to not get too involved in his player’s personal lives.

"I'm thinking of playing a winter sport too," Ryan said, surprising Jamie completely. "Would you mind if I had to practice with another team during the end of the volleyball season?"

He shook his dark head and said, "We had two players who played two sports last season. We didn't have any trouble working out the schedule. But I would ask that you focus more on volleyball since that is the most important part of our season. You might have to miss an exhibition game or two, but I'm sure we could work it out."

"When do you start practice?"

"Next week," he said quickly, his excitement building. "Can we count on you?"

Ryan pursed her lips, obviously not quite ready to commit. "I’ve got an appointment with Sandra Johnston at nine. After we speak with her, I really need to think about it for a while before I’m ready to commit, Coach. Jamie and I need to spend a little time making sure that I make a decision we can both live with. Can I call you late this afternoon?"

"Sure. Here's my home phone number," he said as he wrote his number on his business card and handed it to Ryan. "Is there anything else I can do to help you make the decision? Would you like to talk to some of the players from last year?"

"Yes. That would be helpful. Could you have one or two of them call me?"

"Absolutely. What number should I use?"

"Just have them page me." She recited her number. "I’m going to be in and out today, and that’s the surest way to reach me."

"Will do, Ryan. I’ll make sure it happens. Anything else?"

"Yeah," she said slowly. "Would you be comfortable talking about the paperwork that you have on me from when I was recruited in high school?"

He shifted a little in his seat, but answered her honestly. "I can’t share anything that’s confidential, but I’ll answer anything I can."

She fixed him with a level gaze and asked, "Did the teachers from my high school go to bat for me?"

He let out a heavy sigh and said, "They didn’t do you any favors, Ryan."

Ryan maintained her steady gaze and finally asked just one more question. "Coach Ratzinger sold me out, didn’t she?"

He looked very pained as he just nodded his head a slight bit. "I think she made the coaches here doubt your emotional stability."

"Emotional stability? Being a lesbian in San Francisco calls your stability into question!?" Jamie nearly shouted.

Ryan smiled indulgently at her partner and explained to the coaches, "She’s my little champion."

"Well, Jesus, Ryan, someone needs to be! It just slays me how chicken sh…" she began, but Ryan gently covered her mouth with her hand.

"There’s nothing in here about Ryan being gay, Jamie. Now, it’s possible that my predecessor just didn’t put that in the file, but this indicates that Ryan just quit for no good reason."

"But she didn’t!!!" Now Jamie was shouting, and Ryan felt her stomach start to clench as the tension in the room rose sharply.

"It’s okay, Honey. I just need to know the facts to put it behind me once and for all." Turning to Coach Placer she said, "I appreciate that you were honest with me, Coach. That means a lot." She got up to shake his hand, nodded to the assistants and shook each one's hand as she made her way towards the door. "I’ll call you late this afternoon."

After they walked a few feet down the dark hallway, she pushed Jamie gently against the wall and gave her a very sincere kiss of thanks. "What was that for?" the startled woman gasped.

"For loving me, and trying so hard to defend my honor."

"I do love you, Ryan, and it makes me irrationally angry to see what a bunch of asshole adults did to a fragile young girl. I’d do anything to take that hurt away."

"I know, Babe, but it can’t be done. We just need to move on now."

As they walked down the hallway, Jamie pulled her to a stop in front of a large display of color pictures of the previous year’s team. She smiled up at her and said, "I know that you haven’t made up your mind, but I choose volleyball."

"He was a nice guy, wasn't he?" Ryan said thoughtfully. "And I'm really excited about getting a scholarship."

"Ryan, Ryan, you're not focusing on the important things," she chided as her face broke into a gleeful smile, "Look at these outfits!"

They drove to Sufficient Grounds and spent an hour sipping lattés and munching on scones. Ryan's next interview was at nine, and she assured Jamie that her current outfit would be acceptable for the next sport as well. "Aside from the outfits, what did you think?" Ryan asked, sharing a teasing smile with her partner.

"I liked the coach a lot," Jamie said. "He seemed like the kind of guy you could really get along with."

"I think so, too," she said thoughtfully. "Telling me the truth about my coach at Sacred Heart boosted his stock way up in my book."

"I can well imagine," Jamie agreed, knowing that Ryan despised being treated like a child.

"Well, it’s time for the last of the interviews," she said, standing to stretch. As she did so she winced a bit, but kept right on doing it.

"Hey, what was that war cry you let out when you were slamming that ball at those poor girls?" Jamie was laughing at the memory, but Ryan just shook her head.

"That wasn’t a war cry, Babe," she insisted. "That was an ‘oh my God, I feel like my abs have been cut by a razor blade’ cry. That’ll teach me to work out my frustrations on my own body!"

"Where to this time, Honey?" Jamie asked as they approached the Boxster.

"Do you know where Kleeberger Field is?"