The Fumble Of A Quarterback

Chapter 16: First Game Of The Season

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"Nojo! Are you ready for this? First game of the season!" dad asked as he ran down the stairs of our house, excited to start today.

I nodded with a smile as I slipped on my shoes and tied them. "Couldn't be more excited." And I meant that, we had been training for weeks and I wanted to see if all that work would pay off. "I think we will kill it today. We have good game plans."

"They are called plays."

I smiled shyly. "Sorry."

"No big dealio champ. We all know how you are with football. I'm just glad you're trying though. Anyhow, we should get going before the players arrive."

I nodded as I grabbed my backpack with things that I thought I would need for the day. 

"Paul, don't forget, I'll be in the stands cheering you on," mom said as she kissed his cheek.

"I'll be using that as my source of strength today."

She smiled as the two embraced for a moment. "I know you will."

Dad check his phone and rose his eyebrows. "Ok, we got to get going!" dad said. 

I gave mom a quick hug then quickly followed him out the door to the car. My stomach was in knots ever since I woke up. I tried to convince myself that this game would be fine. I never sat and watched a game, let alone had emotional stakes in it. This was more than a game, it felt more like a college class and today was test day.

"Nojo, relax. This game is going to be just fine," dad said as we drove to the stadium, breaking me out of my consuming worried thoughts.

I nodded as I wiped my wet palms on my dress slacks. "How do you handle the nerves?"

"I tell myself that worrying solves nothing."

"That's not helpful," I mutter in disappointment. I was expecting some glorious fix, but that was something anyone could have told me.

He shrugged. "Well, it works for me. That and a kiss from your mother. Those are the two things that normally help."

"Somehow I think a kiss from mom will have little effect on me."

He chuckled. "You might have a point with that." With that, he parked in front of a building that looked empty. "We walk the tunnels to get to the stadium."

"Tunnels?" I asked with wide eyes. I had never heard of such a thing on campus. I just assumed we would park at the stadium. 

Dad chuckled as he got out of the car. "My Gooley, we can't park over at the stadium. It's crazier than your uncle on the fourth over there. This is how we get over there."

"How do the players get to the stadium? The same tunnels?" 

He shook his head with a wink. "We can't make it that obvious, now can we?"

I followed him as he unlocked the brick building and walked down the hall. He whistled a catchy tune as he swung his keys around his fingers. He was completely calm, unlike me who felt stiff and clammy.

I couldn't work up a sentence as we walked through a brightly lit set of halls for what felt like forever. Dad continued to whistle songs until we reached a staircase. 

"Here we are," dad said as he climbed through the steps.

"I guess we are," I said as I followed him up the stairs until we walked out into the stadium.

Faintly I could hear music from outside the stadium, hinting that people were already here. A few people passed us, muttering a hello as they continued on their way. There was such a buzz around us. It was a completely different feeling from the sleepy stadium I was used to.