Into The Team (9 page)

“I can’t believe Daryl Atkins looks just as hot in person,” she said as she took her drink. “I mean, his eyes are like blue neon.”

Todd closed the door to the fridge. He knew what she meant. Even from the stands at the game he’d noticed Daryl’s eyes.

“I never got to meet Eduardo Manila, or Sean Thompson.” She issued a heavy breath and sat on the bed, gazing distantly at the curtains.

“You’ll meet them,” he said while slipping an arm around her and lying back against the headboard. She settled her head against his shoulder.

They’d eaten a steak and rice dish in the restaurant, and although he wanted to get it on with her, he did feel the after meal lethargy taking firm hold. He sipped his beer quietly.

“Is everything alright with you?” Cherrie mumbled.

“Yeah.” He stroked her hair and squeezed her shoulder.

“It’s just that I thought you’d be a lot happier today. But when I met you at the station, you had this intense look in your eyes, like you’d just been through some dangerous mission or something.” She laughed. “You looked like Cindy Baxter’s boyfriend when he’d just got out of prison.”

The comment made him smile as he remembered going with her to pick up the local jailbird after he’d spent six months inside. That lad came out of those gates looking like someone who’d been stuck in a time warp.

But the smile faded fast as he made a curious analogy. Prisoners faced the possibility of being raped by fellow inmates; man sex occurred all the time in those places. His gut sank as he wondered if Cherie had somehow seen the same silent fear in his eyes that they saw in Cindy’s man that day.

“I’m ok.” He took another swig of beer. “The week was heavy with all the training. We have to be up at six every day and it’s non-stop till after lunch.”

She huddled closer to him.

“It’s all going to be worth it when you’re out on the pitch in front of thousands of screaming fans,” she said. “I can’t wait to see my dad’s face when he sees you on Match Night.” She lifted her head and looked at him with eyes brimming. “Hey, did you see those photographers taking pictures when we left the stadium this evening?”

He shook his head.

“There were four of them in the car park and I swear they had telephoto lenses on you and me.” She sat up and smiled as if in a dreamlike trance. “We’ll be in those celebrity magazines and…”

Todd’s mind drifted. Not for the first time today, the feel of Jason’s cock on his ass presented itself. That moment when the thick shaft pressed into his butt cheek as the man moved forward, his balls crushing at Todd’s ass crack…
Shit! What would have happened if I hadn’t left?

“It’s our dream Todd.” Cherie leaned close and kissed him. “We’ll have it all.”

Todd put down his beer, his cock hard again. Taking her drink he placed it on the table and unstrapped her top. She wriggled herself out of it and fiddled around her back to free her bra. As she did, Todd jumped up and pulled his shirt off. He needed it now, and after stepping out of his trousers he peeled his undershorts off to free his urgent erection.

Once he entered her, he couldn’t hold back.

He rammed hard, spurred on by her faint low moans. Twice she tried to get him to slow down but he couldn’t, and within a minute he’d shot into her.

“That was fast,” she muttered, climbing off the bed.

She wrapped a towel around her breasts and locked herself in the bathroom. Although he felt bad for coming so soon, he was too tired to argue or think about it, and after pulling the covers over himself, he closed his eyes.

He tried to get another one out of her in the morning, but she wouldn’t go for it. After dressing, she sat on the bed smoking a cigarette and giving him the occasional off look.

They had breakfast at the hotel and took a stroll around the city streets. Before lunchtime, the city was quiet around the hotel, and the tranquility of being amongst the high-rise buildings cleared his head. It seemed a lifetime ago since Miles Dixon drove him through these streets last Sunday.
Miles Dixon…did you know what you were getting me into?

He shrugged at the thought.

“After we check out of the hotel, let’s go and see that film you’ve been talking about,” he said, squeezing her hand.

“I don’t fancy sitting in a cinema.”

“What about bowling, or shopping even?”

Neither option seemed to register and she looked at him curiously.

“Something’s not right, Todd,” she said. “I can feel it.”

“Everything’s fine.” He stopped walking and drew her close.

“Are you sure? You’ve been very tense, and that shag last night was the quickest I’ve ever had.”

He felt bad again, was reminded of being a teenager. “I just needed it.”

She studied him.

“That’s the trouble with men. You think sex is all about ejaculation.”

“Babe…” He frowned while looking up and down street, checking they were alone. They were. “I’m sorry,” he said, stroking her cheek. “I’ve had a tough week.”

She seemed to debate something internally, as if wondering whether he was dodging some issue. But eventually, a smile returned.

“Is it what you expected? The club, I mean.”

Taking a deep breath, he gazed across the street at the slowly opening shops.

“It’s just been tough,” he said. “I mean, I like it, and it’s what I want, but there are some sort of….”

“What?”

He knew he’d have to be careful with what he told her, so he decided to keep it vague.

“I may not get a lot of time to see you.” He looked into her eyes and saw distant sympathy. “The boss allowed me this weekend free, but I don’t know how many free days or nights I’ll get in the future. I have to…”

He wanted to say he’d been told he has to put the team first, but didn’t. What that implied to him stuck in his throat and made his stomach tighten.

“Look,” she said with a soft smile. “I was talking with Jason Collier’s wife and she told me I better get used to standing in the background. That I’ll probably go weeks without even hearing from you. So I know what to expect Todd. I’ve always known it.” She stopped, and her expression froze. “Is it bad? Do you think it’s going to be too difficult?”

Todd didn’t have the answer. Since Friday he’d been sitting on the edge of nowhere with one hand being pulled into a deep unknown while his other hand didn’t know whether to push him off or pull him back. Whatever putting the team first meant, or what it would do to him, he could only go into it and find out.

“I just want you to know that you mean a lot to me,” he said. “And if we don’t see each other for long periods, I’ll still be thinking about you, no matter what I’m doing.”

Her eyes gazed blankly, and he could see a million things rushing through her mind. He figured one of those was the prospect of him meeting another girl and perhaps ending things between them.

“I suppose it’s tough being away from home, and you.”

“Listen to me.” She pushed him back and gave a serious look. “You have worked hard for this. Just remember all those nights you trained alone. Remember all those games you played for nothing other than a few cheers and claps. However tough it is, or is going to be, just get stuck in and don’t fuck it up. It’s your dream Todd, it always has been.”

The tense look in her eyes made him smile. Standing in front of him was the only encouragement he’d had in recent years. While his mother had always been accommodating in his endless training cycles and dedicated match days, she had always been a little too formal and polite about his “hobby”, as she put it. She had never believed he’d make money from kicking a ball.

Only Cherrie had listened intently while he spoke of goals and tackles and offside passes, even though she didn’t know what one was. Only she had spoken with passion and pride to others about what Todd did every Tuesday and Saturday in Blackmoor.

He hugged her again and rested his head against her shoulder, smelling that hair that was going to disappear on him for another week or two.

There was no way he was going to fuck it up. And in that moment, as she’d said those words, he was reminded of what the boss had said about him only having to go as far as he wanted. And he realized that Jason Collier had given no pressure, hadn’t even forced him into what he did. Not that he really did anything. It was like the boss said - an act of affection. The guy was just being tactile, even helpful, and perhaps his stiff cock was a natural reaction for him. Maybe it was a nervous response to the new guy on their steady and close kept team.

“I won’t fuck it up,” he said.

A few seconds went by before she relaxed away from him. Smiling, she nodded back down the street.

“Come on; let’s check out of the hotel and go see that movie.”

It was six thirty when he made it back to the house. He’d taken the bus to the nearby suburbs and walked the rest of the way. If he was honest, he was trying to put off facing his fellow teammates again. After seeing Cherrie off on the train, he’d come to think that the rest of the house knew about the informalities between the first team players, and Todd now felt it was time for him to show whether he was in or out.

Signing forms and training wasn’t enough. And he kept seeing that look in Trent’s eyes on Friday night when Todd had turned down the offer of going to the pool with the others. If anything had shown that he knew about the closeness of the team, it would have been that silent refusal.

When he arrived, he found a quiet house. It felt odd to be alone, and he stood for a moment in the hallway, listening carefully. No sounds came from upstairs.

He remembered Trent telling him that they had all come home early last Sunday to prepare his room. The memory gave a warm feeling as he loitered by the stairway, and a smile crept onto his lips as he imagined them enjoying their free day.

It was too early to go to the pool, and his stomach felt hollow after not eating since before the movie. A sudden taste for fried eggs drew him to the kitchen.

Half way through frying the eggs, the main door banged shut. A minute later Trent walked into the kitchen with a sports bag over his shoulder and a tired look in his eyes.

“Poached or boiled eggs are better,” he said, while putting down his bag. After taking a carton of milk from the fridge, he sat down at the table and watched Todd shovel a fried egg from the pan.

“Cherrie’s quite a looker,” Trent said.

Todd smiled. “Sharon too.”

“Sharon’s ok.” Trent gulped down his milk. “How was your weekend?”

Todd made up some story about having a great time on the town as he took his eggs to the table. Trent watched him carefully, his eyes searching.

“What is it?” Todd asked as he took a seat.

After a long moment, where it appeared the guy was thinking, Trent smiled.

“The pool is off tonight,” he said. “It’s been drained. The cleaners are coming to clean it tomorrow.”

The news gave Todd slight relief. At least that got him out of any close petting that may happen down there. But he wondered if he should feel that way about it. He wasn’t sure that kind of thing went on in the house. Perhaps it only happened on the first team.

“I suppose an early night is needed,” he said and dismissed his thoughts.

They were silent again but Todd could feel questions in the air.

“Did you get chance to talk with any of the first team last week?”

Todd had a few more mouthfuls of egg before answering.

“I met Daryl, Wayne, Craig, Leo, Josh, and Jason Collier.”

Trent nodded, his eyes still searching. “What do you think?”

Todd swallowed his mouthful and took a deep breath. He could almost feel Trent’s hook wedged in his mind, fishing around his thoughts. He decided to give him what he seemed to want.

“I bathed with Jason. He gave me a massage.”

Trent smiled and nodded. “How was that?”

“It was, erm, ok.”

Trent chuckled.

“You know,” he said, getting to his feet. “It gets easier.” He grabbed his bag and left the room.

Todd watched him go, wondering if Trent had been given a massage from Jason, or Leo or Josh. Part of him wanted to ask, because even if Trent didn’t admit it, or if he tried to deny it, Todd would detect the truth in his eyes, and he’d feel better knowing he wasn’t alone in this.