“I wish it were different,” I tell her while running the back of my fingers along her cheek.
“Reef, I—”
I place a finger over her lips. Replace it with my mouth, and show her how I truly feel about her, with all the emotion of a possible last kiss.
“Mate, I’m in.” Chance can’t hide the excitement in his voice.
“Always knew it was going to happen, mate. Only a matter of when. So, give me the details because I’ll be there to watch you play your first game.”
“Hoping you would. I kept a spare ticket for you. You ought to see the smile on Dad’s face when I told him.”
I laugh. “Yeah, when I spoke to him at Adele’s, I could see how proud he was. I suppose I need one of the face posters on a stick to hold up when you score a goal.”
Chance chuckles. “Smartass. And there’ll be a pass for you to come down to the locker room after the game. A home game in front of a home crowd. I’m so excited I could piss myself.”
“Get the excitement out of your system now, so you can focus clearly on the game. Good luck.”
“Thanks, mate.”
“Shit, I forgot to mention Macy gave me the gift from your road trip. I have a sculpture, and I think it’s the one you tried to replicate. The weird sculpture on your bar at Adele’s party.”
“Hey, it’s sick. I love my creation, but impressed Mace gave the professional piece to you.”
“My only advice is stick with kicking a ball. It’s your best skill.”
“Whatever. See you on the other side.”
I end the call, check for new messages before booking a flight to Melbourne for tomorrow night. No notifications from a certain someone, but then I did ask her for space and to take her time to think about her future. Heading to Melbourne to watch Chance play his first game is perfect to take my mind off my own shit.
Twenty-four hours later, I arrive in Melbourne and spend time with my family Friday night before heading to the soccer game on Saturday afternoon.
Noah convinces me to go on a run with him Saturday morning. I’m fit but can’t run the marathon distance he considers a casual jog, but he slows his stride so we can talk through heavy breaths. I need to tell him about Macy, and how it feels right being with her, and it also feels right being back in Melbourne. Apart from her knowing about my infertility, there’s no way she’ll leave her father to come to Melbourne even if we give it a shot, so I need to start finding a way to untangle my thoughts and feelings on how to make it work if she says yes. I expect when she has thought everything through, she’ll realise there’s no future with me.
Noah coughs to clear out his lungs before talking. “I’ve never seen you hung up on a girl like this even though you’ve convinced yourself you have no future.”
“Yeah. I was so focused on winning her back and being all positive like Chance, I ignored the real reasons we can’t be together despite being in love.”
“In love?” he rasps out between heavy breaths. “So, you honestly think she’s the one?”
We turn a corner, and I’m relieved we’re only blocks from home. “Yeah. I did. But… I can’t see how it’s going to work out. I mean, sure we can keep fooling around like we have been until it’s time for me to leave for Melbourne, only then it’s going to hurt more to leave her.”
“Sounds like it’s more than fooling around.”
“It was never supposed to grow to more. It did. And after we split, all I could focus on was getting her back. I hated not being able to see her. Then when I thought we could go back to how it was and realised it wasn’t possible for me because it would be a relationship, it’s then when the penny dropped. I couldn’t allow her to get into a relationship without knowing the truth.”
“So, what now?”
Panting, I slow up to a walk because the thought of never being with Macy again steals all the oxygen surrounding me.
I shake my head at my brother. “I’m so bloody exhausted thinking about it. I want her. She deserves more. But I’m a selfish prick.”
“Yeah, you are.” He punches my shoulder playfully. “Sometimes it’s okay to be a prick.”
Chance scores a goal, and the entire stadium erupts into cheers and applause. His face is on thousands of sticks bobbing up and down around the crowd as they sing his name.
“Cha-ance. Cha-ance. Cha-ance.”
We have diehard fans, but this is the next level.
“You’d think he were their captain the way everyone idolises him,” I say to his father.
His father nods and gives a proud smile. “He’s waited a long time for this. And their support is the cream on top.”
“It’s a mountain of cream.” I laugh, and my heart swells with pride for my friend. I lean forward and watch Adele and Mrs Bateman both clapping in sync with the rest of the crowd, a rhythm to his name. They’re both smiling ear to ear.
I’m glad I got to witness this in person.
Football accolades came quicker for me in the AFL. Watching the sheer joy on his family’s face, I realise how long they have waited for this moment. How long Chance has waited. The years of training and giving up things in life others take for granted to be the best he can be in the sport he loves. Those years of waiting to be selected can play on your mind, knowing you are good enough to be out there playing, and the selectors think otherwise. It can fuck with your head. Not Chance. He’s been positive throughout his journey of getting here, and I admire him more for it.
At half time, I head to the bar to get Mr Bateman a beer.
The game restarts after the break, and Chance is sprinting with another player for the ball. He slips slightly, and his knees buckle. Chance goes down rolling, and when he stops, he grabs for his knee.
Fuck.
The crowd gasps in sync, rising to stand in concern.
“Oh, no,” Adele moans.
Mrs Bateman places a hand on her shoulder.
Mr Bateman’s gaze is fixed on his son.
The game is stopped while trainers run out and call for a stretcher. Minutes later, Chance is carried from the ground.
For minutes, I’ve stood by his family in silence. Shock and worry swirling in emotional currents.
“I’ll head down to the rooms,” Mr Bateman tells his family. He slides along the seats to the walkway.
“Call me when you speak to him, so I can come down, too,” Mrs Bateman says.
I don’t want to think of a possible ACL injury, except I know it’s part of the sport, and with all codes of football, the disappointment of a season-ending and sometimes career-ending injury is real.
Dakota is recovering from his injury. I’m visiting him tomorrow to check in on my mate. I only hope I won’t be doing the same for Chance.
We take our seats for the game to continue without Chance. It’s not the same, and I’m sure every supporter is holding their breath in anticipation, waiting for Chance to be assessed by the medical team in the locker room.
Chance’s team got the win.
He’s kept a brave face in the locker room for the team and his family. He’s in a chair with his knee elevated and ice packs applied to the area alongside a brace to stop him from moving it.