The Biggest Game of Our Life
By Hawkcat
A/N: Alrighty, first time writing for BTR, I'm excited. I've been reading stuff all day online and I couldn't take it anymore. So this was thus born. I can not believe how long it's been since I've updated, this is ridiculous. Well, I hope you guys enjoy this little intro/beginning and I can't wait to continue. :)
"Push baby, come on, push!" Mr. Knight urged, squeezing his wife's hand. Exhaustion was plainly written on the woman's expression, as tears and beads of sweat ran down her face.
"He's almost here, keep pushing," the doctor said calmly, a blanket ready for the newborn.
Mrs. Knight gave one last agonizing push and let out a moan. Soon the sound of cries filled the delivery room and Kendall Knight was wrapped up in a blue blanket before being passed over to his mother.
"Wow," Mrs. Knight said breathlessly. Fifteen hours and forty-seven minutes of labor had definitely paid off. The child in her arms cried noisily, the most beautiful sight she had ever seen.
"Wow," Mr. Knight echoed, sitting next to his wife on the edge of her bed, one arm wrapped around his family. The two parents smiled down at their newborn son, blissfully aware that their life would never be the same.
"Kendall!" Mrs. Knight yelled up the steps. "Come on, you don't want to be late!"
Five-year-old Kendall wasn't so sure she was right. He wouldn't mind if he were a couple of minutes late. Or an hour. In fact, Kendall was certain that he wouldn't mind if he just skipped his first day of Kindergarten, or maybe even the whole year. Who needed school anyway?
"Kendall!"
The boy sighed and looked in the mirror. He was wearing some khaki shorts and a green Pollo shirt that his mother made him wear on "special occasions." According to her the green helped to "bring out his eyes." Kendall didn't like the thought of his eyes being brought anywhere, especially out of his head, like Tom and Jerry's did on TV. He had already tried to change out of his shirt twice, but kept getting it stuck over his head. His father had laughed at his antics and forced his to pull his shirt back down.
"You don't want to make Mommy mad, do you Kendall?" his father asked, smiling.
"No…" Kendall muttered, looking down at his untied shoelaces and frowning. His father noticed and in one swift motion scooped Kendall up. The boy shrieked with laughter as his father carried him to the bed, lifted high in the air. He was then carefully dropped onto the mattress and was situated so that Mr. Knight could get at his son's shoelaces.
"Make a bunny ear, loop it around and pull it through. Remember Kendall?" Mr. Knight recited while he tied one pair of laces. "Think you can do the other one, son?"
Kendall nodded and took the pair of laces in his hand. He twisted them and pulled and looped, but found himself unable to get the laces to tie. He looked up at his father with tears in his eyes, his lip quivering.
"Can't," he said miserably.
"That's okay, Kendall. It takes a lot of practice." Mr. Knight reached and ruffled his son's blonde hair. He then took the laces in his hands and recited again, "Make a bunny ear, loop it around and pull it through."
Kendall grinned and kicked his little feet, proud of his shoes. He had gotten to pick them out when he and his mom had gone to the store earlier that week. They were red with black and white stripes on the sides. Just like the colors for the Minnesota Wilds hockey team.
"Okay, sport. You ready?" Mr. Knight said, scooping his son up again. Immediately Kendall's smile vanished and was replaced his fear. He shook his head frantically from side to side.
"No? Why not?"
"Cause everyone is going to play together and I won't have anyone to play with."
"Kendall, you're going to make friends, don't worry. I bet you'll have a friend before the end of the day. You'll have to tell me all about your first day, so make sure you remember everything for me, okay?"
"Do I have to?"
Mr. Knight smiled, "Afraid so, sport. But don't worry, it'll be fun." Kendall sighed. His father was one of the smartest people he knew, but Kendall just knew he was wrong this time.
"There you are!" Mrs. Knight said, seeing the two coming down the stairs. "Oh, Kendall, you look so grown up. Your shirt makes your eyes stand out so nicely."
Kendall quickly slapped his hands over his eyes, to make sure they stayed in his head like they were supposed to.
While Mrs. Knight looked confused, Mr. Knight laughed and said, "Not to mention he has a pair of the coolest shoes ever."
This made Kendall grin and he peeked out at his parents between his fingers. His father was positively beaming, while his mother was wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt.
Kendall looked at her questioning, but Mr. Knight then gave his wife a quick side-hug, squeezing her shoulder like he did whenever she would get tense. Kendall saw him do that a lot whenever his grandparents came to visit, or when she accidentally burnt dinner.
"Alright, let's go, bud. I'll walk you," Mr. Knight said. The school Kendall was attending was just down the street from their house. He took Kendall's hand and once they were at the door Kendall heard his mother call after him with a choked sob, "Have a great day, sweetie!"
"Why is Mommy sad?" Kendall asked, looking up at his father, once they were out of the drive way.
"She's not sad. She's happy. She knows you're going to have so much fun today. I think she might be jealous."
Kendall looked back at his retreating house. "I don't want her to be jealous. Can she come too?"
Mr. Knight smiled down at his son. "Nope. This is only for you. This is your adventure." This made Kendall smile. His very own adventure. His father knew exactly how to cheer him up.
All too soon however Kendall found himself looking up at the school building, about five feet away from the front door where all the other students were milling in. He began shaking as he felt that air of "goodbye" coming. All around him other students were sobbing their good-byes to their parents, and some of the parents were crying too.
Kendall felt his father's hands on his shoulders as he bent down to look at him eye-to-eye. He looked at his father's face, studying it. It was tanned and worn, with some light stubble under his jaw. His eyes held no sadness in them, only distinct pride.
"Okay son, listen to me. I know you're nervous but that's okay. Everybody is their first time out on the ice." Kendall grinned; he loved it when his father used hockey terms. "But you can't let that stop you from getting in the game. So I want you to strap your helmet on, find your balance, and go after that puck. Don't let your fear stop you. You just need to remember that Mommy and I are going to be right here, cheering you on. Just grab on with both hands and go big time."
Kendall was then enveloped in a big hug and his father whispered in his ear, "In essence, we love you and you're going to have a great day."
The boy nodded and said, "I love you Daddy."
His father ruffled his hair again and gave Kendall an encouraging nod. Taking a deep breath Kendall Knight headed towards the front door and went inside, ready for the game of his life to begin.
A/N: End of Chapter One
So did you like it? I know not a lot has happened but I just wanted some fluff in the beginning. I'm thinking I'm going to pick up where this left off in Chapter Two, but I don't know. Should I skip ahead to later on in Kendall's school years, or is it possible Kendall met one of his best friends (I'm not spoiling who :3) in Kindergarten? Decisions, decisions... If you leave a review tell me what you think.
Also, if you have questions/comments/criticisms please drop me a note or review to let me know. I am aiming to become a better writer, so feel free to point out any mistakes or blunders.
Thanks! :3