"Now that I enjoyed, very much. Thank you Cal," Sandy stated, wiping his mouth in his napkin.
Everyone sat back in their chairs, stuffed to the hilt. Bare lunch plates were scattered across the table, among multiple buckets of cracked crab legs.
"So Ryan, what do you think of crab legs?" Seth asked, the only one at the table still eating.
"Pretty good. A lot of work, but they're worth it."
After signing for the bill, Caleb stood up and put his wallet away. "Ryan, come with me please."
The unwarranted request had everyone at the table staring at Caleb, Ryan included.
"Grandpa, what's wrong?" Seth asked, concerned about his motive to pull Ryan aside.
"This is between Ryan and I. You stay with your parents, we'll meet you outside."
Sandy and Kirsten could see concern on Ryan's face and they could only imagine what was running through his mind.
"Dad? What are you doing?"
"Cal, you're making him nervous," Sandy cautioned.
"Stop jumping to conclusions. Come on Ryan."
Nerve-racked and confused, Ryan stood up and followed Caleb out of the restaurant. They continued walking to the railing overlooking the lake. Ryan's stomach churned wondering what the old man was going to say.
"Are you going to hit me?" Ryan asked suddenly, shocking Caleb.
Leaning on the railing, Caleb turned to Ryan and noticed the boy's state. "You think I brought you out here to scold you?"
Nodding, "Yeah," Ryan answered, in a tone that made it seem like the obvious answer.
"And what reason do I have to be angry with you? What? Because you ate a healthy sized lunch in an expense restaurant? Seth is still in there eating as we speak. Or what, because you were as good as your word and you got my car keys out of my locked car when I assumed you weren't as skilled as you claimed to be? Are these things people in Chino would have scolded you for?"
Nodding admittedly, Ryan tipped his head down and kicked at the ground with his boot. "I never did anything right in Chino. Didn't matter what it was. After a while you just learn to expect the worst."
Caleb had always seen Ryan when he was being cocky and confident, this raw look into his history was enlightening and disturbing at the same time.
"Ryan, I brought you out here to apologize to you for the way I treated you at the house. You were right. I underestimated you." Pushing off the railing, Caleb reached into his pocket for his wallet, causing Ryan to flinch. "I think you're the type of kid that could be good at anything you have an interest in." Reaching into his wallet, Caleb removed several large bills, folded them in half and held them out to Ryan. "I think you'll make a great soccer player."
"I can't take that," Ryan panicked, backing away.
"Only the best will do for my family Ryan and there's things you'll need. I'm sure you don't have a pair of soccer shoes, what do they call them?"
"Cleats?"
"Right. Cleats. You're going to need your own ball and a bag for your gear. I'm sure you didn't bring an athletic supporter or a cup with you from Chino and I'm confident that's something you'd rather shop for without Kirsten's help. Right?"
Ryan's mouth opened slightly, he was having trouble believing they were actually having this conversation.
"I'm sure she wouldn't mind avoiding that too," he agreed finally. "I can't pay you back. I don't have that kind of money. I mean…"
"I don't want you to pay me back Ryan, I want you to succeed. You take this, you get what you need for try-outs. You work hard and stay focused. Maybe after you make the team, you'll invite me to one of your games and we'll call it even."
Ryan was still trying to get used to having people around him that supported him and to have Caleb backing him now was extremely uncomfortable and overwhelming and he wasn't sure he liked the idea.
"Mr. Nichol…"
"I'm sure it will come as no surprise to you that I'm not the sort of man that takes 'no' for an answer." Raising his eyebrows at Ryan to make his point, he took a moment to make sure Ryan wasn't feeling threatened. "At least give it a shot. You'll never know what you're capable of if you don't try."
Try. He did promise Kirsten he'd try. Swallowing nervously, "Yes Sir."
"You're going to do fine Ryan, I have faith in you."
Ryan nodded again, looking at the relinquished wad of cash in his hand.
"Let's go meet up with the others. If I pat you on the back, you're not going to jump over the railing into the lake, are you?"
Snorting, "No. Not now that I know you're not going to kill me."
Seth's battle cry carried across the grounds, "Ryan! You okay?"
Feeling a little better about the situation, Ryan raised his hand and waved at Seth, who immediately took that as an invitation to come running over.
Seth waited for his Grandfather to walk away before questioning Ryan.
"So? What happened? What did he say?"
Looking up uncomfortably, "He um, he gave me money so I could play soccer." Raising his hand, he showed Seth the folded bills.
"Holy Moses, Ryan! That's so cool!"
"Yeah, but, what if I suck at soccer? What if…"
"Dude, we all know you're trying. Sooner or later you're gonna fail at something and that's okay. Look at me, I a poster child for failure. So what? Who cares? If you gave it your all and it doesn't work out, at least you tried right?"
"I guess so."
"So, can I come to your games?"
"I have to make the team first Seth."
"You'll make it. Come on, let's get out of here."
The last day at the lake house went by quickly and before they knew it, the cars were packed up and ready to head out.
"Do we have everything?" Kirsten asked, watching Sandy put the last bag in the back of the Rover.
"This should be the last of it."
Seeing the boys coming across the lawn, "Did everybody use the bathroom? It's a long ride," she asked looking at the boys pointedly, causing them to nod in unison before getting in the Rover.
"Wait a minute, wait a minute!" Sandy protested, leaning into the door of the Rover. "I already did time with your Grandfather. I think you guys should ride with him and I'll ride with your Mother this time."
Ryan raised his eyebrows at Sandy for implying Kirsten was his Mother too.
Seeing that neither boy planned on moving, "And you call yourselves men." With a teasing huff, "I'll see you guys at home. Be safe."
Opening the front door, everyone piled in, dragging at least one bag along with them. Leaving everything in the foyer, the boys headed to the kitchen for something to drink.
"How is it possible I could be so exhausted from just sitting in a car?" Seth wondered out loud, reaching in the fridge pulling out Snapples for both Ryan and himself.
Pausing at the phone, Sandy clicked the answering machine.
"You have one new message…Hi Kirsten, it's Dawn. I was wondering if you could call me. I need to talk to you. Thanks."
When the message clicked off, all eyes drifted to Ryan.
"You gonna call her?" he asked, his mouth set firm.
"Yes."
"Can it wait until after soccer try-outs?"
"Yes, absolutely."
Nodding, "Good."
"Speaking of which, Ryan why don't we run out and pick up a few things?"
"Okay."
The ride in the car was quiet and Kristen knew Ryan's mind was wandering.
"It might be nothing Ryan."
Shifting in his seat, "I told her not to call any more. Trust me, she wants something."
"Well, she'll have to wait. We have soccer try-outs to worry about right now."
Relief washed over Ryan and he was glad Kirsten wasn't going to drop everything just because his Mom called. That's what Dawn would expect. She always felt the world revolved around her. Not any more.
Monday was a long day sitting through classes knowing try-outs were coming after the last bell. When it finally did ring out, Ryan found his chest heavy with anxiety. Stopping at his locker, he dropped off his books and collected his new gear bag and headed to the boys locker room.
"You here for try-outs kid?" the coach asked.
Nodding, "Yes sir."
"Name?"
"Ryan Atwood."
The coach tipped his head back for a minute and eyed Ryan. "I've heard about you kid. If you give me any…"
"I won't. I'm here to play soccer."
Dropping his clipboard to his side, the coach watched Ryan a moment longer before reaching into the box behind him and pulling out a practice jersey. Tossing it at Ryan, "Alright. Bring your best game kid."
Changing quickly Ryan walked out to the field alone. He wasn't surprised by the other boys' attempts at whispering behind his back. When he'd had enough of it, a simple glare shut them all up. The assistant coach sent the boys up and down the field working on various warm-ups before splitting them into smaller groups. Ryan's group didn't hide the fact that they weren't happy about his participation. Little did they know what he was capable of.
Being third in line, Ryan waited his turn while the boys in front of him started their skills test. Unbeknownst to him, he was being watched by more than the coach and the other players.
Kirsten had made a point of parking behind the grandstand before school ended so Ryan wouldn't see the Rover. She stood on the far side, peering just over the steps. Positive she was feeling just as much anxiety as Ryan was at this point, she took a deep breath and searched the field to locate Ryan. She found him closer to her than she expected and she backed up a bit to keep herself hidden. He looked so good on the field with the other boys. Granted he was only in a practice jersey but she was so proud of him for trying. She knew how much he wanted this.
"Alright Atwood! Let's go! Show me something," the coach demanded.
At the chirp of the coach's whistle, Ryan left mid field and dribbled the ball through a series of cones. Gaining speed as he approached the net, he torqued his body and sent the ball sailing in the direction of the net. Not only did he score, he nearly took off the goaltender's head.
"Yes!" Kirsten yelled before throwing herself under the grandstand, covering her mouth. "Kirsten Cohen, do not embarrass him. He cannot know you're here. Let him do this."
Ryan and the other boys searched the stands briefly trying to figure out where the cheer came from, but to no avail. Walking back to his group, he noticed the tone had changed.
"You got some leg on you Atwood," a boy about his size remarked.
"Thanks."
"Name's Thomas," the boy explained, extending his hand. "I was last year's Captain. You keep going like that man, you're as good as in."
"I guess we'll see," Ryan answered, shaking the boy's hand. He didn't want to get his hopes up. He had a reputation at this school and it was very possible the coach would deny him a position on the team, simply because of his background.
Try-outs lasted a little over two hours and the boys were exhausted and soaked with sweat by the time it ended. Ryan felt a bit of pride for making it through the try-outs when several other boys came up to congratulate him on a good showing. He hadn't expected that. Crossing the field to the sidelines near the grandstand, he picked up his bag and was heading in the direction of the school when he noticed the Rover in the parking lot. Whistling between his teeth, he got the driver's attention. Sure enough, it was Kirsten.
Not happy with the fact that she'd been caught, Kirsten stepped out of the Rover while butterflies took over her stomach. Crossing the grass she walked up to Ryan at the gate.
"Kirsten, what are you doing here?"
"I'm sorry honey, I didn't want you to know I was here. I know how this must look. I trust you, I do. I know there were try-outs today."
"What are you talking about?" he asked, even more confused by her answer.
Sighing, "I was so excited for you today, I just couldn't stand sitting home waiting for you to tell me about it. I wanted to see you play so…I…came up here to watch."
A smile spread across Ryan's face. "You came to see me play?"
"I know, I know. This meant a lot to you and I shouldn't have interfered. I'm sorry."
"Kirsten, you don't have to apologize. I'm, I'm happy about it."
"You are?"
"Yeah, of course. My Mom never came to any thing I did and that's if she let me join in the first place."
"So you're not mad, or embarrassed that I'm here?"
"No."
"Oh good," she breathed. "I was about sick when you whistled. So, when will you know?"
"They're going to post the team on the trophy case tomorrow morning. Can you promise me one thing?"
"Anything."
"Don't do…anything…to help this along, okay? I want to make the team because I'm good enough and because they picked me. This will mean more to me if I do it on my own."
"I understand…and damn you for reading my mind!" After sharing a laugh, "I'm proud of you Ryan. You looked great out there today."
"Thanks," he blushed sheepishly.
"Now, how about we get your stuff and get some dinner to take home?"
"Cool. Give me five minutes to get my stuff out of the locker room. I'll be right back."
Dinnertime babble was spent entirely on Ryan's try-outs. Seth and Sandy wanted every detail and Kirsten would interject, bragging on shots he'd made or passes he'd stolen. It made Ryan feel good to know he was the center of attention at the table but it was over something good for a change.
He spent the night tossing and turning in bed and he was up before his alarm even went off. He paced the kitchen desperate to get to school. He wanted to see the cut list. He couldn't concentrate on anything else until he knew.
Running up the stairs to the school, he all but left Seth in the dust.
"Ryan, Ryan wait!"
When the came up to the trophy case, Ryan paused a minute and visibly took a deep breath.
"It's going to be good Ryan, you'll see."
"And what if it isn't?" he frowned.
"If not, then so what? There're guys in the school that didn't even have the balls to try out."
Ryan still didn't move.
"You stay here, I'll look, okay?" Seth delegated, walking ahead.
"Seth, Seth wait…"
Ryan still couldn't find the energy to propel his legs forward. Instead he watched Seth slump in front of the list, shaking his head and he felt his chest squeeze tight.
"I fucking knew it! I should've known better!"
"Dude, c'mere a minute. You gotta see this."
"What?" Disgusted and dejected, Ryan walked over to the trophy case to see what Seth was pointing at.
"I just thought you'd want to see that they did it alphabetically, and you're the first name on the list."
"What!" Looking closer, sure enough, there it was in black and white.
Atwood, Ryan – Striker
"I made the team…" he answered in disbelief.
"I knew you would man. You're good at everything you do."
"And you're an asshole for letting me think I didn't make it," Ryan snapped off, smacking Seth in the back of the head.
"Damn Ryan! Take your frustrations out on the field dude! My head is not a soccer ball!"
A smile returned to Ryan's face and he looked the list over to see who else made the cut. He was devilishly pleased to see several of the names of the boys that had teased him were not on the sheet. That'll show them.
"You better call the 'rents dude. They'll go nuts if you make them wait all day for this news."
In their respective offices, Sandy and Kirsten were both on cloud nine over Ryan's accomplishment and they couldn't wait for his first game. The ring of her cell phone dropped Kirsten right back into the office, though, and she answered it without checking the ID.
"Hello?"
"Hi Kirsten. It's…it's Dawn."
"Dawn…Hi. I'm Sorry I wasn't able to get back to you sooner, we'd gone away for the weekend and yesterday was a little crazy, being the first day home and what not."
"Oh that's okay. I'm sure Ryan didn't go out of his way to tell you I called."
"Actually, it was a family trip. We took the boys went with us so, we didn't get the message until we got home. How um, how are you?"
"I'm okay. I mean, you know. Okay as I get, I guess."
"Is there….anything wrong?"
"I just, I've been missing Ryan. I haven't seen him in so long and…he was so angry with me the last time I called."
"Well, you admitted to me yourself that the holidays would be hard on him."
"Was he…I mean…did he…"
"He did really well. We do things a little differently here than what he was used to so we tried to not overwhelm him. But he enjoyed himself. He dug his heels in until Christmas Day and then we got him to come around."
"That's…that's nice."
"Yeah it was."
"So, what else has he been up to? I…I look forward to your letters."
"Ah, well, as a matter of fact, um, he just made the soccer team at his school. Try-outs were yesterday and he found out this morning that he made the cut."
Chuckling, "Really? Wow. That's…that's really something."
"We're all very proud of him. This was something he wanted to do and he earned it. He played hard, he impressed the coaches and he got a spot on the team."
"I'm happy for him. That's good…good for him."
The stiffness of the conversation dissolved into complete silence on the line.
"Dawn, he's doing really well. I just hope…I just hope whatever your intentions are, they won't be detrimental to Ryan."
"I know. I was just hoping to see him. I know he won't want me to come there but, maybe you could ask him to consider coming to Chino. Even if it's just for an hour, I would be grateful. No tricks. I've already burned my bridges with him. I know how he feels about me."
"Give me a few days, to get past the excitement of this soccer thing. I don't want that ruined for him. I can't make you any promises Dawn. Ryan is old enough to make this decision on his own and Sandy and I will not force him to do something he is not comfortable doing."
"I know. I guess…I just want him to know that I still think about him. I haven't forgotten him…even though he's moved past me."
Kirsten didn't know how to respond to that. She tried to stay as vague as possible. "I'll talk to him and we'll let him handle it from there."
"Thanks, for doing this. Even if…he doesn't…I can't necessarily blame him. I'll see ya."
"Take care."
Closing her cell phone, Kirsten's mind felt fogged. Ryan had always joked about Atwood bad luck and the Atwood curse but this was one of those times she felt he was right. He was so happy and excited about the soccer team and here his Mother calls. It's like she smells his happiness. There was no way she was going to ruin this for Ryan. Not over Kirsten's dead body if she had any say about it. She'd wait a while before she brought this up to Ryan. Tonight was for celebrating Ryan's place on the team and there was no room for Dawn at that table.
Tuesday morning found Ryan at school with a new spring in his step. Other team members who'd made the cut said hello to him in the hallway. It was like his world changed overnight.
Taking a seat in class, his attention was drawn to Shelly as she sat down next to him. She didn't say a word to him, just took out her notebook and prepared for class. Ryan found himself itching to ask what the hell was wrong. This wasn't like her. Instead he forced himself to keep his mouth shut, maybe she'd finally gotten the big picture and would leave him alone.
As luck would have it, the teacher passed out an exercise to be completed between lab partners. So much for ignoring her.
"So, I guess we better get started," Ryan prompted her, still she didn't answer him. "What's with you today?" The words left his mouth before he could get a hold of them, partly from curiosity and partly from being annoyed.
"As if you don't know," she spat back.
Sorry he opened his mouth now, Ryan passed one sheet over to her, "Here, you work on this part, I'll take the formulas."
Wordlessly, she grabbed the sheet out of his hand and went straight to work.
Still unclear what all the attitude was about, Ryan took advantage of her silence and concentrated on his work.
When the bell rang, signaling the end of the day, Ryan met Seth on the steps as he always did.
"There's something wrong with your stalker man," Seth joked.
"You're just now figuring that out?" Ryan sassed back.
"Well, look at her," he explained, pointing over to the parking lot where Shelly was standing next to her car, holding her stomach.
Ryan took two steps in Shelly's direction for a better look when the girl puked on the pavement.
"Ack!" Seth moaned. "Could've done without that!"
"She's sick, she'll get over it," Ryan responded dryly. "And how the hell am I supposed to toughen you up when you still can't handle puking?"
"Let's just get one thing straight okay? I don't ever want to be comfortable with puking. Ever. That's just…gross."
"Come on, let's get out of here before she sees us."
Later that evening, Kirsten found herself relaxing on the couch in sole ownership of the remote, a rare occurrence. Settling on an old, black and white movie, she left the couch for a moment to nuke a bag of microwave popcorn. As luck would have it, the phone rang just as she shoved a large handful of popcorn in her mouth. Chewing quickly, she answered it.
"Hello?"
"Mrs…Atwood?"
"Um, no. This is Kirsten Cohen. Are you looking for Ryan?" she asked. She had no idea who the man was but she assumed he was possibly the soccer coach.
"I'm sorry. I was looking for his parents, I need to speak with them."
"Oh, um, well…it's a long story, but my husband and I are Ryan's guardians. Can I help you with something?"
"I see. So you're responsible for the boy and his actions?"
Kristen's forehead wrinkled and she scooted forward on the couch and set down her bowl of popcorn. This didn't sound good.
"I'm sorry…who did you say you were?"
"Terry, Terry Sampson. My wife and I would like to speak to you and your husband as soon as possible. Are you available this evening?"
"Sampson. Your daughter is Shelly Sampson?"
"Yes."
Oh boy. Stumbling over her own words, "Um, well, sure. My husband ran out on a brief errand, he should be back shortly."
"Very well. We'll see you within the hour then."
After a brief exchange of directions, Kirsten hung up the phone in a fog. Ryan and Shelly must have finally had it out and now her parents we're coming over to tell Kirsten he's not acting like a gentlemen.
Sighing, she heard the front door close and Sandy's footsteps grew louder as he approached the den.
"Why the long face?" he asked at the sight of his wife on the couch.
"There's been, a slight change of plans for our evening," she explained.
"Oh? The boys change their minds already? They want the TV back?"
"Ah, no. But, Shelly Sampson's parents are on their way over here to discuss something with us, regarding Ryan."
"Shelly Sampson? The dreaded lab partner Shelly Sampson?"
"That's the one."
"I'm sure it's nothing honey. Maybe he said something to the girl that upset her and the parents just want us to tell him to back off a bit."
"I hope you're right.
"When are they coming over?"
"Right now."
TBC…