Title: Lonely No More
A/N: It's Wednesday, which means this work week is half way over for me :D That thought makes me extremely happy. Almost as happy as all the great reviews from you lovely ladies! Please keep them coming! They're a great motivator, that's for sure :D Not much Tim/Julie interaction in this chapter, but I promise the next chapter is full of Tim and Julie togetherness! But hopefully you ladies will like this one anyways. Enjoy!!!
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"Saracen! Riggins! Get your asses over here!" Coach yelled loudly, causing every person standing on the field to turn and look at the two players being summoned.
Tim jogged slowly toward Coach as he took his helmet off, knowing that he was about to get chewed out for his poor performance on the field.
He came to a stop in front of Coach, with Matt standing beside him, both dreading the coming tirade. Coach could be the most inspirational speaker at times, but he could make you feel like scum of the earth at other times.
"Is there something I need to know?" Coach asked quietly, watching as both boys shook their heads. "Cause let me tell you two something. You better get it together, or I will replace you. I promise you that." He said seriously, pointing his finger at them.
Tim nodded slowly. He understood.
"Now make it work!" Coach said louder, sending both boys back out on the field. "Run it again!"
Tim pulled his helmet back on, taking his spot on the field to run through more plays, trying his damnedest to concentrate and execute the plays like they were meant to be executed.
After several more plays with Tim and Matt actually getting most of them right, Coach finally called an end to practice, telling the guys to hit the showers.
Tim trudged slowly off the field, tired both physically and mentally from the hard practice. He was looking forward to a long, cold shower.
"Riggins! Come here a second." Coach yelled, motioning Tim over with his hand.
Ah shit, Tim thought. What have I done now?
"Yeah, Coach?" Tim said, coming to a stop beside him, wondering what he wanted.
"You looked a helluva lot better those last few plays." Coach said, taking his hat off and running his fingers through his wild hair. "You keep studyin' that playbook. Know it backwards and forwards You hear me?"
"Yes, sir." Tim responded, nodding his head.
Coach nodded too, standing there with his hands on his hips as he looked at Tim. "You and Julie been spending a lot of time together lately."
Tim nodded slowly, trying to hide his surprise at the change in topic.
"Why is that?" Coach asked.
"We're friends." Tim replied after a few seconds, not really knowing what else to say, but speaking the truth.
Unlikely, but true. Some how over the past few weeks the two had gotten much closer. Tim had probably talked more to her than he'd ever talked to anyone.
"Friends." Coach drawled, sounding like the word left a bad taste in his mouth. "Friends?"
"Yes, sir."
"You listen to me." Coach said sternly. "You're a good kid. You earned my trust last year when you were protectin' my daughter. I told you then, that was a real honorable thing to do."
"Thank you, Coach." Tim said softly.
Those words probably meant more to him than Coach would ever know. Despite the kind words, Tim was sure there was about to be a 'but' to Coach's statement.
"Now, that bein' said, I don't want her to get hurt. I ain't sayin' that y'all can't be friends or whatever the hell y'all are." Coach said quickly. "But she is my daughter, and I love her. You hurt her, and me and you are gonna have some serious problems. You got that, son?"
"Yes, sir." Tim said, nodding his head as he met Coach's gaze. "I understand."
The two locked gazes for several seconds, with Coach finally giving a short nod. "Good. Now get out of here. Go study that playbook." He said, giving Tim a slap on the back.
"Thanks, Coach." Tim mumbled, trotting off the field and heading toward the locker room.
Tim hadn't expected that, though he probably should have. Hanging out with Julie would undoubtedly lead to a talk from Coach.
Not that he blamed Coach. Tim knew he was just looking out for Julie, but Coach didn't have anything to worry about.
He and Julie were friends, and he would never do anything to hurt her, at least not intentionally.
Kind of hard to believe, but true. For probably the first time in his life he was friends with a girl. No strings attached, no ulterior motives – just friends.
He had come to look forward to her company, finding interest in her constant ramblings.
Probably more importantly, he liked having someone actually listen to what he had to say. He didn't talk a lot, but when he did, Julie listened. Really listened.
And he cared about what she thought, even what she thought about him. Or maybe if he was being honest, he cared about her.
Either way, he knew that he had found a friend in Julie, and he wasn't about to let Coach or anyone else get in the way of that.
"Not gonna happen." He muttered to himself, opening the door to the field house.
Tim slowly walked into the locker room, taking a spot on the bench in front of his locker, thankfully taking off his practice jersey and beginning to unlace his shoulder pads.
"Uh, h-hey Riggs." Matt stammered, coming to stand beside Tim.
"Seven." Tim drawled, not looking up as he focused his attention on getting out of his sweaty pads. "I'm studyin' the playbook, Seven. I'm workin' as hard as I can to get this tailback thing right." Tim muttered.
He didn't feel like getting a speech from Saracen too about football.
"Oh, I wasn't gonna say that." Matt said quickly. "I know, I know that you're trying hard. I-I am too. We'll get it together. We've just gotta keep practicin'."
Tim nodded, standing to slip his heavy shoulder pads off over his head, quickly following with his undershirt as he turned toward his locker.
"I uh, wanted to ask you about y-you and Julie." Matt stated in a rush, nervousness apparent in his voice.
Tim paused, turning to meet Matt's gaze. "What about us?"
Matt cleared his throat. "W-well, I just noticed that y'all were, um, talkin' and stuff more at the pool and all. And I know y-you've been giving her rides a lot."
"Yeah." Tim drawled. "You got a problem with that, Saracen?"
"No, no. I was just, I was just wondering if y'all are, you know, just friends or whatever." Matt stammered.
"Not that it's any of your business, Seven, but yeah, me and Julie are friends. But that's it." Tim stated, wondering if Matt was interested in Julie.
"Oh, okay. Well, that's g-good." Matt said, a small smile on his lips. "I-I was just worried that it might be something more. I mean, Julie's really not your type though, and with y-your reputation and all."
Damn it, he didn't need to hear another speech from Saracen about football, and he sure as hell didn't need to hear a speech about the differences between him and Julie Taylor.
Tim grabbed his clothes and slammed his locker shut, turning toward Matt. "No worries, Seven." He muttered before sauntering toward the door.
He headed out of the locker room, deciding to skip the shower in lieu of a nice, cool swim at the pool.
He knew Julie would be at work right now, and he knew that just seeing her would make him feel better.
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"This pasta is delicious." Eric said, taking a huge bite of Tami's latest creation.
"Thanks, honey." Tami smiled. "Ms. Bailey from school gave me the recipe. She used to bring it all the time for lunch, and it just looked delicious. I just had to get it from her and try it myself."
"It's good." Eric said again, giving Tami a nod. "So, Julie, how was work today?"
Julie shrugged, twisting the pasta around her fork. "Okay. Uneventful."
"No rescues today?" Eric asked with a smirk.
Julie smiled. "Not today."
"Riggins at the pool today?" He asked.
"Yeah…" Julie responded slowly. "Along with about half the rest of the team. They usually make an appearance after practice to cool off."
Eric nodded, his jaw clenched slightly, a sure sign to Julie that something was up.
"You and Riggins seem to have gotten awful close all of a sudden. Hanging out at the Alamo Freeze, him driving you all over the damn place."
"Dad, we stopped by the Alamo Freeze once for some ice cream. And he gives me a ride home sometimes. No big deal." Julie said matter of fact.
"Sometimes? It seems to me like Riggins has turned into your own personal chauffeur." Eric said with a dry laugh.
"Honey…" Tami said, giving her husband a look. "Jules, what your father is trying to say, is that we've noticed that you and Tim have been spending a lot of time together, and we just want to clarify the status of y'all's relationship."
"Why the big deal? I mean, seriously, I doubt if I was spending time with anyone else that y'all would be all worried about it. Just because it's Tim, it has you guys all worried." Julie said, an edge to her voice.
"Now young lady, don't go gettin' an attitude." Eric drawled, giving her a stern look.
"Well, excuse me dad, but it seems just a tad bit hypocritical. I mean, you trusted Tim enough to live in your own home, but y'all are giving me the third degree about hanging out with him." Julie stated in rush, getting more upset by the minute.
"Yes, Tim has a bad reputation, a lot of which he brought on himself. He's far from perfect, but he's a good guy. And I'm not going to apologize for being friends with him." She finished in a huff.
Silence filled the table for several seconds as Julie looked back and forth between her parents, almost daring them to say another negative word about her friendship with Tim.
"That's what Tim said earlier today." Eric said quietly, giving her a long look.
"What?"
"I had a little talk with him after practice, asked him what he was doin' spending so much time with my daughter."
"Oh my God…" Julie whined, dropping her head into her hands. "Dad, that is so embarrassing."
"No, it's not embarrassing. It's a father lookin' out for his daughter." Eric explained. "But he said the same thing you did, that y'all were friends."
Julie lifted her head from her hands, meeting his gaze. "Really?" She asked, a small smile on her lips.
Tim had told her dad that they were friends. She wasn't sure why, but that small fact made her feel a little giddy inside.
"Yes, really." Eric said, noticing her smile. "Why? Is that not correct?"
"No, no. It is. We're friends." Julie said quickly.
Eric nodded slowly, glancing over at his wife before he spoke again. "Your mother and I are fine with you being friends with Tim Riggins. We are not hypocrites. I know that Tim is a good young man and I do trust him…to a certain extent. But, you are our daughter and we reserve the right to ask questions about who you are spending time with. Is that understood?"
"Yes, sir." Julie said quietly, biting her lip to keep from spouting off some sarcastic remark.
"Honey, I'm just curious how this all came about. I mean, you and Tim have always been more of acquaintances. What changed?" Tami questioned.
"I don't know." Julie said softly, shrugging her shoulders. "No offense, but spending my summer sitting at home with you guys can get kind of boring. And I guess I was lonely, with Lois staying with her grandparents and Tyra working so much."
Tami nodded slowly, watching her daughter closely, noticing her somber look as she talks about being lonely, but seeing the almost shy smile that forms on her lips as she begins to talk about Tim.
"And then there was Tim, and we started talking and hanging out, and, and…I wasn't so lonely anymore." Julie said softly, looking back and forth between her parents. "We're friends. An unlikely pair, I know. But we are."
Eric and Tami shared a look, both thinking the same thing. Julie was a little too defensive and quick to protect Tim for them to be just friends.
They both just hoped to God that Julie didn't end up getting her heart broken.
