Hail Mary Baby: A Secret Baby Sports Romance (8 page)

S
he was coming
to the game. She was really coming. I honestly couldn’t believe it. Most of this season I had felt like shit. It was one bad day after another. My playing was horrible out there on the field. My team resented me for it. But now was my time to make a come back. Now was the time for me to shine.

“Alright, bring it in.” I said to the rest of the players before the game. “Look, I gotta level with ya’ll today. It’s not easy for a guy like me to lay my cards all out on the table, but it’s something I feel I need to do. I’ve had my head in my ass this past season. I’ve let you all down. Charlie, I’m lookin’ at you. I’m sorry, brother.”

He nodded as if to say, “It’s all water under the bridge.”

I continued my speech, “So I get it if I’m not the most popular guy on the field. That’s okay. I’ve never been the most liked. What I come to you with is this: my utmost apology and a guarantee for you all. I promise you that I won’t fuck up again. I know how far behind we are in the stats. I know just how much we need to win to be taken serious again. But I’m tellin’ you right now that we can do it. We can fucking do this and I won’t let you down. Never again. You all with me?”

I looked at the small crowd of players around me. There was silence and a whole lot of hesitance in the air. Finally, after mulling it over for a few minutes, Charlie came forward.

“I’m with you, man.” He said, giving me a huge man-hug.

“Thanks, brother.” I said in his ear.

“Anybody else? Or is it just Charlie who’s cool with me now?” I asked.

“Just don’t let us down.” Another player said. I nodded.

Slowly but surely, everyone stood up and said their words. They were all on my side. That is, they would be if I proved myself to the team. Well, I had a lot of proving to do, but I knew I could get it done with hard work and severe determination. Anything was in reach if I really wanted it. And God damn did I want it.

“Alright, assholes. Let’s bring it in! Who are we?” I yelled.

“The motherfuckin’ Patriots!” Charlie screamed.

“What did we come here to do?” I asked them, pounding my chest.

“We came to destroy!” Dalton Wiseman, a defensive lineman yelled.

“That’s right! We are the destroyers! Patriots till our last dying breath. We’re a united team and we will not be stopped! Today is our day, boys!”

“RAH!” Everyone cheered, banging their heads against each other, the walls, even the ground. The energy was uplifting and exciting. I felt our win already.

From the door of the locker room, we could hear the loudspeaker say, “…the New England Patriots!” This, of course was our cue. We smashed open those metal doors and lunged out into the field. We went full force, running to the starting positions. Those who weren’t out on the field were on the sidelines cheering everyone on. The cheerleaders, all with bright smiles on their faces, did spins and backflips.

Our opponents, the Rams, kicked the ball toward our best players. The spinning ball of pig skin was spiraling in the air, right above my head. I looked away, up at the booth where Laura was sitting, and pointed at her. Then, I caught that ball and ran as fast and hard as I could. The crowd roared in approval, as I smashed through the defense of the other team. It was clear we were already at an insane advantage.

I found myself underneath at least three of their defensive men. “Keep on trying, boy.” One of them whispered to me. “We’re going to make sure you never go to the playoffs ever again.” He said, laughing.

“Get off me.” I said, picking myself up off the field. “I’ve got nothing to prove except my love of the game.” I said, feeling proud.

Pretty soon, we were winning the game. And by winning, I mean by a lot. I’d like to take all the credit for it too, but I couldn’t. In fact, it was the best all of our team had played during this season. Advertising agencies, sportswear, and soda companies were all most likely lining up and making calls to get us to be their spokesmen.

However, only two things were on my mind: Winning the game and winning Laura’s heart. Every play I made, I would look up to that box and I would see a speck of a person looking down at me. Her beautiful hair, that incredible body. I hoped she was feeling something for me. Because I sure did feel something for her.

Halftime came and went. We were enthused. We were going to win this one. We had to. On the field, I came face to face with Jenkins. He looked kind of sour, but when I walked past him he whispered, “Keep killin’ it out there, brother. Always rooting for you, no matter who you’re playing against.”

His camaraderie was special, that’s for sure. I gave him a thumbs up and said, “Me too, Jenks. You’re one of the best.” No doubt the media would have a field day with that one.

Well, maybe I shouldn’t have said what I said to Jenkins. Because, before I knew it, he was zipping through our defensive linemen, pushing past our linebackers and slamming that ball into the end zone.

“Fuck!” I yelled, each time he scored.

By the fourth quarter, we found ourselves in deep shit. We were down by 3, with only five minutes to spare. Was it even possible to catch up? Of course it was. But time was running out and our run this season had the whole stadium in doubts. “Will Liam Conway fail again?” Was the question on everybody’s mind. Well, fuck ‘em. I was in it to win it.

Our coach, sane as he was, called a quick time out. We had some strategy to go over.

“Alright,” He said, “This is the time to prove yourselves. We all thought we had this one in the bag, but it turns out they have some tricks up their sleeves. Well, so do we. And here it is.” In his hand was the big play book. It was made by one of the first coaches and ever since then, it had been secretly handed down generation after generation. There were some serious plays in that book. At this point, it was looking like we needed a miracle.

“What's the play, Coach?” I asked him, spitting my mouth guard out.

“The play is called Lock and Release. Liam I'm going to have you get sacked.” He said calmly.

My eyes widened. “Me? What do you want me to get sacked for? I’ve been playing good, haven't I?”

“Don't worry, you've been playing great. But I have an idea. We need to fake them out. Charlie, you up to play a little quarterback today?” He asked Charlie, who’s expression also looked doubtful.

“I'm up for whatever you want, Coach. Just tell me what to do and I'll do it.”

“Well alright then, boys. Looks like we have a play. Liam, you're going to fake quarterback. When the ball is given to you, you're going to hand it off to Charlie. The whole time you need to act like you still have the ball. They'll sack you, but by the time they do, Charlie will have passed it to Jimmy over here. Jimmy, you'll be in the end zone and you'll bring it home. Alright, you guys ready?” He asked us.

I looked at Charlie and then at Jimmy. All three nodded with confidence and clarity. “Ready as we’ll ever be.” I said.

“Okay, boys. Counting on all of you. I know you won't let me down.”

We walked back onto the field, drenched in sweat, endorphins flooding through our body. It was now or never and the clock was ticking. We needed to get one touch down. Just one.

I looked up at the booth with Laura in it. I felt a surge of passion rush through me. “You got this.” I whispered to myself, running my hands across my pads. I grabbed Charlie and Jimmy’s helmets and slammed mine against theirs. “We got this!” I yelled.

I started the play. I was ready. “Blue 42! Red 64! Hut! Hut!
Hike!
” I felt that leather spin into my hands and I immediately dropped back. It slipped out of the side of my hands, falling perfectly into Charlie’s. We both dropped back. The defensive line had broken through our guards. I faked as if I were going to make a run for it. I was almost instantly sacked.

I smiled and turned my head to look through the cracks of the bodies on top of me. Charlie gave me a look and then aimed at Jimmy who was nearing the end zone. “Come on, you son of a bitch!” I yelled. “Go! Go! Go!”

Jimmy’s eyes lit up as he realized the ball was spinning faster than he predicted. At this point, everyone was staring his way. Would he win the game? Or would he lose everything for us? I held my breath and hoped to God he caught it.

He ran full speed and took a sharp dive into the end zone. With outstretched arms and open hands, he turned his body and caught that glorious spinning piece of leather. The ball sunk into his chest, safe and secure as a baby held by its mother. I pushed the men off me, jumped up, and ran into the end zone to dog-pile Jimmy.

“TOUCHDOWN!” The screens flashed with neon firework-like images. The Patriots logo was everywhere, shining in full glory. We won. “We fucking won!” Charlie yelled as he joined the dog-pile.

I glanced up at the box. It was suddenly empty. Confused, I made my way off field with the other players. Instead of taking a shower, I ran out of the locker room and into the inner parts of the stadium, making my way through fans left and right. They were screaming at me, “Liam! Take a picture with me! Sign my football!”

I just kept running. Finally, I found her. She was standing outside. But instead of wearing a happy smile, she had tears in her eyes.

“
I
'm sorry
. I'm so fucking sorry.” I said, unable to hold my tears in. I was in a bind. A true fucking bind. After seeing his determination out there and watching him win that game, I kept thinking about how he was Alex’s dad. There was a mixture of happiness and utter desperation in my emotions, and I didn't know what to do.

“What's the matter, baby?” He asked, running toward me. He held me and stroked my hair. “Hey, are you okay? Did I make you sad somehow?”

I shook my head. Oh, how vain men could be sometimes. “No.” I said, although I guess he was mildly right when you think about it. “I'm just so happy.” I mumbled, lying. I had to lie. How could I tell him I had his child a year ago? He'd be furious.

Still, I liked being around him. I liked the way he talked, the way he held me, and I especially liked the way he looked into my eyes. I used to hate football players and jocks of all kinds. Now, I was falling for the biggest jock on the planet. What was I even doing?

“Well you don't look too happy.” He said.

I wiped my tears away and gave a little sniffle. “I'm okay. I promise.” I took a deep breath and within a few moments I was actually fine. It's amazing what a good cry will do for you. “Don’t you have to hit the showers?” I asked him.

“Nah, they don't need me anymore.” He laughed. “Besides, I just want to spend this time with you.”

I looked at him. He was so sly. “Can I see the locker room?” I asked, returning his sly smile. “Will the players still be in there?”

“Oh, I get it.” He laughed. “You want to see all the naked players, huh?”

I shook my head and pushed him playfully, “No! I just want to see it if it's empty. I want to walk through those doors and go into the hallway where you enter the field. I want to know what that's like, that's all.”

“Follow me.” He said. He was still in his padding, covered in sweat and green patches from the field below. He was like a warrior, coming back from battle. He was hotter than ever, I could barely hold back from drooling.

He led me through the private doors, down the stairway, and into the locker room. It wasn't anything special, of course, but that's not why I wanted to go down there. “You look a little sweaty.” I smiled. “I think you need a shower.” I suggested.

“Ha, yeah I guess I do…” He muttered.

“Well, go on. Strip for me.” I said, eyeing him.

“You want me to strip?” He couldn't hold back from laughing.

“It's not funny.” I said. “Strip for me, Cowboy.”

Without saying a word, he undid the laces of his pants and clipped out of his padding. His incredible abs were glistening with beads of perspiration. He threw off his pants and stood there in front of, fully nude. “You like what you see, honey?”

My mouth hung open. I could feel myself start to get incredibly wet. “I love it.” I said.

He walked slowly over to the showers and turned one of them on. I watched him steadily as he got in it, soaping his Romanesque body. I ran my hands on my breasts, quickly dropping them between my legs. I slowly got out of my clothes and stepped in with him. He looked at me as the water fell onto both our bodies.

“Now,” I began, dropping to my knees. “I think we have a little celebrating to do. Don't you agree?”

He choked. “I do. I need you to give me my trophy.” He said.

“Here it is, big boy.” I smiled.

He closed his eyes and I kissed his legs upward, kissing his inner thighs and pelvic muscles. Finally, I dragged my wet tongue across his huge cock, feeling every ridge of him. He slid inside my mouth, but only for a second until I pulled him back out, teasing him.

“I need you inside me. Now.” I begged him. It had been so long since he had been and the pain of not having him was too much at this point. He spun me around and placed his hands on my ass, feeling every inch of my flesh. He groaned with pleasure as he grabbed his cock and entered me.

“Fuck.” I moaned. “You're so much bigger than I remembered.”

He kissed my back and then my neck, circling his tongue around my ear. I shivered with utter satisfaction and desire. I closed my eyes. I just wanted to feel him.

The hot water from the shower was pouring on us, as steam rose around the room. Soon enough, we could barely see each other, but I could feel as he thrust his body into mine in strong rhythmic motions.

“Yes!” I exclaimed, face against the tiled wall.

He pulled himself out from me and turned me around so that I was facing him now. “I like this game we play.” He said. “But I'd like to keep playing it if you know what I mean.” He kissed me, pulling back on my bottom lip.

“Are you asking me to be your girlfriend?” I asked him.

“I'm saying I like to be around you. That's all.” He said.

“Be around me. I dare you.”

He kissed me again and picked me up, setting me down on his cock. He pushed into me, still staring directly into my eyes, and moaned. “I think I'm going to cum already.” He laughed, brushing the wet hair out of my eyes.

“Cum inside of me.” I said. This time, I was a bit more careful. I wasn't as stupid with the pill as I was two years ago. “I want to feel it.”

It came fast this time. He had been holding it all in, all for me he said. I felt as he thickened inside of me, pouring his life into me. I grabbed around his shoulders and pushed into him, feeling him as close and deep as he could go. His pelvic muscles pushed into me.

When it was over, he looked at me exhausted and said, “Who are you Laura Alvaroy? Where have you been hiding my whole life?”

“Oh, you know. I’ve been around. You just didn’t look hard enough.”