She laughed.
“You really love this, don’t you?”
“I do. I also know that if we can play at a higher level in practice, we can do it in a game, and it will only make us better.”
“And you’re not worried that the defense and offense will grow to hate each other?” Coach Stackhouse asked.
“I hope they do. But when we start winning games, it’ll be good-natured. I just want to have the defense throw their best at me in practice.”
“You have an interesting outlook, but I think I love it. Keep it up,” she said as she got up to leave.
David knew that today had gone a long way toward him starting that year.
◊◊◊
Chapter 60
David
Finally! David was moving out of the football dorm today.
They’d only practiced in the morning, so David had grabbed lunch with the guys and then packed up. Craig hadn’t been the worst roommate. Craig was excited because a new batch of jock bunnies would be hitting campus this weekend. If David didn’t have other responsibilities, he might have been right there with him.
But he did, so he’d not partaken when numerous opportunities had been presented over the past few weeks.
He and Matt had continued to go toe-to-toe, so a lot would be decided in tomorrow’s scrimmage and how well David did against UNLV. David felt his destiny was in his hands, and he would be the starter.
He decided to go to Sandoval Hall and check out his room. He wanted to see what he might need before going to the townhouse, packing up all his stuff from this summer, and moving it.
It was move-in day, and David couldn’t imagine a worse version of torture. It should have been declared a disaster area as clueless teenagers wandered around wide-eyed, their parents protectively chasing after them. All of whom were similarly drenched in sweat from hauling clothes, boxes, bags, mini-refrigerators, televisions, gaming systems, and miscellaneous stuff from the dorm parking lot. If that wasn’t enough, from there, it was either up the many flights of stairs or into an overcrowded and slow-moving elevator.
One idiot had left their car blocking the entrance security gate for the parking lot. David pulled up behind it and debated whether to call to have it towed since there was a line of cars waiting to get in. Several honked, and a woman rushed out and flipped everyone off. It felt like they were in New York.
She pulled forward to let the rest of them in. David parked in the back corner, grabbed his football bag, and started toward the dorm.
“You need some help?” David asked when he saw the woman who’d caused the traffic jam looking confused.
She turned around and actually smiled at him, one of those I’m-tired-and-sorry-I-was-bitchy smiles.
“My daughter left me here to watch the car. I think she wanted to meet her roommate without her mom hanging around.”
David got it. None of the freshmen had any idea what to expect. They were moving in with roommates they’d never met. Even if they’d put in a request for a specific person, there was no guarantee. They didn’t know who was waiting to spend the next nine months sleeping six feet away from them until they got their key and opened that door.
“You’re going to be waiting a while, and it’ll take your daughter forever to score one of the coveted carts. Do you want to get out of here and grab a coffee? It’ll give you a piece of advice you can give your daughter as the best place to get decent coffee within walking distance,” David suggested.
“That sounds nice, actually. I need to stretch my legs after the drive.”
“Where are you from?” David asked.
“Palo Alto, near Stanford.”
“One of my best friends goes to college there.”
David played tour guide as they made their way to his favorite coffee shop. Doreen saw him coming and held the door open.
“There’s my favorite customer. Who do you have with you?”
David looked at the woman.
“Sorry. I’m Angelica. I met …”
“David.”
“David in the parking lot of my daughter’s dorm. He said you have the best coffee in town.”
“That’s why he only drinks my tea. What can I get you? If you’re a friend of David, you get the first one on the house,” Doreen said.
The two of them grabbed a table and kicked back, relaxing in silence until Angelica spotted his picture on the wall with Doreen.
“Hang on. You’re …”
“Yep,” David admitted. “Want to head back? I can show you my dorm room so you’ll be one more up on your daughter.”
“Can I get a picture, too?” she asked.
“Of course.”
◊◊◊
When he walked into Sandoval Hall, one of the RAs handing out welcome packets and room keys jumped up from the table and rushed over with David’s stuff. He felt terrible about the people in the line but was glad his celebrity had paid off today.
The elevator door opened, and people filed off. He saw a bunch of girls from the third floor about to get on.
“Do you have room for two more?” David called out.
They all turned as one to see who had asked and then smiled when they saw him.
“We will if you tell us all about being a hero.”
“Not right now. How about I have dinner with everyone and tell you what happened?” David suggested.
‘Nat or Alex must be running their mouth,’ David decided. His money was on Nat because Alex hadn’t mentioned it to the football team.
When they got off on the fourth floor, Angelica received a message.
“My daughter is at the car, wondering where I am.”
“I’m just at the end of the hall. Let’s go down, and you can get your picture.”
She agreed.
David opened the door and was immediately hit with a musty odor, the kind that comes from a room that had been closed and unoccupied for an entire summer. When he walked in, he was greeted by the sight of Alex asleep on the couch … sort of. David almost laughed. Alex’s body lay on the sofa, but an arm and leg were hanging off, and it looked like he was about to fall over the edge.
“That’s my roommate,” David said and saw Angelica shake her head.
“When I was in college, that would have been an invitation for mischief. Do you have any magic markers or shaving cream?”
David might have been on board with the old shaving cream in the hand or writing something naughty on Alex’s face, but he had a thought.
“We better not mess with him because Alex would get even before the year was out,” David reasoned and added. “But I like how you think.”
Both doors to the singles opened. They were next to David and Alex’s suite. Kirk came out of one, and the other had to be Alex’s security. David didn’t recognize him as one of Fritz’s regular guys. That meant they would have to break him in.
“Hey, Kirk. Would you take our picture?” David asked as Angelica handed him her phone.
Kirk snapped the pic, and she left to find her daughter.
“I swear. I just get to sleep, and you come in making a racket,” Alex complained and went to his room.
“Mr. Dawson, I’m Galen. I work for Fritz and wanted to introduce myself.”
David shook his hand. Both Kirk and David stared at him.
“Right. I’ll be next door.”
When he left, Kirk asked, “Who’s that?”
“Alex’s security.”
“The girls are on the roof. I told them I would get you when you got in.”
“Let me dump my bag in my room, and I’ll be right up.”
◊◊◊
The girls wanted to take advantage of David having a car to pick up their books for the coming semester. David was glad they’d taught him to order them with the bookstore app because the place was a zoo. All the four of them had to do was get in line and pay, and their books were waiting for them behind the counter.
He learned that Lindsey was single again. She and Allard had run their course while Jamie and Kirk were still dating. Lauren was also single.