Dr. Liao shook his head.
“No. It means no football, running, or lifting. I want you to stay away from the football facilities, and Coach Merritt will enforce that. For now, you can listen to music, watch TV, and rest. After a couple of days, you can do stuff like your schoolwork or play video games. If you have classes on Monday, you should plan to skip them. You can go to class on Tuesday if you feel up to it, but don’t push yourself.”
“I was planning on going on my friend’s boat tomorrow.
Can I do that?” David asked.
Before Dr. Liao would agree, David had to explain that Alex’s ‘boat’ was a luxury yacht. The doctor added that David had to have someone else drive him.
“When can I get back to football?” David asked.
“It’ll be four or more weeks before you can return to practice.”
“No sooner?”
“We’ll be testing you, and if we feel your brain has healed, it could be sooner, but don’t count on it,” Dr. Liao
added.
David had had a couple of concussions and played much sooner than that in high school. He remembered that his friend Tami had warned him about some medical research she’d found at the time. It showed that not allowing the brain to fully heal could cause more significant problems. It seemed that sports medicine now agreed with his friend’s findings.
◊◊◊
“Good morning, Mother,” David said as he opened his eyes.
His dad chuckled, which earned him a scowl.
“I had to receive word that you were in the hospital from Alex.”
“I’ll be sure to thank him for that,” David shot back.
“What were you thinking?”
“Obviously, not much because I got my brain scrambled.”
“You’re currently at the top of the Heisman watch list,”
Dad said to try to change the subject.
“That won’t last long. I was told last night that I won’t be able to even practice for four weeks or more.”
“Good. Instead of putting some spine into him, we’ve been shielding him long enough and letting him get away with his monkeyshines. It’s time he realized his actions have consequences,” Mom said.
David gave her a pained expression but held his tongue.
How had he become the enemy in his own story? He knew his mom felt he’d caused some great offense by not telling her of his injury, and she was baiting him to start an argument.
“How bad is it?” Dad asked.
“My head feels like a spike has been driven through my left eye, and when I got up to use the little boys’ room last
night, I became dizzy and about fell down,” David shared.
His mom’s whole demeanor changed in an instant.
“You’re really hurt?”
“What did you think? That my head is as thick as Coby’s?” David asked with a grin.
“It’s just that you’ve gotten them before …” his mom said as she trailed off.
“It’s okay, Mom. I’m going to be fine. They’ll run some tests this morning, and I’ll be released. I might have just enough of a spine to handle that,” David gently teased.
“Sorry, I didn’t really mean that. I was just upset,” Mom admitted. “Do you need anything?”
“I’m good. You and Dad probably have plans for today,”
David said to try to get rid of them.
“I do have a tee time,” Dad said and then flinched when Mom smacked his arm.
“Go. Like you said, I’ve had these before and survived.
It’ll take more than a knock to the head to take me out.”
“Carol, you can see that the boy lives. Let me take you to breakfast,” Dad said to get his mom out of his room.
“Next time …,” was his mom’s parting shot.
“I’ll call,” David promised.
It was too bad his dad no longer drank because David owed him a good bottle of scotch for diverting his mother.
◊◊◊
David got tipped off by hospital security that reporters were waiting for him in the lobby, so he escaped out a side entrance. Alex picked him up and had Chloe, Crystal, and Taylor with him.
“I brought you what I want you to wear for the podcast,”
Chloe said as he settled into the front seat.
David ignored her and asked Alex, “Did you bring my wallet, phone, and keys?”
“Sorry. One of the team managers bagged up what was in your locker, and I tossed it on your bed. But you won’t need any of that on the boat.”
David could only imagine how his phone was blowing up.
“How’s your head?” Crystal asked.
“I have a concussion and was told I can’t even practice or work out.”
“You’re still going to bartend for me on Wednesday, aren’t you?” Taylor asked.
“Quit being solipsistic,” Crystal said.
“Is that even a word?” Alex asked.
“It sounds like a word you would learn for your SATs, so it might be one,” David guessed.
“Douchetard sounds like a word, too, but I’m pretty sure you won’t find it in the dictionary,” Alex shot back. “Nor on the SAT.”
“For your ignoramuses’ information, it means self-centered,” Crystal enlightened them.
“Now you’re just being truculent,” David fired back.
“We have a new rule for the day. No more ten-dollar words. You two remind me of this guy I hired to fix a paper I wrote. Simpler is better,” Alex complained.
“The fact remains that Taylor needs to dial it down a bit on pushing David to volunteer for ‘her’ rush,” Crystal said.
“I might need a stool or chair because I seem to get dizzy,” David said.
“For you, I’ll make it happen,” Taylor promised, looking pleased.
◊◊◊
Chloe and Crystal were busy planning how they wanted the podcast done. The backdrop of Alex’s yacht with the LA skyline gave them the monied vibe the company sponsoring the social media campaign wanted.
They’d hijacked the lower deck area of the boat. They had Galen, Alex’s security guy, kick out all the football players, sorority girls, and jock bunnies.
David was sent to one of the cabins to change. When Chloe turned, she half-expected to find no one, but there he was. No man should be allowed to look that handsome. It just wasn’t right.
David had put on the white swimsuit that he’d worn in all the advertisements for his James Bond movie. It had shown him getting out of a pool, and they were close to being indecent as the trunks clung to his body. He completed the look with sunglasses and no shirt.
“Down, girl. You have to rub cream on him in a minute,”
Crystal teased Chloe.
Taylor came bounding out behind him, checking out his butt.
“Should we get you all wet like you were in the movie?”
Taylor asked.
David turned and looked over his sunglasses with a look that said, ‘no.’ The issue was that when his suit got wet, it was all but transparent.
Taylor leaned in close to Crystal and whispered, “David is gorgeous. His abs are so defined that a girl might cut her tongue on his ridged perfection.”
Chloe gave Crystal a look that said, ‘rein your girl in.’
“Come sit on the couch,” Chloe encouraged. “I will give an intro to all my fans, and then I’ll rub cream on your chest. I want you to give your honest feedback.”
“We could probably start a new Internet challenge sensation where you rub the cream you’re hawking on hot bods. If you need help with David, I’m right here,” Taylor chirped.
David winked at her to encourage her misbehavior.
“That’s my weakness,” she admitted. “Call me a slut, but it wouldn’t take much more than that to get me to drop my
panties for him. Winking at me is like liquor to an alcoholic, and David is getting me drunk.”