“It’s okay,” Tim said, without much enthusiasm.
“Sounds like you didn’t like it,” I said.
“That’s not it, really. I just didn’t feel like I’d fit in,” Tim said. “They were a little snobbish, is the best I can explain it. When we told them where we were from, they looked at us as if we were a bunch of backwater hicks. Then this girl made a comment that Northwestern grads ran businesses while everyone else served them their fries. I liked the football players, but the students all seemed to think they were better than us.”
I was a little surprised they had run into that here. I’d experienced it when I was in New York, but Chicago people always seemed much more open and accepting. Maybe it was that they were just more polite and hadn’t expressed their true feelings. A New Yorker wouldn’t think twice about telling you to f-off, while you would have to upset someone from Chicago before they’d tell you where to get off.
“I didn’t get that feeling at all,” Flee said.
“Says the big-city boy,” Ben said. “I got the same vibe. It wasn’t everyone, though.”
“It is different here,” Jim said as he waved his hand to indicate our surroundings.
When we got to the restaurant, the offensive and defensive recruits split up. I ended up eating only one slice of pizza, sticking to wings and salad instead for the most part. I was afraid if I ate much of their pizza, I wouldn’t be able to stop before I weighed 300 pounds. You had to eat it with a fork, it was so thick.
After we ate, we broke up into even smaller groups. Gus got the other quarterbacks together, and we went to a party at his apartment. I reminded my teammates to go easy tonight because they had to work out for Northwestern in the morning. Gus lived in a ten-story complex, and I realized this really wasn’t back home when we took the elevator to the eighth floor. We walked into the apartment and were the only ones there.
“You guys want a beer?” Gus asked.
“No thanks,” I said, and Flee and Ben followed my lead.
Of course, that didn’t stop Gus from having one. He turned on his stereo to a top-forty station so we would have some background noise and then proceeded to sell us on Northwestern. I felt like I’d been tricked into going to an Amway presentation. I guess I was expecting something more in line with the party from last year where I got blind drunk and ended up getting laid. If I got laid at this ‘party,’ I would go straight home and check myself into the mental health facility Tracy frequented. I finally had had enough.
“Can I ask a question?”
“Sure, David, that’s what I’m here for,” Gus said.
“Is this your first time being in charge of recruits?”
He blushed and, before he got defensive, I jumped back in.
“I bet you were told to sell us on Northwestern and to keep us out of trouble.”
He mumbled something that I assumed was confirmation.
“While this has been fun, I was hoping for something a little more entertaining. Like something where there are girls,” I suggested.
To his credit, Gus recovered quickly and took us to an actual party. I looked around and saw a girl holding court with about eight guys. I smiled when I recognized her. It was Chris, the girl who’d kidnapped me last year. She had arranged for her girlfriends to have their way with the guys I had brought with me. I would bet she had the group that surrounded her all panting after her. Chris was a major tease. I decided to ruin their fun and capture her for myself.
“I’m going in,” I told the other quarterbacks.
“What?” Gus asked.
“See that girl surround by all those guys? She must be the hottest girl here, and she’s deciding who’s taking her home tonight. I think she needs to meet me so she knows who that should be.”
The three of them looked at me and then Flee grinned. He had been around me enough to know I was probably pulling their legs, but he thought it was funny, and so played along.
“Yeah, that’s David for you. When we were at Alabama, there was this hot chick that everyone wanted. Mr. Smooth here quietly swooped in and stole her from everybody. This boy has some skills.”
I started over to where she was holding court and left Ben and Gus open-mouthed as I edged my way through the crowd, put my arm around Chris and kissed her. I held my forehead against hers and looked her in the eyes as she slowly recognized me.
“Hey, Baby. I see you’ve been teasing boys again. Do I need to take you back to the room and give you a spanking?” I asked.
Chris tried to push me away, but I hung on and smiled at her. I never let my eyes leave hers, and could hear the other guys grumbling as they all wandered off. I was surprised none of them challenged me. I grabbed her hand and led her back to where I’d left the other quarterbacks.
“Flee, Ben, and Gus, please meet Christen,” I said by way of introduction. “Flee, Ben, and I are here on a recruiting visit. Gus plays quarterback for Northwestern. Do you have any friends here that might be interested in meeting my new friends?”
Suzanne had warned me off Chris last year. I ended up hooking up with Lydia, Suzanne’s roommate. Christen had two wild friends, but I couldn’t remember their names.
“I have a girlfriend,” Flee said, looking for a way out.
“I could call Maya and Savanah,” Chris said.
Now I remembered; those were the other two Suzanne had warned me about.
“Perfect,” I said with a big grin.
As soon as Chris finished calling the two girls, I pulled her out on the dance floor. If I was going to be sober, I was going to have fun. Chris turned out to be a terrible dancer, but once I started dancing, I had girls willing to join me. The problem with dancing at a party is it gets hot. I’d sweat through my shirt and needed water to rehydrate. When I came off the dance floor, I found Flee all by himself.
“Where did everyone go?” I asked.
“Gus and Ben left with the two girls Chris called. Chris took off with some college guy. It’s just you and me.”
I looked at my watch, and it was close to midnight.
“Let’s get out of here. We need to be up early. I want to run before we go over to Ryan Field.”
On the way back to the hotel, I stopped and bought water. I chugged one right out of the display, which made Flee not want to be seen with me. I met him outside, and we walked back to the hotel.
◊◊◊
When I walked into the hotel room, a baaaadd smell hit me full force. Someone had had too much to drink and had puked. Of course, my gag reflexes kicked in, and I ran to the bathroom and closed the door. I tried to be quiet so I wouldn’t wake Tami up. If the smell was any indication, Brandon hadn’t done his job of keeping her out of trouble. After I closed the bathroom door, I turned on the light and saw the source of the smell. Tami must have tried to puke in the toilet and missed.
Puke was my kryptonite. If I saw it, I would join whoever had barfed. I had just drunk two large bottles of water, and they soon came back up with the remnants of my dinner. I didn’t plan on sleeping with the stench, so I got a towel and used it to clean up the mess. I gagged the whole time. Once I finished cleaning up, I took a long shower so I would feel clean again.
I slipped on a pair of shorts because I didn’t plan on sleeping naked with Tami in my bed. I brushed my teeth and flossed. When I threw the floss into the garbage, I saw it. It felt like someone had just punched me; I found myself collapsing onto the floor and couldn’t catch my breath. In the garbage was a wadded-up tissue with a used condom in it. Only someone you love can hurt you this much. I had to close my eyes and will myself to breathe.
Then I slowly got mad. Tami had told me of her desire to experience life, and that was the biggest reason why she and I couldn’t be together now. How could she bring back someone to my room and do him? Did Tami really take me for granted that much? Did she think I would put up with this?