I personally think that a back spasm hurts more than a leg cramp.
“I’m going to show you how to loosen up your back with a lumbar roll. If done with more force, it’s what a chiropractor would use to manipulate your spine. Now take your palm, put it on your hip, and gently apply pressure. I want you to feel a slight stretching. Be careful not to do this too hard. If you feel your spine’s out of place, go see a chiropractor. Do not try to adjust yourself.”
I thanked Stan and called Nancy to have her meet me at the Nutter Center. I dressed back into my street clothes, plus the jersey I’d stolen from John, and met Nancy at the entrance. As we walked up Sport Center Drive and through the green lot to the stadium, we talked.
“Are you still tormenting the Theta Chis?”
John told me that his brothers had not gotten her to go out with any of them. He said it wasn’t for a lack of trying, either.
“What do you mean, tormenting? Has John said something?” she asked.
“I just heard that they’d all been asking you out.”
“Oh, I just ignore that. Theta Chi is where we go to have fun, not pick up guys.”
“Where do you go to pick up guys?” I asked.
“Why, do you want to pick up a guy? I didn’t realize you wanted to do that.”
“Nice. I’ve noticed that when you don’t want to answer, you ask a question,” I said.
“What do you mean?”
“My mom would love breaking you. She likes a challenge.”
“Why would your mom have to break me?”
“You have no idea. Anyways, where do you go to pick up guys?”
“Why do you want to know?”
“Pfft, you’ll be the death of me. Okay, let’s say I wanted to get picked up by a cute Kentucky undergrad. Where would I go to get picked up?”
“What’s wrong with me?”
I finally realized she was playing with me. If my back had felt better, I would’ve put her over my knee. I just gave up, which put a big grin on her face. I found I wished I were in college right now because Nancy would be fun to spar with on a daily basis. I just kissed her, and we entered the stadium. We found the suite where Teddy was.
I wasn’t surprised to see the whole Wesleyan clan there. They’d all come down Friday night. What I hadn’t known was that Teddy had flown back early Saturday morning just to pick me up. I introduced Nancy to everyone. Carol, Jennie’s older sister, stole my date to talk to her. I think it was to give Jennie a chance to talk to me.
“I heard you got hurt last night. Are you okay?” Jennie asked.
“I will be. I went to the Nutter Center and got some treatment. I hope to be ready for our next game,” I told her.
“How does Tami like her fellowship?” Jennie asked, changing the topic.
“Okay, I guess.”
“That’s right, you two had some sort of falling-out,” she said, trying to dig for dirt.
“Who’s the guy you brought?” I asked, to slow her down.
There was a good-looking man who was watching us. I could tell he was either her boyfriend or was interested in the role. He didn’t seem happy that I was talking to her.
“That’s Derick. He works for Uncle Teddy, and he’s my date for the fundraiser tonight. I think my uncle is trying to be a matchmaker. He seems like a nice man, but ... I don’t know. I think I can do better, plus he’s a little old for me. Who’s the cute girl you’re with?”
“That’s Nancy. I met her when I came to the Kentucky football camp. She plans to be a lawyer. From the questions she asks, I think she’ll be a good one.”
“Do you ever think about us going out?” Jennie asked, and then bit her lower lip.
“Jennie, you know we would never work. I want us to be friends, though,” I offered.
“Now’s not the time, but I’d like to talk to you about that sometime when we’re older. I know I’m not the easiest person to get along with sometimes, but I like you more than you know. I stayed with Grandma Wesleyan over the summer, and we talked about you. I think I owe you an apology for some of the things I did,” Jennie said, sounding sincere.
Jennie was always looking out for Jennie. She had either broken a date or, while we were on a date, had gone with another guy. I had a few minor trust issues with her.
Okay, I didn’t trust her at all.
“Tell you what, let’s forget the past and start over. I think if we both tried, we could be good friends.”
“And more?” she asked.
“Who knows? Let’s try being friends first, and see where it goes. I’m not really in a good place to date right now anyway. It wouldn’t be fair to you. Plus, we have the long distance problem to deal with.”
I was happy when Carol brought Nancy back.
“Nancy was just telling me that Theta Chi is having a party tonight. We agreed to leave the fundraiser early and go do that. Do you want to go with us?” Carol asked.
“It sounds better than just sitting in a hotel room,” I said, playing dumb.
“I wasn’t talking to you. I was asking Jennie,” Carol said as she scowled at me.
“I don’t know if that’s such a good idea. They have a make-out room. I’d be afraid the three of you would gang up on me and drag me in there,” I suggested.
“Really, you’re such a ‘stupid boy.’ You think the three of us would make out with you?” Nancy complained.
I waggled my eyebrows.
“A guy can hope, can’t he?”
Cynthia, Jennie’s grandma, had to come to rescue me. She grabbed my arm and had me go sit at one of the tables with her.
“I see you still have a knack for stirring things up,” she said, and smiled, letting me know she was just kidding. “How have you been?”
“Good. Football’s finally here, and I’ve been having a good time.”
“Teddy told me you got hurt last night. How are you feeling?” Cynthia asked.
“I’ll be fine. I’m just bruised pretty good. They gave me some great meds, so I hope to play this coming Friday,” I said.
She gave me a doubtful look. I just shrugged. I guess she decided to change the subject.
“I was happy to see your friend get the fellowship to the UK. That’s quite the feather in Wesleyan’s cap. We’re all proud of her.”
I wasn’t going to get away from Tami this weekend.
“So am I. I hope she learns a lot while she’s there.”
“We’ve had a handful of students get that fellowship over the years. They all seemed really to enjoy it. If she does well, she’ll get an offer to go to Cambridge for college.”
I didn’t really know how to take that news. I was back to feeling selfish and had to calm myself. I really did want whatever was best for Tami, even if it took her out of my life. I was a little sad to see that each time I was confronted with Tami being gone, it got easier for me. I was afraid that after a year I might no longer have feelings for her.
It was time for the game. From the start, it was an exciting game. It was in South Carolina’s hands until the fourth quarter, when Kentucky scored twenty-one unanswered points. The final was 45–38, Kentucky. Nancy and I made plans to see everyone at the fundraiser and went to the hotel to get a little rest.
I TOOK NANCY BACK TO my hotel room, as I needed some alone time with her. When we got to the room, my back was starting to hurt again.
“I need to take another pill, or I won’t be walking later,” I said.
“What can I do to help?”
“We could use the jetted tub, and see if that helps,” I suggested.
I took my meds while Nancy filled the tub. Teddy seemed to pick nice places to stay. Even though the room wasn’t a full suite, everything was top-notch. The tub was big enough for two. I came in to find Nancy dressed in just a smile. I went to her and gave her a kiss. I gently crawled into the tub and Nancy turned on the jets. I had three massaging my back, and they felt wonderful.
Nancy joined me in the tub, facing me. She let me get comfortable, and then she crawled on top of me and put her head on my shoulder. We just relaxed while holding each other. It felt good to have a girl in my arms again. I hadn’t realized until just then how much I missed doing that. One of my goals was to have a healthy sex life. I needed to work on that goal. Nancy was going to be a good start, or so I hoped.