The nerve of that little fucking prick. I really wanted to rush him and just beat him down, take the fight off the field and make it between him and I. Because that is what it felt like Parker had just done. He had the nerve, the balls, the audacity to actually walk up, right after my boyfriend had just lost his game, and declare war on me.
Gritting my teeth together I watched as Parker walked away, his smug walk making me more hotheaded with each step. If Kyle wanted to take him on now, I would have let him, no qualms about it. Parker deserved to be punched right in his smartass face.
Turning back to Kyle I drop to the grass and attempt to relax. It was a futile effort as I saw him just as pent up as me; the shock, anger, disgust, all emotions expressing on his slightly sun burnt face. Averting my attention, I dig through my bag and pull out a bottle of sun lotion. "Hey put this on. You're getting a little red."
Kyle snorted out as he looked at the bottle, "Sure it's not my anger for Northridge?" He takes the bottle from me before I could respond and starts to lather up his face and arms.
As I helped to clean up any areas that Kyle missed, mainly his eyebrows, Bryan and Zach walked over. They had apparently been watching the throw down between Parker and me, the verbal spat resonating around the area. Bryan was all huffy, his brooding shoulders puffed out as if he was prepared to fight, "What was that all about?"
Kyle shook his head and muttered, "It was nothing. Trust me you don't want to get involved in our drama."
Zach, who I had normally expected to not get involved, actually came to my defense, which caught me off guard just as much as Bryan. "Any moron who messes with Chris, or you at this point Kyle, messes with us. You have become part of the team family. What did he say?"
Kyle didn't even fight the initiation, merely shrugging his shoulders in a futile gesture. Looking at the two of them, I snip out, not meaning to hurt them, "We've just become public enemy number 1. Northridge is out for blood." Shifting my glance to Kyle, I rest my hand on his leg, drawing a concerned look from him. "Before we can take them on though, sadly we have to go against you. You need to get your cleats back on." Kyle groaned as he fell back into the field.
Standing up I look around for someone but they are not to be seen, "Any idea where Pike is? I need to talk with him."
Bryan had almost a sixth sense for locating people, something that the team enjoyed using a lot with on the field. Pointing his finger out across the field, he directed me to Pike's location, him conversing with San Bernardino. Leaning down, I kissed Kyle's slightly sweaty hair, ruffling it in the process, and then left.
Approaching Pike, I waited till he was done with his conversation, then pulled him aside as we drifted back towards our team. "We need to talk."
Pike had kind of gotten the hint from the way I approached him but as we moved closer and closer towards our team, he calmly responded, "Now? What's up"
I really didn't know if I was beginning to imagine things but I felt I had to say something. "Parker is out for me." There I said it. Something with the way he had approached Kyle and I made me feel very uncomfortable. "I don't know why or how but he worries me. Like he gives off that creepy vibe."
Pike chuckled for a second then saw the seriousness in my face, "A bit of a turnaround from last week don't you think? Yea he's a creep but is that all that's got you paranoid?"
Shuddering involuntarily, I murmur out, "I don't know. I feel like he's verging on stalker status for some reason. Like he was a decent guy but after the game against Fullerton, he showed his true colors and is a complete dick."
Pike looked at me slightly concerned now, the worry echoing in his voice, "Can you hold him on the field? Or do you just not want to play at all?"
As we finally got to the team, I grew in their strength, "I don't know if I can handle him but I am not going to sit out that game. We need every player we have."
Our second to last game: Fullerton. I would have much rather had them as our last game but with the way the brackets were set up, this was how the games were formatted. Heading into the game, we felt confident that we could take them on and win. As much as I hated to admit it, their loss to Northridge had affected them more than they realized. Or so I thought.
When we threw off the disk to them they came back hard, strategically moving the disk left and right up the field, never allowing it to end up in a tight spot. To be honest we should have seen it coming. They wanted the win, not just to beat us but to make up for the loss against Northridge. As was to be expected, I covered Kyle, doing my best to keep the disk from him.
Even though this was our first time "playing together" again, we didn't give each other any slack; instead we probably went harder. He, like his team, wanted the win and I, like Long Beach, needed to maintain our winning streak. I did have to hand it to Kyle as he seemed to have a fire in him that drove him to work harder, move quicker, and play smarter than me.
Moving off the field after one of our loss points, I navigate to stand near Pike, echoing his thoughts to him, "They have a fire behind them and they want this game." There wasn't fear in my voice but more respect, respect for the opposition for the war they were waging.
Pike only nodded as he uncrossed his arms. "Yea. I don't know if Victoria has them playing smart or if we're just playing sloppy." As he spoke that, our team seemingly heard his comments and managed to score; perfect timing too as we were overdue on halftime. Calling the team in, Pike huddled us together and went through what was going on.
During his instructions, I looked around the team, multitasking on listening while also giving into the feeling that I was being watched. Naturally looking at Fullerton first, I saw the back of Kyle, my instincts making me think he was the one watching me. With my suspicions quashed, I looked into the crowds next, concerned of who it would actually be.
Locking eyes with him gave me chills down my back, a reaction I didn't feel comfortable with. The smile, or sneer, I couldn't tell, was meant for me as he winked through the people protecting him. Parker. Gha I used to think he was a decent guy but he was shaping up to be a real creep.
Somehow I had stopped multitasking and missed out on listening, the tap on my shoulder by Bryan startling me back to the group. He and Pike both knew who I was looking at, but neither said anything, knowing it would distract the team the way it had distracted me. Pulling me back in, I focused on the more important issue at hand- how to effectively combat an unstoppable force.
The second half flew by us before we could realize what was happening. Yes we managed to stay point to point with Fullerton but we were starting to become more exhausted than they were, leading us to sub in players faster than normal. I did my best to stay with Kyle, our little game of tit for tat turning into a game of 'Catch Me If You Can'. He had more energy that I did, more motivation, both things that I desperately needed at this moment.
Fullerton won? Fullerton won. As they scored the final point, a lead of two points over Long Beach, they erupted in elation. We had given it all we could but it was not enough. Walking off the field in somber silence, Pike pulled us together but instead of telling us what we did wrong, gave us a different talk. "Guys, we fought hard. I am proud of you. They had the fire behind them that we needed. It's our turn to take that fire and use it against Northridge. While it does sting that we lost against Fullerton, I don't want to take the fall from Northridge as well. Let's take this win and end in glory!" The team, just a few seconds quiet from the loss, broke out into battle cries and screams, the start of the upcoming true battle. Fullerton was a warm up, a lesson of what we needed to fix.
We didn't have much downtime between games, just merely enough to grab some water and tend to any injuries or sprained ankles. Throwing the disk around with Tyler and Terry to stay warm, I practice my trick throws, something that I most likely wasn't going to do in the game but wanted to work on nonetheless. As the three of us threw around, I felt someone approach from behind, and me thinking it was Kyle, I turned to give him the congrats he deserved, my face happy and bright.
It quickly soured though as I stared upon Parker, his smug smile slapped upon his face. "What do you want Parker?"
Parker twirled around his own disk, then stopped it to say, "I just wanted to wish you good luck. You're going to need it."
I was already on high emotions just for him showing up but to say that too made me overflow slightly. Taking a bold step forward, I hissed out, "What's that supposed to mean?"
Parker, holding his face, shrugged his shoulders and continued on, unfazed by my approach, "Well, it's just you lost to Fullerton, and we beat Fullerton, so clearly there is a good chance we'll beat you too. It's simple stats Chris."
"Here's some simple stats for you Parker. We've beaten you once, we'll do it again. I am a better player in every aspect than you and I intend to show it on the field. Now back away before I take your deductive statistic reasoning's and shove them so far up your ass you'll be tasting their biasness in your mouth." Changing my hiss to a bark, I took another step forward, this time making his facade crack.
He backed away and scurried back to his team, the brisk walk giving me a little pleasure. "Little fucktard." I muttered to myself as I turned to focus on my team. It was time to play.
Walking onto the field, all the teams were watching. Kyle was with Fullerton but he was right on the sidelines, his concern making me feel comforted. Northridge threw off the disk, landing it to Pike. Parker ran up to cover me, the expected appearance grinding on my nerves. "You never quit do you?"
"Not this time. You are weaker. We're stronger. I'm stronger." He was getting cocky, just the outburst I had come to expect."
Snorting, I mutter out, "Suck my weakness." I go to break long but he was waiting there, a move that was to be expected out of experienced Frisbee players. What he didn't realize was that I was going to cut back. Pike moved the disk through the air to me. Parker, trying to gain the wide gap between us, sprints towards me but it was too late. I backhand the shit out of that disk, sending it far into the end zone where Tyler was derping around alone.
Tyler caught the disk with perfection and held it up, the motion causing cheers from the sidelines and my team. Northridge, realizing their mistake, walked back to their end zone to start again. As I passed Parker I commented curtly, "Always have a Plan B."
Parker, never one to miss a beat, retorted, "Oh I do. It's you. You're my Plan B."
Leaving me confused, he starts to shift from a walk to a jog. "What?" I bark out to him, almost wanting to tackle him to beat it out of him. 'What did he have in store?'
I didn't have the chance to find out as we went back into the game. As much as I hated having to cover him, he was the best fit for me, my evil twin if I ever had one. Every move he made, I was there to cover him. Every move I made, he covered me. I could even tell that Kyle was getting frustrated on the sidelines seeing our dance routine. When Parker went off on a break, I went off the next point. When he came on, I came on. I was not going to give an inch to him, and I felt that it was starting to impact him. He was wearing out, his speed and technique starting to falter a little bit.
It had been a long day. Both teams were tired. We however held out longer, taking the ground inch by inch. Northridge began to realize that we were taking it when we held our point lead for over three minutes. Then another point was posted to our side, the two points helping to solidify our lead. Normally those two points could be as easily replaced as they were given, but in a game like this, every point mattered.
We barely won. Not by methods or strategy but by luck. Northridge tried their damnedest to come back but when Hanson threw a hammer, which nearly gave Pike a heart attack, it gave us the winning point. Rachel was there to catch it, her agility not lost throughout the game. With the time now out, Long Beach beat Northridge again, the satisfaction melting into our bodies.
Looking for Kyle, I instead hear him running towards me. Turning around, I grabbed him tightly and kissed him on the lips. The rush of adrenaline, matched with the excitement of the win, kind of made me horny. Quickly pulling myself off before the bulge started to appear, I looked at Kyle and blushed. He gave me that knowing look and grinned.
Not too long afterwards the placements were called as to who took the games. Kyle and I gripped each other's hands as Northridge read off the scores. "This was a first for us, having three winners duke it out for first. In the end we had to switch to the amount of points scored over all games and in third place came Fullerton, second- Northridge, and first Long Beach." It was quick and clear cut, no suspense no waiting. I think it was partly because some of the teams were wanting to go home but either way the claps were genuine.
Cleaning up our stuff, Kyle and I started to discuss who was staying where and what our plans were for the night. Rudely interrupting us, Parker interjects himself into our conversation to look straight at me. "This isn't over Chris."
Pissed that he just cut in, I push him out of my personal space and take a step back. Kyle steps in between the two of us as I snarl at Parker, "The hell it is. You lost. Get over yourself you ass." Kyle wanted to break into Parker as well and Parker saw that so he quickly backed off. He had realized his mistake and hopefully wouldn't be bothering us again.
As Parker slithered away, Kyle turned and held my hand, "That does remind me. I never did congratulate you officially for the win."
Smiling, I reply, "I think the kiss did the job. And you did beat us as well."
Kyle wouldn't back down, playfully stating, "You still came in first... Point wise." Unlike other friends who try to one-up the other, here we were making the other more respected.
"Technicality." I smartly replied as we walked off the field. "Just revile in the fact that, for once, and possibly only once, you beat us." That small statement made Kyle grab my ass, making me squeal slightly. I won.