6. Wednesday Night Football or Who Needs a Score When You Win

A series of short stories documenting the relationship of Bree and Jim. Foundation pieces for a larger novel Bree and Jim attend a football game with friends and share a kiss

6. Wednesday Night Football or Who Needs a Score When You Win

(October 6)

*OK, so basketball isn’t your game, how about football? -J* 1:34

*Football isn’t bad. The one of my brothers played it in high school. That was always fun to go to. -B* 1:37

*Well point for me. How’s Wednesday night for you? -J* 1:38

*Do I just need to send you a picture of the month’s schedule so you don’t have to ask what I’m doing all the time? -B* 1:40

*That’d be swell. It would make surprising you and Mar with food a lot easier too. -J* 1:45

*Sweet baby Jesus on fire. I still can’t believe you did that. -B* 2:15

*I want to say I’m sorry, but I’m not. Plus it was awesome hearing Mar tell me about your responses. So Wednesday? -J* 2:17

*God, that was embarrassing. I wanted to crawl under a rock. Everyone gave me crap for that for a week. Both me and Mar are off Weds and Thurs. -B* 2:19

*Awesome and awesome. The guys want to go to the game, and suggested we invite you before tickets were bought. I’ll tell Spock we need two more tickets, unless Mar has someone she wants to bring. -J* 2:21

*It wasn’t awesome. I’ll ask her when she gets back, we aren’t teamed up today. Makes for a boring shift. I’ll bet one of her brothers would enjoy going to a game. -B* 4:00

*That sounds like a plan. Let me know ASAP so we can get the tickets bought. What time are you off tonight? -J* 4:02

*Tomorrow morning at 7, its one of my random 24 hour shifts. -B* 4:50

*Hmmm… I could bing you some ice cream if you’d like, how many are on shift? -J* 4:55

*No. No ice cream. If anyone even thinks anyone is even thinking about that, there would be a riot, and these people don’t need more fuel for harassing me and my ‘admirer’ as they call you. -B* 5:00

*OK, so no ice cream at the station then. Maybe I’ll find something else to do then. -J* 5:03

*Don’t. You are so sweet, I may have to go to the dentist for the cavities your attempting to give me. -B* 6:30

*Oh, hey. Mar says she’ll need a second ticket, so that makes 3 for use onto of what you guys need. -B* 7:01

*Thanks, I let Spock know. Hope your night isn’t too bad and you get some sleep -J* 10:30

~~~~~~~~~~

Finally, Wednesday morning. It had been a long week, even if it hadn’t been an overly busy week. Bree lounged in bed, stretching into her day off and considering skipping her run for the day. She knew that she would hate herself if she did, and wouldn’t have the motivation for it tomorrow and wouldn’t be able to do it on Friday, so she wrangled herself out of bed and carried on with her habit. 

After returning home from her run, and the ensuing shower, she lounged in her chair. Flipping channels and absentmindedly playing with her phone until Marissa came out, hair tangled and her shirt hem askew. Her friend padded to the kitchen and made herself a cup of coffee and without asking, brought one for Bree as well. They sat together amicably and enjoying their drinks until Mar broke the silence.

“So, football tonight? She began. Bree nodded. “You have the right colors to wear? Or do we want to go shopping?” A smile crinkled the girl’s brown face.

Looking over at her friend grinning like a hyena, she couldn’t help but smile back as well. “I don’t have any UA stuff, butI do have a maroon shirt I could wear, but if we want to go shopping, I’m not going to argue. We haven’t done a good mall crawl in ages.” 

Both girls laughed and practically ran into each other as they jumped up to get ready to go. They knew they were going to meet Jim, his friends and whoever Mar was bringing along at 5:30 at his place before heading over to the arena for the game. Marissa wouldn’t tell her who she was bringing along, which made Bree a little nervous, but then the tall, latin girl was funny like that sometimes. Bree suspected that she had rekindled a friendship with someone from her younger days.

Hitting the mall, laughing and enjoying themselves, they happily found a sporting goods store that happened to have all their collegiate clothing on sale. Bree was more than happy to find an Old Dominion running tank and a University of Montana shirt along with the requisite Wildcats gear which dominated the the display. She added a Football style shirt with the cat on it and grabbed a pair of extra large men’s shirts with the AU letters plastered across the front in an almost startling maroon color. Marissa picked her own things and the girls enjoyed window shopping the rest of the smaller mall they had picked to explore.

Returning home, Bree grabbed up the maroon purchases both of them had made and threw them into the washing machine, in a possibly vain hope to wash some of the color out. The rest could wait for another load. There was no way she was mixing her blue and gold and blue and silver shirts in to get messed up before she had even worn them. The girls entertained themselves taking turns on their favorite classic games while waiting for the machine and the time to head out. Bree noticed that Marissa’s phone was busy in her hands whenever it wasn’t her turn on the game.

Five o’clock came quickly, the laundry washed and dried, Marissa grabbed her things and Bree slid into the new shirt with the wildcat logo and folded the overlarge UA shirt to bring to Jim. Marissa wasn’t far behind in a similar action. They played rock paper scissors to decide whose vehicle to take and were then at the door. Mar navigating the streets as skillfully as she does in the ambulance. 

It didn’t take her long to get to Jim’s complex and Bree points out the minivan that she recognized as Spock’s and Jim’s truck nearby. There was a man sitting on the tailgate of a truck in the spot next to where Marissa pulled in, and barely waiting for her to get out of the car, he jumped up and greeted the Taller girl with a hug and a kiss. Smiling to herself, she grabbed her small bag and made her way to the apartment number Jim had given her, Mar and the unknown man walking behind her. 

Raising her hand to ring the bell, the door was suddenly snatched open and Jim Greeted her with a hug and pulled her into the apartment, Marissa and her friend entering behind her. Bree pointed to the guys assembled and introduced Marissa and then Mar took her turn to introduce her friend as well. After a quick round of helloing and back slapping, Mar’s friend apparently, but not surprisingly knowing a couple of the assembled guys, they discussed how they would get to the arena, and settled into the vehicles, Bree finding herself in Spock’s van sitting comfortably next to Jim, his arm once again over the back of the seat behind her, she could smell his cologne mingled in with the scent of adrenaline and excitement as they traveled.

The ride to the arena took barely any time thanks to the close proximity of Jim’s apartment. Though it was far too quick to continue enjoying her seat. The group clamored out out the minivan and made their way to the open gate before them. Spock handed the tickets over to the guy annoying the gate, who tore them and gave them back. Shouting over the noise of people above and around them to tell them where they needed to go. 

Bree and Mar walked linked arm in arm flanked on either side by the men with them, following in the wake of the single men forging ahead of them. They both smiled, charged by the electricity of so many bodies, but not becoming so wrapped up in what was happening that they hadn’t already sighted lines of movement and escape in case of an emergency. It was force of habit. The only thing that stood to break Bree’s concentration was the feeling of Jim’s solid body as it jostled against her as they made their way to their seats. 

The group seated in two rows. The four single men took the lower row while the two apparent couples took the upper row. Bree once again felt his arm around the back of her chair. As she Sat back to enjoy a moment of people watching, she could feel his hand touching her shoulder from its place behind her. Leaning onto his touch, she leaned over to talk to Mar and find out a little bit about her apparent boyfriend and wasn’t surprised to know it was exactly as she had thought. Someone she knew from before, that honestly explained why the taller girl never really dated anyone in the last couple years in Great Falls.

Beginning to lean back into her seat, an announcement came over the PA system inviting everyone to stand for the anthem and to start the game. Everyone took to their feet and Bree couldn’t help but notice that Jim took a tiny step towards her so that her should bumped his arm as they stood next to each other for the duration of the song and as everyone began cheering when the home team took the field. 

The game began and Bree was caught up in the sound of the game below, the crowd around her and couldn’t help but remember going to games when her brother played. She soon found herself involved with the cheering, shouting and occasional booing participated in by the crowd. During a moment of musical feel when everyone clapped hands and stomped feet, she took a glance at Jim to see him looking at her with a huge smile on his face, caught in her joy and exuberance. 

She grinned back at him and just cheered louder. A few minutes later, his breath was on her neck and his voice in her ear, startling her. She  felt like she had jumped out of her skin as her wrapped his arms around her to keep her from tipping onto her friend. “A drink or food? I’m making a run to the concessions.”

Looking up into those eyes that seem to look not only at her, but somewhere deep inside her, all she could do was nod. Words wouldn't form for her with him this close. The next thing she knew, he closed the breath of space that was between them with a quick brush of his lips to to hers before letting her go, giving Ben a bump on the shoulder. She watched the two of them practically sprint down the stairs as she collapsed into her seat, now sitting in a bubble of silence in a roaring crowd. A punch on her arm brought her back to reality. Turning to see where it had come from, she saw Mar staring at her with a huge smile on her face. 

“He finally did it?!” She asked in stunned amusement. All Bree could do was nod in answer. Mar gave her a quick hug just as the crowd jumped up in celebration around her. 

Touching her fingers to her lips for just a moment and remembering where they were, she pushed the kiss aside and jumped back into the game. She’d have time to think later. The Wildcats were having a hell of a game, and it was hard not to stay out of the fray for very long. It seemed like no time at all that Jim and Ben returned with two huge trays filled with plastic cups, nachos and stadium dogs. Smiling at her, Jim reached past and handed a couple of drinks to Marissa and her date, and put the two other cups into the holders on the arms of their seats and the two brats into his seat.

Grabbing Bree into another hug, he leaned into her ear again, “You are beautiful when you’re so passionate.” This time she felt his stubble against her cheek along with his breath in her ear, and instead of being struck motionless and wordless again, she pulled away just enough to tilt her face up to his and put her lips against his in a more substantial kiss than he gave her before he left. 

The crowd around them roared again, but Bree didn’t know why. All she knew was that she was surrounded by a man she found infinitely attractive and apparently felt the same way about her. When they pulled apart a few moments later, they were both breathless. her throat was dry and when he let her go from the hug she collapsed into her seat. 

Bree didn’t remember the rest of the game, couldn’t tell you anything that happened in the last half of the game. She talked to everyone and cheered with the crowd. She somehow ended up with a new hat, but the one thing she does know is that there is, as far as she cared, one person on the planet for her, and he was a tall man named James, and he kissed her that night at the game. 

Author's Note

not edited, just written and put up. Any editing, voice or tone issues, let me know.