To Love and to Perish - By Lisa Bork Page 0,52

to Ray last night, he’d left for work this morning with a dejected look on his face. It wasn’t even the patrol duty so much as missing this very important game. So far, though, he hadn’t missed much.

Danny spent the first quarter on the bench. Apparently his team had a lot of players and the coach was making sure every player got in the game. But Danny cheered on his teammates, whooping when plays went well and screaming, “Shake it off” when they didn’t.

The opposing team’s players never changed, although they had plenty of benchwarmers. It was clear all their superstars were in the game. They scored two touchdowns, including one following a fumble by one of Danny’s teammates. His failure turned out to be good luck for Danny. The coach sent him in to replace the other boy, who sat on the bench and hung his head. His shame was almost palpable.

The next couple of plays, the ball was carried by or thrown to other players, not Danny. He still bounded up to the huddle and listened intently to the quarterback each time, nodding with enthusiasm as they broke and hustling to his position on the line.

On the final snap before the end of the first half, Danny got the ball. He froze for a moment, seeming shocked that he’d caught it, then turned and headed for the goal line. His legs pumped, ball tucked tight to his chest, his other arm outstretched to ward off a tackle. With a final burst of speed, he crossed the line.

Touchdown.

My eyes filled with tears. I clapped until my hands stung.

Danny danced, his knees knocking and arms whirling. His teammates jumped on top of him.

“Yeah, Danny, way to make the play! Wooo!”

I turned to find Ray behind me, screaming, his arm raised in triumph.

“Aren’t you on duty?”

Ray’s gaze never left the field. “Yep. Think of this as community relations.”

I rolled my eyes.

Danny jogged off the field with his team.

Ray high fived him. “Great play. You look good out there.”

Danny’s eyes lit up. “Thanks. Can we get the snacks out now?”

“Sure.” I walked over to the cooler and lifted the lid. The kids crowded in, grabbing sports drinks and energy bars from the box Danny offered. I backed away to give them room, ending up next to Ray.

“Danny’s got good hands. He’s got speed. He reminds me of Sean.”

Sean, Ray’s brother, had played football in high school, a running back no less. Ray and I attended every game. Sean was a star player, never on the bench, always in the game. He dreamed of being a professional athlete, and the scouts encouraged him. But in his senior year, he got injured. His knee was shot. He lost his drive for everything. Until he discovered drugs, that is. I hoped Danny wouldn’t turn out to be another Sean. “He definitely looks good out there. I think he’s having fun.”

As they ate, the boys replayed every moment on the field, clearly pumped after getting on the scoreboard. When the whistle blew for the third quarter, Danny hustled to the bench to watch the defense take the field.

Tired from my big night, I headed for the bleachers and took a seat about halfway up. Ray continued to follow Danny up and down the field whenever the offense was in the game, his lips moving although I couldn’t hear what he said. He’d become one of those fathers, blending into the sideline masses.

The quarterback passed the ball to Danny, too high. Danny leapt into the air and caught it, landing nimbly and running for the goal.

I stood up. “Go, Danny. Go, Danny, go.”

Touchdown.

Danny did his little dance again. Ray whooped and hollered, slapping Danny on the back when he ran off the field. Danny beamed. Even the coach high fived him.

With the score tied, play grew more aggressive and each team took more risks, some of which ended badly. In the last quarter, after a fumble and a turnover, Danny’s team got the ball again, close to their own goal. At the signal from his coach, Danny joined the offense as they took the field.

The first pass went to the other running back, who ran for ten yards before the visiting team took him down, a little more roughly than necessary. With the second handoff, the quarterback looked for Danny, who was twenty yards down the field. The pass left the quarterback’s hand, spiraling downfield. Danny got into position. He caught the ball. A player from the