A Silent Soul- Chapter 17
#19 of A Silent Soul
Chapter 17! :D
Hey derrrr mah furrrrs! It's time for the next chapter of A Silent Soul! Today our protagonists wake up where they left themselves last night and a couple events are bound to get your minds working but before it's all over you'll all be hating me I promise! I'll see you all at the bottom of the page, hope you enjoy! :3
P.O.V. Change: Elijah
I groaned slightly at the feeling of my phone vibrating in my pocket. Shielding my eyes from the sun that was currently shining brightly overhead I used the arm that wasn't in a stranglehold due to Jasper using it as a pillow to grab my phone. I didn't bother to look at who it was as I answered the call.
"Hello?" I asked sleepily.
"Where is Jasper? He wasn't in class this morning." Rachel asked from the other side of the call. My eyes widened slightly as I glanced around.
"What time is it?" I questioned her.
"Almost eleven o'clock, are you two both still sleeping?" She exclaimed.
"... No?" I replied hesitantly.
"You two... -sigh- well I'm going to grab something to eat if you two want to meet me down at the dining hall." She said.
"That's fine, be there in a few minutes." I told her as a yawn enveloped my muzzle.
"Alright see you there, bye." She responded before hanging up. Putting the phone down on the grass next to me I gazed at the still snoring grey furred wolf directly in front of me. Recalling the events of the night before I leaned forward and planted a kiss right on the tip of his nose which seemed to do the trick.
I watched a grin envelop his muzzle as he returned the kiss as well. We were both smiling at this point but unfortunately I had to break the news to him.
"We both missed our classes this morning." I informed him. His grin disappeared for a moment before reappearing full force.
"I wouldn't have missed last night for the world, and at least I missed it for good reason." He whispered, licking my nose gently. I giggled at the gesture.
"Rachel invited us out to breakfast, she's probably waiting on us. Besides my body is sore, the moment might have been great but I wished we'd gone back to the room." I said as I slowly sat up off the ground.
"Gone back to the room to do what?" Jasper said teasingly as he sat up as well. Playing to his desires I leaned down to whisper in his ear.
"You know exactly what we would have done." I blew into his ear when I finished speaking and I reveled in the involuntary shiver that coursed through his body.
"Don't go getting me all worked up like that, it's been a while." He whined as I stood up and dusted the grass off my clothes. I only winked in response as I held out a paw to help him up.
He took the paw and lifted himself up and then surprised me as he used his momentum to thrust his muzzle against mine. He took advantage of my surprised gasp by shoving his tongue into my open maw. I melted in his embrace, legs shaking as a result. Finally he pulled back leaving me gasping for air. He panted slightly as well before winking at me.
"Told you not to get me worked up." He whispered slyly. Recovering from my daze, I responded.
"I might have to do it more often if that's how you act." I grinned with a slight blush on my face as he grabbed my hand and led me down the hill towards the dorms and the dining hall. When we finally found Rachel standing outside of the cafeteria, she only shook her head at us.
"You two are a mess you know that?" She commented. She was partially right, not only were we a mess because we'd both missed our English classes, but our physical appearances left a lot to be desired. Fur disheveled and clothes covered in grass we walked inside of the cafeteria.
It was extremely busy inside and it took a few minutes for the lines to finally get moving. It looked somewhat short staffed around the building and I couldn't help but feel bad for those who had to come in Monday mornings.
Once we all had our food we found a table towards the back and sat down. I was still somewhat tired from the uncomfortable sleep, and a nap at that point sounded like a fantastic idea.
"Did you guys see the message they put out about the kicker?" Rachel asked as she swallowed a spoon full of cereal.
"No, how bad is it?" Jasper questioned.
"Broken leg in three different places, he's done for the season. They're doing tryouts all this week starting today." She replied. Jasper and I shared a look before he turned back to the fox.
"Good, I'm going today to try out." He responded as he downed the last of his coffee.
"You kick?" She asked curiously.
"I did in high school, gonna see if I still got it though." He said as we all stood up to take our plates back.
"Well, good luck I guess." She told him.
"Thanks, I'll probably need it." He chuckled as well left the cafeteria.
"Well I'm all done with classes today, I'm gonna go hang out with Trev more than likely. See you two around, don't get into too much trouble." Rachel said as she left. Once she was out of earshot I turned to Jasper.
"They seem to be spending more and more time together have you noticed?" I pointed out.
"Think there might be something going on between them?" He replied with a grin.
"Knowing her, probably." I replied. "So now what?" I asked him.
"I could probably use a few practice kicks before I head over there, were you going to come with?" He gave me a half-hearted puppy dog stare. I chuckled at him.
"If I hadn't already planned to go with you I probably would have said no, those eyes were not cutting it." I informed him. His face drew up in mock hurt.
"Hey, that's hurtful y'know. I might not completely be a dog but I'm still a canine." He pouted.
"Here, let me show you how it's done. First of all, you gotta drop the ears. Or at least one of them." I told him. I demonstrated by flattening my ears against my head.
"Next, just ever so slightly cock your head to the side and glance slightly downwards as well. And finally, just look up at your victim." I finished the demonstration executing a perfect face. He was unable to suppress his "d'awww" as he hugged me.
"You're too cute you know that?" He rubbed behind my ears, a spot I'd grown to love be scratched. My leg involuntarily thumped against the ground as I leaned into the scritches.
"Hey that's no fair!" I panted as he relinquished. He responded by rustling the hair on top of my head.
"Come on cutie, I've got a ball back at the room we can use for practice." He told me.
"Someone was prepared for this." I replied.
"Something like that." He said simply as we continued the walk back to the room. We grabbed the ball and headed back out near the big hill where there was a huge tree that would serve perfectly as an upright.
"Can you hold the ball for me?" He asked as he found a comfortable spot for the ball.
"Promise not to kick me on accident?" I joked.
"I solemnly swear not to kick you on accident. Maybe on purpose though." He joked back getting a glare from me. "Trust me I won't kick you." He added seriously. He took a few steps backwards and to the left slightly to line up.
He took a deep breath before charging forward to the ball. I had to contain my laughter as he completely whiffed on the kick, sending himself sprawling to the grass. His own laughter was contagious as it spread to me and I couldn't help but join in.
"Well, now that that's out of the way." He said as he hopped up off the ground and repositioned himself. The kick this time sailed to the right and I went to retrieve the ball for him. We repeated this process for a while until he finally felt somewhat comfortable kicking the ball.
He only managed to line up a couple of the numerous kicks he made, but I could tell he was getting more confident with each kick. The last kick he made sailed right down broadway and I watched with glee as he pumped a fist.
"Alright I'm ready, let's do this!" He exclaimed excitedly. Luckily they were holding tryouts at the recreation center rather than the stadium, I didn't want another bus ride like the previous one.
I was surprised by how many people had showed up for the recruiting, and I knew that Jasper needed to be near perfect if he wanted any shot at this. He stayed optimistic as he filled out the paperwork required, but I couldn't help but feel anxious for him.
I watched many of the other kickers take their turns booting the ball. Some of them looked like they'd never kicked a ball in their lives but I had to admit that most of them were going to be competition. My stomach was in knots when Jasper's turn finally came up.
P.O.V. Change: Jasper
I did my best to steel my nerves as the assistant set the ball up for me. Glancing towards the sideline I caught Elijah's reassuring smile and thumbs up which filled me with a sudden confidence boost. I took a deep breath and closed out all outside noise surrounding me, feeling a serene grace come over me.
I started my trot slowly but picked up speed right at the end, booting the ball right down the middle from 30 yards back. I watched gleefully as the ball soared through the upright, remembering my successful high school kicking career where I finished the season with an almost perfect record.
I backed up another five yards as the assistant reset the ball. Repeating the process I kept up the pace, nailing the 35 yard attempt, 40 yards, 45 yards. Once I got to 50 yards I felt the anxiety begin to kick in. My long was only 46 yards, and even then I barely got it over the bottom bar. That was when I was in my prime as a kicker, I had no idea how I would land this one.
I let my gaze wander slightly as I tried to calm myself down before I finally signaled to the assistant that I was going to use my break. I walked off the field to grab one of the water bottles that had been put out for us. I poured a bit over my head, sighing as the cold jump started my dampened senses. I became aware of Elijah approaching me and I winced at the look of concern on his face.
"Are you okay? You looked like you were about to pass out there on the field." He informed me.
"I'm fine, just nervous about this next one. I barely made that 45 yard one and I could barely make it back when I was actually kicking full time. There's no way I can do 50. There's no way." I told him. I was taken by surprise when Elijah leaned up to peck me on the cheek and squeezed my hand reassuringly.
"I know you can do it, and even if you don't you've gone longer than most of the other people out here. Don't stress too much about it." He smiled warmly at me before smacking me square on the rear end.
"Now get out there and hit that field goal, I might reward you later if you do." He winked with the statement causing me to grin madly. I nodded and ran back to the tee where the ball was patiently waiting for me. I could feel the confidence surging through me once again as I lined up for the kick.
Just as I booted the ball I felt a slight breeze come at my back which helped carry the ball a yard or two, just enough to get it over the bar of the upright. I pumped my fist a couple times as I ran back to the sideline. 50 yards was all you were expected to be able to kick most of the time so I was comfortable ending my run there.
I watched the other participants giving me dirty looks as I walked by. Elijah ran forward and met me halfway to the sideline, leaping up onto me. I caught him under his armpits and he wrapped his legs around the small of my back.
"Yes! I knew you could do it! You're the only one who's made that kick, there's no doubt you'll get the spot." He exclaimed as his arms wrapped around me. I hugged him tightly back, spinning a couple times for good measure. We got a few odd looks and some dirty comments but I ignored them as I celebrated.
I finished noting down the rest of my information for those holding the try outs and just as I set the pen down I felt a large hand fall roughly on my shoulder. I turned around and my jaw dropped slightly as I stared up at the huge lion standing over me.
"M-mr. Leon! I didn't expect you to be here." I sputtered out in disbelief. He let out a hardy chuckle as he grasped my shoulder.
Mr. Leon, or more affectionately known as Coach Leon, was of course the coach of the football team. Even more importantly his father Justin Leon was the president of the University.
"It's truly an honor to meet you sir, were you here the whole time?" I asked him hesitantly.
"I sure was son, you've got quite the leg on you I must say. You had to have done a bit of kicking before I assume?" He questioned. I nodded my head.
"Yes sir, my junior year of high school I was the kicker but I had to leave the team after my job stopped me from being able to play." I replied.
"That's too bad, you probably would have gotten drafted to a bigger school, but I'm happy you ended up here. I want you on the team if you're willing of course." He offered. My eyes widened in shock as I was offered the position on the spot by none other than the head coach of the team himself. I nodded my head vigorously.
"Yes definitely! Thank you so much sir!" I exclaimed happily.
"But of course, I expect you to be ready for the game on Saturday. I'll have these gentlemen take care of the rest, they'll walk you through the process of signing the official paperwork. Welcome to the team...?" He trailed off slightly as a puzzled look contorted his face.
"Jasper, Jasper McHugh sir." I informed him. He held out a large golden paw as he grinned widely, showing off his set of pearly whites.
"Welcome to the team Jasper." I returned the handshake fully before he walked off to attend to other business. I whirled around looking for my fluffy husky, finding him chatting with Sebastian off to the side. I snuck up behind him and grabbed him from behind. He squealed in surprise as I rubbed my muzzle against his neck.
"Somebody's happy, who was that?" Elijah asked as I released him.
"That was the head coach of the team, and you won't believe it! He just offered me the position on the spot!" I exclaimed, jumping up and down like a small pup. Both Elijah and Sebastian's eyes widened in shock at the news.
"Oh my god Jasper that's great! I told you that you'd do it!" Elijah told me.
"Congratulations, Elijah texted me a few minutes ago letting me know what was going on. Figured I'd stop by and say hello, glad to hear you got the spot." The bobcat said happily, eyes alit with glee.
"He said I needed to be ready to play by this weekend so I'm gonna be busy with training, I can't wait though! Oh I'm so nervous! What if they throw me in for the game winner or something?! I'll choke so bad!" I began rambling slightly before I noticed the amused looks of Elijah and Sebastian staring at me.
"You'll do fine, I have no doubt." The bobcat said reassuringly. I missed the downcast look on Elijah's face in my excitement however. "Well, I've got to head to class, congrats again. I'll be at the game Saturday to cheer you on." Sebastian said.
"Alright, I'll see you around." I replied as the bobcat nodded before walking off. Turning back to the husky I grabbed him in a hug once again, unable to suppress my excitement.
"I'm so excited, this is gonna be great!" I said happily. The hug was only returned half-heartedly however causing me to draw back. Upon seeing the tears flooding the huskies silvery eyes my excitement quickly faded.
"Hey what's wrong?" I asked him concernedly.
"Can we go back to the room and talk?" He said quietly.
"Of course, come on." I replied as I took his hand in my own. We walked back in silence and sat down together on the bed once we reached the room. I petted the back of his hand as he sat next to me in unmoving silence which worried me to no ends. I stayed silent however waiting for him to speak.
Finally he drew in a shaky breath and turned to me.
*Risks a glance over my shoulder as the hoards of angry readers chase after me* GUYS PLEASE I'M SORRY I JUST GOT MY FUR REDONE FROM THE LAST TIME THIS HAPPENED! I'LL SEE YOU ALL TOMORROW FOR THE NEW STORY, I GOTTA RUN BYE!