Chapter 3: Chapter 2 // Football? Football.

Seventh grade / Age 13...

"Guys, guys, guys!" Leo says excitedly, running up to Sawyer and Vincent, who are quietly discussing at their lockers. Hayden follows closely behind Leo, matching his enthusiasm despite not knowing what he is excited about.

Over the past year, the small group has grown closer than ever. Instead of asking Leo Gaines where his other half is, people now wonder where his other three comrades are.

Leo and Sawyer do their weird and unnecessarily extra handshake in greeting. As for Vincent and Hayden, Hayden still doesn't know where he stands with the confusing teen. However, that doesn't stop him from playfully snatching the book out from under his arm. Vincent just crosses his arms with defeated acceptance as Hayden begins to read the back cover of his novel curiously. Vincent's little smile is unseen by the rest of the group at the action, though.

"What's got you so smiley?" Sawyer chimes, nudging his best friend in the chest.

"Maybe you should rub off on Vinny," Hayden mutters under his breath, receiving a flick in the forehead in response.

"So... I may or may not have done a little something," Leo says nervously.

Vincent narrows his eyes. "What does that mean?"

"I signed us all up for football tryouts!" he beams even though his friends don't share a single ounce of his interest. "After school tomorrow, we are—"

"No," Vincent immediately says. He'd rather not subject himself to the jocks of his grade and his parents would never let him in the first place.

"Oh, come on," Leo groans, shaking his disapproving friend's arm as if it will change his mind. "I promise it'll be fun. We can—"

"Nope."

Leo sighs, "Can someone else talk some sense into him?"

"It's no use," Sawyer shrugs. "He is as stubborn as a fast food restaurant and their transition to lunchtime. But don't sweat it, Leo. I'll happily tag along...just don't expect much," he laughs.

"I'm not stubborn," Vincent argues. "I'm just smart. Don't come crying to me when you have a concussion."

"Such a party pooper," Leo teases.

Vincent just shrugs carelessly, standing behind his opinion.

"Hayden, what about you?" Sawyer says. "You've been awfully quiet."

When three pairs of eyes latch onto the usually energetic boy, something is different. For the first time since they all befriended Hayden, he looks anxious; a look that doesn't suit him well at all.

"Hayden?" Leo says softly.

"I-I would love to try out, don't get me wrong," Hayden begins, "But I don't want to be a laughing stock. I already hear what people say about me behind my back."

Sawyer and Leo feel saddened by what their friend has to go through. Vincent, however, has never been great at showing empathy.

"So?" Vincent shrugs.

Hayden looks at him with a dash of irritation. He knows that Vincent isn't exactly the most compassionate person, but he didn't think that he'd be so heartless.

"Fuck them," Vincent adds.

Hayden wishes so badly that he thought like that, but he isn't Vincent. Vincent isn't like him either. He has no idea what he goes through on a daily basis just because his shirt size has some Xs in it.

The group is surprised when Hayden storms away.

He may be blowing the entire situation out of proportion, but what he feels is genuine.

He knows that he and Vincent are unalike, but he didn't think that their differences would be this conflicting. Yet, as Hayden storms through the hall by himself, he wishes that Vincent would give him the strength to think like that.

When Leo and Sawyer look at Vincent uneasily, he feels awful. Even though he said nothing wrong, he would never purposely upset someone who is becoming so important to him.

"I'll catch you guys later," Vincent sighs, turning around and walking through the halls without looking back.

As Vincent and Hayden walk in opposite directions from each other, matching smiles lighten their moods as they look down at their phones to find a new text from Leo. Vincent endearingly shakes his head.

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So...see you guys tomorrow at four?

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∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

Sawyer, Vincent, and Hayden look at each other nervously. Whereas Leo fits in just fine with the other boys trying out, the three feel like a joke.

Sawyer's pads are on backward, but it was too much work to wrestle them on, so he isn't planning on fixing it. Hayden accidentally bought soccer cleats instead of football ones. Lastly, due to Vincent waiting too long to confirm his practice shirt size, he is wearing a crop top.

"You guys look great," Leo expresses as he comes running over.

"Don't lie," Vincent chuckles, causing Sawyer and Hayden to snicker behind him.

Leo just playfully rolls his eyes before saying, "Thank you so much for coming. I really mean it."

"Yeah, yeah," Vincent says.

"Boys! Gather around!" comes a scary, booming voice.

Sawyer practically jumps at the coach's yelling, but the boys scramble over to listen to his introduction.

"If you don't know me, my name is Coach Morrow," he begins. "Listen, I'm not going to waste my time getting to know your names because look around."

Hayden gulps nervously and steps a little closer to Vincent when he realizes just how many people there are and how intimidating they look.

"There are about a hundred-fifty of you. By the end of the three-day tryouts, I will only be taking fifty. I'm not here to hurt anyone's feelings but I'm not saying that won't happen. I want the best of the best, and if you can't be that, then you are already worse off than you know. With that being said, I want everyone to run half a mile to warm up. I'm not timing it but I'll be able to know pretty easily who is falling behind."

All of the boys continue to glance at each other. Half of the crowd is oozing confidence while the other half is feeling disheartened.

"What are you all still looking at me for?!" Coach Morrow exclaims. "Go run!"

Instantly, everyone sprints away.

The first few minutes of the jog are fine, but Hayden and Vincent soon hit a rough patch. With no prior endurance training, the run is like hell. Hayden is wheezing while Vincent is a little better, but still heavy-breathed.

Vincent really hates Leo's guts right now.

"You g-guys...can go a-ahead," Hayden manages, referring to Sawyer and Leo.

"As if," Sawyer scoffs.

"Not a chance," Leo smirks.

Hayden can't help but smile to himself. He needs to realize that he has finally made true friends, and they aren't going anywhere.

By the time the run is done, Vincent, Leo, and Sawyer are practically dragging Hayden across the finish line, but the point is that they made it together. The group isn't the last to finish, but it definitely isn't looking good for them so far.

After everybody finishes their half a mile, the coach splits everyone off into groups. Unfortunately, Hayden gets left out while his friends are put in the same group.

Vincent, Leo, and Sawyer are thrown into a small scrimmaging team, where despite Sawyer and Vincent's lack of experience, they dominate alongside Leo Gaines. Leo can run circles around everyone on the field while still maintaining a perfect throw. Sawyer has unmatchable speed, and even though he isn't great at catching, he has potential. Vincent may not be in shape, but he has a very quiet presence that gets lost among the crowd until he is victorious with a catch in the end zone.

While Hayden is busy working on a throwing drill with new teammates, the coach pulls the three notable players aside as the rest of their group is still practicing.

"He your friend?" Coach Morrow asks, gesturing to Hayden who fumbles a ball thrown right at him.

"Yes," Leo says, raising an eyebrow at the guy.

"Well...I just wanted to say that you three have been doing an exceptional job. You have already secured spots on the team."

Leo and Sawyer give each other high fives and playfully nudge Vincent.

"That being said, you guys need to know where your priorities lie."

Vincent doesn't like where this is going.

"He's holding you back. Don't think I didn't notice the little pity jog you took to stay with him. I just...can't imagine losing three people with so much potential just because of a friend who doesn't know where he belongs."

"And where is that?" Sawyer challenges.

The Coach sighs, "You know what I mean."

"I don't think I do," Sawyer repeats.

"You know damn well that a kid who doesn't know how to put down the cake doesn't belong here."

"Yeah?" Vincent says, crossing his arms. "Well, you don't get to keep any of us if you cut him."

"Vincent," Leo says in shock.

Leo has always wanted to be on a football team, ever since he was five years old and watching the NFL stars on television. He feels conflicted.

However, when Vincent doesn't relent the glare he is giving Coach Morrow, Sawyer can see his best friend coming around. Leo may love football, but he's probably one of the best people you could ever ask for. He loves his friends more than some coach devoid of kindness. At the end of the day, Leo Gaines would sacrifice anything for those he cares about.

He crosses his arms and looks at the coach defiantly. "Yeah, what he said."

"That's fine," Coach Morrow says with distaste, disliking the threatening teenagers. "I can do without you."

"Suit yourself," Sawyer shrugs smugly.

"We'll just prove you wrong," Vincent adds.

He scoffs and shoos them away. With new determination and fire in their eyes, the three boys return to the game, dominating once again.

Although their hearts are in the right place, it doesn't change the fact that Hayden is getting stepped all over. It wouldn't make a difference even if he was on the team.

Now, his group is doing a short three-on-three drill.

Nobody ever passes Hayden the ball. Nobody even comes within two meters of Hayden. The only boy that does just wanted to trip him and call him names. He has never felt so left out in his life, and now without Sawyer, Vincent, and Leo at his side, he is once again retreating to the pathetic kid he once was.

Not a single one of the four friends have a smile on their face after the first day of tryouts.

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

By the time Vincent is walking into the locker room, it is long past the time that anyone should still be lingering. He's been stalling because he doesn't want to go home and have his parents question where he has been although it is kind of inevitable.

When he opens his locker to grab his school stuff, he hears a muffled sniffle from somewhere inside the room. Vincent immediately begins to rush and gather his stuff because he isn't known for being great at dealing with crying people.

Just when he's at the exit, though, he feels his moral compass directing him toward the back of the room. He sighs in annoyance before trudging in the direction of the sad sniffles.

When he walks into the discussion area of the locker room, Vincent doesn't see anything at first besides the large whiteboard used to teach plays. However, when he glances at the corner, he doesn't expect to find Hayden curled up into a ball.

Crap...where's Leo and Sawyer when you need them?

Vincent doesn't say anything. All he does is join Hayden on the bench, staring into nothingness.

When Hayden feels someone settle next to him, he briefly peeks to find the person he considers his best friend. Hayden waits and waits and waits for the silent boy of wisdom to say something uplifting, but it never comes.

"Vinny, seriously?!" Hayden exclaims, startling Vincent.

"Hm?"

"No comforting words or fetching me tissues or even hugging me, for god's sake!"

"This was the best I could do," Vincent says honestly. "Sorry."

Hayden softly chuckles from the sincerity on his face. He wipes away his tears with the back of his hand.

"Are you...okay?" Vincent asks softly.

Hayden shakes his head honestly. "I'm tired of feeling like this all the time."

"Can I say something?"

"Mhm." Hayden hums.

"You empower them to say those things about you."

Just when Hayden begins to protest, Vincent holds his hand up.

"If you weren't insecure about that part of yourself, then you wouldn't let it affect you...but it does. Bullies can always hear insecurities the loudest because it's reflective of themselves. I'm not saying that you can just flip a switch and be confident, but you can start by being kinder to yourself. And, if it means anything...I like you for you, even when you are being annoying as hell."

Hayden lets out a genuine laugh, causing Vincent's eyes to scrunch up happily as well.

"You know, you can actually be pretty nice when you want to be," Hayden muses.

"Yeah, well this is a one-time thing," Vincent chuckles. "Don't get your hopes up."

Hayden tries to reach over and wrap Vincent in a hug, but the raven-haired boy is having none of it. He puts his index finger on Hayden's forehead and pushes him back.

"Vinny," Hayden huffs.

"Not a hugger," he chuckles. "But, um...I'm sorry for making you upset yesterday. I didn't mean to."

"I know you didn't," he says softly. "I was just having a bad day."

Vincent shrugs, "We all have them."

Hayden smiles softly before asking, "Vincent?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you believe me if I said I had the time of my life playing football today?"

Vincent looks at him carefully. The sparkle in Hayden's eyes couldn't be faked.

"I mean, I know people were busy trying to tear me down, but when I wasn't worried about them, it was so fun. So...if I happen to make the team—which I probably won't—but if I do, will you keep playing with me?"

Honestly, Vincent didn't care too much for the sport. Yeah, he was good at it, but he would much rather be reading a book.

However, with the hopeful look on his best friend's face, how could Vincent say no?

"Yeah," he smiles. "And don't sweat it. I'm sure you'll make the team."

When Hayden jumps up in celebration, he scares the crap out of Vincent. Hayden starts doing his hilariously horrible victory dance, and Vincent immediately gets up and tries to leave the locker room.

"Vinny, wait up!" Hayden yells with a laugh as he races after him.

When Vincent breaks out into a sprint, the two spend way too much time chasing after each other. Vincent's strict parents are long forgotten as he and Hayden tumble around on the grass, getting lost in the sound of the other's laughter.

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

"Oh, nice of you to finally join us," Vincent's Dad says as he is putting dinner on the table.

Vincent's mom doesn't even make eye contact with him as he comes strolling through the front door.

The only people who look cheerful at Vincent's presence are Valerie and Vance who are making grabby hands at their brother. He immediately walks over to the pair, greeting Vance with a hair ruffle and kissing the crown of Valerie's head, causing her to giggle and shriek.

Vincent wordlessly sits down at the table.

"We always have dinner together so imagine how worried we were when you didn't show up for hours and didn't contact us," Kane continues.

"Sorry," Vincent says, but he doesn't really mean it.

"That's all you have to say for yourself," his mom, Ana, scoffs. "Do you know how it looks for us when you are busy running around, doing god knows what? What is with you lately? Kai never acts like this."

Vincent wants to spit back that always comparing him to their friend's son isn't a good incentive to control him, but he bites his tongue.

When Vincent reaches in the middle of the table to grab a portion of the food, Kane finally asks, "Where were you?"

He hesitates for a second before saying, "Football tryouts."

He doesn't even mention the fact that he hung out with Hayden for a while because they are already annoyed by his first statement.

"Seriously, Vincent?" Ana sighs. "After you were the one who refused to take part in an extracurricular? Now you do it behind our backs?"

"Mother," Vincent huffs. "I don't want to play violin. I already told you that."

"Yeah, well Kai—"

"I don't care what Kai does," Vincent snaps.

His mother is taken aback by his tone and reverts to the silent treatment again.

Valerie and Vance are busy laughing away and playing with their food, having no clue about the tension in the room. Vincent wishes he could feel that free again...when he wasn't plagued by the constant pressure of parents who put everything into how they look to the public.

"We have done so much for you," Kane begins. "To bring you here, to find a better life for you, but you are still ungrateful."

Vincent is just...tired. In the words of Hayden Williams, Vincent is just tired of feeling like this all the time.

"And do you know how violent American football is? Of all things? Are you just trying to go against our word? You know that there is no chance of us letting you join the team. You have a bright future ahead of you and your academics are starting to slip and—"

"I'm literally the top of my class," Vincent says, aghast. "Why can't I do this one little thing and feel like a normal kid for once?"

"No, end of discussion," he claims. "You have two little siblings who you aren't setting a very good example for. They need their big brother, and as of right now, you aren't being that."

"Can I be excused?" Vincent asks with frustration. He stands up from the table before he gets a response.

"Just go."

Vincent doesn't waste another second before turning his back. However, when the twins follow his every move and begin to cry as he gets further and further away, he starts to feel guilty.

It's sad that when Vincent tries to find space and distance from his parents, he disappoints his baby siblings too. He just can't win in his household, and eventually, he is going to explode from the expectations.

When he walks into his bedroom and throws himself on the bed, he lets out a big sigh as he stares at the ceiling.

Family is everything to him. It always has been and always will be. It's just becoming harder and harder to live—to be himself and do what he wants without his culture hanging over his head.

Vincent loves his lineage. He loves his big extended family overseas who act a little crazy on the holidays, even when they ask questions that are way too personal. He loves his culture, but what he doesn't love is feeling like he isn't American too.

He is going to have to find a way to let Hayden down easy tomorrow and he isn't looking forward to it.

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

"—den...Hayden, wake up," says a gruff voice.

Hayden mumbles something in drowsy confusion as he curls himself further into the comfort of his bed.

"Hayden." Someone shakes his shoulder.

Hayden is too tired to even realize that nobody is supposed to be in his house.

"I made your favorite," says the voice with a persuasive tone.

As Hayden starts returning to reality from his dream world, the voice has his insides twisting. His eyes pop open and he throws off his comforter to look at the unexpected guest.

"Dad!" Hayden exclaims, practically throwing himself into the man's arms.

His dad lets out a hearty laugh that warms the boy's soul after not hearing it in nearly a month. Scott's arms protectively wrap around Hayden, squeezing him in his embrace because he has missed his son more than could ever be put into words.

"I missed you so much," Hayden mumbles into his chest.

"I missed you too, kiddo," he says, patting him on the back.

"W-Why are you back so early? I thought you were going to be gone for another two weeks?"

"I needed to see my kid. I don't need any greater reason than that," he winks.

Hayden is unable to hide his smile. Not only has he been feeling under the weather lately with his dad's missing presence, but Scott always knows what he's thinking, even when they happen to be hundreds of miles apart.

"I know you probably aren't hungry or anything, so I'll eat all the pancakes I made by myself," his dad teases.

"Not if I get there first," Hayden smirks, racing out of the room to find that Scott did a lot more than just pancakes.

There is a pile of trinkets on the table. It includes clothes, figurines, and basically anything else that Hayden loves.

He feels his dad come up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"I know I've been gone for a while but I got you a souvenir from each city I visited...just like I promised." Hayden can hear the smile in his voice.

"Thank you," Hayden mutters quietly, thinking that he almost doesn't deserve it all.

"Come on now," Scott urges gently. "Let's eat. You've got to get to school soon."

Hayden nods as his dad begins to take care of him. It's a nice change after taking care of himself for the past month. Some might call Scott irresponsible for leaving him on his own for so long, but Hayden doesn't care. He loves him all the same and Scott does anything to make him happy. Still, it sucks when he's away from Hayden's important milestones, but he sure knows how to make it up with some quality time.

Scott loads Hayden's plate with pancakes that he specially coated with fruit and powdered sugar. He then gets up to fetch his favorite person a glass of orange juice as well.

Hayden is already feeling ecstatic about the day ahead, and all because of his father's presence.

"So what's been going on?" Scott asks when he sees that Hayden has been taken care of.

"Not too much," Hayden shrugs before perking up. "Oh, I tried out for football."

"Football?" His dad raises an eyebrow. "Since when do you like football?"

"I didn't think I would like it, but one of my friends convinced me to try out."

"Let me guess," his dad laughs. "Was it Leo?"

"Yes!" Hayden says excitedly, happy that his Dad has been listening to him on their phone calls where Hayden would continuously rant about how great his friends are.

"Is that something you really want to do?" Scott asks curiously. "Play football, I mean."

Hayden looks at him in question.

"I want you to do what you want to do, not what everyone else is doing just because it's cool. I just want you to be yourself, okay? Don't fall into peer pressure and all that other crap."

Hayden nods, "Yeah, I know. I actually really enjoy it, though."

"Okay then," Scott smiles. "Good. Do you know when your first game is?"

"Dad," Hayden groans. "I haven't even made the team yet."

"You will," he objects. "I know you will...and I'll be sure to be there to watch your first game."

"Promise?" Hayden asks, holding his pinky out cheekily.

"Promise," Scott nods, connecting their fingers.

He has never broken one of his promises to his son and he doesn't plan on starting now. He'll be there at any cost.

Hayden spends the entire morning overjoyed. From getting lost in witty jokes and banter with his dad to feeling his determination shoot up for the second day of tryouts ahead, he is practically exploding with sunshine for the first time in a while.

As he is on the way to school, he can't help but pull out his phone and text Vincent.

————————————————————————

Are you ready for tryouts today?

————————————————————————

When little dots pop up at the bottom of the screen to let Hayden know that his friend is typing, he can barely sit still. Scott laughs at his evident enthusiasm from the driver's seat, but when Hayden doesn't get a response, his mood immediately dampens.

Hayden has no idea what is going through Vincent's head right now as he too is heading to school.

Vincent bites his lip and glances between his parents in the front seat before looking down at the message from Hayden. He is going to get in so much trouble if he attends the practice but he just might disappoint his best friend if he doesn't show up.

However, Vincent would rather live for himself than follow every single one of his parents' strict rules.

Hayden lights up when Vincent begins typing again.

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Yeah, I can't wait. See you there.

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