Chapter 37

By the time he picked himself up, they were celebrating in the end zone. With five minutes left on the clock and twenty-eight points separating them, Patton knew the game was all but over. He limped to the bench, trying to pretend he didn’t realize how pathetic he looked. He collapsed on the far end, knowing he would need every second of the point-after, the kick-off, and the change-of-possession time-out to gather his thoughts.

“I’m cheering for you.”

Patton didn’t look up from his hands. The crowd collectively deflated with the point after score, and he felt himself slipping deeper into his spiral.

“What are you talking about?” Patton asked hoarsely.

“You’ve been in tighter situations,” DeShawn said. “Remember that game against the Minutemen in ‘03?”

“Don’t dothat.”

“What?”

“Talk about those games like they mean anything now. That was a lifetime ago, a different team. I was different. So just fucking stop it.”

“Jesus, Patton, I’m just trying to help you out here.”