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They were both silent for moments. Casey felt someone was behind him. He looked back only to see Mr. Frank Hudson, the coach to the school’s football team. As far as they could recollect, they had no business with him or the football team.

“Good morning sir”. Casey said nervously.

“Good morning boys. Cody, how are you feeling now?” Mr. Hudson asked out of concern.

“Quite better sir.” Cody replied.

“I know you might be pondering about my presence here because you don’t have any affiliations with me. Well, I have a reason for being here”.

They turned to each other in confusion and back to him.

“I saw all your performances at the talent show and none of my players have what you’ve got”.

“Sir, it was an epic fail. It went viral”. Casey countered.

“I don’t allow mistakes to decide for me; instead I find the best mediums to rectify them.” He said and paused to see if they still their eyes and attention fixed to him.

“So how about Cody Morris be the assistant captain of the football team and Casey ‘Manuel be the coach for the junior football team.” He said in a suggestive tone. Actually, it was more of compulsive than suggestive.

“No sir”. Casey replied politely.

“Nonsense, I would not hear of it. You guys have the potential and that’s what the football team needs.”

Casey and Cody turned to each other for approval and then back to him.

“Okay sir, we accept”

“Okay. I will come and brief you guys about everything and Cody, I wish you speedy recovery.”

“Thank you, sir”. They said after him.

. . .

It was soon the end of lunchtime. Casey pondered at the invite as he strolled through the school premises. Cody too couldn’t get it off his mind. They couldn’t quite place the dramatic turn of events. The epic fail shattered their hopes but now the invitation to the school football team had its way of pacifying them.

It was soon the close of the day’s academic activities. The bell chimed to establish that fact. Melissa walked up to the desk; this time not in the company of her friends.

“Hey, what do you want?” Casey asked with a shrug.

“It’s nothing actually. I see you are still heart-broken. That epic fail really crushed your spirit so bad. I hope you recover soon.” She said, expressing pity on her face. It was not genuine.

“Haters got to hate.” Casey said.

“No, you got it wrong. Winners got to win and losers got to lose. You see, I am a winner but you and my brother are big losers”. She said, chuckling loudly.

He couldn’t take it anymore.

“There’s one thing you don’t understand now. Who you are today does not matter but what’s in you does. The end does justify the means”. He said in his usual way that was hard to detect whether he was angry or not.

Before she could say another word, he took his backpack and walked away. He had planned to study till 3:30 p.m. before he went off to see Cody but Melissa’s irrational behavior made his plans flexible. He had to check on Cody earlier than he had expected.

As he walked on, he tried placing differences between Melissa and Clara. They were both celebrities but way different. Clara was his mother, comforter and everything while Melissa was working towards shattering her brother.

“I’m so lucky to have Clara”. He thought.

Cody was back from injury after a week. This time he wasn’t just back as a regular student he was; he was going to be the assistant captain of the football team.

It was Monday afternoon at 2:00p.m. Casey and Cody walked into the football stadium triumphantly. Unlike the other players, they were the first to be in the team on invitation.

“I can’t believe this”. Cody said, beaming with smiles.

“It’s glorious, isn’t it?” Casey replied, smiling radiantly.

The first person they saw was Carl. It was then they recalled that Carl Robinson was one of the top forwarders for the team. He was also the top scorer in the team and one-time captain of the junior team. He was more than that. He is a nephew to the school proprietor, Mr. Ben Robinson. Together with his two friends, Jeff and Harry he bullied any student that crossed their paths. They had bullied Casey on his first day.

“Good afternoon, Carl.” Casey said cheerfully and in a bid to show that he held no grudges towards him for bullying him on the first day.

“Keep your greetings to your pockets, ‘Manuel”. He said aggressively and went on his own way.

Casey stopped and Cody also followed suit.

“How are our contenders getting much as soon as every new day visits; First it was Felix, then Melissa and now Carl?” Casey shrieked.

“Yeah, Carl is the last person I want to have fisticuffs with”. Cody remarked.

Mr. Hudson saw them from afar and signaled to them. They walked up to him.

“Good afternoon everyone, I want to introduce you tour new forwarder Cody Morris and coach to the junior team, Casey ‘Manuel”.

Just then, a voice spoke out loud in a whisper. The whisper was loud enough for everyone to hear. It was probably on purpose.

“Those are the guys that have the most trending epic fail now.”

“I wonder if they can even play football well”.

“Everyone turned back. It was Carl that had whispered to Jeff and Harry. Mr. Hudson walked up to them.

“Robinson, I don’t know your problem. You seem to pick a fight with everyone on the team.” Mr. Hudson said with a stern look

He walked back to his former position in order to resume his speech.

“Now, changes have been made. Henceforth, Cody will be captain whenever Jay is not around.” Mr. Hudson announced. Everyone clapped except for Carl and his friends.

“Let’s go guys”. He said and walked out on them.

“Robinson if you walk out; just be rest assured that you are out for a week.” Mr. Hudson shouted after him.

Mr. Hudson was a disciplinarian. He wasn’t deterred by anyone’s power or prestige in tackling and approaching matters. Every student in the sports team liked him for that trait he displayed. It was a man of principle that could do that.

After the day’s training, Cody went to meet him.

“Morris, what brings you here?” He asked, taking a gulp from the bottle of water with him.

“Sir, I don’t want to be the assistant the captain. Carl’s been on this team even before I got to this school. He deserves more it than I do.” Cody appealed. He wasn’t prepared for Carl’s trouble.

“You performed exceptionally well at the training today. Even the other players like it that way.”

“But…” Cody couldn’t finish his statement before Mr. Hudson cut in.

“No more buts, Cody. Have a nice day”. Mr. Hudson said and walked away.