Body Slammed! (12 page)

Jesse looked at TJ.

“Go ahead,” he said.

Jesse autographed the woman's napkin.

After they left the couple, TJ told Jesse, “I really am gonna win next week on
Monday Night Mayhem
. You know that little scene with Tanner at the UFC matches? Well, Collins thinks they can do something with it, so the ACW's giving me a bit of a push.”

“Yeah, my father told me about it,” Jesse said.

“Anyway, I'm scheduled to pin Chris Choate on TV.”

“Choate?” Jesse said. “I thought Chris Choate was being given a push.”

“He was,” TJ said. “But I think the ACW officials have lost faith in him. I overheard Harold Becker, the head writer, and Wes Meir, the show's producer, complaining to Collins about Chris. Harold said that Chris doesn't have any mic skills and that he lacks charisma. And Wes just doesn't like Chris' look. He said that Chris has let himself go ever since he joined the ACW.”

They stopped in front of the Dallas Cowboys Pro Shop and peeked in the window. Jesse eyed the glass case, which housed a football that had been autographed by all the players on the Dallas Cowboys team. He could only dream of owning the ball because he could never afford to buy anything that expensive. And who would ever buy it for him? His father? If he couldn't remember how old Jesse was, he probably didn't know when his birthday was, either.

“Have you seen Chris lately?” TJ asked. “He looks like he's six months pregnant. Anyway, I think the ACW's trying to teach him a lesson by having him job to me. Too bad. I like Chris. He and I know each other from our time in the indies. Yesterday, I went over him with a clean pin at a house show in Little Rock. I'm pinning him again Monday night.”

Jesse had seen the same thing happen to many other wrestlers, who had enjoyed success, wrestling in small arenas, but weren't able to cut it once they made it to the ACW.

American Championship Wrestling was one of the largest wrestling organizations in the country. Each week, it reached almost seven million viewers across the United States. Many indie wrestlers, like Chris Choate, couldn't handle the pressure of wrestling in that environment.

TJ took Jesse to a store called Kavala's Fitness & Nutrition, which sold health and nutrition products—vitamins, mineral supplements, health foods and high energy drinks. He introduced Jesse to the owner, a man named Nino Costas.

“I know your father,” Mr. Costas told Jesse. “He comes in here all the time.”

Jesse wondered why his father had never brought him to Kavala's. Was it because he didn't think of his son as an athlete since he wasn't a star player? Did he not think that Jesse needed to develop his strength?

TJ handed Jesse a basket and led him down an aisle. He picked up a jar of creatine and dropped it in the basket. “You're gonna need this. It'll help you gain muscle mass. And some of this.” TJ reached for a jar of whey protein. “You mix this powder with skim milk and drink it after you finish exercising. Oh, and you also want some amino acid pills. And lots of these.” TJ grabbed two handfuls of protein bars and tossed them in the basket.

“TJ, I don't have enough money to pay for this,” Jesse said.

“Don't worry about it. I'll take care of the difference.”

“But are you sure I need all these things?”

“Of course. It's what I use. Most pro wrestlers do, too.”

After they left Kavala's, TJ treated Jesse to a pretzel and a Coke at the food court. Then they headed to TJ's apartment.

At the gym, TJ started Jesse with stretching exercises to loosen his hamstrings and quadriceps. He walked him through the process of lifting weights. TJ taught Jesse the proper techniques for building up his biceps, triceps and pecs. They worked on squats to strengthen Jesse's legs. Jesse had done similar exercises at the field house, but this was the first time he'd had one-on-one help. It was like having a personal trainer.

“Come on. Let's go for a jog,” TJ said.

Jesse looked at his watch. It was almost five-thirty. “Sorry, TJ, but I have to go home.”

“Already? Come on, Jesse. We've hardly worked up a sweat.”

“But my grandma's expecting me.”

“Well, call her and tell her you're with me.”

Jesse couldn't tell his grandmother that he was with TJ and not at football practice, especially after the lecture his father had given him. He called and made up a story about how Coach Blaylock wanted to keep the players at the field house extra late. He also said that pizzas had been ordered, so he wouldn't be home for dinner.

Jesse knew he shouldn't have lied to his grandmother. But as long as he wasn't doing anything wrong, he didn't see any real problem with it.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

F
riday night, TJ didn't attend Jesse's game. Earlier he sent him a text that read: Sorry, can't make it 2nite. Me and your pops r wrestling @ the FedEx Forum in Memphis. Kick some Dragon butt 4 me! C U you Saturday @ 8. TJ

Jesse texted back to tell TJ that he would rather be picked up in front of the Target store near his house. Jesse had already told his grandparents that he would be going to Goose's Halloween party Saturday, so he didn't want TJ showing up at his door. He ended his text message with: Dont tell my dad that Im going to ur party.

It was just as well that TJ was out of town, because Jesse would have hated for him to witness the disaster that took place on the field against the Burnet Dragons.

The Sidewinders started strong, building a thirteen-to-nothing lead. Jesse begged Coach Blaylock to let him play, but the coach refused to listen. He chewed Jesse out for missing practice and said that he didn't see any reason to put him in the game if he wasn't going to show commitment to the team.

In the second half, the Dragons came back and scored two touchdowns. But late in the fourth quarter, the Sidewinders regained the lead, 20 to 14. They could smell victory and a district championship.

Then, with less than three minutes left in the game, Sam Morales did something uncharacteristically stupid. He didn't know if it was the tension or the excitement of the game, but on the next play, he chop blocked a charging defensive lineman. Instead of going for the upper body to stop the rushing player, Sam dove at his knees and ankles. The lineman fell to the ground, grabbed his right knee and howled in pain. The referee blew his whistle and threw a yellow flag. A Burnet player, furious at Sam's dirty move, seized him by his jersey and cussed him out. Sam snatched the player's face mask and twisted his helmet around.

Soon, players from both sides jumped into the scuffle. When the referees finally took control of the situation, the Sidewinders were penalized fifteen yards, and both Sam and the Burnet player who grabbed him were tossed out of the game.

With a look on his face that would have frightened the devil, Coach Blaylock blasted his players for fighting. Now left with no other choice, he sent Jesse in to take Sam's place.

Jesse ran out on the field, thrilled at the opportunity to be part of Deaf Smith's first district championship.

On the line of scrimmage, he snapped the ball to Riley, who completed a twenty-three yard pass to Mitch Maloof. Despite their fifteen yard penalty, the Sidewinders picked up an easy first down.

The tambourines rattled. The fans cheered. The drumline stepped up its beat.

On the next down, Goose picked up five yards. The play clock had run down to under two minutes, and the Sidewinders were moving the ball. Another score and they would put the game out of reach for the Dragons.

They continued to drive down the field until they reached the nineteen-yard line. It was now third and four with forty-seven seconds left in the game. Even if the Sidewinders didn't pick up a first down, they were close enough for Bucky to kick a field goal.

A Burnet nose guard, who looked like a grizzly bear in a football uniform, crouched across from Jesse, breathing so hard that Jesse could smell his stinky breath.

“Stay low. Don't stand up straight to block,”
Coach Lawson's words rang in Jesse's head.
“You need to have a good stance and good balance. Always be ready for the lineman who's gonna try to run you over.”

As big as the grizzly nose guard was, Jesse had been able to hold his own against him in the previous plays.

“Remember, push underneath your opponent's shoulder pads, back straight and feet apart. Keep driving forward until the play is over.”

Jesse was so focused on how he was going to stop the nose guard that he didn't pay attention to his snap. Instead of sliding the football into Riley's hands, he hit Riley's fingers, causing him to fumble it. Everyone scrambled for the loose ball. While both teams fought for it, a Burnet defensive end recovered the football, ran with it in the opposite direction and scored a touchdown.

Jesse's heart dropped as he stared at the Burnet player in disbelief.

An extra point later, the Dragons took the lead. Seconds after that, they won the game, 21 to 20. The Sidewinders' playoff hopes ended, and the Dragons became the new district champs.

Coach Blaylock hurled his clip board onto the field and unleashed a string of obscenities, but his voice was drowned amid the wild cheers and applause from the Burnet fans.

After the game, the Sidewinders reluctantly stood in line to shake hands with their opponents, as they traditionally did, in a gesture of good sportsmanship. Several Burnet players laughingly thanked Jesse for fumbling the ball. Jesse wanted to crawl under the turf and forget that the whole evening ever happened.

In the locker room, Coach Blaylock's explosive rant continued. “You all need to be ashamed of yourselves for your sorry performance out there!” he bellowed. “Earlier in the game, we had the Dragons pinned against the ropes, thirteen to nothing. But you let them slip though your fingers. You let them score three unanswered touchdowns!” His face grew redder as he spoke. “We had a chance to win district, but you blew it. And don't put the blame on any one player,” he added, staring at Sam and Jesse. “Remember, there's no ‘I' in TEAM!”

Yeah, yeah. And there's no Jesse Baron in TEAM either
. Jesse couldn't wait to get out of the locker room and move on with his life.

After Coach left Riley got in Jesse's face. “You make me wanna puke, Baron! I don't know why Coach Blaylock keeps you on the team. You're pathetic. You're a joke, and everybody knows it.”

Sam grabbed Riley's arm and pulled him back. “Leave Baron alone, Riley. If you want to blame anyone, blame me. I'm the one who lost my cool and chop blocked that lineman. I'm the one who got thrown out of the game.”

Riley tugged himself off. “No, Morales, you didn't do anything wrong. You were playing with intensity. You did what you had to do to stop that lineman. Besides, we overcame that penalty. It was Baron's screw up that cost us the game and the championship.”

Jesse had had enough of Riley King. With his heart racing, he said, “You've got a big mouth, pal. Maybe it's time someone shut it up.”

Defiantly, Riley tucked out his chin. “Who's gonna do it, Baron? You?”

Wendell stepped between them with his arms outstretched. “Come on, guys. Let's cool it. It's over. What happened can't be undone, so let's put it behind us.”

Riley bared his teeth and said, “No wonder Sara dumped you, Baron. She told me she wanted to be with a real man instead of with a loser like you.”

Jesse shoved Wendell out of the way and lunged at Riley, but Sam and Alberto caught him before he could do anything.

“Be glad they're holding you back, you wuss,” Riley taunted. “That's what Sara calls you. A wuss.”

Jesse's nostrils flared, and he unleashed a barrage of cuss words, which shocked him because he didn't ordinarily use foul language.

“Come on, Jesse,” Alberto said. “Let it go. Riley didn't mean anything. He's just upset 'cause we lost. It wasn't your fault. One player doesn't win or lose a game.”

Jesse continued to glare at Riley, measuring him with his eyes, wondering if he could take him in a fight. Then he freed himself from Sam and Alberto. With his anger somewhat subsided, he took a quick shower.

While he was getting dressed, he heard Goose talking about his Halloween party.

“We'll have plenty of pizzas and Cokes,” Goose said. “My mom's making popcorn balls and caramel apples. Wendy's bringing
Return to Darkness,
plus a couple of other horror flicks.” He turned to Jesse. “What about you? What have you decided about Saturday night?”

Jesse slipped on his sweater. “Sorry, Goose. I'd like to go, but like I told you, I already have plans.”

“Oh, yeah. You're going out on a date with The Jobber.”

Alberto smiled curiously. “Who?”

“You know TJ Masters from American Championship Wrestling?” Goose said. “Jesse would rather hang out with that jobber than to go to my party.”

“Masters?” Alberto said. “Dude, if you're gonna pal around with wrestlers, hang out with the cool ones.”