Falling Helplessly

Falling helplessly episode 17

🔥 FALLING
HELPLESSLY 👠

( For his brother’s friend …. 😇 )
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Written by:- Williams Kendall____✍🏽
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🏈 CHAPTER SEVENTEEN.

CHARLOTTE’S POV:

“Come on, Charlotte!” Madeline whined loudly from the kitchen as she mixed a drink into a plastic water bottle. “You have to come. I don’t want to go alone, and besides, it’s Emmett’s game too!”

I sighed deeply as I weighed my options. It was Wednesday afternoon. This was the last home game for the boys before Thanksgiving, and I really did want to support them. But I hadn’t seen Archer since last week and I was still so conflicted about it. On one hand, I was really hurt by his words. It wasn’t even necessarily what he said to me, but how he said it. He treated me how he usually does everyone else, but never me. I get the secret smiles, and extra-tight hugs—not the snappy words and hĂŚrd eyes. But then suddenly, it was as though the rug had been ripped out from under me, and I wasn’t special anymore.

On the other hand, I was embarrassed. I had let my anxiety and negative thoughts control my actions. I’d stormed away without letting him talk, and then ignored him when he tried calling me later. A part of me had hoped he would try again, but he didn’t. Probably because he had realized how dramatic I could be and decided I wasn’t worth it.

“Look,” Madeline continued as she walked through my open door, “I know you are stressed about all of this, but it’s not like you even need to see or talk to Archer. He’ll be playing and we’ll be in the stands. And we can leave right after the game!”

I pulled on my fingers nervously, “What if he doesn’t want me there?”

“Girl, trust me. He wants you there. That boy loves seeing you in the stands and I doubt one little tiff is going to change that.”

“Fine,” I gro-ned loudly as I stood up to get dressed in my USC t-shirt and dark ski-ny jeans. My hand twitched over Archer’s hoodie, did I dare wear it? Would he see it as a peace offering to support him, or annoying?

“It’s cold, wear it,” Madeline ordered decisively when she saw where I had paused. I tried not to think about it too much as I pulled the hoodie over my head and fixed my hair.

We rushed to the stadium with the hoard of other students adorned in red and gold. Having been to a few of these now, the excited energy of a live crowd didn’t make me nervous anymore. In fact, I’d become infatuated with it. There was something about all of us USC supporters, sitting together, wearing our colors proudly, cheering our team’s successes—it united us.

Madeline pulled me to two open seats in the front row, right behind the barrier to the field. I looked out at the player’s warming up, anxiously scanning the jerseys for #32. I barely even noticed the crowd around me in my search for Archer.

“Well look who we have here,” a smarmy voice sounded from next to me.

“Oh, hi Nathaniel.” I tried to plaster a polite smile on my face. Internally though I cringed that I was stuck next to him for three hours at least.
Nathaniel’s gaze, once again, unapologetically roamed my body. I was very thankful I’d chosen to wear Archer’s hoodie once his eyes briefly rested on the USC QB1 on my chest. I never really realized it before that because only team members got these hoodies, wearing Archer’s could look like a claim. But as Nathaniel cleared his throat and rested back in his seat away from me, I didn’t mind the misunderstanding.

The players cleared off the field to go back to their locker room as the announcer’s voice boomed around us—introducing the USC Song Girls. Beautiful girls dressed in white uniforms ran out of the tunnels shaking their red and gold pom poms energetically as they stopped in a formation—waiting for the music to begin. I saw Holly and that red-headed cheerleader that had escorted Archer at the Pep Rally front and center.

As the music soared, the girls began their routine. My mouth popped open in awe as they flew through the air like trapeze artists. They flipped, kicked, and shook their bums for the wh0le five-minute song, striking sed-ctive poses at the end as the crowd went wild.

“And now, please put your hands together for our home boys—The USC Trojans!” the announcer yelled as the cheerleaders moved off the field. Archer jogged out of the tunnel with James and Tyler on either side of him. The rest of the team trailed behind them, jumping into each other and getting pumped up for the game. They all stopped on the sideline as the coach started shouting orders at them as the announcer called out the other team—The UCLA Bruins.

Soon the game was underway, and for the first time watching Archer, I was nervous. Something was off in his game. Up until now, he had always appeared so confident on the field—deadly even. He’d kept a stern face as he called plays for his team, and orchestrated touchdown after touchdown. He never let any emotion show until the end of the game when he’d celebrate with his team after the win.

But now, it was apparent, even to me in the stands, that he wasn’t focused. He’d thrown an interception early in the first quarter and given up their offence right away. The Bruins managed to get a touchdown and with the kick, it was 7-0. When the offensive squad came off the field, I could see Archer having a heated discussion with his coach, before shaking his head and running back out.

My breath got stuck in my throat as Archer turned and scanned the crowd. Even with a helmet on, I felt it the moment our eyes connected. I couldn’t see what expression his face held, so I tried to smile supportively—but I knew my eyes were clouded with nerves. Archer twisted to my left before shaking his head and going back to his team to bark orders.

Was he not happy to see me here? Maybe he was just stressed that the game wasn’t going well… I wrung my hands anxiously as I listened to the announcer commiserate with the crowd.

“Not our best showing so far this season, folks.”

“It’s 1st and 10 at the 35-yard line”

“…and there’s a sack on the 4th down as Archer Johnson the starting quarterback for USC storms off the field for the kick.”

“2nd and 8…”

The rest of the first half went by similarly. By halftime, my heart broke for Archer as he looked so dejected. His coach had been scre-ming at him from the sideline but whatever was bothering him just got worse. The Trojans managed to make up a bit of ground but they still trailed behind 21-7.

The players disappeared down the tunnel, as the cheerleaders came back out to pump up the crowd. I watched half-heartedly as they called out a chant and tried to get everyone to join in. A flash of red in the tunnel caught my attention as Archer came running back out on his own—still in his gear, but without his helmet. Normally the team stayed in the locker room for the entire break so something was definitely up. A few cheerleaders got sidetracked from their routine as he jogged down the sideline, towards our end of the stadium.

“What is he doing?” I hissed at Madeline as Archer got closer.

She raised her eyebrow at me with a smirk as she confirmed my suspicions, “It looks like he’s coming over here…”

Sure enough, Archer jumped up at the barrier and pulled himself over—landing directly in front of my seat. I stood unsurely as our eyes met, waiting for him to speak. Archer looked over my head to the crowd behind me, grimaced, then grabbed my wa-ist and pulling me to the barrier. He lifted me up to sit on it before blocking out the crowd with his back.

“I’m playing like shit,” he said matter-of-factly.

I didn’t want to agree with him so I whispered, “It’s not that bad…”

Archer’s jaw ticked with irritation and I was lost with what I should say or do. “It’s f-cking bad, Charlotte,” he snipped. I flinched at the curse, still sensitive to his darker tone. Archer sighed deeply and visibly tried to calm himself down.

“Look Coach told me he’s going to bench me unless I fix whatever my problem is—that’s you.”

Tears welled in my eyes as he spoke, I was a problem? I should have seen this coming… I nodded slowly, not knowing what to say as a tear slipped down my cheek.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Archer panicked as his large hand rested on my cheek to wipe the tear. “No! Shit. Sorry. f-ck, I’m making this worse. You aren’t the problem, not talking to you is.”

“Really?” I hiccuped as I looked up at him. His eyes softened as he dropped a k-ss on my forehead.

“Sweetheart, I am so sorry I talked to you like that. I was stressed and being a d-ck. I think I just didn’t want to feel like I was betraying Ollie. But you didn’t deserve that.”

“I’m sorry too,” I said softly. “I should never have put you in the middle like that, I kind of forgot you were his first.”

Archer pulled me into a tight hug and I beamed as my face was smooshed into his chest—just the way I liked it. His head dropped lower so he could whisper into my ear, “Ollie’s my best friend, but you have no idea how much you mean to me too.” We both pulled away to smile softly at each other, but Archer peaked back over his shoulder and stiffened. “Did you come with that guy?” he questioned with a head nod to Nathaniel.

“No way,” I said with an eye roll making Archer chuckle, “I just got unlucky with choosing a seat.”

Archer gave me one last bone-crushing hug and smirked, “Nice hoodie by the way.” Before he helped me down from the barrier and jumped back over to the field. I turned to go back to my seat and froze when I realized how many people had been watching our intEr×¢tion. I scurried quickly back to Madeline and sank into my chair, calming my breaths.

“Well, that was freaking adorable,” she whispered in my ear as she patted my leg.

“I didn’t think everyone was watching us,” I hissed back.

Madeline giggled, “Oh yeah, that shit was straight out of a movie. I think everyone was waiting for the big k-ss though.”

My cheeks heated up and I’m sure I looked like a tomato as I tried to focus on the teams coming back on the field. The second half went much better than the first. All of the Trojans came back with a renewed vigour and pushed hĂŚrd to tie up the score. Archer looked focused and in control again as he led his team again the Bruins. I couldn’t help the pride that emanated off of me at how well he was doing. Was it really possible that us being good again had helped him this much?

It was the end of the 4th quarter, and I was scre-ming loudly as I jumped up and down with Mads. I was sure I wouldn’t have a voice tomorrow but we were so close. Archer had just thrown a long pass to Emmett. He caught it easily and bolted down the field and ran through the endzone. The game was over and we’d won 27-21.

I laughed as Emmett danced excitedly before racing back down the field to his team. Archer and James were whacking each other in the padding and cheering just as Emmett reached them. James and Emmett hugged aggressively before Emmett parted away and turned to Archer. I could see Emmett’s large smile even from here—and through his helmet—so I prayed that Archer didn’t ruin this moment for him.

Thank goodness, Archer stepped forward grabbing Emmett’s cage and knocked their helmets together. He said a few words before stepping back and whacking the back of Emmett’s pads. I didn’t know what he said, but Emmett’s smile only grew.

Madeline and I waited out in the parking lot so we could congratulate the boys once they came out of the locker room. Just as the cheerleaders walked out from their door, Madeline caught sight of her Poly Sci friends and stepped away for a moment.

“That was quite the scene at halftime,” The redheaded cheerleader snarked as she stopped in front of me. “Good luck dating Archer Johnson though, he gets bored easily.”

My heart raced with the unexpected confrontation. “Oh… we-we aren’t dating. We’re j-just friends,” I said in a small voice, darting my eyes around hoping to find Madeline.

“That makes a lot more sense,” she smiled widely. “Archer is a great friend, isn’t he? Hell, we just got a little friendly the other week.”

Her insinuation made my throat tighten as disappointment swelled in my stomach. I didn’t want to respond in fear of my emotions bubbling up, so I stayed quiet.

“Anyways, good chat, girl. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t think you were special or something after that show you gave everyone.”

I watched her walk away, frozen in my s₱0t. Archer and I never talked about girls he was seeing, but of course, the star quarterback would have girls like that. Tall, beautiful, statuesque women who are confident and experienced. I knew we were just friends, but I couldn’t help the jealously that washed over me. Were my old feelings returning? I wasn’t sure. I knew I found Archer attractive but did I want more with him? Well, it didn’t matter because if that’s the kind of woman Archer got, he would never want me.

A loud bang pulled my attention back to the doors as the football team came piling out. Archer, Emmett, and James all saw me and started walking over. James pointed off in the distance and as the other two stopped to look he ran towards me and picked me up.

“Those two jerks never share so I need my hug now,” He laughed as he swung me around.

The pure light of positivity and joy that beamed off of James was enough to make me truly smile and relax. I turned to Emmett and Archer as he set me back down.

“Congratulations, you guys!” I cheered as Emmett pulled me into a hug next. Finally, I turned to Archer, he opened his arms wide in invitation making me chuckle. I stepped into his hold, resting my chin on his chest as I stared up at him. He smiled down at me as he relaxed his hands on my back, rubbing slightly.

“Do you want to come for dinner with us? We’re celebrating the rookie’s touchdown,” he asked quietly.

“Emmett’s,” I said pointedly.

Archer huffed and rolled his eyes, but a smile touched his l-ips as he ran his hand down my spine, resting it on my lower back. “Fine, we are celebrating Emmett’s touchdown.”

I was momentarily distracted by how close his hand was to my bum but a warmth wrapped around my heart at how sweet he was being—especially to Emmett. He must be really high off of this win.

Madeline came back then, and the two of us agreed to join the boys for dinner. Since we had walked there, Archer offered to drive us. As we walked towards his truck, I saw a few of the cheerleaders standing next to a car. The redhead was there, staring daggers at Archer’s arm that was holding my wa-ist. My abdomen tightened as the girls whispered in each other’s ears, watching us go by.

I tried to shake the negative thoughts from my mind as Archer opened the passenger side door for me and I climbed in.

“Hey, Archer! Great game!” The redhead called over as he shut the door. Archer twisted towards them and nodded his head in greeting but I couldn’t hear what he said to her.

“Who was that?” I asked casually as Archer got in on his side. I heard Madeline make a little snort in the backseat and mentally scolded her for calling attention to my jealousy.

Archer turned in his seat and gave me a tight smile, “No one important.”

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Tbc….

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