Chapter 14

Saturday, May 17, 2031 – District 1 Championship – Coatesville High School

Sara and David hung out together through the first three sets of events of the day. The girls’ 4x800 relay, the girls’ 100-meter hurdles and the boys’ 110-meter hurdles. The girls’ 100-meter dash preliminaries were next. David wished Sara good luck and jogged down to the end of the course, so he could congratulate or console Sara at the end of her race.

Sara was in the third heat of the preliminaries. From the times in the first two heats, she could see that her personal best time of 12.44 seconds might be needed to get her into the semi-finals, to say nothing of the finals. She also couldn’t let too many people pass her if she wanted to get to the semis.

Sara ran a good race. Unfortunately, she was fifth of the eight in her heat. The winner of the heat ran the 100 meters in 11.96 seconds. Sara managed 12.42 seconds, which was good enough for seventeenth place among the thirty girls participating.

David gave Sara a hug as she cooled down after the race. “You ran a hell of a race,” David insisted. “That was a personal best time for you.”

“Shit!” Sara griped. “I thought I could at least make the semis. I know I’m not going win the district championship in the 100, but I expected at least two races.”

David gave her a kiss on the check. “You gave it your very best,” he insisted. “Work out and get stronger. You’ll get them next season.”

“I guess I don’t have a choice,” Sara agreed. “Now get down to the other end. Your preliminary starts soon.” She gave David a kiss on the cheek. “Good luck.”

David headed down to the start of the race. He was assigned to the first heat of four.

“Remember, you don’t need to set a state record now,” Coach Weaver counseled as David prepared for his preliminary. “Run a nice easy pace, just stay out front.”

“Got it, Coach,” David agreed before taking his starting spot. Immanuel Johnson, from Coatesville High School, was in his heat too. He knew he could beat Johnson; he had done last weekend. David streaked ahead at the gun, and no one challenged him for the lead. He finished in a comfortable 10.70 seconds. Johnson placed second in the first heat, with a time of 10.88 seconds.

David received a hug from Sara near the finish line. “That time should get you into the semi-finals,” she gushed.

David and Sara watched the second and third heats together. No one broke 11.0 seconds in either heat. David felt more confident that he could take first place for the meet. The last heat made him realize that he couldn’t just waltz to the podium. A kid from Council Rock South finished with a time of 10.68 seconds. Another guy from Norristown had a 10.88 second run.

Sara and David hung out together watching the girls’ 100-meter semis. David stretched and mentally prepared himself for the next race. He was assigned to the first heat of the semis. The two kids with times close to his were in the second heat. David picked up his pace slightly, completely the 100 meters in 10.62 seconds.

David and Sara waited together through the girls’ 100-meter finals before it was David’s turn. He received a good luck kiss before the race, on the lips. He took his spot on the field. By chance, the one of the fast kids from the fourth heat was assigned the lane beside David.

“That’s a hell of a way to receive encouragement,” he grinned. “Girlfriend?”

“Our second date is tonight after the meet,” David replied. “I hope she is my girlfriend soon.”

“Must be nice to be local,” the kid replied. “I’ve got an hour and half ride on a school bus to get back home after the meet is over. No dates for me tonight. Good luck on the race, man.”

“Good luck to you, too,” David replied. ‘Not too much luck.’ He thought as the announcer called, “On your marks.”

“Set!” David took off as the starting pistol fired. David got a fantastic start. He pounded down the track. The fast kid beside him was out of sight, but David could hear his footsteps pounding out the meters, close behind him. The other fast kid from the fourth heat was three lanes over and out of sight too.

David willed himself to go faster. He could hear footsteps closing on him as he passed the three-quarter mark. He did a quick glance to the side. He saw the kid beside him in his peripheral vision. David willed himself on even though his body screamed from the effort. He legged out the final meters.

David glanced to his right after he crossed the finish line. The kid beside him was less than a foot behind him. David trotted then walked to cool down his body from the effort. He walked back closer to the finish line and stared up at the scoreboard.

“D MARTIN AG 10.44 E COOPER CRS 10.47 J MONOTINI 10.51 PV...” David didn’t look at the rest of the times.

“Damn!” he growled. He missed his dad’s record by 0.03 seconds.

“Hell of a race, man,” the kid, E. Cooper, said as he offered a handshake. David shook it. “You have a fantastic start. I just couldn’t run you down.”

“You have a hell of a finish,” David replied. “I wasn’t sure I could hold you off.”

“Do you know we missed the state record by this much?” Cooper asked. He held his fingers about half an inch apart. “That record would be special to break too. It was set by the Broncos receiver, Kyle Martin, when he was in high school.”

“Yeah, I know,” David agreed.

“I’m Elijah Cooper,” Cooper offered.

“David Martin,” David replied.

“Martin? Like the receiver with the great football computer program?” Elijah asked. “Wait ... are you related to him?”

“He’s my dad,” David said.

“Oh, wow!” Elijah marveled. “That’s cool. I guess it would be really special to beat your dad’s state record.”

“Yeah, it would be,” David agreed.

“Well ... you, me, Joe...” Elijah said. He pointed toward the third-place finisher. Apparently, his name was Joe Montini. “ ... and a couple more guys get to run at states next weekend. Our district sends the best five from today. We will all take another shot at your dad’s record then.”

“We will face some tough competition,” David said. “I know a couple juniors and seniors who I raced against last season out in Pittsburgh. They will be tough.”

“That’s right, you moved here from Pittsburgh recently,” Elijah said. “Settling in here?”

“Yeah, I am,” David agreed.

“Do you mind a personal question, David?” Elijah asked. David nodded yes. “Have you been getting a bunch of letters from colleges recruiting you for their track team?”

“A few,” David replied. “I’ve also gotten some trying to get me to join their football team or their swim team.”

“Football?” Elijah asked. “I guess that isn’t a surprise.”

“It’s a family thing,” David replied. “Football interest is mostly from Division II schools. The schools who want me to swim for them are better. Stanford, Texas, Florida, California, NC State, Georgia, Indiana, USC, South Carolina and Ohio State all are sending me information.”

“Whoa! Those are heavy hitters,” Elijah said. “How did you get their interest?”

“I guess the three state records I set at the state championships in March did it,” David allowed. “That and an in I have at Stanford. My uncle is on their swim team now.”

“Cool!” Elijah replied. “Have you had any interest in track?”

“I talked with a guy from Penn at the Penn Relays,” David said. “He seemed interested.” That drew a big smile from Elijah.

“I talked with them at the Penn Relays too,” Elijah said. “I gave them my verbal commitment to join their track team in a year, after I finish high school.”

“That’s cool,” David agreed. “Penn’s a good school.”

“Have you thought any about going there?” Elijah asked. “Put you and me both on the team. We’d rock the competition in the sprints. We could be awesome in a relay team too.”

“Maybe,” David allowed. “I have other complications when I pick a college. I want to make sure my girl goes there too.”

“The one that gave you the encouragement kiss at the start?” Elijah said. “Wait ... before the race you said you are doing your second date tonight. You are planning college around a girl after one date?”

“Sara’s special,” David said. “I’ve been pursuing her since mid-March. I am in love with her.”

“Wow! You don’t waste time getting serious,” Elijah said. “Think about Penn. We’d be hellacious together on a track team.” He gave David a wink. “I’ll see you next week at Shippensburg. Your girl is waiting impatiently for us to finish talking. I hope you get lucky tonight.”

“I’m already lucky,” David said. “She is dating me. I’ll see you in a week.” Elijah headed off to rejoin some of his teammates. David met Sara off the track. She gave him a big hug and another kiss on the lips.

“That was a fantastic race,” Sara gushed. “You were great.”

“Thanks,” David agreed.

“Who were you talking to?”

“Elijah Cooper, from Council Rock South,” David said. “He is trying to recruit me to go to the University of Pennsylvania and join their track team.”

“Penn is on the list of schools I am considering,” Sara replied.

“Really?” David remarked. “Interesting.”

David and Sara rejoined their team and waited through the 1600-meter run and the girls’ 4x100 meter relay. David, Joe and Mike took their starting positions along the track while Luke took position on the track for the first leg.

“Hey, David,” Elijah Cooper said as David took his spot for the final leg of the 4x100. “You are the team’s anchor?”

“Yes, I am,” David replied.

“I would have thought they would take advantage of your blazing start by putting you on the first leg,” Elijah commented.

“I just run where the coaches tell me to run,” David answered. The starting gun sounded. They watched the runner’s progress. Luke was keeping pace with the lead two or three runners. The top three, including Luke, were within hundredths of a second of each other when Luke handed off to Joey Phillips. Joey lost some ground, before passing the baton to Mike Angellucci. Mike made up for the lost time, handing off to David about two tenths of a second after Elijah received the baton. David tried to close but found all he could do was keep pace with Elijah. He crossed the finish line in second place. Luke, Joey and their other teammates congratulated David. The Avon Grove 4x100 team was in the finals.

The relay team rested while the girls ran their final heat. Soon it was time for the boys’ teams to run. Luke, Joey, Mike and David took their spots. The finals proved to be much faster than the preliminaries. Luke was back in fifth place when he passed the baton to Joey. Other runners passed Joey, leaving him last when he turned the baton over to Mike. Mike valiantly ran down the last two runners.

David accepted the baton and sprinted like his life depended on it. He needed to get at least fifth place if his team was to move on to State. He gave everything he had but it wasn’t enough. He couldn’t catch any runners ahead of him.

Coatesville won, followed by Council Rock South, Upper Moreland, Central Bucks West, Lower Merion and then Avon Grove, Central Bucks East and Harry S. Truman. Elijah sought out David after he finished celebrating with his teammates.

“Sorry about how things worked out, David,” he said as they met. “You need some faster teammates.” He gave David a wink. “Like me. Think about Penn.”

“My girl ... when I mentioned Penn, she said, ‘I’m thinking about going there.’”

“Come to Penn,” Elijah laughed. “We would be great together on a relay team.”

“I will see,” David responded, waving goodbye to his new friend.

“I’ll see you in Ship next weekend,” Elijah replied.

David had a long wait for the 200-meter sprint in the afternoon. The rest was necessary but not enough. He had spent everything he had trying to place his relay team in states. His 200-meter time of 22.61 seconds was his poorest time of the season.

Saturday, May 17, 2031 – Sal’s Pizza, Downingtown

Cleaned up, if a little downcast from the afternoon, David took Sara to a more typical teen place for dinner on their second date. Sal’s Pizza, a small pizza shop in the same shopping center as the movie theater. The place was crowded. David spotted Owen Hanrahan with his girlfriend at one of the tables. Owen smiled when he spotted David and Sara and waved the pair over.

“It’s crowded in here,” Owen commented. “Want to join Sophia and me?”

“I wouldn’t want to interfere with your date,” David said. “We can wait until a table opens up.” David knew Owen through football. Owen was a quarterback and heir apparent to the starting spot now that Mike Williams was graduating and heading to University of Delaware to play for the Blue Hens.

“No, it is fine with us,” Owen replied.

“Please join us,” Sophia Schiable added.

“What do you think, Sara?” David asked. “Is this OK?”

“It will be fine,” Sara agreed. The two sat down at the booth with Owen and Sophia.

“Did you know David placed first in the 100 at the PIAA 3A Meet today?” Sara asked. “He looked fast.”

“You did?” Owen said. “That’s fantastic.”

“It would have been better if I broke the state record in the race,” David said. “I came up six-hundredths of a second short of the record. It would have been sweet to beat it with my dad watching. Dad still holds the high school record for the 100 from when he was our age.”

“Do you think you’ll beat him?” Sophia asked.

“You bet your ass,” David replied confidently. “Dad was a senior when he set the record. I’m still growing and getting stronger. I just hope he is there to see it when I beat his record next season.”

“Good luck with that,” Owen said. “I hope you show some of that speed on the football field this fall. We could use someone to take the top off the defense. Make them cover the whole field. When will you get free time to join our after school passing drills?”

“I have one more track meet and then I will join you guys,” David promised. “At least until I start my summer job.”

“Where are you working?” Sara asked.

“Boy Scout camp,” David replied. “I got hired to be a lifeguard there.”

“Horseshoe?” Owen asked. David nodded yes that he was working at Camp Horseshoe. “I went there when I was younger.”

“You were a Boy Scout?” David asked.

“I was when I was younger,” Owen answered. “I was in the West Grove troop. I quit when I got serious about football. I do too many football camps now to have time for Scouts or working at camp. You do realize the staff is in camp seven days a week for nine or ten weeks?”

“I know,” David agreed. “I was a CIT two summers ago out in Pittsburgh. I was a paid staffer there last summer. Lifeguarding and camp staff runs in the family. My Dad did it. Uncle Andy, Uncle Will and Uncle Hunter all did too. My cousins Noah and Connor served on staff. Even my grandfather did it. He wasn’t a Boy Scout, but he was a lifeguard at the local pool. That is where he met my grandmother.”

Sara tried to disguise her disappointment and surprise when David said he would be gone for ten weeks in the summer. Why did it bother her so much? She and David weren’t going steady. This was only the start of their second date. Still, David would be gone for ten weeks, and it didn’t feel good to her.

The foursome ordered their pizzas. They talked casually as they waited for their meal. The teens chowed down on their pizza when it came and continued the conversation. It was a pleasant diversion sitting with the other couple. The two couples headed for the movie theater separately when they finished dinner.

“It didn’t bother you sitting with Owen and Sophia, I hope?” David asked when Owen and Sophia were out of earshot. “I know you don’t care much for football players and Owen is pretty immersed in football.”

“It was fine,” Sara replied. “Thank you for asking. I’ve known Owen since first grade. He may be a football player, but he isn’t a football asshole. He’s OK.”

“He seems like a decent guy,” David agreed. “I don’t know him well yet.”

David and Sara ended up right behind Owen and Sophia in the ticket line. Owen bought tickets to the same movie David and Sara planned to go to. The two couples got snacks together and headed for their theater. They claimed spots in the back row to the left side of the theater. This would give them maximum privacy. David and Sara left a couple empty seats between them and Owen and Sophia. Both couples planned to watch the movie a little and make out a lot.

David had his arm around Sara before the movie even started. David was taking things slow with Sara, but he knew making out and petting would be allowed. He wasn’t shy when he knew his girl’s limits. David and Sara spent more time kissing and petting than they spent watching the movie. David got hard within seconds of them kissing. As the movie went on, Sara felt and rubbed his hard-on thorough his jeans. Not so much as to make him come but enough to keep him erect for the entire ninety-five minutes of their movie.

David checked with some friends and learned about a parking spot for teens who wanted to make out or more. David was fully prepared for more. He had three condoms in his pants pocket. He and Sara would have forty-five to sixty minutes of time to spare before their curfews. David hoped to spend the time getting much more intimate with Sara that evening.

David rearranged the painful package in his pants before they left so the bulge wasn’t so obvious. They headed south for West Grove and Landenberg. From the way Sara had been rubbing his hard-on, David felt he had a fifty-fifty chance at getting laid that evening.

“Do you want to stop somewhere for ... um ... more privacy?” David asked. “We don’t need to be home for almost an hour.”

“That would be wonderful,” Sara agreed. David smiled. Odds of getting laid just went up about ten percent. Maybe Elijah was right, he could get lucky that evening. David turned off the main road onto a gravel road and followed the gravel road into the woods. Things were exactly as Mike Hoover had described them. He pulled to a parking spot in the woods and turned off the car.

He leaned across the console to give Sara a kiss when she suggested, “Why don’t we move to the back seat? We’ll have more room there.” David wasted no time hopping out of the driver’s door, going around and climbing in the middle seat. Sara had already moved to the middle and stripped off her T-shirt.

“Yours too,” she told him. David wasted no time removing his shirt and tossing it to the front of his minivan. By the time David climbed in, Sara’s bra was off and flung to the front seats with the T-shirts. Oh yeah! His nine-week drought was likely over. He was so getting laid that night.

Sara rubbed her hands up and down his chest. “God, I wanted to do that since I saw you shirtless at practice a couple weeks ago,” Sara breathed as she felt her date’s chest. She played with David’s nipples, making his erection throb even worse than before. “You are so muscular.”