Playing For Keeps (21 page)

“Upsetting my mother.”

“What would upset her?”

The kid drew in a heavy breath and his eyes
grew even more troubled. “I’m changing my major.”

Mike had been expecting such a different
thing, his words didn’t compute for a minute. “Oh, well, that
doesn’t sound like the end of the world.”

“It’s bad.”

Still, Mike didn’t get it.

“I’m going into the Sports Studies
program.”

“Ah, I see.” And he did. Jacelyn wouldn’t
like it. Would she blame Mike? Would this alienate them before they
even got started? He knew one thing for sure. She loved her kid and
if anyone was hurting him, she’d fight for Kyle.

Leaning forward, Mike linked his hands
between his knees. “You’ve got a lot of musical talent, Kyle. Not
that I’m any judge. But everybody agrees you’re near about a
genius.”

“I know I’m good.”

“And I understood you were gonna go train at
Julliard after college. They’re the pros of music.”

“I know.” Mike waited. “I just don’t wanna do
it anymore, Coach.”

“You don’t want to play the piano
anymore?”

“No, I want to play. I’ll always play. And
I’d keep up some lessons still. But it’s been my life for so long,
and it’s not what I want anymore.” He shook his head. “Maybe it
never was. Maybe it was just a way to please my father.”

“Whew! This is mighty big.”

“Don’t I know it. Mom’s going be upset.”

“Well, maybe. But I’ll bet she’ll understand.
She loves you to pieces, Kyle.”

“Yeah.”

“You want me to come with you when you tell
her?”

He shook his head, stared down at his hands.
“No. I guess I just had to say it out loud before I told her. And
maybe get some moral support.”

This was sticky. It was obvious Kyle was
after Mike’s approval. Man, what right did he have to give it?
Whose side was he on? Were there sides?

“There’s another part of this. My dad’s gonna
freak. He’ll probably disown me. And he’ll take it out on Mom like
he always does.”

Mike thought about defending the boy’s father
but in his gut, he knew Kyle was right. “Well, let’s cross one
bridge at a time. First things first. You need to tell your
mama.”

“Yeah, okay.”

“She’s—” There was a knock on the door.

Kyle stood. He was scowling, but seemed
determined. “Get that. I’m going to find Mom and do this.”

“You sure?”

“Uh-huh.”

Mike rose and they both crossed to the door.
When he opened it, he found Jacelyn on the other side. “Mike, I...”
Her gaze landed on her son. “Hi, honey. What are you doing
here?”

The kid just blurted out, “I need to talk to
you, Mom.”

She glanced at Mike, then back to Kyle. “Is
something wrong?”

“Um...”

Stepping forward, Mike grasped the edge of
the door. “Look, why don’t I leave you two alone in here? I’ve got
some—”

“No, don’t go, Coach. I changed my mind. I
want you here when I talk to Mom.”

o0o

Staring into his mother’s eyes, Kyle felt his
stomach pitch. Suddenly, he knew he couldn’t do this alone. He
glanced at Coach, who’d been, in part, responsible for this whole
thing happening, at least right now.

Coach said, “I think maybe your first
instinct was right on, buddy.”

“What are you talking about?” His mom’s tone
was worried, big-time. He’d heard it before when something went
wrong for him. She did love him, a lot. That gave him courage.

“I need to tell you something.” He grasped
her arm. “Could we all sit down?”

Coach stayed where he was. “Kyle, really, I
don’t think I should—”

“Please.”

Coach nodded.

They sat in the chairs around a table in the
corner. Drawing in a deep breath, Kyle studied his mother. She
seemed upset already. Still he had to let her know what he’d done.
“I’ve got something to tell you, Mom.”

“So I gathered.”

“You won’t like it.”

“For God’s sake, honey, just tell me. You’re
scaring me.”

“I’m changing my major here at school.
Actually, I’ve already done it at the registrar’s office.”

“Changing it?”

“I don’t want to major in music performance
anymore.”

“Did you decide on teaching music
instead?”

They’d talked about that. His mom seemed okay
with it, though his dad would hate even that switch.

“No.” He glanced at Coach who nodded to
him.

He was tense, too, though he lazed back with
an ankle crossed over his knee.

Kyle faced his mother like a man. “I’m going
into Sports Studies, Mom.”

“What?”

“I enrolled in the Sports Studies
program.”

Her face was blank, as if it didn’t register.
“I don’t understand this. You’re a musician.”

“I am, Mom. And I always will be. But I don’t
want to do it for a living.”

“Why not?”

“I’m tired of music. I’ve done it all my
life.” He knew how to get to her on this, but it would hurt. “It
doesn’t make me happy anymore.”

She swallowed hard. “Music doesn’t make you
happy?”

“Practicing, focusing my whole life on a
keyboard.”

‘“How long has music not made you happy?”

“A long time. I want to work with people. I
just wasn’t sure how until lately.”

“I see.” Now she clasped her hands together
on the table. Her knuckles turned white. “What made you choose
Sports Studies? There are a lot of ways to work with people.”

“I love sports, you know that. When Beckett
put in the new program, I read up on it and thought maybe it could
be for me. Then after...” he looked to Coach “...after seeing what
sports is like up close, I decided to go for it.”

“What would you do exactly?”

“I’m not sure. Jake Lansing says there are
all sorts of jobs. I figure the internships they offer will help me
decide.”

Something he didn’t understand flickered
across her face. She was quiet, though, as if she was trying to get
control. “Well, this is a lot to take in.” She seemed to notice
Coach, then. He hadn’t said anything, but he was watching her. “Did
you know about this, Mike?”

“Yeah. I—”

“Did you encourage him?”

“I don’t know what you mean by that.”

“Never mind, it doesn’t matter.”

“Mom, I’ve thought a lot about this since the
spring. It’s what I want to do.”

“I can see you think it is. But I’m not sure
you understand what it means in the long term.”

“How?”

“Honey, sports are games. Do you really want
to just
play
the rest of your life? Spend all your time on
fields or in gyms?”

From the corner of his eye, he saw Coach
shift in his seat, his hand gripping his ankle. “That’s simplifying
it a mite, isn’t it, Jacelyn?”

His mother frowned, like she did when she
didn’t understand someone’s reaction. But it was clear to Kyle that
she’d just her Coach’s feelings.

“Mom, I could say the same for music. It’s
just
playing,
only in another kind of arena. Instead of a
field or gym, I’d be spending my life in a concert hall. What’s the
difference?”

“One’s meaningful, significant, cultural. The
other is...” She stopped herself—obviously getting it now--and
glanced at Coach again.

“The other’s what, Jacelyn?” Coach asked
tightly.

“Nothing, I’m not thinking straight. This is
just my shock talking. I shouldn’t say any more.”

“I’m sorry, Mom.”

“Oh, honey, don’t apologize to me for this.
I’m just worried you’re making a mistake.”

“I’m not.”

“I wish I could believe that.”

Kyle stood. “I gotta go. I told Kay I’d be
back by one so she can go to her practice.”

“All right honey. We’ll talk more later.”

Coach’s gaze narrowed on her. “Can you stay
here a minute, Jacelyn?”

Uh-oh. Now Coach seemed pissed. Kyle hoped
this didn’t ruin things with her and Coach. They were just starting
to get along.

She didn’t say anything but didn’t get up,
either. Kyle circled around the table and kissed her cheek. She
held on to him a minute, but said no more. Coach rose and followed
him to the door. After he opened it he put his hand on Kyle’s
shoulder. “It’ll be all right kid.”

Kyle looked back at his mother. Her head was
bowed, her posture slumped. And he’d done that to her. Feeling like
crap, he said, “I’m sorry I’m not the person you want me to be,
Mom.”

Like lightning, his mother threw back her
chair, stood and strode across the room. Forcefully, she took his
arm and drew him around to face her. “Don’t you
ever
say
something like that again. You are a kind, sensitive, wonderful
person, Kyle Worthington. I’m so proud of the young man you’ve
become. And I love you for it.”

He couldn’t help it. He threw himself into
her arms and hugged her tightly. She grasped on to him, too. Over
her shoulder he saw Coach back away and turn around. “Thanks,
Mom.”

She held on like she used to when he was
little and had done something wrong. “It’s okay, buddy. This’ll
work out.”

“Thanks for saying that.” Finally he was able
to draw back. She smoothed a hand down his hair. “Now go or Kay
will be late for her practice.”

“Okay.” He turned to the door. “Thanks,
Coach.”

“Sure thing.”

Shakily, Kyle walked out leaving his mom
behind to deal with the fallout of the bomb he’d just dropped.

o0o

Mike leaned against the desk and crossed his
arms over his chest. Jacelyn had her back to him, as if she was
trying to compose herself. He knew she was all torn up about this
thing with Kyle but he didn’t go to her. She’d said some things
that had put a distance between them. Still, this was hard for her
and he didn’t want to make it worse. So he said, “It’s a shock, I
know.”

She pivoted. She wasn’t crying, though her
face was full of emotion. “How long have you known about this?”

“He just told me today. A few minutes
ago.”

“Then you didn’t encourage him to change
majors?”

“What?”

“Answer the question, Coach. He said he’d
just been thinking about it since Beckett accepted the program, and
after he spent time with you, he made his decision. I want to know
if you encouraged my son to give up his music?”

“How can you ask me that?”

As if just realizing what she’d said, Jacelyn
bit her lip and closed her eyes. “I don’t know. I’m sorry. This is
all such a surprise, and he was here with you, and you were talking
to him. Then there was that thing with the Alumni Association.”

Waiting a minute, trying to get a grip on his
temper, Mike crossed to the table and yanked out a chair. “Come sit
over here.”

When she did, he got some bottled water from
the fridge and joined her at the table. “Drink this.”

She sipped the water. “I can’t believe
it.”

“I know this isn’t goin’ down very
smooth.”

“Oh, Mike, he’s so talented. He’ll be wasting
it on God knows what.”

Don’t take it personally,
he told
himself. “People have a lot of different gifts, Jacey. Maybe Kyle’s
got some you don’t know about yet.”

“It sounds like you support this switch?”

“Truthfully, I don’t know if I do or not.
He’s a great pianist. But if it doesn’t make him happy...”

“How could I not
know
all this about
him?”

“He kept it from you on purpose. He said he
was afraid to tell you. That you’d be disappointed.”

“Why did he come to you?”

“A lot of reasons, I think. He and I have
gotten kinda close. Maybe he just wanted to run it by me for
practice.”

“Maybe he thought you’d agree with him.”

Again, Mike folded his arms across his chest.
He felt sweaty beneath the blue T-shirt. “Maybe I do.”

She shook her head. “Damn, was it my fault
for encouraging his interest in sports, taking him to games? Neil
warned me.” She covered her mouth with her hand. “Oh, God, Neil
will flip. He’ll never be able to deal with this.”

“All the more reason for you to, honey.”

“What do you mean?”

“Kyle’s gonna need you to stand up to Neil on
this.” Which he’d seen some evidence of, but the guy still held
sway over her.

“I’ll always be there for Kyle. I’d do
anything for my son.”

Though she’d said some nasty things about the
sports world he loved, the little hard ball forming in his stomach
softened just a touch. “For what it’s worth, you were terrific with
him just now. You put his welfare above your own. I’ve never seen
anything as unselfish as what you just did.”

“Well, I feel terrible.”

“Which makes what you did even more special.”
He frowned. “What happened with the alumni?”

She threw her head back. “Oh, Lord. They’re
cutting their Outreach support by half.”

“Why the hell would they do that?”

“They’re giving it to the Sports Studies
program for internships.” Jacelyn watched him. “Ed said you asked
for it.”

“I didn’t ask for
your
money.”

“No?”

“‘Course not. Lansing and I talked to
Dickinson about financing internships, but I didn’t know it would
come from scholarship money.”

She shook her head and scrubbed her hands
over her face. “Ironic, isn’t it. Kyle could get some of that money
now.”

“I’m sorry. That’s another blow.”

“I feel like I’m losing everything to you
guys.”

“We aren’t the enemy. I thought you and I got
past that.”

She swallowed hard. “Maybe getting past it
was a mistake.”

“What do you mean by that?” He asked the
question but he was afraid he already knew the answer.

“Kyle said spending time with you helped him
make this decision. My approving of all this camp stuff was as bad
as taking him to games, letting him do these athletic things. I
should never have allowed him to take the summer job.”