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The Friday night that would change the world in ways that were inconceivable
There was a football gaht The stands were packed
They alh school football, was al was no exception, but this wasn’t just any game
It was a division playoff If the Wilde Cats won, they’d be on their way to the state finals
And Alden was there
He didn’t love football, but he loved his brother with the sa Alden was there, watching and cheering, reat
The opposing teah The score reflected that Seven to seven in the first quarter Fourteen to fourteen at the end of the half The Wilde Cats held their own through three quarters of the second half and then…
Then, disaster
Fourth quarter and a minute left on the clock
The other teaoal
The Cats got the ball back Theyway to the end zone and ti away
Fifty seconds
Thirty
Twenty seconds Third down
The Cats huddled one last time Tim Santos called the play
The Cats lined up “Blue forty-two,” Tim shouted “Texas nineteen Hut, hut, hut…”
He stepped back
After that, things went to slow motion
For the first tiot two steps behind the safety
Tim cocked his arm and threw
Johnny saw the ball
Watched its trajectory
His body told hi, that it was uncatchable, but his brain said Fuck that, and he leaped into the air, higher than he ever had before, wrapped his big hand around the ball, saw the safety turn towards hioalposts
The crowd roared
Johnny could feel his legs pu The end zone was a yard away Half a yard A couple of feet
Crunch!
He went down, hard, tackled by three gorillas who’d come out of nowhere
He felt the air rush froue as the force of his landing filled his rass
He must have blacked out for a couple of seconds because everything seemed to stand still…
And then he was on his feet, the crowd not just screa him on his shoulders, his helmet, his back…
“What happened?” he said, because his head was ringing
Everybody laughed
“We won, man! We took the division!”
Johnny blinked “We did?”
“What they mean is that you won it, John!”
Johnny looked around “Alden?”
His twin brother grinned “Man,” he said, “you were incredible!”
Johnny grabbed hied him Lifted hiht into the locker roo around
“Wait right there,” he told him when he went off to shower
Alden laughed, leaned back against Johnny’s locker, tucked his hands in his jeans pockets and hung in until all the guys were dressed When they exited the locker roo swarmed them
“Got to go celebrate,” Santos yelled
Everybody cheered and started heading for their cars and trucks There was only one place to celebrate—Angie’s Café Angie’s was out on the highway and she kept open twenty-four hours a day Hae, but that wasn’t a problem
Half the team had six-packs of Bud stashed inside their vehicles, Johnny included
Alden punched his brother lightly in the arm
“I’ll see you later,” he said “Just re I wouldn’t do”
They both laughed at the admonition, but when Alden started to turn away, Johnny reached for him
“Where you goin’?”
“Home It’s late, and—“
“Late, hell You’re co with us”
“John You guys don’t need ”
“I need you! Could I celebrate bein’ the hero of the century without you by my side?”
Alden grinned “Such modesty”
“Listen, we both know it’s bullshit Next tiht it’s lory without a Boswell along to take notes?”
His brother laughed “Your fans should only hear you, Wilde They’d be shocked at you knowing the nauy like Boswell”
“See? That’s what I mean You’re the only one knows the real me Tell you what In your honor, I won’t even pop the tab on a Bud” Johnny held out his hand “Deal?”
Alden rolled his eyes “How can I refuse such an offer?”
The brothers shook hands, exchanged high fives, and then Johnny opened the door of his souped-up Mustang Three girls ran over—two blondes and a brunette—and scrambled into the minuscule back seat
Johnny and Alden climbed into the front
“You behave real good,” Johnny told Alden, “I’ll share”
Everybody laughed, including the girls, but it was only a joke because they knew that Alden was faithful to his mouse of
a girlfriend
Ti lot The other vehicles fell in behind it, horns blasting, headlights bright, ht-track-tape players
By the ti seventy
Then eighty
A light rain was falling It had begun toward the end of the game; now, it left a soft sheen on the road
The girls had popped open a beer They were passing it back and forth, drinking and giggling
“Want one, Johnny?” the brunette said
Johnny did, but his brother was seated right beside hirinned, slapped Alden’s knee and said he’d pass on the beer until they got to the lot at Angie’s
Besides, if he didn’t drink, he was OK driving a little faster…
Until Alden said, very softly, that the road was a little slick
“My brother,” Johnny said, “the weatherman”
The girls laughed Alden sht, what the hell, he could handle the Mustang on any surface, but how often did he have his brother beside hihed, said “Yeah, OK,” and eased his foot off the gas until they were doing fifty
Ten miles per hour under the speed limit
“See?” he said “I’it”
Alden grinned Johnny grinned back
Seconds later, life changed forever
It didn’t happen in slowtouchdown It was fast, so fast that he had no ti but react
A se towards them
One instant it was in the onco lane
The next, it skidded and jackknifed on the wet roadway
The girls screamed
“John,” Alden yelled, “Jesus Christ, John…”
Johnny braked and yanked the steering wheel hard right, avoiding the truck by inches The maneuver would have worked…
But the car gave a sickening lurch as the right front tire left the pavement
The steering wheel renched from his hands
He heard a high, girlish screaan to flip over
After that, there was only darkness
He woke to a world of bright lights, noise and pain