“A good practice girls, our first match is one week away and I think we are ready. So now we have a week of hard work so I will know we are ready when it comes time to hit the water against Grayson College.” Coach rubbed his graying stubby beard. “Hit the showers” we all began to pick up our gym bags as we head towards the locker rooms. I stopped and looked for Janey who I saw was staying behind. She was sitting at the edge of the pool her feet kicking slowly in the water.

“I know I’m in the dog house” I began walking up behind her. Janey didn’t turn around to face me but I could tell the tension in her shoulders relaxed. Practice was so intense today that I put our problems on the back burners and didn’t fight to make things right which probably scared Janey into thinking I didn’t care. It had been 3 days since Peaches and I hadn’t made any effort to talk to her, in my mind I was giving her space yet the real truth was I was scared. “I’m sorry”

“Do you still love her?” Janey asked, the tension moving back into shoulders when I paused before answering.

“I’m yours now, Janey” I felt said after I sad after I said this but pushed the feeling away. “Will you have me?” Janey turned her light brown eyes to me and smiled slightly.

“Yes” she stood up and looked at me. I could tell that just now hearing my conviction on our relationship was what she really needed and it eased her. I held out my arms where she immediately fell into. I held her as she rested her head under my chin. After a moment I moved my hand under her chin pulling her face up where I could capture her lips. This kiss was nice but I was smart enough to know it was missing something she could never give me.

“Excuse me ladies” I heard Coach's voice; Janey let me go and took a step back. I cleared my throat running my fingers through my hair before turning to look at Coach. “Corrine, I need you in my office” Coach said quickly walking back through the double doors that led to the locker rooms and his office at the end of the hall. I just took a deep breath looking back at Janey.

“When he is done with you can you come by my dorm, Nancy will be out with her study group and we need to talk some more” Janey replied in a small voice. I nodded leaning in for a quick kiss before turning and walking away.

--

“You wanted to see me Coach?” I walked into Coach’s office where he was sitting behind his desk filling out some paper work. He had his big framed glasses on that seemed to swallow his face. He closes a folder motioning for me to have a seat which I quickly do. I can’t seem to get to the bottom of why my stomach is twisting as I’m sitting there, I’m not sure the reason why he asked me here was to scold me about kissing Janey in public or if it is something more. “What is this about Coach?”

“The team” Coach sits back in his chair crossing his arms. A silence falls into the room and I feel really restless for some reason. Coach bent down opening a draw where he pulls out a red ‘Pelch Swim Team’ shirt out and tosses it over his desk for me. I sit up taking the shirt and open it allowing the shirt to fall down where I can see it. Like I expected Coach had something up his sleeve and waited right when I didn’t see it coming to hit me with it. On the shirt was a neatly pressed yellow ‘C’ on the right shoulder labeling me as the new captain. I laid the shirt down in the other chair next to me.

“You must want me stripped nude again, beat to shit and tossed at the bottom of the pool” Coach sat back again chuckling.

“I would expect you will do well in the lead role”

“Yea maybe next year when I had some time on the team but not now, they trust Regan and they will only listen to her.” Fuck my head was hurting; I swallowed only to worsen the dryness in my throat. “You are putting the team in danger by springing this on them, do you realize that.”

“What I do realize Corrine is you are the strongest out there and even Regan knows that’s why she doesn’t like you.” Coach licked his lips before continuing. “You are the fastest, the strongest and you keep your head leveled when shit gets rough. And even if the world is falling on your head it will never mess up in the water, you know that as well as I do.” I just shook my head.

“With that makes me a good team member not the team leader” I said after awhile.

“You will do fine, Corrine. My mind is made on this you are the team captain, I have Regan as the co captain but you are leader of this team not her.” My eyebrows shot right up.

“Are you saying she knows about this?” Coach nodded his head with a slow smile.

“Talked to her before I called you in”

“Ummm Coach when I go back to the locker room you are going to hear some commotion don’t be alarm but know it had to be done.” Coach knew instantly what I was talking about.

“I don’t approve of fighting Corrine.”

“Neither do it but if I’m going to lead this team they need to see I won’t back down. And you know once I walk in there it is going to be game on.” Coach just thumbed his fingers through his hair.

“Shit, okay but if this gets out of hand I will have to take actions against both of you”

--

The hallway was so quiet when I walked back from Coach Langston’s office. But I could hear the anxiety and anger just inside the locker room and as much as I just wanted to walk away I was going to have to face this one day or another. Wish I had of followed my first instinct and called Pepper and Ivy to have my back but this was a team’s situation and it had to be dealt with as a team so I took a deep breath and walked in. All of the team members were standing around the door as I walked in. Their glares were sharp and hazardess. It only fueled them when I was standing tall with my new team shirt with the ‘C’ ironed on it.

“I have just been informed that I am now the captain of this team and no matter how I or you feel about it that this is what’s gonna happen.” I began. “So if anyone…” Regan moved her way through the girls and stared. “So much for talking” I walked passed her towards the lockers. “We gonna do this?”

“You better fucking believe it” she growled and thinking that being an all star swim star that had respect and dignity you would think she would wait to hit me when my back wasn’t turned to her. Yet the sharp pain in my back from a fast blow to the side put a whole new spin to things and my perception of people. Regan rushed me from the back tackling me into the shower stalls where I hit the ground hard. I grabbed hands and rolled over where I she was on her back holding me tight but I elbowed her in the stomach causing her to loosen her grip on me.

“Fuck” I screamed as I scrambled to my feet. Regan was trying to do the same but her efforts were stopped when I slammed my foot into her ribs. I reared back to kick her again but one of the members turned on the shower right behind me spraying out hot water that shot the nerves in my back to go hay wire. I moved from the water as Regan stood on her feet, once I got my bearings back I stood up straight to face Regan but all I could really see was her fist crashing into my face sending me down into the hard tile. More showers stalls came on causing our fight to get slippery and dangerous.

--

Janey was studying at her desk slightly glaring at her books wondering where I could be not knowing that I was too busy being under Regan’s fist. She typed a little on her laptop before closing the screen down and laid her head down and exhaled. She heard a knock on the door causing her to jump and run to it. Once she opened the door and took one look at me she opened her mouth wide I just shook my head and stumbled in.

--

“Yup it’s an official you are going to have a black eye” Janey announced placing eyes on my eye. I had two broken knuckles that were still refusing to stop bleeding, a cut lip, black eye and a bruised rib but I still made it better out of the fight than Regan. “So did you win?”

“Yup” Janey had me sitting on her bed as she was dressing my wounds and cleaning me up.

“Okay so what did you do to Regan, because if you could only see yourself now you look like she fucked you up” I laughed and felt a deep pain shoot up my body.

“She has a cut lip too but hers is on the top and the bottom of her mouth. A cut on her eye brow, a knot on her forehead and swollen elbow.” Janey just smiled, she crawled on my lap straddling me, her arms wrapping around loosely on my neck.

“So you are the new captain, I presume. Glad the coach listened to us” Janey moved in for a kiss but I evaded her lips.

“What?” I asked curious.