Читать книгу Coach to Coach - Martin Rooney - Страница 10
1 The Tunnel
ОглавлениеAND THEN HE WAS THERE.
Things really couldn't get much worse. Another loss for the team, and as Brian Knight made his way toward the locker room, he realized he couldn't be more alone.
As he walked from the field into the tunnel, he thought about slipping out a side door and going home. Not only did he really not feel like facing the team or the other coaches, but he also felt his job was in jeopardy.
But if he snuck back to his house, things wouldn't really be better there anyway, he thought gloomily. His kids would already be asleep—a reminder of another day missed with them. And quietly slipping into bed next to his sleeping wife would only remind him of the growing distance between them.
Bills and stress were piling up. Maybe it was time to give up on coaching and get a “real” job.
“Not your best day, huh, Bri?” came a hoarse voice from what seemed out of nowhere.
Brian turned around to see an older man about his height, maybe in his mid-60s, standing with his arms and palms against the cool wall of the tunnel.
“Excuse me?” said Brian, in the kind of tone that let the man know he was offended.
“I said, it didn't seem to be your best day out there,” replied the old man. “It's pretty obvious the defense was the reason the team lost out there tonight. Not much to be proud of.”
This got Brian's attention and angered him. Now agitated and arms crossed against his chest, he retorted, “Look, man, I don't know who you are or how you got in here, but you picked the wrong guy to piss off tonight.” With that statement, Brian took a half-step closer to the man.
The old man, seemingly amused by his apparent aggression, stepped away from the wall, kept his hands at his sides and moved right within a foot of Brian. “Calm down, kid. Seems things are worse than I remembered. I'm not here to bring you down. I'm here to build you up.” And with a smile that seemed to disarm Brian a little, he added, “And besides, I really don't think you want to lose twice tonight.”
Looking into the old man's eyes, Brian saw a confidence and peace of mind that intrigued him. He could also feel something else. It wasn't aggression. The closest thing he could equate it to was compassion. The old man understood. This feeling and the smile on the old man's face actually made Brian crack a smile, too.
With the tension eased a little, the old man said, “Don't worry, kid, everything has a strange way of working out.”
At that moment, the locker room door burst open and the head coach yelled out, “Knight, get in here. We're about to address the team.”
Brian turned back to offer a quick apology to the old man, but he was gone. Brian paused, puzzled about where this man had come from and how he knew his name. But before he could process the exchange or his sudden disappearance, he heard his name yelled again and quickly headed back to the locker room for the usual postgame duties.
The rest of the night was the usual except for one thing. Yes, there was the review of the game, the plans for next week, and the long drive home. But instead of going to sleep feeling helpless, for the first time in as long has he could remember, Brian had a strange feeling of optimism that things could indeed work out just like the old man said.