The Monthly Chronic-les of Life
Chapter 3: Friday Night Lights and a Red-Eye Flight
September 6th: Youngstown, Ohio
Friday nights were sacred in Youngstown. The whole town revolved around high school football, and as head coach, Paul Shellback knew the pressure was on. The big rival game against Cleveland High was just a few weeks away, and everyone was already talking about it. But before that, they had to get through Pittsburgh High—a team that, while not the strongest, still required some attention.
As Paul and Adam Greenleaf, his best friend and fellow coach, walked into the locker room, they were greeted by the usual buzz of teenage energy. The players were bantering back and forth, hyping each other up for the Pittsburgh game.
“Come on, Coach, it’s Pittsburgh. They’re from Pittsburgh!” one of the linemen, Jake, joked. “What’s their mascot? The Primanti Bros?”
Laughter echoed through the locker room, and even Paul had to smile. “Don’t get cocky, Jake. A team from Pittsburgh can still surprise you if you’re not careful. Let’s stay focused.”
Adam, always full of energy, was at the whiteboard sketching out plays. But Paul noticed something else—Adam’s vape pen. He wasn’t exactly subtle about it, puffing away on his Lemon Jack Sativa vape from Tri-Healthy, which he claimed kept him energized and focused.
“You know you’re going to get caught one of these days, right?” Paul said, raising an eyebrow.
Adam grinned sheepishly, exhaling a cloud of lemon-scented vapor. “Hey, it’s just a little Sativa. Keeps me sharp. Besides, no one’s caught me yet… Well, not officially.”
Paul shook his head, trying not to laugh. “You’re a terrible role model, you know that?”
“Come on, it’s practically medicinal,” Adam replied, stuffing the vape pen into his pocket as a couple of players walked by. “Besides, these kids are more interested in Fortnite than what I’m doing.”
The locker room door swung open, and the assistant coach, Mike, walked in just as Adam tried to hide the pen. “Greenleaf, what’s that smell?” Mike asked, sniffing the air.
Adam’s eyes widened, but before he could respond, one of the players piped up, “Coach Greenleaf’s just burning off some steam, Coach Mike!”
The room erupted in laughter, and Adam could only shrug, trying to play it cool. “Just focusing, Coach. You know how it is.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Mike said, shaking his head as he turned his attention to the players. “Alright, focus up! Just because Pittsburgh’s not a strong team doesn’t mean we slack off. We’ve got Cleveland coming up, and I don’t want any surprises.”
As the team settled down, Paul caught Adam’s eye, and they shared a knowing look. “One of these days, Greenleaf,” Paul said under his breath.
“Yeah, yeah,” Adam whispered back, grinning. “You just keep thinking about your girl in Florida.”
Paul rolled his eyes but couldn’t help but smile. Adam wasn’t going to let him live down his budding romance with Christy Beachlover anytime soon. “Jealous much?” Paul teased.
“Nah, just amused. You’ve got it bad, Shellback. Puppy love at its finest.”
“Maybe so,” Paul admitted, “but I’d take that over your vape addiction any day.”
Later that night, after practice, Paul felt the familiar ache in his shoulders and back from the long day of coaching. He reached for his bottle of Steel Valley Hemp Full Spectrum Tincture Oil 1500mg and took a dropper, feeling the tension ease as the oil worked its way through his system.
Just as he was about to call it a night, Lisa sent him a text: Hey, don’t forget to pack some gummies for the flight. You’ll thank me later.
Paul shook his head, smiling. His sister was always trying to get him to loosen up a little more, but this time, she might be onto something. With the stress of the game and the red-eye flight to Florida ahead, he knew he’d need all the help he could get to stay calm and focused.
He added the gummies to his bag, alongside the tincture, and pulled out his phone to text Christy: Looking forward to seeing you again, he typed, hesitating for only a moment before hitting send.
The response was almost immediate: Can’t wait. Good luck with your game!
Paul leaned back, his mind already half in Florida. It was going to be a hectic few weeks, but if it meant seeing Christy again, it would be worth every second.
To be continued…
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Guiding Questions:
- How will Paul handle the pressure of the upcoming Cleveland game and the stress of traveling to Florida to see Christy?
- Will Adam’s vaping habit get him into more trouble, or will it continue to be a running joke among the team?
- How will the dynamic between Paul and Christy evolve as they navigate the challenges of long-distance and busy schedules?
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