Published: 31 Oct 2016

Bentonville had had a surprisingly good football season considering they were faced with playing very seasoned athletes from larger schools since consolidation. The Cosgrove newspaper was referring to them as a “Cinderella team.” Alex said he didn’t mind the label as long as no one talked too much about “fairy” godmothers.

Everyone at school was excited that Bentonville would play in the Unidome at UNI in the playoffs. It was a prestigious venue for high school football, and a pleasant place for fans if the weather turned ugly. Any number of students were planning to attend.

Jerry Saxdorf sought some of the boys out before classes began. He found them at their usual table in the cafeteria having cartons of juice. He had a worried look on his face.

“I don’t want you to think I’m crazy, but you know I sometimes get these feelings or visions or whatever,” Jerry said nervously.

The guys nodded. Everyone thought Jerry was pretty cool and no one doubted that he had some gifts they didn’t have. Dan Tracewell had experienced Jerry’s abilities firsthand.

“Well, I sense some kind of danger, and it seems to involve those of you who are driving up to the football game. I saw an explosion. I believe you’ll all come out of it okay because I don’t have a sense of dread or evil, but I had to tell you so you can be alert. I called Miss Charlotte and she could feel something too. She thinks I’m more focused on who it is because I’m closer to you guys. I hope you don’t think I’m weird.”

Joel jumped up to give Jerry a squeeze on the shoulder and to assure him that none of his friends thought him strange.

“We appreciate the heads-up. We’ll be watching to avoid whatever danger is out there.”

The last class was suspended on Friday, the day of the big game, so the kids could get ready to head for Cedar Falls. Several buses were readied to haul all of the kids who wanted to support their school. Some, of course, had decided to drive instead.

Joel was among the ones taking private vehicles. He was taking Dane, Colt, Dave, and Dustin with him. It was more fun for them since they could talk freely without anyone else overhearing them. It wasn’t that their talk would all revolve around sexual matters, but they could tease each other about situations with their boyfriends in private.

All, but Joel, were still pretty much in the closet as far a school was concerned. However, they were all contemplating coming out before the year was over. Dustin there was gossip around about Dave and him because of what had been discussed at his mother’s church. Despite the fact she was in the mental ward, people would suspect there was some truth behind the rumors of his being gay.

As they got started, some of the talk got a bit suggestive. Joel said he could barely wait for the game to be over so that he could be with Alex. Colt made some innuendo about Joel’s waiting bare-ly, and it got sillier From there. Everyone was enjoying the camaraderie. Dustin’s hearty laugh made Dave joyful. It was wonderful to see his boyfriend laidback and happy.

They were nearly to the edge of Bentonville when Dave asked if they could go back to Greta’s because he wanted his radio so he could hear the play by play while they were watching. Joel wasn’t really pleased to lose the extra five or 10 minutes, but he didn’t say anything as he made the short trip.

Dave emerged with the radio and a bag of tortilla chips which put a big smile on Joel’s face. He loved chips. He guessed bringing them was Dave’s way of thanking him for his trouble.

The interstate was pretty heavily traveled that late afternoon. Since it had become a part of the “Avenue of the Saints,” there was a lot more traffic than in the past. Despite that, Joel was making pretty good time. Even with the minutes lost getting Dave’s radio, the boys should be at the Dome in plenty of time to get comfortable before the game started.

Joel’s grandfather, Rhys, was a big donor to the University of Northern Iowa. Therefore, he had first dibs on seats for sporting events. He had locked in a section on the 50-yard line. Joel planned to find a few other friends to join them once they figured out how many spots were free after the guys in his vehicle were seated. He wanted a good cheering section right down front for Alex, especially.

The sun was beginning to set and drivers were putting on their headlights. It was still pretty easy to see everything unless your vision was blocked by a semi.

All of a sudden, taillights began to go on and vehicles were swerving. A small herd of deer had wandered onto the roadway. Joel managed to steer into the median to avoid hitting any. Several other drivers managed to maneuver around them too, but one van hit a large buck and went skidding off of the road and down a ravine. It rolled several times before coming to rest on the passenger side.

The boys were out of the car in a flash and running across the northbound lanes as soon as they could do so without being hit. Other people were also getting out to help. One of the truckers was taking charge.

“I’ve called the highway patrol. No one should do anything until they get here. Don’t try to get anyone out of that van. If you cause them further injury, you could be sued.”

The adults on the crowd heeded the man’s warning and stood back. But the guys from Joel’s SUV had no intention of not helping.

“We are going to check on them,” Joel announced. “We have a bad feeling about this!”

The boys scrambled down the embankment despite the warnings from the truck driver. When they reached the van, they heard the screams of a woman inside.

“Please help! Get my grandson and my daughter out of here. I smell gas. Please, in the name of God, help us!”

Dave was the first to reach the sliding door behind the driver. It didn’t seem to be damaged like the driver’s door, but it was locked. There was a small boy of about five years of age strapped in a car seat suspended sideways.

“Hey, little dude,” Dave called. “Can you unlock this door?”

The boy nodded. He undid the belt on his seat and climbed up enough to reach the lock. After a couple of tries, he was able to move the button. Dustin and the others quickly slid the door open. Dave pulled the boy out. The little guy clung to him fiercely.

Dustin undid the kid’s car seat and threw it a few feet from the car. Then he lowered himself into the space being careful not to step on the older lady who was in the other back seat.

Meanwhile, Joel, Dane, and Colt were applying all of their might in a futile attempt to budge the driver’s door. It was jammed to the point of not moving without a pry bar or something.

“Please get my daughter out. Don’t worry about me,” the older lady pleaded.

“I’ve got to get you out first,” Dustin replied. “Otherwise, I won’t be able to maneuver her around to get her out.”

Dustin managed to free the woman from her belt and lift her high enough for his companions to pull her free. Joel half carried her up to the road.

By putting the back of the driver’s seat in a reclining position, Dustin managed to get the younger woman slid back toward the open door. Dane put his scouting knowledge into practice as he leaned in to make sure that her neck was supported in case it happened to be broken. Colt reached under her arms to get a good hold. Dustin supported her legs.

It took all of the strength of the three young men to hoist her from the van. By then, Joel was back. He took Dustin’s place in helping to carry the lady to safety. Dustin jumped out and tripped over the car seat. He swore softly, but hooked an arm through one of the straps as he scrambled toward the bank.

As Dane, Colt, and Joel reached the shoulder of the road with their burden, they were met by a paramedic who began to chew them out for moving an injured person.

“You boys have no sense! You could cause death or permanent injury doing that! Whatever were you think—–?”

His sentence was cut short by the explosion and fireball which erupted from the van. The force knocked Dustin forward onto the shoulder of the road. Fortunately, he was only scratched up a bit.

“Shit! I apologize all over the place!” the paramedic exclaimed. “You knew more about the situation than I did. If you hadn’t acted… Damn!”

Several adults were standing around hanging their heads in shame that they hadn’t gotten involved.

The grandmother asked the boys to come over to her as she was being put in a patrol car. There was only one ambulance and everyone figured that her daughter needed it most.

“I’m Sandra Banes and I want to give you all a hug and thank you for saving us!”

“We just did what we thought we should,” the boys assured her.

“You did what no one else was willing to do! You put our lives above yours. That last young man nearly got killed!”

All the while, the little boy would not let go of Dave. He stuck like glue.

“We’re about ready to transport,” the paramedic announced. “The patrolman can take you and your grandson to the hospital. Someone will see to him while you are being treated.”

“NO!” the little boy cried. “I don’t want to be at the hospital alone!”

“Drew, honey, we don’t have any choice. There are nice people there who will look after you.” Sandra assured her grandson. “Your daddy will be coming on the plane pretty soon and then you won’t be alone.”

“Ma’am,” Dave spoke up. “If it’s okay with you, we could take him to the football game with us and bring him to the hospital after it’s over.”

“Football!” Drew shouted.

Mrs. Banes wasn’t sure if she should send her grandson off with a bunch of high school boys. But, they had saved their lives. Certainly they could be trusted.

About then, Sheriff Larkin came striding through the crowd.

“Hi, boys,” he smiled. “I hear you all have performed a heroic deed tonight. I guess that I shouldn’t be surprised knowing the bunch of you as I do.”

(The sheriff’s endorsement cinched it. Drew would be going to the game.)

“We were headed for the game, but we were needed here worse, I guess,” Joel stated modestly.

“And, you’re going to miss the coin-toss if we don’t hurry. I’m headed there too. I always carry an emergency light in the car. I’ll put it on and you follow me close. I promise not to take any chances, but we’ll break a few speed laws. My buddies here on the state patrol will radio ahead to help clear us a path.”

The patrolmen grinned and nodded. Soon, Joel was carefully pulling his vehicle back onto the road, while the highway patrol stopped the cars behind them. Then they were off on a hurried trip. Dave had barely gotten the hang of fastening Drew’s car seat in place before they pulled away.

The sheriff and his wife were just far enough ahead to move traffic into the right lane leaving the passing lane open for the boys and them. As they neared the Dome, Joel’s heart sank. Where would they park?

He needn’t have worried because the sheriff drove right up to the main door. A couple of traffic guards came rushing over to see what was up.

“I know you have some VIP parking and I’m commandeering two spots!” Sheriff Larkin informed them.

“Yes, sir,” one of the men yelled as he directed them toward the remaining free spots.

“Well, we’re here in the nick of time,” the sheriff exclaimed. “Now, we just have to climb up to the nosebleed section and find our seats.”

“No climbing,” Joel insisted. “We have room on the 50-yard line and it’s the least we can do to repay you for your help!”

Even with the sheriff and his wife, there were four seats remaining. Joel sprinted up to where Jerry, Carry, Sarah, and Trent were sitting and led them down to his roped-off section. When one of the ushers questioned him, he pulled out his pass and they were all let through.

Jerry looked at the somewhat disheveled state of his friends and nodded.

“Something happened, didn’t it?”

“Yeah, it did,” Joel answered. “We all want to thank you for warning us. If you hadn’t, we might have stood there like everyone else. We did something that wasn’t smart by conventional wisdom, but we knew we had to because of what you told us. You helped save three lives tonight. You are special! We’ll explain it all at halftime.”

Jerry had trouble seeing the first couple of plays because of the tears in his eyes. They were tears of joy. Often he felt burdened by his “gift.” Now, it seemed like a blessing.

The game was hard fought. For the first quarter, neither team scored. By the half, they were tied a seven each. The radio announcer was going crazy. He kept talking about what a scrappy team Bentonville had.

During the half-time show, the boys brought Jerry and the others up to speed on the accident and aftermath. They downplayed their roles and asked that their friends keep it low-key when discussing it with others.

In the third quarter, Allen made as if he were going to run the ball himself, but at the last second threw a long pass to his brother who was positioned in the exact place he should be. Like magic, Alex caught it and scored. The kick for the extra point was good too. For the first time, Bentonville led. The fans were wild; the reporters were going crazy too.

The other team began a steady ground game toward their goal. Bentonville’s defense was doing its best, but they were beginning to tire. It looked like the score was going to be tied up again. But the opposing quarterback made a fatal mistake in trying to gain yardage by switching to a passing game. One of the Bentonville guys jumped up and intercepted the ball. With less than two minutes to go, Bentonville was not only ahead, but in possession of the ball.

Allen decided to fake out the other team by switching his tactics too. He called plays that kept the team pushing ahead rather than chancing an interception. But, they were not making the progress they needed, so he went to the air again. Once more, his twin was in a place where few expected him to be. The pass was complete, but Alex had no chance to go anywhere because he was on the bottom of a pile of players from the other team. It didn’t matter. The final buzzer went off just as they were resuming play. Bentonville had won against big odds once more.

When the players emerged from the locker room, their fans were there to high-five them and smack them on their butts. Alex ran to Joel, threw his arms around him, and lifted him off the ground. It was obvious to everyone that they were good buddies.

The boys got loaded up in Joel’s SUV to go for pizza before heading for the hospital. They didn’t stay at the celebration as long as they would normally have because their little mascot was getting sleepy. He nearly passed into dreamland sitting on Dave’s lap in the restaurant.

At the hospital, the boys were met my Grant Peters, Drew’s father. Dave was carrying Drew and Dustin was bringing the car seat.

“Daddy, we won,” the little guy said excitedly as he jumped out of Dave’s arms and hurled his body toward his father.

“Yes, we all won tonight,” Grant nodded. “My wife is doing very well. Her problem was mostly shock. Her mother has a broken leg, but it won’t keep her down for long. She is a goer!”

“And,” he continued. “I have to find some way to thank you for saving my whole family. I’ll take a second mortgage to send you all on a trip of something. You name it.”

“We don’t want any reward,” Dustin insisted.

“We’d like to keep a low profile on this,” Colton chimed in.

“We only did what we had to do,” Joel added.

“It’s like a miracle,” Grant said. “How did you know what to do? How did you happen to be in the exact right place at the exact time?”

“Well, the timing thing came because I had to go back for my radio,” Dave explained. “I know the other guys weren’t really happy because it made us about nine minutes off our schedule. Had we not gone back, we would have been several miles further up the road.”

“Also, we knew there might be an explosion tonight,” Dane told him. “That’s why we don’t want this to hit the news. We have a friend who sometimes has premonitions about things like this and he warned us about a probable danger that included a blast of some sort. He’s really afraid people will think he’s nuts, so he doesn’t talk about it much. But, he will chance ridicule if he thinks it’s important enough.”

“Okay, I see your point.” Grant answered. “Do you think it would be okay for me to contact him to thank him? You can’t possibly know the magnitude of what you guys have done for me.”

At that point, Grant Peters couldn’t talk for a while because of the lump in his throat. He swallowed a couple of times and then asked the boys to come with him down to his mother-in-law’s room. She would not rest until she had seen them again.

Drew excitedly told his grandmother about winning the game. He had a lot of the details wrong, but he knew the final score. Mrs. Banes congratulated Alex on the win and thanked the other boys again and again for their compassion and bravery.

“It gives me hope that the world may go on to be a good place after all. I know you were sent like angels to rescue us. I trust you’ll be rewarded in the next life if not in this one.”

“Seeing this little dude alive and well is reward enough for me,” Dave interjected.

The other guys nodded in agreement. There was nothing as satisfying as knowing you had helped to preserve a life. And in this case, it was three lives.

The ride home was fairly quiet. The guys were paired up holding hands and stealing an occasional kiss; all except for Joel and Alex. Joel had both hands on the wheel and kept scanning the road for deer.

Dave, Dustin, and the Johnson boys got dropped off, before Joel and Alex went on to the Albers’ house. Joel was sleeping over. It didn’t take long for all of the guys to succumb to the sandman.

Allen, who had ridden home with the team, was already asleep when the other two arrived. He was the only one sleeping alone. He was lying naked with his hands cupping his crotch as he dreamed of Abby. Someday, he hoped to be sleeping with her.

If you are enjoying this story, let David know: david.lee@castleroland.net