Steffi

4:

Kevin:

As much as Carrie tried to disguise her feelings, I knew that it upset her. It was fun and games to the other guys, but I understood that Carrie genuinely believed their stories. I could only sit and watch, as her face grew pale listening to appalling stories about Gary’s love quirks. However, I knew the truth.

Gary was a brother to me, I had known him the longest out of all the guys on the team-almost 7 years. We met each other in a Lexington, Kentucky high school. A few of the football players at Lexington were offered football scholarships to Stanford University. Among them were Gary and myself. Since I was 15, I had dreamed of Stanford; I had already visited the campus with my mother, and had accustomed myself to the surroundings while living at the Kensington residence. However, leaving home was a difficult decision to make. My father had recently passed away from cancer, and my cousin Brian, who also lived in Lexington, was suffering from a heart condition. I felt as if I was abandoning my family in search of the high life. But everyone, including my mother and Brian, encouraged me to go. It was a great opportunity and I could finally pursue my dreams of higher education. Always wanting to go to a good University, but being from an average middle class family, I could never have afforded it without a scholarship. I graduated with the honor of “Class Valedictorian” to my credit and left for my new life in California.

In Kentucky, Gary and I were star football players; in California, it was much the same. We were both part of the starting lineup. On the field, we worked well as a team. Off the field, we were best friends, probably the two closest guys on the team. Although we were good friends, our individual reputations were very different.

I was no stranger to popularity. Back in Lexington, many girls who hated football came just to see me play. The girls in California were the same way. However, I never had a serious relationship with any of them. And I never fooled around with any of them either. The other guys thought I was insane; I had the power over the girls, but I never capitalized on it. As far as I was concerned, my parents taught me to wait and be with the one I loved. The other guys just did not understand that concept.

Gary was no stranger to popularity either. The only difference was that he capitalized on his power more than I did; he dated quite extensively. But he was not nearly as unruly as the other guys depicted him to be. He was not a player, he just never found the right girl to commit to. And he never fooled around with groupies. He and I were raised with similar values.

Although I knew of Gary’s true character, I kept my mouth shut. I knew it was mean, I knew it was wrong, but I kept it a secret anyway. If I opened my mouth, it would make Gary seem more perfect than he already was. And that would completely ruin my chances with Carrie. Even if I had no chance at all to begin with. To be honest, my actions baffled me. From the beginning, I had given up, I had let Gary win without a fight. When Gary told me to back down, I did so without arguing. I put myself into this situation and there was no quick fix. There was no reason for me to keep the truth from Carrie. Yet I did.

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Steffi