Read Head of the River for Free Online Page B

called.
    That was all the motivation I needed. I grabbed my boat and with my free arm, dog paddled across the river to the bank and the slimy weeds.
    I stood up and my calves slid knee deep into black river goop. Dad gave me his hands and winched me out. I stood there, shivering, my legs covered in sludge. Dad fussed around like an old lady, trying to cover my shoulders with his rain jacket. That’s when Leni and the girls’ first eight glided past. Close enough to witness my complete humiliation. Penny had a front row seat.
    â€˜Girls! Eyes in the boat,’ their coach Laura shouted. But none of them listened. It was good entertainment.
    A former Head of the River champion fell out of a single scull and got whipped by a mountain biker who took up rowing five minutes ago. A guy in the seconds .
    And then, goddamn. I started crying.
    Leni
    I’m heading to the gym to meet Adam for our lunchtime weights session. I’m worried about Cris. I hated seeing him upset this morning. I still can’t reach him on his phone and I don’t want to call my parents in case they worry.
    I’m stinking and sweating from my warm-up run and I can’t eat fast enough to squash my hunger, shoving a chicken sandwich into my mouth. I’m almost at the gym, when I hear the clop of footsteps and a hand reaches for my elbow. I turn around and there’s Sam, in bike shorts, a tight cycling top and chunky cycling shoes. He’s dripping.
    â€˜You dropped these,’ he says.
    In his hands is a small mound of tampons. Oh no. You know those movies where the boy meets the girl and they bump into each other buying the same flavour of ice-cream, or their puppy dogs’ leashes wrap around each other or they get assigned to the same weekend detention? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a movie where the girl drops a breadcrumb trail of tampons for the boy she’s crushing on.
    â€˜Thanks. How embarrassing,’ I say.
    I shove the tampons into my backpack, discovering that I left one of the pockets open. Another tampon escapes and bounces on the ground. I pick it up and say bad words in my head.
    There’s no way to recover from a moment like this.
    Sam doesn’t seem to care. He’s holding back a smile.
    â€˜I have older sisters, nothing I haven’t seen before. Actually, I’m glad I bumped into you.’
    He plops down on a grassy patch next to the gym, crossing his legs.
    â€˜Sit down.’
    It’s more of an order than a request. I’m late for Adam and I don’t want him to catch me with Sam, the guy most likely to have stolen Cristian’s seat, but I find myself on the ground next to him.
    â€˜How’s Cristian?’ Sam says.
    â€˜I don’t know where he is. He hasn’t replied to any of my texts. He’d be pretty gutted about getting kicked out of the firsts.’
    â€˜Westie offered me his seat.’
    â€˜Are you going to take it?’
    â€˜Dunno. Maybe. I’m happy in the seconds.’
    Sam pulls his arms up in the air and stretches. All of a sudden I’m staring at the hair under his armpits. I’ve never seen a guy so flexible.
    â€˜What about all those extra ergos you do? Aren’t you trying to impress the coaches? Get a seat in the firsts?’
    Sam gives me a puzzled look.
    â€˜I’m not trying to impress anyone. I do the ergs because they make me feel good.’
    He pushes up on his arms, does a perfectly balanced handstand and then jumps to his feet.
    â€˜Tell Cris I hope he’s not feeling too down. It’s a long season. Plenty of seat changes still to come.’
    He holds out a hand and pulls me to my feet. Feeling his skin against mine zings something deep in my groin.
    â€˜See you at the river,’ Sam says.
    By the time I’ve said a weak goodbye, Sam is heading for the gym, taking his shoes and shirt off as he goes.
    I meet up with Adam in the weights room and he’s started his program.