chapter sixteen ━ the kicker & his friends
( season two, episode two )

❝ or as i like to call it, the time of year
when football players become the
most annoying people on the planet. ❞

𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐀𝐃𝐕𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 Veronica had over her friends when it came time for lunch at school—she never ate school lunch. She learned at a young age that when it came to meatless options in the school cafeteria, it mostly involved a salad.

Which was why Veronica was currently eating her pasta while her friends griped about the quality of the school lunch—meatloaf.

"What's that smell?" Milton asked suddenly and his friends looked up at him.

"It smells like actual food," Kim added. "And it's not Ronnie's leftover penne."

Jack frowned. "This is the school cafeteria," he replied and Veronica glanced at him. "It is no place for actual food."

He turned his plate upside down and it stuck to the surface, not dropping from the gravity. Veronica raised her eyebrows. "Well, alright then..."

"It's them," Milton said, pointing behind Jerry and Eddie. It was the school's football team in their roped-off section of the cafeteria; their personal chef was cutting hunks of meat for the players. "Here we go... The start of football season."

Veronica shrugged. "Or as I like to call it, the time of year when football players become the most annoying people on the planet."

Kim furrowed her brows together. "Didn't your dad play football when he was in high school?" she asked the brunette who nodded.

"And my mom was a cheerleader," she added. "Your point being?"

"Look at them with their prime rib," Jerry said, turning the conversation back to the team in the corner. "They think they're so much better than us. Ooh, I'm gonna go ask that guy if I can eat his fat."

Kim grabbed his arm and sat him back down on his chair. "Oh, sit down!"

"You know, their quarterback just moved away," Eddie told his friends. "And they're holding tryouts to find a replacement."

Veronica shrugged. "Well, that's nice."

"Wait a minute!" Milton exclaimed excitedly. "I think we all know there's someone sitting right at this table that could replace him." Both Eddie and Jerry began fumbling over their words and the redhead rolled his eyes. "I was talking about Jack, ya toads!"

"Damn..." Veronica muttered, handing Kim the second brownie she had packed.

Jack chuckled awkwardly making the two girls look at him. "I would love to, but between school and karate and..." He looked around at his friends. "I just got a turtle. It's a whole thing. The walking it alone takes forever."

Veronica tilted her head. "You know, if you wanted to lie, you could have found something better than 'walking your non-existent pet turtle'," she whispered into his ear and he frowned making her shrug in response.

"Jack, you're the most athletic person we know," Milton argued and the boy sighed. "The school needs a quarterback."

"And we need meat, man," Jerry added.

"Dude, what part of 'got a turtle' don't you understand?" Jack asked him.

"I tell you what," Milton said and Jack looked back at him. "I'll even go with you to the tryout for moral support. And I'm sure Ronnie has some tips from her dad."

"I really don't."

He scoffed. "It doesn't just work like that, Milton," Jack contradicted, shaking his head. "They don't let any kid try out for the football team."

Milton looked over. "Coach Marmer, Jack would like to try out—"

"Oh, great, Jack," he said and Veronica snorted. "We'll see you tomorrow at 3:30 then."

Jack stared back at the man. "Wait. What—What just happened?"

"What just happened is you now have to try out," Veronica replied with an innocent smile. "Lucky you."

Kim shrugged. "I'd support you and the team by joining the pep squad again, but—um—as you know, Grace kicked me off for no reason."

Veronica frowned. "You drop-kicked the mascot."

"Well, he was saying inappropriate things to me through his blowhole," Kim replied and the brunette shrugged; that seemed fair. "I belong on that pep squad, front and center. And I'll say it. I like being looked at."

"It's times like these that I start to question how we're such good friends," Veronica commented. "I don't like being looked at."

Jerry looked at the blonde. "Kim, you had your shot," he said. "Okay? Leave the pep to the professionals."

"You have pep?"

He nodded. "Oh, I have pep, sister," he answered before standing up. "Yo, drum line, give me a beat." Veronica looked around when the drum line obliged and began playing. "S-E-A-F-O-R-D!"

"S-E-A-F-O-R-D!" the students repeated back to him, standing up from their seats.

"Greatest school in history!"

"Greatest school in history!"

The male cheerleaders lifted Jerry on their shoulders as they made their way out of the cafeteria. "Show your spirit, let's march the hall!"

"Show your spirit, let's march the hall!"

"Whoa, whoa, I'm gonna hit the wall." Veronica looked up at the boy. "I'm gonna hit the wall!"

The rest of the students continued out of the room while she walked over to Jerry, looking down at him with a wince. "You hit the wall..."

___________________________

𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐀 𝐒𝐀𝐓 𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐀𝐓 in the dojo, tilting her head in confusion at why Milton was dressed as a mini version of the football coach—whistle included. "Let's get going, Jack. Hustle it up!"

With much reluctance, Jack came out of the locker room clad head-to-toe in a football uniform and the brunette girl laughed quietly to herself. She pulled out her phone and took a picture. "I don't know what I'm looking at, but I feel like I need photographic proof that it happened."

He glared at her before looking at the red-haired boy. "Milton, I'm just going down for a tryout. Do I really have to wear this?"

Milton blew his whistle and threw down a yellow flag making Veronica wince at the sound. "Five yards for a bad attitude, fella."

"Sweet Moses, is it Halloween already?" Rudy asked, coming out of his office and seeing the two boys. "I gotta put out the raisins."

Veronica shook her head. "No, no, no, Rudy, it's—uh—it's not Halloween," Milton replied. "Jack's trying out for the football team."

"Oh." Rudy smiled. "I played a little pigskin." Veronica crossed her arms and walked toward her uncle with a frown. "You're looking at the man responsible for the tackle heard 'round the world."

"Run!" she whispered to the boys.

"September seventeenth!" Rudy exclaimed before they could leave and the girl sighed to herself, hanging her head. "City championship. Seaford up by six, ten seconds on the clock. Suddenly Creighton High's legendary fullback Bronco Wiznewski burst through the hole.

"As he raced for our end zone, I felt the weight of a city's dreams on my shoulders. I hit him so hard, he spit out his mouthpiece, his teeth, and his pride."

"So, wait, you won the championship?" Jack asked.

Veronica shook her head. "They did not."

"We forfeited," Rudy added before shrugging. "Apparently there's some rule you have to be on the team to make a tackle."

"That's dumb." Jack chuckled.

She leaned closer to the two boys. "Would you believe me if I told you that my mom was popular in high school?" she whispered to them. "Because he certainly was not."

"Jack, I'm so proud that you're going out for football," Rudy said, giving his niece a small glare. "I want you to have something special."

He unwrapped the tissue and Veronica immediately gagged upon recognizing it. "What is it?" Jack asked.

"Bronco's mouthpiece," Rudy replied with a smile. "I'd give it a quick boil."

Jack dropped it with a grimace of disgust. Veronica kicked it away from them as he turned to her and Milton. "Guys... I gotta let you in on something. I can't throw a football."

"Can't or won't?" Milton asked as Veronica opened her mouth.

"Can't."

"Can't or don't?"

"Can't."

"Can't or shan't?"

Jack sighed. "I can't throw a football, Milton!" he exclaimed impatiently while the brunette girl pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Come on, Jack, I'm sure it's not that bad."

It was; that was the conclusion that Veronica and Milton had when the ball fell out of Jack's hands as he attempted to throw it.

"Wow..." she muttered, standing next to the redhead on the school's football field a few hours before the tryout was scheduled to take place. "That was painful to watch..."

"When you say you can't throw a football, you really can't!" Milton added as the brown-haired boy sighed in defeat.

Veronica bent down and picked up the ball. "It's really not that difficult," she said, holding it in her hands. "You align your fingers with the stitches and just—" She threw the ball perfectly to a waiting player and she gave him a thumbs-up. "—throw it."

Jack rolled his eyes. "Oh, just like that, huh?" he replied sarcastically. "Not everybody is the daughter of a former football player."

She sighed and handed him one of the balls. "Just keep trying," she told him, gesturing to the tire behind her. "Get it through there."

"Ronnie, Milton, this is pointless—"

"Do it, Brewer!" He shrunk back and obliged the girl, attempting to throw the ball once more, only for it to fall from his hands again. She sighed and pressed her lips together, looking over at Milton. "We have some work to do..."

___________________________

𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐅𝐄𝐋𝐓 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐀𝐍 eternity of struggling, Milton and Veronica had finally succeeded in getting Jack to throw the ball in the air. "Oh, guys, I'm totally getting the hang of this," he told them in excitement. "I hit the tire!"

"That was great, Jack," Milton agreed with a nod, holding another football in his hands. "But with a small adjustment, you can make it through the tire. It's simple physics. The ball is a spheroid, so if you release it at a forty-degree angle while pronating your hand, you'll eradicate wind resistance."

Jack glanced at Veronica as though he was looking for a translation and she frowned. "Don't look at me," she said, shaking her head. "I'm good at history and English, not... whatever that was."

He shrugged and took the ball from Milton, adjusting the angle he threw it, and the trio watched as the ball went through the target.

"You did it!" Milton exclaimed. "You got it through the tire."

"I'm a natural pronator!"

Veronica chuckled when the two boys' chest bumped, but the brunette's gear was too heavy resulting in Milton wincing in pain. "Good job, Jack."

"Alright, Jack." Veronica slipped over to Milton's side as Coach Marmer walked over to the boy. "Let me see you hit Murphy in the end zone."

Milton sighed with a frown. "Oh, Murphy? Come on, coach, he's never gonna catch it. Look at him down there. He's got those tiny, little T-Rex hands."

"Milton," Veronica said and he looked at her. "Calm down. Jack's got this." They both turned to watch Jack throw the ball perfectly into Murphy's hands. "See? He got it!" She gave the boy a high-five.

"Great catch, Murphy!" Milton called out to the boy on the other end of the field before shrieking like a dinosaur making Veronica and Jack glance at each other. "Jack, you did it. He's gotta go with you."

Coach Marmer shook his head. "Nah. I'm going with Mike Reynolds."

"What?" Milton asked in disbelief. "But he threw the ball perfectly to that little-fingered freak!"

"Yeah. Sorry."

The redhead pressed his lips together in frustration. "That is so unfair! Gah!"

He ran at a nearby football and kicked it, sending it straight through the field goal posts. Veronica blinked slowly. "What—What just happened?" she asked out loud.

"You just kicked a fifty-yard field goal," Coach Marmer said, walking over to the boy. "What's your name, nerd?"

"Milton Krupnick."

"Krupnick, you're our new kicker," he said and Veronica was suddenly even more confused. "You're starting Friday's game."

Jack looked at Milton. "Do you know what this means?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I know exactly what this means. I'm a jock!" Coach Marmer took him by the arm. "Ow, take it easy. Ow, ow!"

Veronica tilted her head. "Well... that just happened. I still don't really know what just happened, but that happened..."

"Who knew Milton would be a football kicker?"

She shrugged. "I don't think Milton knew he would be a football kicker," she replied before looking at the boy standing beside her. "Pizza?"

"Oh, yes. This football uniform is really uncomfortable."

___________________________

𝐈𝐓 𝐇𝐀𝐃 𝐁𝐄𝐄𝐍 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐃𝐀𝐘𝐒 since Milton Krupnick became Seaford High's new kicker and it was safe to say that his friends were thoroughly enjoying the perks that came with being friends with a football player.

Kim and Jerry were both accepted to the pep squad courtesy of a phone call from Milton; Jack avoided detention because Milton came to his defense; and Eddie's new attempt at wooing Grace involved becoming the new scoreboard operator with a vouch from Milton.

It seemed that everybody was reaping the benefits of Milton's new popularity except for Milton himself. He was struggling to keep up with his schoolwork, even receiving a 'B' on an exam. To Veronica, it seemed that he enjoyed being Milton Krupnick rather than 'Milton Krupnick, The Foot.'

She still found the nickname odd.

She and Jack walked into the dojo after school, the former wrinkling her nose in disgust, when they found Milton sitting on a mat with his textbooks spread out in front of him.

"Hey, Milton," Jack said and Veronica quickly separated herself from him. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at practice?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I needed a little time to study. At school, everywhere I turn it's 'The Foot, The Foot, The Foot!'"

"Isn't it awesome?" Jack replied with a chuckle. "Everyone loves you."

Milton shrugged. "I mean, the thing is that's great and all, but—"

"Oh, man, I forgot to tell you," Jack interrupted and Veronica tilted her head, glancing at the redhead. "You know those tickets you gave me for homecoming? I gave them to Tony from the Pizza Palace. Free garlic nuggets for life!"

"It's for life?" Veronica exclaimed in disgust. "Oh, great. That's just great! Your breath is gonna be horrible until the day you die."

Milton sighed. "That's great, Jack, but seriously—"

"You getting on that football team is the greatest thing to happen to any of us," Jack said and Rudy ran into the building, holding two hangers of t-shirts.

"Hey, hey, hey, which one do you like better..." he asked, holding up the shirts. "'Milton's Militia' or 'Krupnick's Krazies'?"

Milton looked at them. "Wow. You made t-shirts?"

"Uh, yeah!" Rudy nodded. "Having a football star in my dojo is like the coolest thing that's ever happened."

The redhead tilted his head while Veronica stood against the mat with her arms crossed. "What about Ronnie winning the same tournament as her mother or Jack's epic battle with the third-degree black belt on the Great Wall of China?"

"Lame!" Rudy exclaimed and Veronica nodded, pressing her lips together. "So? Eh, eh?"

"Gah!"

___________________________

𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐀 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐃 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐔𝐍𝐂𝐋𝐄, 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 was no secret, but that didn't mean that it wasn't hard to be related to him. One example of that sentiment was the football game they were currently at. She sat on the other side of Jack, looking around the boy at her uncle whose face was painted—half in yellow and the other half in blue—and a stuffed whale sat on his head.

"You really went for it, didn't you, Uncle Rudy?"

He nodded. "Absolutely," he replied with a smile. "Check out what's gonna happen every time we score." He raised the fins of the whale on his head and confetti shot out from the top. "That was my blowhole!"

"Oh, come on," she said, sighing as she dusted the confetti off her pants. "I already hate glitter, now you're just getting a bigger version."

"Rudy, that has gotta be the most ridiculous outfit I've ever seen in..." Jack trailed off and looked down the bleachers. "...and I spoke too soon."

Veronica furrowed her brows, following his gaze and she frowned. "Crayfish, coming through." It was Phil dressed in a red crayfish outfit. "Rolling hot."

"Look what washed in in low tide," Rudy told the two teenagers. Veronica rolled her eyes and held her head in her hand.

She really wanted a pretzel.

"Rudy, they ran out of tickets," Phil said breathlessly. "Please, can I sit next to you? You won't hear a pippich out of me."

"Milton Krupnick lined up for a forty-two-yarder." They turned their attention to the football field as Milton ran out. "His third field goal of the game."

"Okay." Phil stood up and Veronica raised her eyebrows. "I'm going to try to distract him so he misses it! Hey!" He started making a crayfish noise and she shook her head.

"Here's the snap... And the kick is good!"

Veronica clapped and stood up, seeing Jack and Rudy squaring up playfully against Phil. "And on that note..." She walked down the bleachers and bought herself a pretzel before feeling herself get pulled in the direction of the field. "Uh—what are you doing?" she asked Jack.

"Saying hi to Milton."

"During a game?" she asked incredulously, breaking apart her pretzel. "Why am I coming with you?"

He shrugged and they walked onto the field, Veronica still very confused. "Hey, Milton, check it out!" Jack said, walking over to the boy. "I got free popcorn just for knowing you!"

Veronica rolled her eyes and looked at Milton. "Are you okay?" she asked him. "You seem... I don't know... not yourself."

He shook his head. "Not really," he replied and she tilted her head. "Every time I look at the football, I think of all the things I'd rather be doing."

Jack furrowed his brows. "Well, then why are you on the team?" he asked.

"Look around you, Jack," he said with a shrug. "I'm doing it for you guys."

"What?"

"You said it yourself," he continued and Veronica sighed. "Me getting on the football team was the best thing that ever happened to you guys. I mean, because of me, Kim and Jerry made the pep squad, Eddie got a date with Grace. And when's the last time you saw Rudy look so happy?"

Veronica glanced up at her uncle who was playing with his whale again. "Out me blowhole!"

"But, Milton, you don't have to do something you don't enjoy just for us," she told him softly. "We like you for you. Not because of your foot. We want you to be happy."

"So you guys would be okay if 'The Foot' walked away?" he asked.

Jack chuckled and nodded. "Dude, as long as you're happy."

"Thanks, guys."

"Go get 'em, Krupnick!" Coach Marmer exclaimed, pushing Milton onto the field for his field goal attempt.

"Foot! Foot! Foot!" the crowd began chanting.

"Here it is, the final kick." Kim and Jerry, having finally gotten the sousaphone off of the blonde's head, joined them on the sidelines. "If he makes this, Milton Krupnick will be a Seaford High legend. Here's the snap..."

Veronica bit her bottom lip and watched as the ball flew through the air. She gripped onto Jack's shoulder. "He did it!" She hugged the redhead tightly as soon as he was on the sidelines. "You did it!"

"Dude, Milton, that was awesome!" Jack exclaimed once Veronica had let go of the hug. "You did it. And even though you're retiring from the team, you should go celebrate the victory with your guys."

"I'm going to," Milton said with a nod. "With you guys."

"Whoo!"

___________________________

"𝐖𝐀𝐈𝐓, 𝐒𝐎 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐃𝐀𝐃 𝐖𝐀𝐒 the quarterback, and your mom was the cheer captain?" Kim asked while Veronica flipped through her parents' old yearbooks. "So they were like high school royalty."

The brunette shrugged. "Except that they didn't meet until college," she replied, showing her best friend the pictures. "Actually, do you wanna know why my dad ended up in the Army?" Kim nodded. "He was on scholarship to play college football but then he hurt his knee before he could leave, so he changed his mind and joined the Air Force.

"And the school he went to for the training, which was different from the school he was going to play football for, happened to be next door to where my mom went to college. They met at a coffee shop in that town."

Kim nodded. "So... you're saying that a football injury is the reason that your parents met?" she asked and Veronica looked back at her.

"I guess I am," she said with a chuckle. "Thank you, football, for introducing my parents. The players are still annoying though..."

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━ author's note:

the becker family is one athletic family, i'll give them that

happy, sarcastic, quippy ronnie is finally here and i'm so excited for you to see more of that side of her! she'll still have her sad moments, but not as much as in act one :)