My freshman sunk into the front seat of our Subaru, his knees shredded and blackened.
"What happened?" I asked.
"Ashton crashed into me on the track. It really hurts," he said.
"How did that happen?" I asked. This is his first season on the track. "Did you forget to look before you stepped onto it?"
"No. I don't know," he said. "I was finishing the sprint and stepping off onto the grass, and he just careened into me."
"Did you hit your head? Are you okay?"
"No, it's just my knees. I don't even know what he was doing, how he crashed into me. It just hurts."
"I bet. It looks really painful. We'll need to get it cleaned out when we get home."
I wonder how he reacted when it happened. I wonder how the other kids responded. I wonder how sore it'll be tomorrow.
I also remember. I remember feeling like I had to be tough and show no pain when I was a freshman. I remember the feeling of crashing into a hurdle because my teammate in the next lane hit it. I remember the feeling of the cinders slicing into my knees and palms and shoulders.
He seems like he's going to be okay as he takes pictures of the wound and texts it to his friends. At least there's no blood dripping off from him.
"What happened?" I asked.
"Ashton crashed into me on the track. It really hurts," he said.
"How did that happen?" I asked. This is his first season on the track. "Did you forget to look before you stepped onto it?"
"No. I don't know," he said. "I was finishing the sprint and stepping off onto the grass, and he just careened into me."
"Did you hit your head? Are you okay?"
"No, it's just my knees. I don't even know what he was doing, how he crashed into me. It just hurts."
"I bet. It looks really painful. We'll need to get it cleaned out when we get home."
I wonder how he reacted when it happened. I wonder how the other kids responded. I wonder how sore it'll be tomorrow.
I also remember. I remember feeling like I had to be tough and show no pain when I was a freshman. I remember the feeling of crashing into a hurdle because my teammate in the next lane hit it. I remember the feeling of the cinders slicing into my knees and palms and shoulders.
He seems like he's going to be okay as he takes pictures of the wound and texts it to his friends. At least there's no blood dripping off from him.