It didn't take long to clean up their dinner mess and they met Andrew's group in the hallway. Andrew looked on top of the world as usual, but Kevin's expression was tense. Tonight was Kevin's first season game since his injury and his debut as a right-handed Fox striker. Kevin had to shine tonight if he honestly wanted to make a comeback. How he was supposed to do that with his weaker hand and a team like the Foxes as backup, Neil didn't know.

They left the dormitory early, but traffic was so backed up they were almost late. The stadium had turned into a madhouse sometime between morning practice and now. The parking lots were crammed and security was everywhere, directing fans and watching for drunken foolery. Every gate was open and the guards manning them wielded metal detectors. A line of police cars and two ambulances kept a path clear for the athletes' cars. Two guards stood outside their door, and after a cursory check to make sure none of them were carrying anything illegal into the stadium, they were allowed into their locker room.

Wymack was in the lounge and immediately directed them to the changing room. Neil was halfway through the men's door when Kevin snagged his collar and hauled him down the hall to the back door. Kevin pulled it open and pushed Neil ahead of him through it. Neil stumbled a step, caught his balance a second later, and went to the inner court.

The Foxhole Court was the second collegiate stadium he'd been in, the first being Edgar Allan's Ravens' Nest, but he'd never been in one on a game night. It was one thing to admire the dizzyingly high seats, and another thing entirely when those seats were full. Not all of the sixty-five thousand seats were taken yet, but at least three-quarters were. The stadium rumbled with the sounds of tens of thousands of feet. The crowd's yelling and laughing were deafening, and this was before the crowd had a reason to be loud. Neil wondered what they would sound like after the Foxes scored. Maybe it'd be loud enough to crack his bones inside him.

It didn't take anyone long to notice Neil and Kevin in the inner court. When the closest section went crazy, the sound ignited a small wave up the stands. Orange Notes, the campus band, was still filing into their section, but they reacted to the excitement unquestioningly. The drumline beat out a ferocious rhythm and a couple trumpets started the school fight song. A few seconds later the students joined in, yelling the words at one another and the empty court.

"Don't waste their time tonight," Kevin said at his ear. "They came to see you play, so give them something to believe in."

"They're not here for me," Neil said. "They're here to see the famous Kevin Day."

Kevin put a hand to Neil's shoulder blade and gave him a small push. "Change out."