"Assistant coach?" George felt it was ridiculous at first. Then he pulled himself together and asked, "What about the pay?"
George was already middle-aged and had a family to support. Reality didn't give him much room to be proud. If the school's salary was decent, he could swallow his pride and serve as an assistant coach for a while.
"The school has clear pay standards for staff," Principal Tom said. "But don't worry—I'll do my best to keep your weekly salary at five hundred dollars. And this demotion is really unavoidable. You'll just help Wayne out for a while. Once things cool down, the school will consider promoting you back to head coach."
"Five hundred? And I have to be Wayne's assistant?" George's expression shifted again and again.
Back when the team had no results, George's weekly pay was five hundred dollars. When the team started improving, it went up to seven hundred.
Now, after achieving the best results in the school's history, his salary was actually being cut back down.
What was even harder for George to accept was having to work under Wayne.
Wayne used to be his assistant—and honestly, his coaching ability wasn't anything special.
Now George was being asked to work under a former subordinate. That was a real blow to his pride.
Seeing George's face darken, Principal Tom said, "George, the school will remember what you've done. This situation won't last long. I hope you can understand the school's difficulties…"
George had heard enough empty promises over the years. He fell silent for a long moment, then seemed to make up his mind.
He took off the baseball cap with the Melford logo from his head and placed it on the principal's desk.
"Starting today," George said, "I'm no longer a coach at Melford."
"You're resigning?" Principal Tom looked shocked. He quickly tried to talk him out of it. "George, don't be impulsive. We can talk this through. The salary—there's room to negotiate."
From the principal's reaction, it was clear he still highly valued George's abilities.
"No need. I've made my decision." George shook his head lightly. After speaking calmly, he ignored the principal's attempts to stop him and turned to leave the office.
Once outside, George felt like a weight had been lifted. He let out a long, heavy breath.
"So, how did it go with the principal? Did you get a raise?" Little George asked at the door, noticing how relaxed his dad looked.
"No," George replied. "I resigned."
"Huh?!" Little George was stunned. "How did that happen?"
"Don't worry. I've got my own plan. I'll tell you tonight," George said with a smile. Then he added, "For now, you should get to practice."
It was already time for after-school athletics, and the football team should have started training.
"Oh… okay." Little George headed toward the field in a daze. After walking a bit, he noticed Mike hadn't followed. "Mike, aren't you going to practice?"
"You go ahead. I've got something to take care of," Mike said.
"Alright. I'll tell the coach you're out today," Little George muttered before leaving the hallway.
He assumed Mike wanted to talk to his dad privately. It never crossed his mind that Mike was planning to quit the football team.
"Keep training hard. You've got real talent for football," George said as he walked toward his office, unaware of Mike's decision. "Before I leave, I'll talk to Wayne. Next year, you could be the team's quarterback…"
"I've already decided to quit the football team," Mike suddenly said.
"What?" George stopped in his tracks, clearly shocked. "You've got so much talent—why give it up? Don't let my resignation affect you. I've thought this through."
"I've thought it through too," Mike replied. "Honestly, I'm not that interested in football. I'm going to join the school's math team instead."
"This…" George was about to say that quitting football with that kind of talent would be a huge waste.
But then he remembered Mike's academic performance—he was just as strong in class as Sheldon. Joining the math team actually made sense.
"Alright," George sighed after a moment. "It's your decision." Then he added, unable to help himself, "Still, Mike, I really think you should stick with football. You've got the potential to be a star…"
Mike's expression was firm. He clearly had his own plans, so George didn't push it any further.
The two of them walked in silence to the football team's dedicated office.
"George, you're here?" Coach Wayne said, jumping up from a leather chair inside the office.
That chair had originally been set aside by the school specifically for George.
"It's fine. Sit down," George said generously. "That chair is yours now."
"No, no," Wayne waved his hands awkwardly. "I'm really sorry about what happened to you. But don't worry—around here, it'll still be your call."
Wayne wasn't a great coach, but he knew his own limits.
"I've resigned," George said, his expression heavy. "The team is yours now. I hope you'll put your heart into it."
After so many years as Melford's head football coach, George had grown deeply attached to the team.
"How could this happen?" Wayne said in shock. "Were the sponsors giving you trouble? I'll go talk to them right now."
Seeing Wayne's reaction, George smiled faintly. "No need. Leaving the team was my own choice."
"Another school trying to poach you?" Wayne asked quickly.
George just smiled without answering.
"Yeah, that figures. You're a solid coach—no surprise another school wants you. Still, it's a shame. Guess I won't get to ride your coattails anymore," Wayne joked.
"Don't overthink it," George said with a laugh. "Once I pack up my things, this office will be all yours."
"Man…" Wayne slumped back into the chair. Watching George quietly pack up his personal belongings, he let out a heavy sigh.
He couldn't help feeling a little sad about his colleague leaving.
"Coach Wayne, I'd like to withdraw from the team," Mike said, taking the opportunity to speak up.
"What?!" Wayne was shocked again, nearly jumping out of his seat. "Don't be impulsive, Mike. Just because George is leaving doesn't mean you should too. The team still needs you…"
"This has nothing to do with George," Mike explained. "I'm joining the school's math team."
"The math team…?" Wayne knew about Mike's strong grades. With that reason, he didn't know how to convince him to stay.
Ten minutes later, Coach Wayne lay back weakly in his chair, watching two of the team's biggest pillars walk out the door.