"Ha..."
"Ha..."
"Ha..."
My lungs burned. They hurt like hell. It was like someone lit a fire close to it, at least that was what the pain felt like.
"Just breathe man..."
I felt someone place their hand on my back, crouching down to meet with me on the grassy surface of the pitch.
Huh, I was on the floor?
"J-just breathe man..."
But I couldn't.
I tried my best, but I couldn't. It felt like my chest was tightened. Like there was this invisible weight that was placed stop it. And as I lay on the floor, hearing the footsteps of teammates and paramedics rushing towards me, the gravity of the situation I found myself in finally sank in.
I'm really screwed aren't I?
Having a cardiac arrest on the pitch isn't really a good look. This was my second one as well so I guess that's curtains on my playing career.
Fuck... I haven't even played up to thirty minutes. I was a fucking sub for fucks sake!
If I could move, which I couldn't, I would probably be thrashing around in anger, and shouting.
Yes, I would definitely be doing a lot of shouting. But life... life has a fucked up sense of humor. While my anger and other emotions are at it's peak, while I would need to express said emotions, I'm laying motionless on the floor.
It's quite funny. But what did I expect from it, all it's done is fuck me in the ass every single time it got the chance.
My name is Mason Leyall, and I'm a professional footballer playing for Blackburn Rovers.
Growing up I wasn't the most talented of footballers, but I had an uncanny ability to spot openings. It wasn't ordinary either, I could see spaces in behind defenses that seasoned pros couldn't even see when I was just a kid. It was a no brainer that I ended up being a midfielder.
By the age of fourteen my name was well known around the country and even the world. I was a player that every single team in the world wanted to have in their team. After all, even though my other abilities were limited, I had two abilities that I could absolutely boast of... my passing and my vision.
The way things were moving, it seemed like I was going to have an all-timer career. But then when I was eighteen I suffered a double ACL injury.
That was the first time life fucked me in the ass.
I managed to recover from the injury just fine but it was obvious to anyone watching that I wasn't quite the same after that. The passes that I used to make quite easily became impossible for me and as a result, my playstyle was affected. What was the use of a midfielder that didn't excel at anything and so I went down the pyramid of football and went from someone whose name was at the lips of every top club to a forgotten talent.
But a mere double ACL injury couldn't stop me. I found a way to adapt to my injury and started rising amongst the ranks again. The cap in my potential was a lot lower than what it would have been but I didn't mind, I still got to live out my dream and play professional football, and that's what I did.
From when I was twenty-one till when I was twenty-six, I kept pushing, and I managed to have a couple of seasons in the Premier League under my belt, even though I ended up getting relegated both times, but like I said, it didn't matter, I was still living out my dream.
But again for some reason, I couldn't be left happy. When I was twenty-seven, in the middle of a match, I had a cardiac arrest and I was advised to retire from football entirely.
That was the second time life fucked me in the ass.
I was supposed to retire. I should have just retired but I couldn't just go like that. I pushed and pushed and worked hard with my recovery and then I finally managed to get medically cleared to play football again, although on managed minutes. I couldn't play more than a half of football so I was a super sub at best.
But after continued efforts, I managed to overcome that hurdle and I was cleared to play full nineties. But I think at this point anyone can guess what happened.
Today, at thirty-one years of age, in my first start in over three years, I'm on the floor again. Another cardiac arrest.
I don't think I can make it this time, and I don't want to make it.
There's nothing for me if I survive. My parents have been dead since I was a teenager. I don't have a wife and children, it's just me... and football. But even football is leaving me soon.
It's there...
I think I can see it...
The light of heaven... I'm coming home
I'm coming ho- What the fuck?1
[Shadow and Light Football System activated]
[Shadow acquired]
[System reboot initiated]
And then it all turned black.
[System reboot complete]
[Name: Mason Lyall]
[Age: 18]
[Club/Affiliation: None]
[Pace: 10/20]
[Acceleration: 10/20]
[Agility: 13/20]
[Stamina: 5/20]
[Strength: 5/20]
[Balance: 10/20]
[Passing: 18/20]
[Vision: <
[Crossing: 16/20]
[Finishing: 9/20]
[First touch: 15/20]
[Long Shots: 8/20]
[Free-kick taking: 7/20]
[Dribbling: 11/20]
[Flair: 16/20]
[Marking: 2/20]
[Tackling: 2/20]
[Heading: 1/20]
[Technique: 12/20]
[Overall Player Rating: 59/100]
[Overall Player Potential: <
[Height: 5'9"]
[Weight: 140lbs]
[Shadow]