The Devil Lives on 8th Street: Part Two of Three

“Bummer about that last game, huh?”
“Yeah, but I think it was good for the team,” defended Mitch. “I think we'll be stronger than ever and ready to just dominate the rest of the season.”
“Plus being perfect is boring.”

And while the Barracudas weren’t undefeated anymore, in a month they were 15-5 and the talk about a championship grew louder. Unarguably, the loudest talk came from Mitch, who had worn all black after the team’s first lost as a joke but later turned it into a gloomy tradition. But it wasn’t just the losses that started getting to Mitch; it was the close wins. Mitch knew that the Barracudas had no shot at the championship if they couldn’t even beat the North Grove Spider Monkeys by more than four points. And if Vince Bergman went on another steak of 20 plus points per game, he could go back to being the leading league scorer.

“That’s unhealthy, my man,” offered Joe Barcelona.
“What’s unhealthy? This donut pizza? Because I have a friend who was thinking about being a doctor-”
“You got to play for the game, not the statistics. It’s a battle, not a math equation.”

Math equation or not, the Barracudas needed more help than anybody--aside from the cholesterol-packed Mitch--was willing to admit. The team needed perfection and a guarantee of greatness or they were not worth following at all. So, with noticeably less energy than usual, Mitch went to see the Devil. Mitch didn’t need pot; he needed a promise. And it wouldn't cost any samolians.

“Shit. I figured you’d never offer me your soul after I didn’t give you a loan some years back.”
“Yeah well,” Mitch hesitated. “Reggie had what I needed and wanted my old TV. But for this, I just got you.”
“That’s gravy for the both of us.”
“So it’s a deal?”
“Sure.”
“Do I need to, like, sign anything?”
“No. Legal issues never really seem to come up.”

And so, as Mitch expected, the Barracudas eventually entered the championship. What Mitch didn’t expect, though, was winning two free tickets to the game thanks to a radio show call-in contest (Mitch knew which Barracuda player suffered from taphophobia). At the game, before tip-off, Mitch decided to treat Joe Barcelona and himself to some hot dogs.

At the concession stand, Mitch saw a sign reading: “Ask about our ‘dog sauce’”. Mitch turned behind him and asked the stranger if the sign was an order, because he really didn’t want to ask about their ‘dog sauce’. It was after making this flip-remark that Mitch noticed the collateral listener was a beautiful girl wearing a hideous Gorilla jersey. She smiled at Mitch’s joke but frowned at Mitch’s apparel.

“Fuck the Gorillas, Barracudas all the way,” Mitch challenged with a wink and smile.
“I wouldn’t get your hopes up,” the girl, later revealed to be named Sasha Madison, replied. “I’ve taken out an unworldly loan to insure a Gorilla championship.”

The hot dog placed in Mitch’s hand went ice cold.