He nods again in reference to a kid that Jaime seems to play around with alot.
“And doesn’t Cruz go to a different school than you? Wouldn’t it be so awesome for Andre to join a team and then make new friends his own age? People that also want to play basketball and have fun together?”
“I guess,” he says on a shrug, not looking entirely convinced.
I laugh and press a hand to my chest. “Don’t sound so excited. You’re gonna bowl me over with your enthusiasm, mister!”
He smiles.
“There’s the smile I was looking for. Okay, now I’ll have Patrick call your parents this week to see if we can get Andre on the team for his age, alright? Just keep things positive and encouraging for him.”
“Thanks, Coach D.”
And with that, Jaime runs off and joins up with Jeremy again.
I never thought I would actually enjoy the practices. I hate athleticism in general when it comes to my own self. My body just doesn’t work that way. I have pretty much zero muscles on this frame of mine. The whole jogging-as-a-new-years-resolution thing petered out about a week after it started, turning into more of a morning stroll once or twice a week, if I’m not too tired.
But the practices have actually, surprisingly, been fantastic. Once I started studying up on basketball, I didn’t feel so lost. Not only did it make the kids take me a little more seriously, but it also seriously helped when I made my March Madness bracket with my friends. To say Jeremy was surprised by the fact that I picked so many of the correct teams is an understatement. He said it was beginners luck. I say it’s because my brain is fucking amazing.
“Alright everyone, lets huddle up!”
Jeremy’s whistle calls the end of practice and everyone jogs over to center court. As we circle around him, he crouches low and starts talking about what went well in practice, taking time to add in the light material assigned by his boss to touch on topics relevant to the at-risk component of this league.
And as he stands there, reiterating what he said last week about teamwork and family, I wonder if maybe I wrote him off too quickly when he said he wanted me to give him another chance. I mean, people can change, right?
“Okay, so our first game is this weekend,” he says. “Just a reminder to be here at 10am on Saturday morning. I’ll have your jerseys and some snacks too. And make sure to get some rest tomorrow. No barhopping the night before a game, okay?”
The kids all laugh at that, and Jeremy flashes his trademark grin at their amusement.
“Alright, Lions on three!”
* * * * *
“How was practice?”
I drop my bag and kick off my shoes at the door, then wander into the living room, where I find RJ sprawled out on the couch with the TV on and a book and notebook on her lap.
“Pretty good today, actually. I think I kind of bonded with one of the kids. Which is great. It makes me feel good to know that they’re getting another adult in their lives that reminds them they matter.”
She smiles, picking up her phone. “Awesome. I was about to order some Chinese food. You want in?”
I shake my head, sinking into the couch next to her. “Jeremy took me to get tacos on the way home from practice.”
She nods, slowly, and I can tell there’s something she wants to say. It’s like her words are sitting on the tip of her tongue and she can’t seem to just spit them out at me.
“Whatever you want to say, just say it.”
“It just seems,” she says immediately, like she was waiting for me to give her the green light, “like you and Jeremy are spending an awful lot of time together. Is all. You know. That I wanted to say. That’s it.”
I laugh.
“Jeremy and I are trying to be friends, now. I already told you this.”
She rolls her eyes. “Well that’s stupid. You both acknowledge that me telling Jeremy not to date you is why he broke things off freshman year. And I’ve told you – repeatedly over the past few months it seems like – that I overreacted freshman year because I was just so protective of our new friendship. Now that we’ve all gotten over the bygones from yesteryear, you should just start dating. Like, I don’t get the problem.”
I sigh.
“RJ, we didn’t not date because of you. There were… a bunch of reasons things wouldn’t have worked out back then. Not just the fact that you share the same DNA.”
