Full Court Press (4 page)

“See you at recess,” Roy said under as his breath as he turned and walked away.

“But first,” Mr. White called out, and we stopped and turned around. “Go to the office to get late slips.”

“The office!” Roy snapped. “Come on, give me a break!”

“Sure thing,” Mr. White said. “Your break starts right now. Kia and Nick go to the office. Roy, you and I are going to have a little chat…
before
you go to the office.”

I started to smirk, but Roy's glare wiped it off my face.

* * *

As quietly as two little mice, we walked in
through the rear door of the classroom. Mrs. Orr just barely threw a glance our way as she continued to explain to the class the work for the morning. Kia and I joined the rest of the class on the carpet.

“We're going to change our routine this morning,” Mrs. Orr said. “I want everybody to start the day off with silent reading.”

We hardly had time to put our bottoms down on the floor. I got up with everybody else and headed to my desk and —

“Nicholas and Kia, please stay behind,” Mrs. Orr said. “I need to talk to the two of you.”

There wasn't much question what this was about. Mrs. Orr hated late. Late assignments, late projects, and especially late people.

“Were you two at the basketball tryout this morning?” Mrs. Orr asked.

“Yes,” I said.

“And am I to expect that the two of you will be late for the rest of the week?”

“Just today! Mr. Roberts wanted to talk to us after the tryout and —”

“We'll be on time every day for sure!” I said, cutting Kia off.

“Good. Because if you're going to be late and disrupt the class every morning I'd have
to withdraw the permission I gave for you to try out for the team.”

“Please don't do that!” Kia pleaded.

“I've given my permission and it will stand… for now. But I expect you to follow the usual routines and expectations of the class. You must be on time every morning. Am I understood?”

“Completely,” Kia said, as I nodded in agreement.

Maybe it would have been better if she'd said we couldn't go out for the team. Then I wouldn't have to worry about not making the team — or worry about making it. Either option didn't look too good.

“You'll certainly have time to make up for the two minutes you missed this morning,” Mrs. Orr said. “Because you both will stay in for first recess.”

Kia opened her mouth to say something but didn't. Personally I was just happy to be inside. At least as long as I knew Roy was outside.

* * *

The room faded to silence as the last kid exited
and headed out for recess. Kia was at her desk, at the far side of the class, reading, while I put the finishing touches on my spelling. I figured since I wasn't going out anyway there was no point in busting my hump to complete everything. Besides, my head had been preoccupied. I'd been thinking about the tryout, and what Mr. Roberts had said, and of course our conversation with Roy.

“I have to do some photocopying,” Mrs. Orr said as she rose from her desk. “I expect you to remain silent and working.”

We listened as the sounds of her shoes clicked down the hall, getting quieter with each step, until I couldn't hear them at all.

“I was thinking,” Kia said softly.

“That's good, because it is a school and they like you to do that here.”

“Funny. I mean about basketball. I was wondering if we can make the team.”

“Me too,” I admitted.

“And not because we're not good enough, but because nobody seems to want us there.”

“Maybe Marcus does,” I said.

“Maybe,” she said, “but it's pretty clear that even Mr. Roberts isn't on our side, any more than any of the other grade fives.”

“You can't judge the whole grade by Roy.”

“I'm not. At least Roy was honest about it.”

“What do you mean honest?” I asked.

“He doesn't want us on the team and he told us. The rest just didn't say anything.”

“I'm still not following you.”

“Didn't you notice how nobody even spoke to us during the practice?”

“Not really,” I said, shaking my head, but come to think of it, she was right. “I guess I was just concentrating on the drills.”

“Well I noticed. You've got to remember that it wasn't just Roy we beat in the three-on-three contest. It was every single kid who was there in the gym this morning. Either their team lost to us or to another team that then lost to us.”

“I hadn't thought of that,” I said.

“Maybe it's time you did.”

“I'm more worried about Roy. Do you think we should tell somebody?” I asked.

“We can't do that,” Kia said. “First off, do you want to be known as a snitch?”

“Of course not!”

“And second, what did he really say?”

“Well… that he didn't want us to try out
for the team.”

“Yeah,” Kia asked. “So what?”

“But he threatened me.”

“And what exactly did he say?” Kia asked.

“He said he'd see me at recess.”

“Big deal. I'm
seeing
you right now, that doesn't mean I'm going to hurt you, does it?”

“I guess not,” I admitted reluctantly.

“Roy's being smart,” Kia said.

“Roy and smart are two words I don't think of as going together.”

“But he is. He's saying things in a way that you know what he means, but you can't prove it. I don't think he'll do anything more than talk, at least until the team is picked.”

“So after that he might do something.”

“He might,” Kia said. “It all depends on who makes the team and who doesn't. Until then there's nothing more we can do.”

“I guess you're right.”

“Well, unless if I'm wrong and he
does
beat you up, then we can do something.”

I ran back up the gym floor and took a spot at the end of the line. Other people waiting their turn were talking, or even quietly joking around. Nobody joked around with me. No body was friendly to me I knew everybody, and everybody knew me, but nobody seemed to want to do anything more than grunt at me.

“That's it!” Mr. Roberts yelled out. “Let's call it a night!”

I walked over and took a seat beside Kia on the edge of the stage. She looked as tired as I felt. And if I thought Mr. Roberts had been tougher on Kia and me in the morning,
I knew it for sure now. It seemed like he didn't think we could do anything right. ‘Run faster, Nick,' ‘Dig deeper, Kia,' ‘Come on, Nick, put the pass on the mark,' ‘Kia, you should have had that shot.'

Trying out for the team was never a great idea, but it had fallen way down the scale to really, really bad. Maybe we should just quit and make everybody happy.

“Let's get going,” Kia said.

She didn't even sound like her usual self. She sounded sort of… I don't know… down or defeated.

“You coming over to my place for a snack?” I asked.

“Yeah, but I can only stay for a while. I'm really tired and I think I want to get to bed early.”

“After finishing your homework,” I said.

“Of course. Our usual work and then the extra assignment.”

Besides our regular work — reading, journal and ten math problems — Kia and I had an additional assignment. Mrs. Orr had come back and caught us talking at recess and we had to write about why that was wrong.

We left the gym and started to circle around
the school to head home. I didn't feel like talking and it seemed like Kia felt the same. That was unusual and more than a little bit —

“Hi, guys!”

I spun around, jumping up into the air and — it was Marcus! Thank goodness.

“You always this jumpy?” Marcus asked.

“Not always.” I'd thought Roy might be waiting for us and Marcus popping out like that had startled me.

“You two did well today,” Marcus said.

“We did?” I asked.

“Yeah, better than most,” he added.

“I don't think Mr. Roberts would agree with you,” Kia said.

“Just because he yelled at you a couple of times?” Marcus asked.

“More than a couple.”

“It's nothing to worry about. I just wanted to tell you that I think it's great you're trying out for the team. I just wish I'd tried to do it myself last year when I was in grade four.”

I hadn't even thought about the fact that Marcus hadn't been on the team last year.

“I'd heard that it was only for grade fives, so I didn't even try. I know I had the skill to
make that team last year. I guess I just didn't have the guts like you two.”

“Guts? Us?” I asked in amazement. The only thing I knew about my guts was that they kept on rumbling whenever I thought about this whole thing.

“Not everybody is happy about us trying out for the team,” Kia said.

“You're wrong there,” Marcus said.

“I am?”

“Yeah. Except for me, I don't think
anybody
wants you on the team.”

“I told you,” Kia said to me smugly.

I turned to Marcus. “At least you're on our side.”

Marcus looked down at the ground. “That was actually what I wanted to talk about… out here… without anybody else around.” He paused. “I really would like you two to make the team. I'm on your side, but my friends aren't.”

“I thought we were your friends,” Kia said.

“You are! For sure!” Marcus said. “It's just that I'm still getting some heat from my friends — my grade five friends — about teaming up with you two for the tournament.”

I didn't say anything, but I thought I understood.

“So I wanted you to know I might not be cheering for you out loud, but I am cheering for you inside. I better get going.”

Marcus walked off across the schoolyard. This was getting worse, and worse, and worse and…

* * *

“How's it going?”

I turned around to see my father standing at my bedroom door.

“Okay. Slow, but okay,” I replied.

He walked in and sat down on the chair beside my desk where I was finishing up my homework.

“It seems like you have more homework all the time.”

“Not all the time. Some days more than others,” I said. What I didn't mention was the extra assignment for being late and then talking today.

“So did you have fun today?” he asked.

“About the same as usual… oh, you meant with basketball.”

He nodded his head.

“I don't know if fun is the right word. The tryouts were hard, really hard.”

“That's good.”

“It is?”

“Of course. Hard workouts will separate those who can play from those who can't play, so you and Kia should stand out.”

“Well… we did get Mr. Roberts' attention today,” I said, without saying how we had gotten his attention.

“So you figure you have a good shot at making the team.”

“I didn't say that. No grade threes, or even grade fours, have ever made the team before. There's some really, really good players in grade five.”

My father's face became thoughtful, and he slowly nodded his head.

“Making the team isn't that important,” he said.

“What?” I'd heard the words, just couldn't believe them coming out of my father's mouth.

“Making the team isn't —”

“I heard. I just don't understand,” I said, interrupting him.

“It would be nice if you made the team,
but that isn't the important part.”

“Than what is?”

“Trying. Being there, putting yourself on the line and attempting something that's diffi-cult. Are you and Kia trying your hardest?”

“Of course!”

“Then that's what matters. You give it your best shot and if you're not named to the team, then at least you walk away with your head held high.”