A flashlight in the shadows.

Chapter 10: Basketball game.

The hour and a half before the basketball game was hectic for me. Although it wasn't a date or anything, I still wanted to look, respectable. Jane stood behind me, straightening my hair with her zebra striped straightener. I sighed and crossed my legs,
"Jane, what do you think? The red and brown sweatshirt or what?"
"Here, wear this," dad came in and tossed me his Colby Bryant basketball jersey. My eyes widened and I said,
"But daddy...this is your favorite jersey! What if I get something on it?!"
"It'll be fine, sweetheart. Have fun, I love you," he kissed my forehead and left to the shop, as he had to work on one of the town's richest families car. Jane finished my hair and we both hopped inside her car. We had to pick up her date, Vinny, so I sat in the back seat. When he got in the car, all I could smell was weed.
"Hey, jane, who's this?" She smiled and said,
"This is my sister, Sarah." He frowned and looked at me.
"She's your sister? She looks nothing like you!" She blushed and I frowned.
"Uh, thanks?" He laughed and we drove of to the school. Once we got there, I grabbed her arm and whispered,
"Call me if you need a way out, k?" She nodded and walked off with Vinny, smiling and giggling at him. I sighed and looked around for Kendra and Hannah. Dina couldn't come because her parents took her to see her grandmother. Hannah and Kendra pulled up about twenty minutes to game time. Hannah wore her hair in a high ponytail with an oversized sweatshirt and some sweatpants with printed Tomms, and Kendra had on a tight pink tank top with a black over jacket and leggings. Kendra came running at me.
"OHMYGODKENNYASKEDMEOUTONADATE!!!"
"Slow down, what?"
"Kenny asked her on a date." Hannah said, smiling. Kendra was jumping up and down while clapping rapidly.
"Omgomgomgomgomg!"
"Um, ok, let's get a seat," I said, pushing Kendra along with us to the bleachers. I could see Bennett's mom at the game, but cc and their dad decided to stay home. She looked up from the court and waved at me. I smiled and waved back, crossing my legs and turning to Kendra. Hannah looked at me and asked,
"So why're we here?"
"What?! Maybe I just want to support the school."
"Uh, yeah, sure. You just all of a sudden like basketball." She stated, making quotes in the air. I shrugged and smiled.
"Maybe."
"I don't think so, tell me why we ca-" but she stopped mid sentence, smiling wide. I shrugged and asked,
"What?"
"You sly little slut you, Bennett invited you, didn't he?" Kendra whipped her head in my direction, eyes wide. I rolled my eyes and shrugged,
"So what if he did?"
"Oh my god! You two are hooking up!" Kendra squealed, making a few people turn and scowl in her direction. She flipped them off and continued staring at me. Sabrina and her two friends walked up the bleachers to us, heels clicking. They stopped when they got to us. Kendra smirked and asked,
"How the eye?"
"It's getting better, so kind of you to ask." She looked at me and smiled.
"What do you want?" I asked, brushing some hair from my face.
"Oh, I just wanted to say I'm sorry about what I said. It was cruel, and totally uncool, are we ok?" She batted her eye lashes, smiling. I looked around the corner to see the student council was filming. She was probably just trying to rack up voters for prom. I smiled and nodded.
"We're just peachy, Sabrina. You have some lipstick on your teeth." Her smile disappeared and they walked off, her rubbing her teeth. Kendra rolled her eyes and Hannah sighed. A boy who looked to be about ten years old came up and tapped my shoulder.
"Excuse me?"
"Yes?" I asked turning around.
"Is that an actual Colby Bryant jersey?!" He looked like he was going to explode. I smiled and nodded.
"It sure is."
"Can I get a picture?!"
"Sure," he pulled out his phone and we took a selfie. He thanked me and walked off, smiling. The buzzer sounded and everyone watched as our team, the Levelers, faced the team from Baytown. Hannah and Kendra cheered as Kenny and Mike were sent out onto the court. Carson was sitting this game out, due to his mysterious injuries, and was not here. When Bennett walked out onto the court, he was wearing a long sleeve shirt under his jersey and wore basketball shorts. He took a quick glance around the room, smiling when he saw me. I waved and he gave a slight nod, turning away to join the team circle. They got into their positions, Bennett taking center with a kid who was shorter than him by two inches. The referee threw up the ball, and Bennett sprung up, swatting the ball back to his team, where Kenny grabbed it and started dribbling to the hoop. A kid from Baytown stole the ball from him and started running towards the other end of the court, but Bennett stole it back and made the basket from half court. The crowd cheered. He smiled and jogged back to their starting positions.
The game ended at 9:45. Hannah, Kendra and I all walked down to congratulate mike and Kenny on the teams win. When the last buzzer went off, Trenton had won 13 to 26. The whole team was screaming and giving high fives. When we got down there, Kenny came running at Kendra, picking her up and twirling her around.
"We won!" She laughed and he set her down. Mike came and kissed Hannah. On the lips. For several seconds. I tried not to stare when he walked away. Bennett went up to his mom and hugged her. When he saw me, he walked over and smiled.
"Thanks for coming."
"You're welcome, congrats on the win." He laughed and sighed.
"Well, we're all going to the rink to celebrate, do you guys wanna come?"
"Yes!" Kendra shouted, smiling at Kenny. I nodded.
"Sure, why not?"
"Great, we'll meet you there, bye for now!" He walked down the hallway to the locker room. We started walking out, but were stopped by two guys from Baytown who hadn't left yet. One with black hair up in a quiff smiled at Hannah.
"Hey there, good looking. Like the game tonight?" She smiled and rolled her eyes.
"I have a boyfriend."
"That's not what I asked," he stated, taking a step closer. She put her hand flat on his chest and pushed him away.
"You play like a fucking drunk camel." He left, his friend trailing behind. Kendra high fived Hannah and we got in the car, ready to drive off. Kendra started driving, some song by 5 S.O.S came on, and they both sang long. I covered my ears and whined.
"My ears! They're melting!"
"Oh, shut up! 5 S.O.S is freaking amazing!" Hannah said, clapping to the beat. I rolled my eyes and sat back. When we got onto the dirt road that led to the rink, yes roller rink. In our town, there were at least a dozen cars going there, all involved in the basketball team in some form. Bennett, mike, and Kenny were all riding in the same car, and mike pulled up next to us and revved the engine. Kendra rolled down the window,
"Hey Kenny, race to the rink?!" He nodded and they both sped off, Hannah almost flying to the trunk.
"I told you to wear a seatbelt!"
"Fuck you!" She squealed as she got back in front, grumbling and threatening Kendra. We won by a few minutes, and Kendra and I high fived.
"Yeah! We shows them!" They pulled in next to us, Kenny being a sore loser.
"I let you win." She rolled her eyes and smiled.
"Whatever." Bennett got out of the car looking like he was gonna throw up. I walked over to him.
"You ok?"
"Your friend drives like a psychopath, ya know that?" I giggled and nodded my head. We all went inside to be greeted by older people. Bennett got his skates and started to lace up. He looked up at me and smiled. "Are you going to put your skates on?"
"I can't skate," I stated, leaning against the wall. He raised his eyebrows and yelled,
"You can't skate or ride bicycle? How have you survived this long?!?" I shrugged and smiled. He gave me a pair of skates and said, "put them on, I'll teach you how to skate." I did as he asked. They were the ones with two wheels in the front and two in the back, so standing wasn't that hard. I've always had a balance problem, which is why I couldn't ride bike, but I've never liked roller skating. Or blading, which ever you prefer to say. He took my hand and led us out onto the rink where other people were skating. I wobbled forward, making me fall into Bennett's arms. He caught me and smiled.
"Don't worry, when I'm done, you'll be pro."
"Yeah, sure," I laughed, standing up, using his chest for support. He took my left hand in his right one and skated forward.
"Ok, now, push off with your right foot, and do the same with your left." I did as he asked, although I bumped into a few people. They scowled and rolled their eyes. I sighed and we continued to practice until he got a call from his mom. I stood patiently waiting for the call to end. He sighed, hung up, and said,
"I've gotta go, mom wants me to clean my room."
"I'll come with you, I've got a feeling Kendra and Kenny won't be fun to ride with," I looked over to see them sitting on a bench, making out. He nodded and we both hopped in his car, driving off. I sat back in the seat and sighed.
"Wanna work on the skit tomorrow? I don't have any plans."
"I don't know, my birthdays tomorrow..." He trailed off. I smiled and said,
"Your birthdays tomorrow?" He sighed and shrugged, a small smile on his face.
"Yeah. I don't really want to celebrate, though."
"What do you mean you don't wanna celebrate?!?" He shrugged and smiled.
"I just don't see my birthday as something to celebrate. All it does is make me a year older."
"I don't care, I'm getting you something." I smiled and thought of a good gift. He shook his head,
"No, you don't have to."
"Too bad, I'm getting something wether you like it or not, what would you like?" I crossed my arms and looked at him. He sighed and thought for a few moments.
"Well, there were these oil paints I saw the other..." He stopped, eyes wide. I smiled and sighed.
"Go on, what colors?"
"I don't want them. A basketball would be nice." He looked ahead, biting his lip. I looked at him and said,
"I've seen the easel in your room. I've seen the painting on it, and I know you like to paint. I've even read the poetry from the notebook on your night stand, you don't have to hide your real self from me, Bennett. As your friend, I won't judge you for who you are, you don't need to be afraid to be yourself around me, ok?" He turned to me and just stared for a moment. I smiled back and added, "and you can always ask for help on homework." He let out a small laugh and looked away. We were silent for a few minutes before he said,
"I'd like that very much, Sarah. Thanks." He pulled into the driveway of his house. I unbuckled the seat belt and smiled at him.
"I'll see you tomorrow at 12:00 here, ok?"
"Ok, goodnight." I nodded and went to my house, greeted by the smell of ham steak. I smiled and walked in the kitchen to see dad at the stove. He cooked whenever he couldn't sleep. I walked behind him and tapped his shoulder. He spun around and hugged me, filling me with happiness.
"Whatcha cookin?" I asked. He gave me a plate of green beans and ham steak, smiling.
"Eat up, kiddo. How was the game?" I told him about it and the rink. "Who brought you home?"
"Bennett." He smiled and sighed.
"Anything else I should know?"
"Yep, I'm going to need to borrow some money tomorrow."
"What're you buying?" He asked. I smiled and replied,
"Oil paints."

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Hope it didn't suck! Enjoy the next one better thanks and goodbye for now! :3