Detention With Elgort (Ansel Elgort)

Chapter Fourteen

I sat in the passenger seat and watched the trees and brambles speeding past us as Ansel drove down a long, dirt road in a woodsy area just outside of town. I stuck my arm out the window and let the cool, damp, morning air rush past me.

"Why won't you tell me where we're going?" I protested.

"Because it's a surprise! Haven't you ever heard of those?" Ansel said, and I stuck my tongue out at him.

Suddenly, we pulled off on the side of the road, and I wiped my slightly sweaty palms on my gray sweatpants.

"We're here," Ansel announced, turning the car off and unlocking the doors. He climbed out and grabbed a bag from the backseat.

I got out cautiously and glanced around. Other than the canopy of trees overhead and the little cleared pathway in front of me, there was nothing around us.

"OK, now is when you need to close your eyes," Ansel told me, the car doors locking with a beep.

"Oh my gosh, why?" I exclaimed.

"If you won't do it yourself, then I will!" Ansel chuckled. He used one hand to cover my eyes, and the other rested on my shoulder to guide me in my sightless state. He led me down that little path as I stumbled over rocks and exposed roots, making us laugh every time. We climbed a little hill after we got off the path, and Ansel uncovered my eyes. "We're here."

The trees cleared here, and I found myself standing at the edge of an abandoned basketball court, draped in morning mist.

"Why are we here?" I asked.

"Because you can't be my girlfriend and not know how to play basketball," Ansel told me, pulling a ball out of the bag he'd brought. He dropped his bag and dribbled the ball on the court.

"You know you want to!" he shouted to me, sinking the ball in the net.

I jogged out onto the court and snatched the ball. I grabbed it with both hands and threw it as hard as I could at the net, missing it completely.

Ansel threw his head back and laughed. "We've got a lot of work to do."

I glared at him and punched him playfully in the arm. The ball came bouncing back towards us, and he sauntered over to me.

"OK, here's what you're gonna do. You're right-handed, correct?" Ansel asked. I nodded, sticking my right hand out.

He placed the ball in my palm. "Your right hand is gonna be underneath the ball, like so. Your left hand is on the left side of the ball," he explained, placing my hands where they needed to be.

He showed me where my feet should be and how I should shoot the ball to make it go in. I tried about fifteen times, and it barely missed the backboard. I kept shooting, and I chased the ball around the court like a madwoman whenever I missed. I ended up trying to dribble the ball around the court, and I stayed right outside of Ansel's reach the entire time.

I had barely missed Ansel swiping for the ball, and I stopped right below the net and shot it in.

"Yasssssss!!!" I shouted, and Ansel high-fived me and picked me up in a big hug. He showed me how to dribble, and even though it took me a while, I felt like I improved a bit more every time.

Ansel had brought water bottles for both of us, and we decided to take a water break and chill for a bit. (I just noticed this... water break and chill ;))

The ground was covered with Monday morning dew, but we decided to lay in the grass anyways.

"How did you even find this place?" I asked Ansel.