Hazel's Hitchhiker

29: We Got Problems

Once we got back to the house, Craig heated up some chicken for the two of us as we weren't able to have dinner. Interestingly enough, my mom and Hazel both stayed back and had their meal. For about an hour, I sat on the couch with Craig eating the chicken and watching Netflix. That was until he was tired and ready to call it a night.

That led me into the backyard and my eyes noticed two things. There were both a swimming pool and a basketball court. Damn, a basketball court. It had been a while since my own hands had even dribbled a basketball. With it being dark, it was hard to know if there was an actual basketball nearby. Thankfully, it didn't take long to find a ball. With a ball in my hands, it felt refreshing to have rubber up against my own skin. And without any hesitation, a couple of dribbles were made. Some seconds later, the ball was shot and made it through the basket.

There were only twenty seconds left in the game. This wasn't any ordinary game. It was the final game of my senior year. My basketball career would be over until I got to Austin. We had played a fierce game against the other team. During those final twenty seconds, it looked like we were going to lose. That changed once I was able to steal the ball from the dude who had the ball. Nobody had expected it to happen. And to my luck, there was a clear path to our basket. Nobody could stop me.

With only three seconds left, something that had never been done before had been accomplished. My feet jumped and a slam dunk was successfully made. Our team had won the game. The crowd was in uproarious applause. It was truly a great moment. Every crappy thing that had happened in these last four years had been forgotten. My brain could care less that my mom took off or that my old man was a piece of shit. The fact that Hazel had to tutor me was also no concern at that moment. Phillip was the first one to give me a hug. And damn that hug lasted a good minute.

"Getting a game in?" asked Hazel who found me in the backyard upon her arrival.

"Oh you know, just a few dribbles and shots. How's my mom doing?"

"She's doing fine. It's been a weird day for her to say the least, but she'll get by. Right now, she's in bed."

"Guess I should apologize."

"Yeah, you can do that in the morning." She took the liberty of taking the ball away from me and tried dribbling with one hand. "But I understand why you got pissed. I don't blame you." The ball began dribbling in her other hand. "There were a couple of times this past year where I screamed the shit out at my mom."

"Really? Hazel Perez, you yelled at your own mom? That's hard to believe. I thought you were a good girl." So much sarcasm in one statement which led to her joyously flipping me off. "But damn, doesn't it seem like we have some serious relationship issues with our parents? Like it's crazy how screwed up we are because of them."

The ball was handed back to me and another basket was made with the ball making it back to Hazel. "I know. I almost wanted to be angry at you tonight until I realized the relationship I have with my own parents." She sighed trying to make a basket but ended up not making it through. "I really hope Austin treats us better."

"I want nothing more than to leave my past behind me and forget all of it. After tonight, I think I'm looking forward to this new start. I almost wish we could've gotten to Austin by tomorrow as we planned."

Hazel didn't respond, but instead held the ball in her hands and looked at it without dribbling only to walk up closer to me. Once we stood face to face, she gave me a smile. And in that rare moment, it felt like I was looking at her for the very first time. It never occurred to me how amazing her eyes were. Even her face was amazing. She was a beautiful wrecked soul like me. And with our eyes stuck on each other, Hazel let the ball drop to the ground.

"Really," my mouth jokingly began. "Can't even keep your grip on the ball?"

"We can't all be basketball stars like you." If she had her sunglasses on her, it would've been likely that she would have bitten on them. Instead, the girl bit her lips.

"Seems like you need someone to teach you how to play. And it just so happens that I know how to play."

And just like that, Hazel was instructed to crouch in a low position in order to guard and protect the ball. Her hand made the first dribble and it wasn't that hard to steal the ball away from her. We both began laughing knowing that she sucked. It was clear that I needed to give an example of how to do it. Positioning my body against hers, it was important to be crouched, have flexed knees, and have my shoulders wide apart. The girl attempted to do just that and was able to do so. And within the correct position, she made a dribble. My eyes came to the realization that her dribbling needed work.

"Make sure to dribble with your fingertips," I instructed with the ball back in my grasp showing her how to do it. In response, she chuckled and gave me the finger. "Alright, let's see what you got. Take the ball away from me and try to make a basket."

For the next minute, she tried to take the ball away from me and wasn't able to. All I wanted to do was let out a howl in laughter because she couldn't take it away. That all changed when it was finally taken. In the eye of the moment, Hazel began running in the correct position. My sight couldn't believe it. Hell, she made a dunk into the basket. And quite honestly, it was the most beautiful thing my eyes ever witnessed. She was a natural. We played a good game that hot night.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter and have a better idea on how to play basketball! Don't forget to comment and vote!

Do you know how to play basketball?

Would Joey make a good sports tutor?