A/N
I do not own the All American cast, but I do own the following original characters; Katelynn James, Jordanna Adams, Mia Parker, Jane Hartley, Riley Baker, and Dalia Jackson.
Hope you guys enjoy the first chapter of Forgive And Forget-Olivia Baker
"Game tied 56-56 with 12 seconds left. Crenshaw has possession. If they make a shot, they win the game."
"All right, all right. Let's get this dub." Our point guard, my best friend Dalia Jackson, who also happened to be my twin brother's best friend's sister. "Coach said to run Chargers."
"Man, their forwards have been sitting on that all night." I pointed out.
"And what do you suggest we do, Katelynn?" She asked me.
"Double screen iso on inbound. Get the ball to me and we will win this game." I assured them.
"Man, if we don't score here, Coach is gonna kill us." Dalia shook her head and went to inbound the ball. "Break!" We ran the play and I got the ball with 4 seconds left. I dribbled up. 3 seconds. I hesitated and drove down the lane. 2 seconds. I shot faked. 1 second. I put the ball in the air and the buzzer sounded. Everyone in the crowd watched as the ball hit off the rim. Once. Twice. It rolled around and went in and the crowd erupted in applause. My teammates picked me up and carried me on their shoulders. Well, until a shot rang out. We didn't know where it had come from, but the crowd spilled out of the stands, ducking for cover and my team ran into the locker room.
XXX
I was leaving the locker room, getting ready to go meet my brother Spencer outside, but a woman stopped me. "Katelynn James?" I turned around startled.
"My bad, I, uh, didn't mean to startle you. Geez, it's like, one minute you're scoring, and then the next...another day in the neighborhood. Yeah. Riley Baker, varsity coach, Beverly High." I shook her hand.
"Beverly Hills, huh?"
"Yes, ma'am. I'll cut to the chase, Katelynn, I've had my eye on you. You got a good shot, you're strong on the double team. Saw the film with the 55 points against FairFax last season. Yeah, I need you to come play for me."
"Play for you?"
" Play for me."
"But you can't recruit." I pointed out. "I mean, I'm sorry. Those are the rules. Season's started. I switch teams, I'm benched three months."
"Not with me. I can get around that. Now, I'm assuming you want to play pro eventually. Am I right?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Yeah, well, I can help out with that. You know, South Crenshaw, you got a strong team, and Beverly Hills, we've had a couple of rough seasons, but I'm gonna turn that around this year. Plus ,we can offer you something that Crenshaw can't."
"Is that right?"
"A better education at a safer school. I can get you a way out. Look, I played in the WNBA, all right, for a couple years before I busted my leg, but I still have all those contacts. I can make all your WNBA dreams a reality. But, take it from me, from experience, every player out there is just one injury away from needing a backup plan."
"Look, I appreciate the offer, Coach, but, uh..." My brother came into the gym. "I don't need a backup." I ran up to my brother.
"Who was that?" He asked me.
"Coach Riley Baker from Beverly High. Just tried to recruit me."
"Really? Billy Baker tried to recruit me the other night."
"And what'd you say?"
"I told him that this was my home. My community. I can't just abandon them. What about you?"
"I told her that I didn't need a backup and that I was living in the moment. Enough about that. Let's go home."
XXX
It was the next morning. I was exhausted and sore from last night's game, but when I went to take a warm shower, there wasn't any hot water. I still took my shower and then went to have breakfast with my mom, Spencer, and Dillon.
"Well, look who decided to get up." My mom gave me the look as I sat down at the table.
"I'm definitely up now. No hot water again?" I asked her as she handed me breakfast.
"Just behind on the gas bill, that's all." We all looked at her. "It's fine. I get paid this week. Besides, a cold-" Dillon, Spencer, and I cut her off.
"A cold shower now and then is good for the soul."
"Smart asses." She rolled her eyes.
XXX
"Beverly Hills though?" Coop asked us after we'd explained everything to her.
"Crazy, right?" Spence asked her.
"Yeah, man. Either of you tell your mom?"
"Nah, you know how she gets." I reminded Coop.
"I'm telling you, man, that woman don't play. If Grace finds out you got a shot like this, you'd be eating mayonnaise sandwiches by the end of the night."
"Man, what is it with white people and mayonnaise?" I asked her.
"I don't know." Coop answered. "Damn, Shassy, that booty looking juicy." Coop commented as we kept walking down the halls.
"Coop, those girls roll with Shawn." Spencer pointed out. "You really want to play like that?"
"Listen, that weakass wanna-be gangbanger can't touch me. Plus, I got you two for backup anyway."
"Aye, look, man, I'm all for some harmless flirting just be careful. You're forgetting what Shawn's capable of."
XXX
Spence and I left our physics class only to see Shawn all up in Coop's face.
"Hey. Hey." We caught up to the two. I got in between them and Spencer pushed Shawn back.
"What's up? You only beat up on females now, Shawn?"
"Female my ass. She's a man, more like it." Shawn riled Spencer up, knowing it would get to him. He pushed Shawn and when one of his friends threw a punch at Coop, I got involved. No way this was going to end well.
XXX
Spence and I walked home, waiting for the whooping we both knew we were gonna get. When we got inside, mom was there looking disappointed.
"We can explain." I told her.
"You don't have to. The Bakers already explained everything." She pointed to the couch where Billy and Riley Baker were sitting.
"How you doing, Spencer?" Baker asked him.
"How 'bout you, Katelynn?" Coach asked me.
"How could you two not tell me this?"
"Mom-"
"No, do not 'mom' me right now."
"So that's how it is?" I asked them. "We say no and you just go around us?"
"Katelynn, we just wanted to help." Coach assured me.
"We don't need your help. We're happy with where we're at." Spence insisted.
"Happy is that right? You think I didn't hear about that shooting over at Crenshaw the other night? That I didn't get a call about y'alls little fight?" Our mom confronted us. "Both of you've been in and out of trouble in that school for years." She turned to the Baker's. "I'm a clerk down at the courthouse. I see this type of stuff all the time. Good kids gone bad, getting caught up with gangs."
"DId you know that there are over 450 active gangs in the LA area?" Dillon said from the dining room table.
"Not helping." Me and Spencer told him sternly.
"Look, Spencer, Katelynn, we went to Crenshaw, but somebody gave us a chance. Somebody helped each of us find a way out. Please let us find you both one. I mean, hell, my own kids go to Beverly. So maybe your father-"
"We don't have a father anymore." We said autonomously.
"Corey left a few years back." Mom explained. "He went to coach college ball in Nevada. We haven't seen him since."
"Oh, well, I'm sorry to hear that." Baker said. "That's, uh, that's a shame."
"You're breezing by at Crenshaw, barely cracking open a book." Mom sat down in front of us. "You two are smart. And you could make something of your lives beyond just football and basketball."
"Football and basketball are our dreams." I persisted. "You may not believe in those dreams, but we do."
"You don't think I know why you don't want to take this shot. You don't want to be like your dad. You're a good man and woman. You're proud of who you are. And I am so proud of both of you for that. You have no idea. But choosing not to take an opportunity like this... take it from me, that's not really choosing. Tell me I'm wrong. Tell me that going to Beverly isn't the best thing for you." A tear rolled down her cheek and she looked at us intensely. Me and Spencer looked at each other, knowing that both of us were going to Beverly.
XXX
"Now, remember, you're here on an academic permit, which can be revoked if you don't maintain your GPA." Coach pulled me aside to explain my first day at Beverly. "But I've seen your records. That shouldn't be an issue- exceptional grade average, above grade level texting. You won't miss a day at play. Look, no fighting, or it's over. One and done."
"Look, I just did what I had to do to get by." I defended myself.
"I know. I'll see you at practice."
XXX
"All right, listen up. I want you all to do a search on chromosomal DNA and make a slide on how it connects with last week's work on protein." I looked around as every kid there opened up their macbook or ipad or whatever device they had. And everyone had one. Well, except me. "Katelynn, right?" The teacher came up to me.
"Yes, ma'am."
"It's okay if you don't have a computer. Just pair up with a classmate for now." She walked away and I looked at the guy next to me, silently asking for him to let me share with him. Instead of letting me, he turned his computer away from me.
"Hey Todd." A woman's voice came from behind me. "Keep watching that Logan Paul feed." I chuckled at her comedy. "You can share with me." She smiled at me sincerely. This girl had me starstruck. She was gorgeous. She had beautiful black, curly hair and eyes you could stare into for days.'
"Thank you." I moved my chair and sat down next to her.
"I'll warn you, my chromosomal DNA knowledge is non-existent at best."
I chuckled again. "I might be able to help with that."
XXX
"Salad bar. Coffee cart." It was now after class and Olivia, the girl who let me share with her in class was showing me around. "They serve sushi on Fridays."
"Sushi on Friday? At Crenshaw, we get sushi on Monday, that's all." I joked.
"Smart and funny. I'm impressed."
"You must be Katelynn." A man standing next to my brother approached us. "Jordan Baker. QB. Team captain." He introduced himself to me and shook my hand.
"Baker?" I asked him because of his last name. "Oh, so you must be-"
"Yeah, football coach is my dad. Basketball coach is my aunt. Well, our dad and aunt." He looked at Liv. "I'll take it from here, Olivia. Come on, let's introduce you guys to the team."
"Hey, thanks for the tour."
"Yeah."
I started to walk away but turned around quickly. "Sushi on Friday?"
"It's a date."
XXX
"Yo, J." A girl, maybe four inches shorter than me, approached the three of us. "Let me take it from here." She turned to me. "Hey, I'm Jane Hartley. Starting point guard and team captain." I shook her hand.
"Katelynn James."
"Trust me. I know who you are. Let me introduce you to the rest of the crew. We got Kayla and Butler and up top we got Mia, Jordanna, and Michael. I think you and Jordanna play the same position."
"Oh, shooting guard, huh?"
"Yeah, I broke the school record for three pointers last year."
"Me too."
"So, how are you liking Beverly so far?" Butler asked me.
"It's okay, I guess."
"I know it probably feels like lost footage or rich kids from instagram, but it's not so bad once you give it a chance."
"I'm sure it'll grow on me." I smiled at him.
"Hey, so lay it on me. Crips or bloods?" Jordanna asked me.
"Excuse me?" I asked her.
"I'm dying to check out a crip walk for real." Everyone looked at her. "I've only seen one on youtube."
"Yo, yo, she's joking. Just ignore her." Jane recommended.
"J, you wouldn't know a crip walk if it bit you in the damn white ass." Mia said, trying to hint for her to stop.
"That didn't sound like a joke to me, bro."
"Don't be so sensitive."
"Sensitive? Hey, thanks for the welcome." I thanked Jane and stood up.
XXX
"Um, I'm sorry about Jordanna." Butler sat down across from me at the new, isolated table I had chosen. "I know how she can come off, but she's not that bad once you get to know her."
"Yeah, right."
"I think she's intimidated by you. I think they all are." He admitted.
"Those girls? With all their high heels and expensive jewelry? They got it made. Me and my brother? We had to catch three buses to get here today. And I've been my cousin Tania's hand me downs since I was born. And you know Tania loves her some polyester. Ain't nobody like polyester." We both laughed.
"Okay, but aren't you some crazy good basketball player?"
"I do all right. You just gotta see the field." My eyes met a boy who clearly had shaky hands. "Right there, that guy." I pointed at him. "Gait's off, loose hands. Yo, he's about to fall." Only a few seconds later his lunch tray slipped right out of his hands.
"Oh my god. How'd you do that?" He asked me, an astonished look on his face.
"Happened the first time I picked up a ball. It was just a twitch of the fingers. A look. A tick."
"So do me. Read me or whatever."
"You're like a small forward."
"Wow, thanks." He said sarcastically.
"You like to have control but settle not having it. You put on a big persona, but you stay in the corner looking for something to come your way."
"You know, I was hoping for a superpower, but nothing' huh?"
"I ain't always right." I admitted.
"I should get to class. But I'm glad you came to Beverly."
XXX
"Y'all in big trouble now." I trash talked as I stepped onto the court.
XXX
"All right girls, bring it in, bring it in." Coach called us over a little after getting reprimanded by Jane for not calling the right plays. "All right, we're gonna mix it up a little bit. All right, Katelynn, you ever play power forward?" I was relatively tall for a guard, but I'd always stayed at guard.
"No."
"Give it a try."
"Man, I don't play post."
"You play what I tell you to play."
"So you're just gonna change my position? After everything we talked about? Man, I didn't come here for this. I came here to score 3's."
"You came here to play basketball as a team. Am I right or am I right?" I looked away, knowing she was right. "Thank you. You got one of two choices. You can either be on this side of the line or that side of the line. You choose. What's it gonna be?"
XXX
"And I'm playing with a bunch of guys who don't want me for a coach who said he'd have my back and he moved me off to the post. And I'm supposed to, what, play along? Help them win their season?" I ranted to Coop and my brother on a playground bench in Crenshaw.
"Then don't." Coop told me.
"What, throw the season?" Spencer, who was in a similar situation, asked Coop.
"No, make it your season." Coop corrected him. "You'll find a way, I know you both will."
"You let some lily white coaches-" I cut Coop off.
"They're black."
"Black?" She repeated back to me.
"I don't know then. Maybe he's right." Coop said.
"Man, shut up."
"Listen man, for real. Black, white, plaid, it don't matter. You just got to do you. You got the goods on and off the field. We knew it from the moment we met you right here in this park."
"Man, I don't know. That place just isn't who I am. It ain't me."
"What? And this is?" Coop asked us. "You decide who you want to be. You tripping, man. Now, what's up, tell us about the Beverly Hills girls."
"Man, they're skinny."
"Skinny?"
"Skinny."
"What? I can't-" The three of us just took a moment and chuckled. The laughter stopped, however, when Shawn and two of his men approached us.
"Can I help you, Mr. Beverly Hills?" Shawn asked Spencer.
"Stay here." Spencer told us before getting up and walking towards the trio.
"Hey, yo leave 'em alone, Shawn."
"Or what?"
"Or I remind you of that beat down I gave you in the sixth grade."
"Try it again and see what happens."
"You know what, maybe I will." The two were about to throw hands, but police sirens and lights stopped them.
"Watch your back, Beverly."
XXX
The next morning, Jordan came by to pick us up and take us to the Baker house for a party they were having. This dumbass pulled up in a red convertible, his red ass jacket, and his red ass hat. If he had gone anywhere else, he would've been pumped full of lead in seconds. Lucky that Spence and I were chill with practically everyone around us.
"Wanna mess with him?" Spencer asked me.
"You know it."
XXX
"What the hell are you doing?" Spence jumped into the front, I jumped into the back, pretending to be panicked.
"Picking you two up." I took the hat off his head.
"In your red car and your red hat?" I pointed out. "You're like a bloods poster boy, man. Gonna get your head blown off."
We burst into laughter. "We're just playing." Spencer said.
"What's up, Mike?" We said to the man staring Jordan down.
XXX
"All this on a coach's salary?" I asked Jordan as we pulled up to the lavish Baker house.
"Two coaches' salaries. My aunt lives here too. Besides, my mom's an attorney." He explained.
"Oh, there you are." A white blonde woman greeted us at the door. "You must be Spencer and Katelynn."
"Yes, ma'am." We both tried to shake her hand, but instead she hugged us.
"I am so happy to finally meet you both. Billy and Riley haven't stopped talking about you recently. Isn't that right, kids?" She asked Jordan and Liv.
"Sure is."
"I have a question, though, and I want you both to be honest."
"Careful, she's a crier." Liv said before she could ask us her question.
"I am making my famous gazpacho tonight. And I just need to know a few things. Do you have any allergies, dairy, gluten, you're not paleo, are you?"
"No, ma'am. Only thing we are when it comes to food is hungry." I answered for the both of us.
"Okay, we're gonna go hit it, mom." Jordan told her.
"Okay, you go do that." He dragged us outside where all the football guys were. No basketball girls. I was only invited because my brother was on the team, and so was Jordanna's, I came to learn. Her brother was actually the dude tormenting Spencer. And Mia's brother, JJ was the biggest party animal out there.
XXX
"So how was it hanging out with the steroid set?" Liv asked on our sushi Friday hangout.
"Are you serious?" I asked her.
"No. No, I just like messing around with Jordan." She admitted.
"What's up with you two anyway? Y'all don't seem too close." I pointed out.
"I mean, we used to be close, and then highschool happened. He became a big football star, and I became this, the social pariah of Beverly High."
"Man, shut up. You're cool."
"Okay, yeah, says the new girl. It's shocking, I know, but no one's super eager to hang out with the sober girl post rehab, so..." When she said this I felt a little pain in my chest for her. I had a friend just like her, who didn't go to rehab and got worse, and eventually overdosed. It just made me that more proud of her and I found her that much more attractive.
"Rehab? Elaborate."
"I just went down a bad path and tried to drown it out with pills, parents freaked, and here I am. 75K and 90 days later I'm good as new. It's- it's fine now." She definitely didn't seem fine, but I wasn't going to push her past her breaking point. Ah, screw it.
"Is it?"
"You know, you're the first person to even ask me that."
"Katelynn?" The girl I recognized from the party as Leila interrupted us.
"What's up?"
"Hey, so I'm throwing a party at my place tonight. It's just a small team thing for the football guys and basketball girls to celebrate the start of the season, and I was hoping you and your brother could make it."
"Yeah, for sure, I'll come by for a bit. And I'll ask Spencer too."
"Great. Bye, Olivia." She said awkwardly to Liv before walking away.
"Bye." Liv gave me an extremely judgemental look.
"What?"
"Those parties? I'd steer clear."
XXX
Even though I had practice the next morning, Jordanna and Jane convinced me to get black out drunk the night before at Leila's party, telling me it was only light drills.
"Hey, thanks for the ride last night." Mia kneeled next to me at practice the next day. Turns out she was as big a party animal as her brother.
"What?" I asked her, confused. I was too drunk to drive anyone home last night. I got an Uber.
"Ah, you didn't drop me off at my house?"
"No, bro."
"Wooh, time to buck up, buttercup. Booster hawks are watching."
"Who's that?" I asked as a group of people filled the bleachers.
"Boosters, here to see what you got."
"Yo, I thought it was just drills."
"Nah, man, scrimmage day. Let's go, man." She jogged off.
XXX
"Get it together, man. You smell like a party bus." Jordanna and Jane chuckled as we all jogged off the court.
"More like tequila and regret." Jane laughed along.
"Hold up, y'all set me up?" I asked them. Last night I thought-" Jordanna cut me off.
"Thought what? Thought that we were a team, friends? The only reason you and your dumbass brother were at that party was because we told Leila to get you there."
"To what, haze me? Make me look bad? You got me confused with someone else, bruh."
"Then go back to Crenshaw." That was my breaking point. I've had white girls disrespect me, but never like that.
"What'd you say? Say that again, bruh." I went for her, but Coach held me back.
"I will not let you blow this." She said in a hushed tone. "One fight and you're done. Game over. Cool it."
XXX
"Katelynn." Coach stormed into the locker room next to me.
"Yo, man, I quit. I'm done here."
"Why, because I need your help to win a season? Look, winning is my job."
"Then you should have said that from the start." I pointed out. "All that 'here to give you a chance' talk, me and my brother didn't need it. And I don't belong here."
"Look, yes, I need you to win games, but you need me more."
"Is that right?"
"This is your chance, Katelynn. This is your way out. Look, I'm trying to help you."
"I didn't ask for your help or a way out. Look, you might recall I wasn't the one knocking down Beverly's door. You came, said you'd help me reach my dream. And now that I get here, you change my position? How is that helping?"
"You can see the field, Katelynn. In a way few players can. Look, I made you a promise, remember? I said I would help you get to the WNBA. But in order to do that, I need you to see the field from every angle, because when you do, you'll be unstoppable. Look, I'm just getting to know you, okay? But I can see it plain as day. You're looking for a fight. And all your life, every bad decision you've ever made is because your father left you when you were a kid. Listen to me. But the path you take now, that's up to you."
XXX
"You see these dudes?" Coop asked me, referring to the guys on the basketball court. This time, I went back to Crenshaw alone to speak to Coop.
"Yeah, they're great."
"Nah, they used to be great. Now they just suck." She corrected me. "They didn't take their shot when they had it."
"Well, I can't keep living with a foot in two worlds. Feeling like I don't belong in either."
"Then don't belong." Coop proposed. "Take the best of both and you boss up."
"I don't know if I can do it." I admitted.
"You can and you will." Coop assured me.
XXX
"What can I do for you, Katelynn?" Coach asked me after her sister-in-law had let me in.
"I want to play in the WNBA. I want a life better than the one I've been living. Look, man, what drives me to play is my anger, all right? That's what you see between those white lines. And you were right about my dad. I'm angry he left. Angry 'cause I gotta fight for every damn step I take, angry my Mama can't pay the bills. Angry my little brothers gotta live a life not to their fullest potential. Look, man, I gotta do better for her... for Dillon and Spencer. And Beverly will help me do that, basketball or not, so... I will play any position you tell me. But before I do, I need to know why. Why me, man?"
"Because I wanted to win, Katelynn. I, uh... I wanted to get back just a little bit of what I lost when I busted up my leg. But then I saw you on the court, and you remind me of me. Now, you say you play because you're angry. I understand that. But if we're gonna do this... I'm asking you to play for something bigger now."
XXX
I was playing well in our game at power forward. Really well, actually, but the game was close. With ten seconds left, Beverly was down by one. I saw their guard pulling up on her hamstring. She was hurt.
"Coach." I went up to her. "18's hurt. She keeps pulling up on her left hamstring every play."
"You think you can take her?"
"I know I can."
"Adams, you're done. Good job tonight." She told Jordanna as I jogged onto the court, whispering the game plan to Jane.
5 seconds. Jane dribbled up the court and I set a screen on #18, her defender. She got right past her and scored for the win. Everyone stormed onto the court, but I walked of the court and looked at Coach.
"Who's next?"
XXX
"Hey." Liv waited for me after the game with my mom, Spence, and Dillon. "Uh, good job out there. Nice screen."
"Thanks." I smiled widely. "I, uh, I'll see you at school tomorrow."
"Bye."
"Bye."
I turned around and was greeted with a certain look from my family. "What?" I asked them.
"You and Liv, huh?" Spencer spoke up.
"You and Leila, huh?" I mocked him.
XXX
The next day at school, I was on top of the world. That was an understatement. Everyone there noticed me. They dapped me up and gave me high fives, but my attitude was short lived when Coach came up to me in the hallway.
"So we have a problem. Ah, Chatsworth is contesting your brother's transfer permit, and because of that, the league is looking into yours too."
XXX
Me and Spencer sat next to each other in the office as both Baker coaches talked to the principal.
"We're gonna fight this." Coach decided.
"They're accusing us of recruiting. You're gonna stand there and tell me it's not true?"
"They're both straight A students." Baker pointed out.
"And that's why the football coach and the girls basketball coach went down to recruit them, because they're smart? That's not gonna fly, not with the board."
"Okay, what if they move to this zip code?" Baker asked him.
"Yo, our mom can barely afford to give us lunch money. You think she can afford to move us to Beverly Hills?" I asked them.
"Okay, we're gonna figure this out." Coach assured us.
"How?" Spence asked her.
"Look, face it, Coach, it's over." I added.
"Maybe there's another way." Baker said.
XXX
"You sure about this?" Mom asked Spencer and I. Yes, the Bakers wanted us to move in with them.
"No." We said in unison.
"But it's the only way to stay." I explained. Neither of us were eager. We didn't want to abandon Dillon and our Ma like our dad did, but if this went through, if we made it big, we could get them out of Crenshaw.
"Living in Beverly Hills."
"Just during the week." Spencer explained. "That way we qualify for the district."
"With Coach Baker?"
"Bakers. Both of them." I told her. "And their family."
"On weekends, we'll be home with you. Look, Ma, if you don't want this, we won't go. Okay, just say the word and we call them."
"No. I asked you to give yourselves a chance at something more. And, uh, this is the, uh, the only way to do it." Spence and I looked at Dillon.
"Way I see it, you gotta go. This is what's best for you both. If you can do it, make something of yourselves." I tried as hard as I could to hold back my tears and I could tell Spencer was trying to as well. "Also, can I have your rooms?"
"Nah, definitely not." I told him in all seriousness.
"Come here." Mom ushered Dillon over and he sat on the couch with us.
XXX
First night we moved in, I saw my massive room with a great balcony view. I walked out, breathed in the fresh air, and heard Liv's voice behind me.
"Welcome to Beverly Hills, Katelynn."