Monday August 11
I WORKED OUT IN THE morning. The speed coach gave me some new exercises to help me run backward better. He pointed out I needed to keep my arms tight to my body and stay on my toes. We worked on the transition from running backward to turning my hips and running forwards. I could feel the strain on my knees, and he showed me how to do it with less stress. Then I worked out with Wolf, Bill, and Mike on our passing drills.
At lunch, I went home instead of going to Beth’s. I had promised Mom I would go to the hospital again. Today was a lot easier because I knew what to expect. There were only a handful of kids I’d seen the previous week. If a kid was really sick, they were sent to a specialized hospital.
Billy was excited.
“I get to go home,” he told me.
“So, are you all better?” I asked him.
“No, not yet, but they told me I turned a corner,” he shared his good news. “I’ve got to thank you for last week. I hope you didn’t think I was being too much of a baby.”
“I didn’t think that at all,” I told him. “I’m afraid your family heard us.”
“Yeah, we had a good talk. I still don’t think they’re telling me everything, but they are telling me more. I guess the cancer I have is inherited. Dad had it as a kid, too, and is doing fine now. I got the cancer and Lisa got the sensitive skin.”
“Billy, you shouldn’t be sharing things about your sister. That’s something she can decide if wants to share with me.”
He thought about it for a moment and nodded. Then he smiled.
“My sister thinks you’re a hunk,” he told me.
“She’s going to skin you,” I said as I grinned at him. “I think your sister’s cute, too. I give you permission to tell her.”
“Ewww, I’m not telling her that.”
I guess he hadn’t yet found out that girls were okay. His mom walked in.
“Telling who what?” she asked him.
He gave me a pleading look.
“He told me Lisa says I’m a hunk. I told him she’s cute, and he could tell her. I have a feeling he’s not going to help me out.”
“Don’t look at me,” she told me. “If I had my way, she wouldn’t date until she’s thirty.”
We talked for a little bit. They were waiting for his doctor to release him. His dad and Lisa showed up as we chatted. I told Lisa I wanted some more pie, so she agreed to go with me. Her mom said she would call her when they were done.
WE GOT KIM’S SECTION again. She was in a bad mood, so I didn’t bother talking to her. I ordered a butterscotch shake and Lisa got chocolate peanut butter pie. It had a chocolate cookie crust and coating of chocolate powder on top. It reminded me of a peanut butter cup. I moved over to Lisa’s side of the booth so it would be easier to share.
Lisa was in much better spirits today.
“How is your brother doing?” I asked.
“Much better. We tracked down what was going on through the family history. Dad had the same disease when he was a kid. They did some blood work on him and figured out they’d misdiagnosed it. To be honest, they didn’t have the technology they do today. Dad was lucky his treatment worked. Back then, they used more of a shotgun approach. Treatment now is more focused. Once they solved the mystery, it became treatable,” she informed me.
“Part of Billy’s frustration was he thought we were keeping things from him. The truth was the doctors didn’t know what it was. They tested him for what Dad thought he’d had, and it came back negative. They retested Dad and found the markers for what kind of cancer he’d had. Once they found a match, they adjusted Billy’s medication. He responded right away and should beat this.
“We hadn’t realized how scared he was. Thank you for being there for my little brother.”
She wrapped me in a bear hug. I noticed our check had been dropped off so we could get going. By the time we got back, Billy was checking out. I found Mom and went home to work out.
Friday August 22
CINDY WAS HAVING THE last party of the summer, at least the last party before all of last year’s seniors went off to college. Luke, Magic and Kevin had already gone to State for football. I was happy to see they had come back for the party.
“Double D, I hear you finally got some sense,” Kevin called out to me. “Magic told me you were thinking about playing linebacker. If you need any pointers, give me a call.”
“I’m hoping to play both ways. They want me at fullback this year,” I told the three of them.
“I hope you’re not taking that lying down,” Luke said.
“I’ll make the choice hard, but I think the decision may already have been made,” I replied. “How are you guys doing?”
“Luke looks like he might see some serious playing time. They just graduated two of their top four running backs,” Magic explained. “Kevin’s backing up a senior. He’s also getting some playing time on special teams. I might end up redshirting. They’re pretty deep at the cornerback position, but they’ll all be graduated in the next two years. The coaches tell me I could be a four-year starter if I take the redshirt.”
“That might not be a bad route. I know a couple of recruiters have talked to me about that, especially if I’ll be playing quarterback. Coach Harrington told me I should be looking at schools where they’ll have a junior playing my position the first year. That way I get two years to learn and then spot play in my second year. By the time I hit the field, I’d be a veteran and be able to start three years,” I said.
“Don’t sell yourself short. We’d love for you to go to State and start for our senior year,” Luke told me.
Since graduation, I had been over to Luke’s house to hang out with Mike, and our relationship had gotten better. I didn’t see us ever being close again; there was too much history there. I did see us doing what we were doing tonight, being cordial. They wanted to see my Jeep.
“I like the black-on-black look. I see you got the soft top; are you worried about winter?” Kevin asked.
“If it becomes a problem, I’ll just go to Sullivan’s and have them put on the hardtop. I didn’t want to have to store it in the garage during the summer. I just put the top up tonight because I was parking it on the street.”
“Come on, let’s put the top down and go for a ride,” Magic urged me.
I agreed and put the top down. Magic found my music and put on some hard rock. It was fun driving around with the music blaring and my friends enjoying it with me. Kevin reached over the back seat and pointed at the Dairy Queen. We pulled in and found Tracy, Mona, Kim, Sammie and Kylie sitting at one of the picnic tables.
The guys all went inside to order. I was trying to stay on my diet since football practice began Monday. I walked over to the girls and smiled at them. They were all wearing shorts and t-shirts and looked cute.
“Good evening, ladies,” I flirted.
“Just get the hell out of here,” Kim told me.
I looked closer and the four older girls looked pissed. Kylie seemed to be as confused as I was. I know I hadn’t made it over to Beth’s this week. Dad had taken the last few days off and we’d worked on the house, but that shouldn’t have pissed them all off like this.
“What’s your problem?” I asked.
“I can’t believe you’d do something so stupid. No wonder Tami dumped you. You’re such a jerk!” Sammie told me.
“What the heck are you talking about? What did I do to piss you all off?” I asked, getting mad.
“Don’t play that game with us. You know what you did. I thought I knew you better than that. I’m now embarrassed to say I was once your friend,” Kim shot back.
“Just get lost, David,” Mona chimed in.