Explosions of Grandeur.
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Captain Canada
- Posts: 2208
- Joined: 01 Dec 2018, 00:15
Explosions of Grandeur.
James going to get caught up again, I can feel it.
Explosions of Grandeur.
James took another sip from his cup, closing his eyes as he imagined that the fruit punch had a little bit more kick to it. He reached into his jacket pocket to make sure that the flask was indeed empty.
He came prepared, filling the flask to the brim with flavorless vodka but he quickly turned into Santa Claus, dropping a little bit of that goodness into everyone’s up and by eleven o’clock, the flask was empty and James was barely at a buzz.
“You’re not really engaging me here,” Beck snapped James’ out of his state, “Are you just mad you didn’t win prom king?”
“Fuck you,” James smiled as he placed his arm around her, “I don’t even know that kid.”
“We’ve been to his house like multiple times,” Iman shook his head, “I think he actually went out for football freshman year but didn’t make it through the summer.”
“Who does he be fucking?” James asked, finishing off his cup.
“Who does he have sex with,” Vanessa corrected her with a side eye.
“Suck a dick,” James quickly fired back, “Preferably Tyler’s little pecker.”
“You’re like two inches taller than me,” Tyler responded.
“Girth,” James winked, drawing laughter out of even Vanessa, “Babe, tell them about me.”
“Babe?” Beck scoffed.
“You saw the girl he was up there with that won prom queen? That’s actually his ex,” Iman got the conversation back on track, “I don’t know who he came with though.”
“Awkward as hell,” James laughed.
“You know a lot about the women of Long Beach Poly,” Lexie snickered.
“She’s on the track team,” Iman defended himself.
“That’s always his excuse,” James nodded, “I swear, the track team must have a hundred people because whenever I ask this motherfucker about someone, it’s from the track team he knows them.”
“This shit is kind of lame,” Beck muttered under her breath before taking a sip of her drink.
“I’m kind of with her,” Lexie scoffed, “I’m almost positive Calabasas’ shit was a lot funner than this.”
“More fun,” Vanessa corrected her, “What? Funner’s not a word. It’s one of my pet peeves, sorry.”
“You’re the worst,” James let out a laugh which quickly drew a jab to his arm from Vanessa.
“Let’s dip then,” Iman suggested, “We’ll get some food and dip off to the hotel.”
“What hotel?” Vanessa asked.
“Where the actually party is going to be at,” Tyler lowered himself to be right next to her ear.
“You’re not getting any tonight,” James teased Tyler, “You might as well give up and enjoy your night.”
“None of y’all are getting any tonight if we stay at this lame ass shit,” Beck addressed James, “I’m ready to dip.”
....
“I don’t want any.”
“Trust me,” James handed Vanessa one of the wrapped up hamburgers, “You want something in your stomach.”
The tameness of the school sponsored prom was more than made up for by the bevy of after-parties. On their way to get some free food, courtesy of former teammate Eric and newly promoted manager of Frank’s Kitchen, they ran into some other students that had left prom. They followed them to an after-party that had free liquor and indulge in the free liquor they did.
At said party, Beck saw one of her friends from high school who was now attending LBCC and was going to attend a party there as well near the campus. They spent most of the night there, hanging out amongst college students whose taste in alcohol were a bit more finely tuned than high school kids.
The night was coming to an end and the limo had dropped them off to their hotel suite for the night. Iman’s cousin dated someone that worked there and they had managed to get them the suite for the night for free. Or perhaps a signed autograph or fifty from a future Thorpe finalist.
“I should have stopped,” she groaned as Tyler continued to rub her back, “Why didn’t you guys stop me?”
“You were having a blast,” James laughed as he took a seat on the couch next to Beck, “Now, you have to endure the pain. Tomorrow is going to be a whole different animal.”
“I’ll be right here,” Tyler offered her a water bottle as she gingerly bit through her sandwich.
“I was fine,” she sighed, “I think the tequila took me out.”
“Bitch can’t hang,” Lexie teased, causing James to think back to his first encounter with Lexie who was now draped all over Iman.
“Should we send her home?” James asked the group, pointing towards Vanessa who was now laying in Tyler’s lap.
“That’s your friend,” Iman shrugged before turning to Tyler, “And your girl.”
“I’m not his girl,” Vanessa raised her hand in a faint protest before returning to her slumber.
“She can take the room,” Tyler said, “I’ll crash on the couch.”
“You sure?” Iman asked, raising his brow.
“I always have next year,” the junior said with a smile as he helped carry Vanessa to the room.
“I’m ready to be fucked,” Lexie said as she got up before turning around, “What? I’m just letting y’all know now so you don’t feel the need to judge me tomorrow morning when I look fucked up.”
“Lex,” Iman sighed.
“Stop being a bitch,” Lexie opened the door to the room and waited at the doorway, “I don’t need to be fucked by you so if you’re not up for the task, get the fuck out and let somebody else come in.”
Iman got up, avoiding eye contact with Beck and James, and quietly walked into the room, at which point Lexie closed the door behind him.
Tyler had walked out of the room just in time to witness the awkward encounter but the tired 17-year old just plopped himself down on the now empty couch and went scrolling through his phone.
“They’re going to last,” Beck scoffed, “I’m sure they’ll be perfectly fine being in two different states. Or does she not know that he’s going to Arizona?”
“Don’t start,” James rolled his eyes.
James had forgotten to tell Beck that he had gotten accepted into Fresno or even that he had the scholarship. She found out about it through social media and threw a fit, ignoring his phone calls for several days until she eventually accepted that inevitable. They’d be four-hours apart and while neither of them ever said it, they knew it would be the end of what was an unfounded relationship.
“Fine,” Beck gave James a small kiss on the lips, “Let’s go to bed, I’m already sort of ready to be back home.”
“I’ll just check on Vanessa,” James said, letting go of Beck’s hand as she was leading them to her room.
“Tyler just did.”
“What?” Tyler asked, lifting his head up from his phone at the sound of his name.
“Nothing,” Beck sighed towards Tyler before returning his attention to James.
“It’ll just be a minute,” James shrugged, “Don’t need her throwing up in her sleep and we’re all catching a case.”
“Whatever,” Beck said as she went into her room.
James slowly opened the door and whispered Vanessa’s name and only heard a groan in response. He got closer to the bed, using his phone’s screen light as his only source of light and said her name again.
“Yeah?” she rolled around to face him this time, using her hand to cover her eyes, “James?”
“Shit,” James took a step back once he saw that her breasts were exposed, “I didn’t......”
“Fuck,” Vanessa quickly pulled the covers back over her chest, “How did I....who....what’s going on?”
James didn’t say a word. He quickly turned around and barge through the door, startling Tyler who looked at James with a puzzled look as he got closer.
Without a single exchange, James launched himself at Tyler, grabbing him and throwing him on the floor.
“What the fuck?!” Tyler yelled towards James as James was now standing over him, contemplating what to do next.
“You try her like that? In front of me? What the fuck is wrong with you?!”
“What’s going on?”
Iman came scrambling out the room, still fully clothed while Lexie behind him was already in her underwear. Beck joined them soon after, her makeup partially washed off.
“James, what’s wrong?”
“You touched her?!” James asked him, to which Tyler simply shook his head but that angered him even more, causing James to get down on top of him, “Did you fucking touch her?!”
“No!”
“James,” Iman pulled James off of Tyler but James shoved Iman out of the way, sending him to the ground near Lexie’s feet.
“Did you fucking touch her?!” he asked again, getting right in Tyler’s face.
“Who? Nessa? No, never! I didn’t fucking touch her man! Get off me!”
Iman’s attempts at getting James off of Tyler was more successful this time, with Beck and Lexie aiding him.
“What are you talking about?” Beck asked James as he was now breathing hard while Iman had his arm wrapped around James’ waist, keeping him a good distance from Tyler who had now gotten up.
“She’s.....he knows what he did.”
“I didn’t do anything,” Tyler was holding back tears at this point, “I swear, James, you know me. What did she say I do?”
“What’s with all the noise?” Vanessa had came out of the room, almost in perfect timing. She had wrapped the sheet covers over her body, covering herself now.
“Tell him!” Tyler told Vanessa, “Tell him I didn’t touch you! I just got you on the bed!”
“I don’t.....I don’t understand,” Vanessa stuttered.
“James, what’s going on?” Beck asked James again.
“She was....she was naked,” James now had his breath under control and was out of Iman’s grasp, “She was naked when I went to check on her.”
“She asked me to,” Tyler explained, “She kept saying that her dress was hurting her side when she laid down so she asked that I take it off her.”
“This what this bullshit is about?” Lexie scoffed, “Y’all must definitely be fucking.”
“I didn’t fuck her!” Tyler said defensively.
“Not you,” she wandered her eyes over to James, “Them two are definitely fucking.”
“Shut your ho’ ass up,” James spat at her, “You’re the last one to be fucking talking.”
“Hey!” Iman shouted at James.
“We’re not having sex,” Vanessa said flatly, “I’m not having sex with anyone nor is it any of y’all business.”
“It’s my business,” Beck stepped up to Vanessa but James pulled her back, “Get your hands off me!”
“Babe,” James was now the one calming Beck down.
“He’s community dick, sis. Everyone knows it,” Lexie shook her head, “I don’t even go to y’all school and I know it.”
“That’s enough,” Iman had moved on from James’ side and was now trying to guide his girlfriend back to their room.
“He fucked me when y’all was together,” Lexie kept barking, “Tell her, James. This was like, what, August? Y’all were together, weren’t y’all?”
“Babe,” James took another step closer to Beck but she struck her hand across his face.
She slapped him again, on the same side no less. And slapped him again and again until she started pounding on his chest. Tyler found himself now protecting James as he held Beck back.
“Fuck you!” she yelled out in between tears.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” Iman was now yelling at Lexie, confused by her admission.
Beck got out of Tyler’s hand and stormed back into her room.
“Beck,” James tried to go after her but for the second time tonight, he found himself face-to-face with Tyler.
“All shit aside,” Tyler told the senior, “You’re still my big bro and I’m not letting you fuck your life up, right now. Let her go, big dog.”
“Beck,” James said as Beck came out of the room, bag in hand, tears falling down her face.
“Fuck you,” she spat at him, literally, before storming out of the hotel room.
....
"Why do fries taste so goddamn good at five in the morning? Y'all ever wonder that?"
"No," Tyler scoffed, "When the fuck have you been eating fries at five in the morning?"
"And long enough to notice that they're better?" Iman laughed.
"Y'all haven't lived yet," James shook his head, pouring the remaining contents into his mouth.
"I've lived enough for tonight," Iman said which got a nodding approval from Tyler, "This shit was fucking crazy."
"He was fucking crazy," Tyler let out a chuckle, "I thought he was going to kill me."
"You haven't seen Psycho James, have you? Welcome to the party," Iman dapped Tyler up, "Yeah, when we were younger, right up until like maybe sophomore year, this motherfucker would get into a fight like literally almost every day. I became the hold-back king, I'm telling you."
"Bullshit," James quipped, "I would let you hold me back once I got tired. If I wanted to fuck Tyler up tonight, I would have, trust me."
"I didn't want to swing on you," Tyler teased, "I don't need you going to Fresno with your face screwed up, everybody already thinking you're a bitch ass nigga off rip."
"Tyler," James finished chewing his food, "I will beat the breaks off you, understand that. I'm not your average quarterback."
"Below average," Tyler added, drawing a light jab to the arm by James.
They both were now standing up in the empty parking lot, playing a friendly game of slapbox. James' reach allowed him to get a few clean licks in before Iman got their attention.
"Hey, guys. Hey. Hey!"
"What?" Tyler and James both said in unison.
"Y'all been on Twitter lately?"
"Who the fuck is tweeting?" Tyler scoffed, "It's like five in the morning after prom night, I'm pretty sure everyone is shit faced and sleeping it off except for our dumb asses because none of us can go home in this state."
"It's his fault for letting Lexie kick us out," James shook his head in disapproval.
"She kicked you out," Tyler interjected, "We're just loyal."
"Shut up," Iman said as his eyes never once left his screen, "Beck just tweeted a whole bunch of shit and this video. I don't know what the fuck is going on, though."
Iman now had James' undivided attention as he grabbed the phone out of Iman's hands.
'This is the type of person you're bringing to your campus @Fresno_State'
James pressed play on the video and his stomach dropped.
He came prepared, filling the flask to the brim with flavorless vodka but he quickly turned into Santa Claus, dropping a little bit of that goodness into everyone’s up and by eleven o’clock, the flask was empty and James was barely at a buzz.
“You’re not really engaging me here,” Beck snapped James’ out of his state, “Are you just mad you didn’t win prom king?”
“Fuck you,” James smiled as he placed his arm around her, “I don’t even know that kid.”
“We’ve been to his house like multiple times,” Iman shook his head, “I think he actually went out for football freshman year but didn’t make it through the summer.”
“Who does he be fucking?” James asked, finishing off his cup.
“Who does he have sex with,” Vanessa corrected her with a side eye.
“Suck a dick,” James quickly fired back, “Preferably Tyler’s little pecker.”
“You’re like two inches taller than me,” Tyler responded.
“Girth,” James winked, drawing laughter out of even Vanessa, “Babe, tell them about me.”
“Babe?” Beck scoffed.
“You saw the girl he was up there with that won prom queen? That’s actually his ex,” Iman got the conversation back on track, “I don’t know who he came with though.”
“Awkward as hell,” James laughed.
“You know a lot about the women of Long Beach Poly,” Lexie snickered.
“She’s on the track team,” Iman defended himself.
“That’s always his excuse,” James nodded, “I swear, the track team must have a hundred people because whenever I ask this motherfucker about someone, it’s from the track team he knows them.”
“This shit is kind of lame,” Beck muttered under her breath before taking a sip of her drink.
“I’m kind of with her,” Lexie scoffed, “I’m almost positive Calabasas’ shit was a lot funner than this.”
“More fun,” Vanessa corrected her, “What? Funner’s not a word. It’s one of my pet peeves, sorry.”
“You’re the worst,” James let out a laugh which quickly drew a jab to his arm from Vanessa.
“Let’s dip then,” Iman suggested, “We’ll get some food and dip off to the hotel.”
“What hotel?” Vanessa asked.
“Where the actually party is going to be at,” Tyler lowered himself to be right next to her ear.
“You’re not getting any tonight,” James teased Tyler, “You might as well give up and enjoy your night.”
“None of y’all are getting any tonight if we stay at this lame ass shit,” Beck addressed James, “I’m ready to dip.”
....
“I don’t want any.”
“Trust me,” James handed Vanessa one of the wrapped up hamburgers, “You want something in your stomach.”
The tameness of the school sponsored prom was more than made up for by the bevy of after-parties. On their way to get some free food, courtesy of former teammate Eric and newly promoted manager of Frank’s Kitchen, they ran into some other students that had left prom. They followed them to an after-party that had free liquor and indulge in the free liquor they did.
At said party, Beck saw one of her friends from high school who was now attending LBCC and was going to attend a party there as well near the campus. They spent most of the night there, hanging out amongst college students whose taste in alcohol were a bit more finely tuned than high school kids.
The night was coming to an end and the limo had dropped them off to their hotel suite for the night. Iman’s cousin dated someone that worked there and they had managed to get them the suite for the night for free. Or perhaps a signed autograph or fifty from a future Thorpe finalist.
“I should have stopped,” she groaned as Tyler continued to rub her back, “Why didn’t you guys stop me?”
“You were having a blast,” James laughed as he took a seat on the couch next to Beck, “Now, you have to endure the pain. Tomorrow is going to be a whole different animal.”
“I’ll be right here,” Tyler offered her a water bottle as she gingerly bit through her sandwich.
“I was fine,” she sighed, “I think the tequila took me out.”
“Bitch can’t hang,” Lexie teased, causing James to think back to his first encounter with Lexie who was now draped all over Iman.
“Should we send her home?” James asked the group, pointing towards Vanessa who was now laying in Tyler’s lap.
“That’s your friend,” Iman shrugged before turning to Tyler, “And your girl.”
“I’m not his girl,” Vanessa raised her hand in a faint protest before returning to her slumber.
“She can take the room,” Tyler said, “I’ll crash on the couch.”
“You sure?” Iman asked, raising his brow.
“I always have next year,” the junior said with a smile as he helped carry Vanessa to the room.
“I’m ready to be fucked,” Lexie said as she got up before turning around, “What? I’m just letting y’all know now so you don’t feel the need to judge me tomorrow morning when I look fucked up.”
“Lex,” Iman sighed.
“Stop being a bitch,” Lexie opened the door to the room and waited at the doorway, “I don’t need to be fucked by you so if you’re not up for the task, get the fuck out and let somebody else come in.”
Iman got up, avoiding eye contact with Beck and James, and quietly walked into the room, at which point Lexie closed the door behind him.
Tyler had walked out of the room just in time to witness the awkward encounter but the tired 17-year old just plopped himself down on the now empty couch and went scrolling through his phone.
“They’re going to last,” Beck scoffed, “I’m sure they’ll be perfectly fine being in two different states. Or does she not know that he’s going to Arizona?”
“Don’t start,” James rolled his eyes.
James had forgotten to tell Beck that he had gotten accepted into Fresno or even that he had the scholarship. She found out about it through social media and threw a fit, ignoring his phone calls for several days until she eventually accepted that inevitable. They’d be four-hours apart and while neither of them ever said it, they knew it would be the end of what was an unfounded relationship.
“Fine,” Beck gave James a small kiss on the lips, “Let’s go to bed, I’m already sort of ready to be back home.”
“I’ll just check on Vanessa,” James said, letting go of Beck’s hand as she was leading them to her room.
“Tyler just did.”
“What?” Tyler asked, lifting his head up from his phone at the sound of his name.
“Nothing,” Beck sighed towards Tyler before returning his attention to James.
“It’ll just be a minute,” James shrugged, “Don’t need her throwing up in her sleep and we’re all catching a case.”
“Whatever,” Beck said as she went into her room.
James slowly opened the door and whispered Vanessa’s name and only heard a groan in response. He got closer to the bed, using his phone’s screen light as his only source of light and said her name again.
“Yeah?” she rolled around to face him this time, using her hand to cover her eyes, “James?”
“Shit,” James took a step back once he saw that her breasts were exposed, “I didn’t......”
“Fuck,” Vanessa quickly pulled the covers back over her chest, “How did I....who....what’s going on?”
James didn’t say a word. He quickly turned around and barge through the door, startling Tyler who looked at James with a puzzled look as he got closer.
Without a single exchange, James launched himself at Tyler, grabbing him and throwing him on the floor.
“What the fuck?!” Tyler yelled towards James as James was now standing over him, contemplating what to do next.
“You try her like that? In front of me? What the fuck is wrong with you?!”
“What’s going on?”
Iman came scrambling out the room, still fully clothed while Lexie behind him was already in her underwear. Beck joined them soon after, her makeup partially washed off.
“James, what’s wrong?”
“You touched her?!” James asked him, to which Tyler simply shook his head but that angered him even more, causing James to get down on top of him, “Did you fucking touch her?!”
“No!”
“James,” Iman pulled James off of Tyler but James shoved Iman out of the way, sending him to the ground near Lexie’s feet.
“Did you fucking touch her?!” he asked again, getting right in Tyler’s face.
“Who? Nessa? No, never! I didn’t fucking touch her man! Get off me!”
Iman’s attempts at getting James off of Tyler was more successful this time, with Beck and Lexie aiding him.
“What are you talking about?” Beck asked James as he was now breathing hard while Iman had his arm wrapped around James’ waist, keeping him a good distance from Tyler who had now gotten up.
“She’s.....he knows what he did.”
“I didn’t do anything,” Tyler was holding back tears at this point, “I swear, James, you know me. What did she say I do?”
“What’s with all the noise?” Vanessa had came out of the room, almost in perfect timing. She had wrapped the sheet covers over her body, covering herself now.
“Tell him!” Tyler told Vanessa, “Tell him I didn’t touch you! I just got you on the bed!”
“I don’t.....I don’t understand,” Vanessa stuttered.
“James, what’s going on?” Beck asked James again.
“She was....she was naked,” James now had his breath under control and was out of Iman’s grasp, “She was naked when I went to check on her.”
“She asked me to,” Tyler explained, “She kept saying that her dress was hurting her side when she laid down so she asked that I take it off her.”
“This what this bullshit is about?” Lexie scoffed, “Y’all must definitely be fucking.”
“I didn’t fuck her!” Tyler said defensively.
“Not you,” she wandered her eyes over to James, “Them two are definitely fucking.”
“Shut your ho’ ass up,” James spat at her, “You’re the last one to be fucking talking.”
“Hey!” Iman shouted at James.
“We’re not having sex,” Vanessa said flatly, “I’m not having sex with anyone nor is it any of y’all business.”
“It’s my business,” Beck stepped up to Vanessa but James pulled her back, “Get your hands off me!”
“Babe,” James was now the one calming Beck down.
“He’s community dick, sis. Everyone knows it,” Lexie shook her head, “I don’t even go to y’all school and I know it.”
“That’s enough,” Iman had moved on from James’ side and was now trying to guide his girlfriend back to their room.
“He fucked me when y’all was together,” Lexie kept barking, “Tell her, James. This was like, what, August? Y’all were together, weren’t y’all?”
“Babe,” James took another step closer to Beck but she struck her hand across his face.
She slapped him again, on the same side no less. And slapped him again and again until she started pounding on his chest. Tyler found himself now protecting James as he held Beck back.
“Fuck you!” she yelled out in between tears.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” Iman was now yelling at Lexie, confused by her admission.
Beck got out of Tyler’s hand and stormed back into her room.
“Beck,” James tried to go after her but for the second time tonight, he found himself face-to-face with Tyler.
“All shit aside,” Tyler told the senior, “You’re still my big bro and I’m not letting you fuck your life up, right now. Let her go, big dog.”
“Beck,” James said as Beck came out of the room, bag in hand, tears falling down her face.
“Fuck you,” she spat at him, literally, before storming out of the hotel room.
....
"Why do fries taste so goddamn good at five in the morning? Y'all ever wonder that?"
"No," Tyler scoffed, "When the fuck have you been eating fries at five in the morning?"
"And long enough to notice that they're better?" Iman laughed.
"Y'all haven't lived yet," James shook his head, pouring the remaining contents into his mouth.
"I've lived enough for tonight," Iman said which got a nodding approval from Tyler, "This shit was fucking crazy."
"He was fucking crazy," Tyler let out a chuckle, "I thought he was going to kill me."
"You haven't seen Psycho James, have you? Welcome to the party," Iman dapped Tyler up, "Yeah, when we were younger, right up until like maybe sophomore year, this motherfucker would get into a fight like literally almost every day. I became the hold-back king, I'm telling you."
"Bullshit," James quipped, "I would let you hold me back once I got tired. If I wanted to fuck Tyler up tonight, I would have, trust me."
"I didn't want to swing on you," Tyler teased, "I don't need you going to Fresno with your face screwed up, everybody already thinking you're a bitch ass nigga off rip."
"Tyler," James finished chewing his food, "I will beat the breaks off you, understand that. I'm not your average quarterback."
"Below average," Tyler added, drawing a light jab to the arm by James.
They both were now standing up in the empty parking lot, playing a friendly game of slapbox. James' reach allowed him to get a few clean licks in before Iman got their attention.
"Hey, guys. Hey. Hey!"
"What?" Tyler and James both said in unison.
"Y'all been on Twitter lately?"
"Who the fuck is tweeting?" Tyler scoffed, "It's like five in the morning after prom night, I'm pretty sure everyone is shit faced and sleeping it off except for our dumb asses because none of us can go home in this state."
"It's his fault for letting Lexie kick us out," James shook his head in disapproval.
"She kicked you out," Tyler interjected, "We're just loyal."
"Shut up," Iman said as his eyes never once left his screen, "Beck just tweeted a whole bunch of shit and this video. I don't know what the fuck is going on, though."
Iman now had James' undivided attention as he grabbed the phone out of Iman's hands.
'This is the type of person you're bringing to your campus @Fresno_State'
James pressed play on the video and his stomach dropped.
-
Captain Canada
- Posts: 2208
- Joined: 01 Dec 2018, 00:15
Explosions of Grandeur.
Damn, knew that shit was going to bite that nigga in the ass.
Explosions of Grandeur.
“I was worried you weren’t coming anymore.”
“Nah, I’ve just been super busy with school winding down and stuff.”
“I have a couple time management books I want you to read, a few tips you can learn. Man, I really wish you would have came during the spring, it’s invaluable experience with just being a college student and a D-1 athlete at the same time.”
“I’m excited to get on campus and get everything going, coach.”
“We are too, son. I’ll let you go and let me know how you like the gear.”
James hung up the phone and exhaled, throwing it onto his bed as he paced back and forth in the room. He joined the phone, taking a seat as he let his head fall into his hands and rubbed his eyes.
It had been over ten days since Beck had released a video on Twitter which showed James being restrained by several people with Beck on the floor, clutching at her neck. The video itself wasn’t incriminating and rather inconclusive but James knew it was only a matter of time before questions would arise about how everything unfolded and Beck would be an all-too-willing participant to answer those questions.
Despite the video getting over 300 retweets, James’ phone call with coach DeBoer -- once he stopped avoiding him -- was the typical check up calls that the two had previously had since his commitment.
He was safe.
....
“You heard from her?”
“Nah,” James shook his head as he ate another celery stick, dipping it in some ranch.
“You still going to go down there?”
“I don’t think so,” James shrugged, “I probably end up making that shit worst.”
“I hear you,” Iman nodded, glad his friend finally took his advice, “You know how Beck is. She’ll get over that shit and take that shit down.”
“I ain’t worried about it,” James placed the container of celery stick and ranch on the dashboard, “I’ll be right back.”
“Want me to come with?”
James shook his head as he got out of the car, walking across the grass before finding himself at the door. He took out his key and was relieved when it turned and the door pushed open.
The couch was somehow in worse condition than he left it even though, presumably, no one was sleeping on it. He stood still for a moment, in silence, as he tried to make out any noise in the house. The NBA Finals were on and he knew his father would be at the bar, collecting and placing as many bets as he can. The alcohol would soon flow -- win or lose -- and he’d have a few hours before a drunken Timothy Jackson would park at the curb and stumble into the living room.
James made his way to the kitchen and went through the huge pack of letters that were on the kitchen counter. He scanned for his name, placing all of them under his right armpit before he eventually ran out of room there and started holding them in between his lips.
“Hello?”
The sound of the voice made James’ heart dropped but her face peeking into the kitchen brought him at ease.
“I saw your friend out there,” Naomi said softly, “Need a hand with that?”
Before James could answer, Naomi dropped her bag of groceries on the floor and took out the letters from his mouth.
She then went into the room and came out with two boxes and three packages, “Those are also for you.”
“Thanks,” James muttered.
“How....where you been staying at?”
“With my coach,” James answered, “How are....you good?”
“I should be asking you that,” she laughed as she grabbed a nearby box, emptied it, and placed all the letters in the box, “But yes, James, I’m good. I’m getting by.”
“Appreciate you holding these from me,” James was now able to stack the boxes atop each other along with his packages in both of his hands.
“I just figured I’d run into you one of these days,” she shrugged, “I’m just glad you ain’t already off to college without me getting to say goodbye.”
“Not until next month,” James responded, “How’s the thing with your son going?”
“Glad you asked,” she smiled “I got ahold of one of his old friends back when he used to live here.”
“Used to?”
“They moved to Alameda after the baby,” she explained, “Of course, he’d be the only one of y’all that ain’t on social media so his friend doesn’t have his number anymore and ain’t heard from him since last year but it’s progress.”
“Where’s that?”
“Oakland,” she nodded, “Well, near Oakland.”
“You going there?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Of course. At some point, you know? Just got to finish up a couple things here and there and you know, get your daddy on board and what not, but yeah, I’ll be out there.”
James nodded and they stood there for what felt like forever in silence. Deep down, he knew he’d never see her again which made him sad. She was the closest thing to a mother he had had since he was a child even though all she did was cook him breakfast a few times and iron his jersey that one Thursday. He also knew she’d never find her son. If he wanted to be found, he’d be found. And even if she did, it wouldn’t end the way she wanted to. He knew how he would react if his mother showed up out of nowhere. It wouldn’t be a happy family reunion.
“I’ll see you around,” James said, flashing a smile before he finally walked out of that door, out of that house.
“Nah, I’ve just been super busy with school winding down and stuff.”
“I have a couple time management books I want you to read, a few tips you can learn. Man, I really wish you would have came during the spring, it’s invaluable experience with just being a college student and a D-1 athlete at the same time.”
“I’m excited to get on campus and get everything going, coach.”
“We are too, son. I’ll let you go and let me know how you like the gear.”
James hung up the phone and exhaled, throwing it onto his bed as he paced back and forth in the room. He joined the phone, taking a seat as he let his head fall into his hands and rubbed his eyes.
It had been over ten days since Beck had released a video on Twitter which showed James being restrained by several people with Beck on the floor, clutching at her neck. The video itself wasn’t incriminating and rather inconclusive but James knew it was only a matter of time before questions would arise about how everything unfolded and Beck would be an all-too-willing participant to answer those questions.
Despite the video getting over 300 retweets, James’ phone call with coach DeBoer -- once he stopped avoiding him -- was the typical check up calls that the two had previously had since his commitment.
He was safe.
....
“You heard from her?”
“Nah,” James shook his head as he ate another celery stick, dipping it in some ranch.
“You still going to go down there?”
“I don’t think so,” James shrugged, “I probably end up making that shit worst.”
“I hear you,” Iman nodded, glad his friend finally took his advice, “You know how Beck is. She’ll get over that shit and take that shit down.”
“I ain’t worried about it,” James placed the container of celery stick and ranch on the dashboard, “I’ll be right back.”
“Want me to come with?”
James shook his head as he got out of the car, walking across the grass before finding himself at the door. He took out his key and was relieved when it turned and the door pushed open.
The couch was somehow in worse condition than he left it even though, presumably, no one was sleeping on it. He stood still for a moment, in silence, as he tried to make out any noise in the house. The NBA Finals were on and he knew his father would be at the bar, collecting and placing as many bets as he can. The alcohol would soon flow -- win or lose -- and he’d have a few hours before a drunken Timothy Jackson would park at the curb and stumble into the living room.
James made his way to the kitchen and went through the huge pack of letters that were on the kitchen counter. He scanned for his name, placing all of them under his right armpit before he eventually ran out of room there and started holding them in between his lips.
“Hello?”
The sound of the voice made James’ heart dropped but her face peeking into the kitchen brought him at ease.
“I saw your friend out there,” Naomi said softly, “Need a hand with that?”
Before James could answer, Naomi dropped her bag of groceries on the floor and took out the letters from his mouth.
She then went into the room and came out with two boxes and three packages, “Those are also for you.”
“Thanks,” James muttered.
“How....where you been staying at?”
“With my coach,” James answered, “How are....you good?”
“I should be asking you that,” she laughed as she grabbed a nearby box, emptied it, and placed all the letters in the box, “But yes, James, I’m good. I’m getting by.”
“Appreciate you holding these from me,” James was now able to stack the boxes atop each other along with his packages in both of his hands.
“I just figured I’d run into you one of these days,” she shrugged, “I’m just glad you ain’t already off to college without me getting to say goodbye.”
“Not until next month,” James responded, “How’s the thing with your son going?”
“Glad you asked,” she smiled “I got ahold of one of his old friends back when he used to live here.”
“Used to?”
“They moved to Alameda after the baby,” she explained, “Of course, he’d be the only one of y’all that ain’t on social media so his friend doesn’t have his number anymore and ain’t heard from him since last year but it’s progress.”
“Where’s that?”
“Oakland,” she nodded, “Well, near Oakland.”
“You going there?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Of course. At some point, you know? Just got to finish up a couple things here and there and you know, get your daddy on board and what not, but yeah, I’ll be out there.”
James nodded and they stood there for what felt like forever in silence. Deep down, he knew he’d never see her again which made him sad. She was the closest thing to a mother he had had since he was a child even though all she did was cook him breakfast a few times and iron his jersey that one Thursday. He also knew she’d never find her son. If he wanted to be found, he’d be found. And even if she did, it wouldn’t end the way she wanted to. He knew how he would react if his mother showed up out of nowhere. It wouldn’t be a happy family reunion.
“I’ll see you around,” James said, flashing a smile before he finally walked out of that door, out of that house.
-
Captain Canada
- Posts: 2208
- Joined: 01 Dec 2018, 00:15
Explosions of Grandeur.
Damn, Naomi's situation is heartbreaking. Solid update for sure.
Explosions of Grandeur.
It was all laughs and smiles as high school teenagers were packed inside Cam’s house. The small get together between seniors on the team had turned into an open invite to anyone with either a vagina or access to alcohol and other controlled substances.
The crew of Cam, Tyler, Iman and James mostly kept to themselves. They told stories of the olden days when in fact, many of them took place just a few months ago or at the latest, maybe a year or two. Nevertheless, this was the end of the line for all of them.
“You’re a bitch for not throwing up your motherfucking set!”
“He doesn’t have a set,” James said, using his fingers to form air quotes, “Just because his brother is tough doesn’t make him tough.”
“I don’t bang that shit,” Cam shook his head, “That doesn’t mean I ain’t tough though and it sure as shit doesn’t mean I can’t whoop your ass.”
“I would have thrown that shit up,” Tyler shrugged, “What are they going to do, kick you out? Suspend you? Bitch, you at graduation.”
“I’m just glad that ceremony is over,” Iman quipped, “That shit was long as hell and a nigga was starving.”
“Y’all really going to let him get away with saying he doesn’t bang? Cam, you showed up to practice in like nothing but blue the whole summer freshman year. You definitely was false flagging,” James teased.
“Take that off my jacket,” Cam placed down his cup, “You know that’s some sucker shit.”
“You did wear blue a lot,” Jakobi said, almost innocently.
“Shut your bitch ass up, Kobi. Nobody asked you,” Cam laughed, “Fine, fine, I did a little bit but I was thirteen. Every thirteen year old in LB false-flagged before.”
“Not me,” James said emphatically.
“That’s because Aryan Brotherhood doesn’t have a chapter,” Cam shot back.
“Fuck you,” James laughed.
“I think Jimmy done fucked too many black girls for these Aryan jokes to still be flying,” Iman said, drawing a dap from James.
“Thank you,” James said.
“He fucks them,” Cam held a finger up, “He doesnt wife them.”
“Him and Jaz were a thing for a minute,” Iman moved his head from side to side in a pensive state, “That’s all I got.”
“First of all,” James finished his cup, placing it on the kitchen counter, “Fuck you, all of you guys. Second of all, I love black women. Shit, I’ve probably fucked more black girls than white girls or spanish girls.”
“We know you love them latin girls,” Tyler snickered, drawing only a laugh at Iman who knew the inside joke.
“You’re still mad at that?!” James shouted, throwing his hands up, “You weren’t going to get pussy that night anyway!”
“You don’t know that,” Tyler shook his head.
“What y’all talking about?” Cam asked, puzzled by what was going on.
“Don’t worry about it,” James waved him off, “But for real, Ty, that ain’t on me. She still ain’t hitting you back?”
“Now he cares,” Tyler laughed, “Nah, nigga, she ain’t hitting me back.”
“She looked good as fuck today too,” Iman moaned.
“Fuck y’all,” Tyler couldn’t help but laugh at the situation.
“I’d rather fight Bruce,” Gordon said adamantly.
“You’re tripping,” James waved his hand in his face, “I’d take Tyson.”
“If Tyson connects,” Iman supported Gordon’s point, “You’re done. Bruce? I can eat one or two.”
“No, you can’t!”
The argument raged on with James getting more and more invested, downing a shot of tequila after each point was made and responding with his counter argument. The summer was slowly rolling in and he could feel himself sweating. He was ready to make yet another argument for why he would rather fight Mike Tyson instead of Bruce Lee but he felt a tug on his shirt.
“What?”
“I’ve been trying to talk to you all night,” Tiffany said.
“Your boyfriend went home or something?” James asked, admittedly a bit too loud in his drunken state.
“No,” she rolled her eyes, “Just...can you give me like two fucking minutes of your precious time?”
James scrunched his face before pulling his arm away from Tiffany and returning his attention to the conversation. He had missed several argument points and somehow the conversation had turned into a lion vs. a gorilla.
“Gorilla,” James interjected, “I can try to talk it down and if nothing else, take off on its bitch ass.”
“A gorilla will fucking hunt you down,” Iman pointed a finger in James’ face, “A tiger, can’t you like break its neck or something? Or punch it’s nose.”
“That’s a shark,” Tyler corrected.
“By the time you’re close enough to a tiger to do that, you’re fucking dead. I’m with Jimmy,” Cam nodded.
“That’s how I know you’re wrong,” Iman slurred, “Jimmy’s a fucking idiot!”
“Fuck you,” James shot back, “I passed the SAT with flying colors!”
“Tyler’s girl helped you pass the SAT with flying colors. Who the fuck says flying colors?” Iman scoffed.
“Y’all need to let that shit die,” Tyler scoffed.
“I got you,” James pulled out his phone, “Her lame ass probably isn’t even doing anything right now.”
“Y’all play too much,” Tyler shook his head.
“Like I said,” Cam brought the conversation back, “I’m going with gorilla, man. Ain’t nothing you can do with a tiger.”
James almost dropped his phone when he took it out of his pocket but he managed to keep it from falling. The bright light from his screen took him aback as well as the number of notifications he had. His Twitter was blowing up which caught him by surprise considering he rarely tweeted. With summer workouts around the corner, he figured Fresno State had put up some new hype graphics that he was apart of.
‘#IStandWithHer @FresnoStateFB @KingJames_VII’
‘#MeToo @FresnoStateFB @KingJames_VII’
‘Women safety >>> football @FresnoStateFB @KingJames_VII’
‘Do better @FresnoStateFB @KingJames_VII’
‘Not our QB @FresnoStateFB @KingJames_VII’
James quickly scrolled through the tweets, all of them quote tweeting someone else replying to Beck’s nearly month old tweet. The original quote retweeted tagged Fresno State’s football Twitter account this time as opposed to the school as well as tagged James’ Twitter account.
James got up from his seat and walked through the party, bumping into several people as he wandered over the general direction of the door. The music wasn’t too loud, barely the level one would play during an intense shower jam out session, but it was now throbbing in James’ head. He couldn’t think. He couldn’t breathe. He didn’t even know how he was moving. He was almost floating.
“Hey,” Tiffany grabbed his arm as he got near the door, “Can you finally fucking talk now?”
James didn’t reply and snatched his arm once more out of her grasp before making it to the door. She followed him onto the grass where he paced around.
“You alright?” she finally asked, taking a step closer to James.
Before he could answer, his phone vibrated.
‘Coach DeBoer’
The crew of Cam, Tyler, Iman and James mostly kept to themselves. They told stories of the olden days when in fact, many of them took place just a few months ago or at the latest, maybe a year or two. Nevertheless, this was the end of the line for all of them.
“You’re a bitch for not throwing up your motherfucking set!”
“He doesn’t have a set,” James said, using his fingers to form air quotes, “Just because his brother is tough doesn’t make him tough.”
“I don’t bang that shit,” Cam shook his head, “That doesn’t mean I ain’t tough though and it sure as shit doesn’t mean I can’t whoop your ass.”
“I would have thrown that shit up,” Tyler shrugged, “What are they going to do, kick you out? Suspend you? Bitch, you at graduation.”
“I’m just glad that ceremony is over,” Iman quipped, “That shit was long as hell and a nigga was starving.”
“Y’all really going to let him get away with saying he doesn’t bang? Cam, you showed up to practice in like nothing but blue the whole summer freshman year. You definitely was false flagging,” James teased.
“Take that off my jacket,” Cam placed down his cup, “You know that’s some sucker shit.”
“You did wear blue a lot,” Jakobi said, almost innocently.
“Shut your bitch ass up, Kobi. Nobody asked you,” Cam laughed, “Fine, fine, I did a little bit but I was thirteen. Every thirteen year old in LB false-flagged before.”
“Not me,” James said emphatically.
“That’s because Aryan Brotherhood doesn’t have a chapter,” Cam shot back.
“Fuck you,” James laughed.
“I think Jimmy done fucked too many black girls for these Aryan jokes to still be flying,” Iman said, drawing a dap from James.
“Thank you,” James said.
“He fucks them,” Cam held a finger up, “He doesnt wife them.”
“Him and Jaz were a thing for a minute,” Iman moved his head from side to side in a pensive state, “That’s all I got.”
“First of all,” James finished his cup, placing it on the kitchen counter, “Fuck you, all of you guys. Second of all, I love black women. Shit, I’ve probably fucked more black girls than white girls or spanish girls.”
“We know you love them latin girls,” Tyler snickered, drawing only a laugh at Iman who knew the inside joke.
“You’re still mad at that?!” James shouted, throwing his hands up, “You weren’t going to get pussy that night anyway!”
“You don’t know that,” Tyler shook his head.
“What y’all talking about?” Cam asked, puzzled by what was going on.
“Don’t worry about it,” James waved him off, “But for real, Ty, that ain’t on me. She still ain’t hitting you back?”
“Now he cares,” Tyler laughed, “Nah, nigga, she ain’t hitting me back.”
“She looked good as fuck today too,” Iman moaned.
“Fuck y’all,” Tyler couldn’t help but laugh at the situation.
“I’d rather fight Bruce,” Gordon said adamantly.
“You’re tripping,” James waved his hand in his face, “I’d take Tyson.”
“If Tyson connects,” Iman supported Gordon’s point, “You’re done. Bruce? I can eat one or two.”
“No, you can’t!”
The argument raged on with James getting more and more invested, downing a shot of tequila after each point was made and responding with his counter argument. The summer was slowly rolling in and he could feel himself sweating. He was ready to make yet another argument for why he would rather fight Mike Tyson instead of Bruce Lee but he felt a tug on his shirt.
“What?”
“I’ve been trying to talk to you all night,” Tiffany said.
“Your boyfriend went home or something?” James asked, admittedly a bit too loud in his drunken state.
“No,” she rolled her eyes, “Just...can you give me like two fucking minutes of your precious time?”
James scrunched his face before pulling his arm away from Tiffany and returning his attention to the conversation. He had missed several argument points and somehow the conversation had turned into a lion vs. a gorilla.
“Gorilla,” James interjected, “I can try to talk it down and if nothing else, take off on its bitch ass.”
“A gorilla will fucking hunt you down,” Iman pointed a finger in James’ face, “A tiger, can’t you like break its neck or something? Or punch it’s nose.”
“That’s a shark,” Tyler corrected.
“By the time you’re close enough to a tiger to do that, you’re fucking dead. I’m with Jimmy,” Cam nodded.
“That’s how I know you’re wrong,” Iman slurred, “Jimmy’s a fucking idiot!”
“Fuck you,” James shot back, “I passed the SAT with flying colors!”
“Tyler’s girl helped you pass the SAT with flying colors. Who the fuck says flying colors?” Iman scoffed.
“Y’all need to let that shit die,” Tyler scoffed.
“I got you,” James pulled out his phone, “Her lame ass probably isn’t even doing anything right now.”
“Y’all play too much,” Tyler shook his head.
“Like I said,” Cam brought the conversation back, “I’m going with gorilla, man. Ain’t nothing you can do with a tiger.”
James almost dropped his phone when he took it out of his pocket but he managed to keep it from falling. The bright light from his screen took him aback as well as the number of notifications he had. His Twitter was blowing up which caught him by surprise considering he rarely tweeted. With summer workouts around the corner, he figured Fresno State had put up some new hype graphics that he was apart of.
‘#IStandWithHer @FresnoStateFB @KingJames_VII’
‘#MeToo @FresnoStateFB @KingJames_VII’
‘Women safety >>> football @FresnoStateFB @KingJames_VII’
‘Do better @FresnoStateFB @KingJames_VII’
‘Not our QB @FresnoStateFB @KingJames_VII’
James quickly scrolled through the tweets, all of them quote tweeting someone else replying to Beck’s nearly month old tweet. The original quote retweeted tagged Fresno State’s football Twitter account this time as opposed to the school as well as tagged James’ Twitter account.
James got up from his seat and walked through the party, bumping into several people as he wandered over the general direction of the door. The music wasn’t too loud, barely the level one would play during an intense shower jam out session, but it was now throbbing in James’ head. He couldn’t think. He couldn’t breathe. He didn’t even know how he was moving. He was almost floating.
“Hey,” Tiffany grabbed his arm as he got near the door, “Can you finally fucking talk now?”
James didn’t reply and snatched his arm once more out of her grasp before making it to the door. She followed him onto the grass where he paced around.
“You alright?” she finally asked, taking a step closer to James.
Before he could answer, his phone vibrated.
‘Coach DeBoer’
Explosions of Grandeur.
"What did he say?"
James aimlessly stared at the wall. It wasn't beige and it wasn't quite white either. It was sort of a dirty white. The light piercing through the glass window had brighten the room up, a far contrast from the dark confines that James had himself in prior to Marcus opening the blinds.
"What exactly did he say?"
....
"Are you drunk right now? You know what, don't tell me. Listen kid..."
"I can explain."
"It's better if you don't. You understand, right?"
"But coach...."
"It's out of my hands."
....
"I don't remember," James sunk into the chair, "I don't know, does it even fucking matter?"
“What did coach Tedford say?” Marcus asked, also taking a seat the table.
“He’s the one I spoke to today. He said....he said what you think he said. There’s not that much to it.”
“James,” Marcus took a deep breath, “Focus.”
“He said,” James sighed, “He basically told me that I was free to transfer or some shit. I don’t know, he used a bunch of big fucking words.”
“I thought coach DeBoer told you were good?”
“The second day,” James nodded, “He made it seem like, I don’t know, shit was just going to blow over but then when I started asking them about my paperwork to start enrolling and shit, he told me to wait and then the whole thing just happened in like six hours.”
“I still have Brett’s phone number,” Marcus pulled out his phone.
“Who the fuck is Brett?”
“The head coach at Long Beach,” Marcus sucked his teeth, “You met him at least five times and those are just the times I was there with you at practice.”
“For what?”
“What do you mean? They have a late summer semester so you can probably enroll in time. Their QB went to Sacred Heart and I don’t think they took any major D1 rejects at quarterback this spring.”
“I’m not going to fucking City,” James scoffed, “For what? For who?”
“I went there,” Marcus scoffed, “What else are you going to do?”
“Listen,” James stood up, “I appreciate everything you have done for me.”
“James.”
“But we both thought this was just a few months until I’m out of here but that clearly ain’t the case. This isn’t on you, man, this is on me.”
“James, where are you going to go? Let me call coach Brett, see if he can get you in for this year.”
“I’m good on that, bro. I’m good on everything right now.”
“Where are you going to go?”
....
“You know the rules. I don’t want you here until the sun is down and I want you out by sunrise. Matter of fact, Friday nights are my thing now so find somewhere else on Friday’s. You a grown ass man now so on the 1st, I want $200 and on the 15th, I want my $100. If you’re not going to be able to come up with it, either time, let me know ahead of time so I can properly kick your ass out this time.”
James threw his bag in front of the couch before taking a seat as well, scratching his beard. He examined the couch but quickly stopped as he mind started to wander about how the newfound stains came to be.
“Naomi around?” he finally mustered up the courage to ask.
“Nah,” Tim said flatly before disappearing into his room.
....
“When you’re done, just hang them up right here. Besides that, just keep yourself busy man. I’m not saying there’s a camera back here but I’m not saying there isn’t one, you feel me?”
“I hear you,” James laughed as Eric led him back towards the front of the store, “How long they had you back here?”
“At least a few months,” Eric scoffed, “Frank was a lot more active back then, you know, actually running the joint. Now, he comes in now and then but when he does, he sure slings that whip.”
“Appreciate you looking out,” James sized up one of the cooks that looked to be in her early 20s, “It pays to have friends in high places.”
“No fraternizing,” Eric snapped at him, “I saw you looking. That’s a big no-no, I don’t care about how other places do it. I had to put a stop to that shit when I took over.”
“Really?”
“I lost a line-worker and a cashier because one of them apparently burned the other and then they burned their baby daddy which turned into a big deal. I hire mostly female workers so I don’t need you to be a wolf amongst sheep. I just needed someone to stop the disrespectful ass high school kids that flood us in the summer.”
“Look at you,” James laughed, “Projecting into the future and shit.”
“Speaking of,” Eric took out a wallet, “This isn’t me your manager, this is me your friend.”
“I’m good,” James pushed Eric’s hand away.
“I heard from my brother that you were hanging around Jasmine and them again on the corner,” he placed the bundles of dollar bills into James’ pocket, “Only one reason you’ll be out there with her with the sun still up and her not on all fours.”
“Jasmine like my sister,” James scoffed, “But yeah, man, shit been kind of rough lately.”
“I heard,” Eric nodded, “Cam and them went to City, you ain’t rolling with that?”
“Nah,” James shook his head, “Not my vibe. I’ll rather get money and stack them chips up.”
“Bitch, you know how we do. Cherry gang shit nigga.”
“But serving fries though,” James teased as he pointed to his name tag.
“You’re a fool,” Eric shook his head, “This is going to be a fun summer.”
James aimlessly stared at the wall. It wasn't beige and it wasn't quite white either. It was sort of a dirty white. The light piercing through the glass window had brighten the room up, a far contrast from the dark confines that James had himself in prior to Marcus opening the blinds.
"What exactly did he say?"
....
"Are you drunk right now? You know what, don't tell me. Listen kid..."
"I can explain."
"It's better if you don't. You understand, right?"
"But coach...."
"It's out of my hands."
....
"I don't remember," James sunk into the chair, "I don't know, does it even fucking matter?"
“What did coach Tedford say?” Marcus asked, also taking a seat the table.
“He’s the one I spoke to today. He said....he said what you think he said. There’s not that much to it.”
“James,” Marcus took a deep breath, “Focus.”
“He said,” James sighed, “He basically told me that I was free to transfer or some shit. I don’t know, he used a bunch of big fucking words.”
“I thought coach DeBoer told you were good?”
“The second day,” James nodded, “He made it seem like, I don’t know, shit was just going to blow over but then when I started asking them about my paperwork to start enrolling and shit, he told me to wait and then the whole thing just happened in like six hours.”
“I still have Brett’s phone number,” Marcus pulled out his phone.
“Who the fuck is Brett?”
“The head coach at Long Beach,” Marcus sucked his teeth, “You met him at least five times and those are just the times I was there with you at practice.”
“For what?”
“What do you mean? They have a late summer semester so you can probably enroll in time. Their QB went to Sacred Heart and I don’t think they took any major D1 rejects at quarterback this spring.”
“I’m not going to fucking City,” James scoffed, “For what? For who?”
“I went there,” Marcus scoffed, “What else are you going to do?”
“Listen,” James stood up, “I appreciate everything you have done for me.”
“James.”
“But we both thought this was just a few months until I’m out of here but that clearly ain’t the case. This isn’t on you, man, this is on me.”
“James, where are you going to go? Let me call coach Brett, see if he can get you in for this year.”
“I’m good on that, bro. I’m good on everything right now.”
“Where are you going to go?”
....
“You know the rules. I don’t want you here until the sun is down and I want you out by sunrise. Matter of fact, Friday nights are my thing now so find somewhere else on Friday’s. You a grown ass man now so on the 1st, I want $200 and on the 15th, I want my $100. If you’re not going to be able to come up with it, either time, let me know ahead of time so I can properly kick your ass out this time.”
James threw his bag in front of the couch before taking a seat as well, scratching his beard. He examined the couch but quickly stopped as he mind started to wander about how the newfound stains came to be.
“Naomi around?” he finally mustered up the courage to ask.
“Nah,” Tim said flatly before disappearing into his room.
....
“When you’re done, just hang them up right here. Besides that, just keep yourself busy man. I’m not saying there’s a camera back here but I’m not saying there isn’t one, you feel me?”
“I hear you,” James laughed as Eric led him back towards the front of the store, “How long they had you back here?”
“At least a few months,” Eric scoffed, “Frank was a lot more active back then, you know, actually running the joint. Now, he comes in now and then but when he does, he sure slings that whip.”
“Appreciate you looking out,” James sized up one of the cooks that looked to be in her early 20s, “It pays to have friends in high places.”
“No fraternizing,” Eric snapped at him, “I saw you looking. That’s a big no-no, I don’t care about how other places do it. I had to put a stop to that shit when I took over.”
“Really?”
“I lost a line-worker and a cashier because one of them apparently burned the other and then they burned their baby daddy which turned into a big deal. I hire mostly female workers so I don’t need you to be a wolf amongst sheep. I just needed someone to stop the disrespectful ass high school kids that flood us in the summer.”
“Look at you,” James laughed, “Projecting into the future and shit.”
“Speaking of,” Eric took out a wallet, “This isn’t me your manager, this is me your friend.”
“I’m good,” James pushed Eric’s hand away.
“I heard from my brother that you were hanging around Jasmine and them again on the corner,” he placed the bundles of dollar bills into James’ pocket, “Only one reason you’ll be out there with her with the sun still up and her not on all fours.”
“Jasmine like my sister,” James scoffed, “But yeah, man, shit been kind of rough lately.”
“I heard,” Eric nodded, “Cam and them went to City, you ain’t rolling with that?”
“Nah,” James shook his head, “Not my vibe. I’ll rather get money and stack them chips up.”
“Bitch, you know how we do. Cherry gang shit nigga.”
“But serving fries though,” James teased as he pointed to his name tag.
“You’re a fool,” Eric shook his head, “This is going to be a fun summer.”
-
Captain Canada
- Posts: 2208
- Joined: 01 Dec 2018, 00:15
Explosions of Grandeur.
Oh yeah, its a wrap for that nigga.
Going to be interesting how the bounce back works out.
Going to be interesting how the bounce back works out.
Explosions of Grandeur.
“I don’t even like that saucy chicken like that.”
“You like everything,” Shannon shook her head, “You’ll eat pretty much anything in front of you.”
“She’s just trying to throw the scent off her,” James put his hand on Janet’s shoulder, “Janet, baby, would I really eat your food?”
“Yes,” she nodded, “You absolutely would.”
“It’s not called saucy chicken,” Eric stuck his head out of his office which sent everyone back to their post, “If y’all going to be talking shit, at least talk shit on brand.”
“Yes, sir. I don’t even like Frank’s Hot Smothered Chicken,” James said as he walked back towards the back of the kitchen.
“That’s because you love it,” Eric scoffed, “Don’t forget to take the bags out! They were still here last night and I had to do that shit.”
“Eric too good to be doing that joint,” Shannon snickered, “Jimmy, before you leave, can you help me get some of that beef from out the freezer?”
“If y’all talked as much as y’all worked,” Eric had moved his rolling chair to now be standing in the middle of the doorway that led into his office, “Your employee reviews for next month would look a lot nicer.”
“Eric,” Shannon said flatly, “I wiped your ass when you were a baby. Don’t get too big for your britches.”
“Yes, ma’am. I was really talking about the two badasses over there,” Eric said with a laugh, “I don’t need you going to my mom, auntie. I don’t have zero issues with you.”
“Ass-kissing don’t look good on you sweetheart,” James teased, “I’m trying to get out of here though so anything else for me, master?”
“Whoa!” exclaimed Janet.
“What’s wrong with you, boy?” Shannon asked.
“You can’t make that joke,” Eric kept laughing, “He forgets he’s a white boy sometimes, y’all. Don’t pay him no mind.”
“I can’t say master?” James shrugged.
“Blame your white ancestors,” Shannon nodded, “Now go on and get that pack for me in the freezer.”
James shook his head as he headed towards the back, bracing himself for the temperature change as the doors opened. Unlike the movies, the door didn’t lock behind him and he casually strolled in, grabbing the boxes that were clearly labelled ‘BEEF’ and taking it with him out of the freezer.
He placed it on the empty, stain-steel table that separated the back of the kitchen and the cooking area where Shannon and Janet were preparing two steak sandwiches. His mouth started to water and even though he already had his allotted free lunch of the day, he wanted another. Time constraints caused him to think better of the situation as he headed towards Eric’s office to clock out.
“You get the trash?”
“Damn! I’m about to,” he groaned, “Working me into the ground.”
“See you tomorrow,” Eric scoffed as he returned his attention to the Excel spreadsheet in front of him, “Don’t miss that bus now.”
....
“Get your ass over here!”
James almost jumped out of the chair, knocking over the water bottle that was near his feet. He looked around the office in a panic before seeing a laughing Carlos on the other side of the glass with a familiar face but not familiar body next to him.
“What the fuck are they feeding you?” James said as he walked out of the office and hugged Javier.
“It’s this guy man,” the junior-to-be said quietly as he placed a hand on Carlos’ shoulder, “He’s been working me out like crazy.”
Javier had started as a sophomore last season at right guard, tipping the scales at 275 pounds and was a listed five-foot-ten but was closer to five-foot-eight. He was a far cry from the behemoths passing as offensive linemen that James saw protect Brandon all these years. Nevertheless, the scrappy chico would turn out to be one of their better players and paved the way for many rushing touchdowns, courtesy of both James and Iman.
“I’m starting a new program,” Carlos explained, “A few of the local kids been blowing up my DMs about wanting to workout but they don’t have the dough for it.”
“So....” James rolled his eyes, knowing what was to come.
“You’re going to train them,” Carlos let out a belly laugh, “I’ve been sneaking this motherfucker in before my paying clients in the morning but, oye, daddy ain’t always trying to be up by five in the morning.”
“Summer workouts starting too,” Javier nodded, “If it’s okay with you?”
“You’re going to do both?” James looked at Javier, who looked like he was well over 300-pounds and had grown an inch or three.
“We’re psychos,” Carlos proudly boasted, “It runs in the blood.”
“Not trying to be racist,” James held his hands up, “You guys are related?”
“Through marriage,” Carlos swayed his head from side to side, “What is it again, Javi? His mother is the sister of my sister’s ex-husband or some shit.”
“Sounds about right,” Javier let out a chuckle, “I’d love to workout with you, man.”
“The college reject?” Carlos teased, “I’m fucking with you, Jay. This motherfucker can lift, bro.”
“You said nine-thirty.”
James turned around to see the voice coming from the door. Somehow, it had never occurred to him that it was a distinct policy that his newfound client would create an entryway to see an old friend.
“Hey,” James said, albeit meekly as Vanessa walked up to them.
“Mija,” Carlos gave her a hug while she continued to size up James.
“Buenas,” she gave her brother a slight shove, “You told me nine-thirty and it’s almost ten.”
“I was just chopping it up with James,” he said with a smile, “He’s going to be training me now.”
“Consider it repayment for your sister helping me pass the SATs,” James’ joke didn’t land, “Good to see you, V.”
“That much good it did you,” she muttered, “Can we get going now? I’ve got things to do.”
James opened his mouth but before words could come out, Vanessa had turned around and was headed towards the door, disappearing into the dark parking lot.
“You like everything,” Shannon shook her head, “You’ll eat pretty much anything in front of you.”
“She’s just trying to throw the scent off her,” James put his hand on Janet’s shoulder, “Janet, baby, would I really eat your food?”
“Yes,” she nodded, “You absolutely would.”
“It’s not called saucy chicken,” Eric stuck his head out of his office which sent everyone back to their post, “If y’all going to be talking shit, at least talk shit on brand.”
“Yes, sir. I don’t even like Frank’s Hot Smothered Chicken,” James said as he walked back towards the back of the kitchen.
“That’s because you love it,” Eric scoffed, “Don’t forget to take the bags out! They were still here last night and I had to do that shit.”
“Eric too good to be doing that joint,” Shannon snickered, “Jimmy, before you leave, can you help me get some of that beef from out the freezer?”
“If y’all talked as much as y’all worked,” Eric had moved his rolling chair to now be standing in the middle of the doorway that led into his office, “Your employee reviews for next month would look a lot nicer.”
“Eric,” Shannon said flatly, “I wiped your ass when you were a baby. Don’t get too big for your britches.”
“Yes, ma’am. I was really talking about the two badasses over there,” Eric said with a laugh, “I don’t need you going to my mom, auntie. I don’t have zero issues with you.”
“Ass-kissing don’t look good on you sweetheart,” James teased, “I’m trying to get out of here though so anything else for me, master?”
“Whoa!” exclaimed Janet.
“What’s wrong with you, boy?” Shannon asked.
“You can’t make that joke,” Eric kept laughing, “He forgets he’s a white boy sometimes, y’all. Don’t pay him no mind.”
“I can’t say master?” James shrugged.
“Blame your white ancestors,” Shannon nodded, “Now go on and get that pack for me in the freezer.”
James shook his head as he headed towards the back, bracing himself for the temperature change as the doors opened. Unlike the movies, the door didn’t lock behind him and he casually strolled in, grabbing the boxes that were clearly labelled ‘BEEF’ and taking it with him out of the freezer.
He placed it on the empty, stain-steel table that separated the back of the kitchen and the cooking area where Shannon and Janet were preparing two steak sandwiches. His mouth started to water and even though he already had his allotted free lunch of the day, he wanted another. Time constraints caused him to think better of the situation as he headed towards Eric’s office to clock out.
“You get the trash?”
“Damn! I’m about to,” he groaned, “Working me into the ground.”
“See you tomorrow,” Eric scoffed as he returned his attention to the Excel spreadsheet in front of him, “Don’t miss that bus now.”
....
“Get your ass over here!”
James almost jumped out of the chair, knocking over the water bottle that was near his feet. He looked around the office in a panic before seeing a laughing Carlos on the other side of the glass with a familiar face but not familiar body next to him.
“What the fuck are they feeding you?” James said as he walked out of the office and hugged Javier.
“It’s this guy man,” the junior-to-be said quietly as he placed a hand on Carlos’ shoulder, “He’s been working me out like crazy.”
Javier had started as a sophomore last season at right guard, tipping the scales at 275 pounds and was a listed five-foot-ten but was closer to five-foot-eight. He was a far cry from the behemoths passing as offensive linemen that James saw protect Brandon all these years. Nevertheless, the scrappy chico would turn out to be one of their better players and paved the way for many rushing touchdowns, courtesy of both James and Iman.
“I’m starting a new program,” Carlos explained, “A few of the local kids been blowing up my DMs about wanting to workout but they don’t have the dough for it.”
“So....” James rolled his eyes, knowing what was to come.
“You’re going to train them,” Carlos let out a belly laugh, “I’ve been sneaking this motherfucker in before my paying clients in the morning but, oye, daddy ain’t always trying to be up by five in the morning.”
“Summer workouts starting too,” Javier nodded, “If it’s okay with you?”
“You’re going to do both?” James looked at Javier, who looked like he was well over 300-pounds and had grown an inch or three.
“We’re psychos,” Carlos proudly boasted, “It runs in the blood.”
“Not trying to be racist,” James held his hands up, “You guys are related?”
“Through marriage,” Carlos swayed his head from side to side, “What is it again, Javi? His mother is the sister of my sister’s ex-husband or some shit.”
“Sounds about right,” Javier let out a chuckle, “I’d love to workout with you, man.”
“The college reject?” Carlos teased, “I’m fucking with you, Jay. This motherfucker can lift, bro.”
“You said nine-thirty.”
James turned around to see the voice coming from the door. Somehow, it had never occurred to him that it was a distinct policy that his newfound client would create an entryway to see an old friend.
“Hey,” James said, albeit meekly as Vanessa walked up to them.
“Mija,” Carlos gave her a hug while she continued to size up James.
“Buenas,” she gave her brother a slight shove, “You told me nine-thirty and it’s almost ten.”
“I was just chopping it up with James,” he said with a smile, “He’s going to be training me now.”
“Consider it repayment for your sister helping me pass the SATs,” James’ joke didn’t land, “Good to see you, V.”
“That much good it did you,” she muttered, “Can we get going now? I’ve got things to do.”
James opened his mouth but before words could come out, Vanessa had turned around and was headed towards the door, disappearing into the dark parking lot.
-
Captain Canada
- Posts: 2208
- Joined: 01 Dec 2018, 00:15
Explosions of Grandeur.
Guess he lost more than just the Fresno scholarship, huh.