60: In Season

Our season opener against North Whitley wasn't as bad as I was afraid it would be. Both JV and Varsity got beat, but only by a few points. When we analyzed the game we realized that the three-point rule would have made a difference. North Whitley's gym hadn't been refinished this year, so there was no three-point stripe. All shots were worth two points. If we'd had full count for our long shots, we'd have beaten them. Whitney had moved full-time to forward and about half the time it was Barry playing the other forward slot. He couldn't jump worth beans, so Coach left Sean in the center all evening. In the locker room all he did was complain that we'd fed the ball to the white girl more than to him. It came to a head on the bus.

"Hey, string bean girl," he said as he came down the bus aisle toward us. Whitney was sitting on the aisle and I was against the window so she could lean against me on the way home. "Leave that limp-dick little marshmallow and come sit with me tonight. I'll show you some real lovin'." Then he made the mistake or putting his hand on Whitney. I couldn't believe no one had warned him. Half the team, both JV and varsity, were out of their seats with me in a heartbeat. We needn't have worried. Whitney caught his wrist in her grip and squeezed so tightly that Barry dropped to his knees.

"If you want to play basketball again this season you'll need that hand," she whispered. "You'll lose it if it ever touches me again." She let go tossing him back a step.

"Bitch!" Barry spat at her.

"You!" Troy shouted. "Get up and sit in that back corner of the bus." Troy was captain of the varsity this year.

"Fuck off, cracker." Barry spat. Lionel and Phil were both closest and I suppose the fact that they were both black kept it from becoming a racial incident. Josh, Ty, Bert, Doug, Carl, Geoff, and I were all between him and Whitney now.

"Whitney isn't the only one on this bus who can beat your ass into the ground, nigger," Lionel spat, just loud enough for those of us closest to hear him. "You go to the corner where you've been sent by the team captain like the dunce you are. And think about whether you show up for practice tomorrow."

"What's going on, guys," Coach Hancock asked as he got on the bus. He was used to having a team that all got along and was frustrated by the tensions he had on his team.

"Teambuilding, Coach!" Sean announced before anyone else could say anything. "Teambuilding," we all responded.

Barry went to the back corner and the two seats next to him and the seat ahead stayed empty. Coach Hancock shook his head. "What flavor's the soap in the locker room, Josh?" he shouted.

"Puke, sir."

"Glad everyone remembers." We all settled down. Miss Abernathy rode with the coaches up front after she made sure Whitney was in a safe space. The cheerleaders were all on their own minibus with Ms. Hammer. Most of the season this would be the riding arrangement, because there were just too many to put all the cheerleaders and team on one bus. We were just thankful that Whitney was allowed to ride with the team.

Seems like after Thanksgiving all our teachers realized how much there was still to cover in the semester and started heating up our classwork. I found that my once-peaceful mornings brushing the horses were being cut shorter as I used the time while the bread was rising to study. I kept half an hour to tend to them, but it wasn't like the hour-and-a-half I'd been used to. Biology was particularly hard on me and I wished I'd taken physics instead. Except I'd be taking physics next year. Oh, well.

I fixed a lot of crockpot meals and sort of felt bad about it. I even talked to Betts on the phone one night and we shared crockpot discoveries with each other. Imagine that! Mom and Dad didn't mind the meals as there were always leftovers that they took in their lunches. I was trying to carry a lunch to school, but I didn't have a way to heat up leftover chili and it didn't taste great cold. I still ended up eating most of my meals from the cafeteria. I was going to have to solve this sometime.

We split the next two games on Saturday and the following Tuesday. We surprised Harrison, who beat us in scrimmage, by coming right back in the second game of the season. Maybe they were overconfident after their pre-season success. Either way, we got a win under our belts. We lost against St. Joe's. I should say the JV lost. The varsity looked like it was beginning to pull things together and ran their season to three and one. We hadn't really faced any of the powerhouses yet, though.

I had an early Friday date with Sam before that game and we went to see a movie. We actually watched the movie while we were holding hands and didn't spend the whole time making out. She slid into the truck beside me, though, and fastened the center seatbelt.

"You didn't put the camper on the back," she sighed as if she was disappointed.

"I can't stay out late tonight, honey," I said. "I'm sorry. Besides, the camper is in winter storage and has a canvas tie-down over it."

"Silly. I know you can only park in my driveway and kiss me tenderly for a few minutes. I love you, Brian. It's so freeing to be able to say that. The first time I kissed you at the lake I wanted to say I was yours forever, but I knew that was stupid and I was just a child. I'm almost sixteen now, baby. I intend to show you how much I love you."

"I love you, Samantha. I'm so glad you are part of my life."

Saturday morning, Rhonda dragged in at six-thirty and sank into a chair at the table. I handed her coffee.

"Ugh," she said. "This is the last one, Bri. I can't bike any more. They've managed to keep the road clear, but it's just too hard to drag the bike up the driveways. I was hoping we wouldn't get snow until after Christmas." We'd talked about the fact that she wouldn't be able to join me for Saturday breakfast after it started snowing. It was just too hard to get all the way to our house, even though I kept our drive and the Barness' clear with the tractor. I'd experienced the same thing when I had the route. At least she had the saucer to haul her papers on while she walked the route.

"I've got an idea," I said. "How about if I meet you at the gas station on Saturday mornings and drive you here. I can drive you home later."

"Really? You'd do that for me?"

"No. It's entirely selfish. I'd do it because I don't want to miss you on Saturday mornings. It's..."

" ... our special time," Rhonda laughed as she completed the sentence. "I'm cold. Could we spend our special time this morning with you warming me up in bed?" I gulped. When Rhonda said something like that, she really meant cuddling her under the covers until she got warm. She didn't mean anything else. I didn't care. I agreed right away. Once in my room, she slipped out of her sweatshirt and jeans and crawled into my bed in her panties and t-shirt. I'd taken to wearing sweats around the house in the morning, so I just got into bed beside her. She did, indeed, snuggle up to me and before long, our combined body heat began to seep into her bones. "I love you," she whispered as we drifted off to sleep.

"You can leave sleeping beauty, but we have work to do," Whitney said, shaking my shoulder. I still had Rhonda wrapped in my arms. Rhonda looked up at her through bleary eyes.

"'S-okay," she mumbled. "Hafta go collect." Then she snuggled up closer to me. Whitney stood over us with her hands on her hips.

"Okay," I said, putting a kiss on Rhonda's head. "I'm coming." I felt Rhonda's hand on my cock.

"No, you aren't," she said. She kissed me and gave my cock a little squeeze through my sweats and then rolled out of bed, tossing off the covers. "Private Rhonda reporting for duty, Sergeant Whitney," she said snapping a salute.

"Well, apparently you brought Private Brian, or at least Brian's privates, to attention," Whitney said, laughing at the tent in my sweats. "Come on. Let's go." I grabbed my shoes and pulled my sweatshirt hood up, but I didn't bother with a jacket. There was a pretty good wind blowing the snow across the shoveled-off pad in front of the garage, but I knew Whitney would be warming me up pretty quickly. Rhonda gave us each a kiss as she marched down the drive to start her Saturday collections. The stretch of Cedar Road between my house and Highway 20 had been transferred over to the rural delivery guy when I gave the route to Rhonda. She'd added a few houses toward the church on Geofferson. It was all a function of where there was a carrier. I shivered as Whitney and I started our stretches. She kept calling out moves that we did in what seemed like a random order until I was fully warmed up. Then without a transition, she grabbed my basketball from the shelf in the garage and threw it to me. "Butterfly in the wind," she commanded as I caught it. We both moved back with arms outstretched as I spun and arched the ball toward the net. She grabbed the rebound and drove toward me yelling, "Rhinoceros becomes a rock." I faced her and dropped to a stance that gave me breadth and stability as she plowed into me. I stayed solid, but she glanced off me as if I wasn't there. The ball came toward me again with her words, "Swan takes flight," I picked off the ball and drove toward the basket, launching into a layup. She was there ready to block my shot, but I switched hands and the ball shot gracefully over her head and into the net.

We kept working for nearly an hour, sometimes calling out the positions and sometimes just letting the game dictate what move would be next. Playing basketball with Whitney was almost like dancing. Which reminded me...

"We've got to get ready for the game, Whit. I need to shower and get my suit packed."

"You mean you aren't completely packed already?" she asked. "Get moving!"

We got our showers and I grabbed the clothes I'd be wearing after the game. It was a home game against Columbia City, whom we'd last seen in the semi-state last spring. Since the game was at home, the JV squad wasn't required to stay for the varsity game. We played at one o'clock and the varsity at two-thirty. By the time the varsity took the court, I was dressed in my suit and out to the car. Dad was waiting for me. Mom had the truck running beside the car.

Dad handed me five twenties and a slip of paper with the name and address of a hotel on it.

"Drive carefully getting down there," Dad said. "You've got plenty of time and the snow is breaking about the time you get to Kokomo. But then it's raining all the way to Indianapolis. Don't rush yourself. We don't want you to try to drive home tonight after the dance, so I booked you a hotel near the campus. Check in there before you go to pick up Elaine. If there is any problem, have them call me. I prepaid the room on my credit card."

"Dad, that's ... Thanks, Dad." We both knew that he'd just given me a night in a hotel with Elaine. There was no need to say anything else. The flower I'd bought for her was on the front seat and I got in the car and headed out.

I parked in visitor parking at UIndy and followed the map Elaine sent me to Krannert Residence Hall. I paused outside and looked at the imposing structure. Shit! I'm a sixteen-year-old high school sophomore walking into a university women's dormitory to pick up my date for the big dance. At least it isn't raining now. I had no idea how she'd prepared things, so I went up the steps and entered the dorm lobby. There was a receptionist and since Elaine didn't give me a room number to come to, I figured I'd better ask at the desk.

"May I help you?" the coed at the desk asked. Holy shit! Were all college girls this pretty?

"I'm here to pick up Elaine Frost for the winter ball."

"And you are?"

"Uh ... Brian Frost."

"Oh! Are you her brother? She said her boyfriend was coming." I swear, I don't know what made me do it, but it was out before I could stop myself.

"I'm her husband." The coed's eyes got big around. She fumbled at a card looking for Elaine's room number and then dialed a house phone. I could hear Elaine answer.

"Elaine, um ... your husband is here. Brian?"

"My ... my baby is here!" Elaine squealed. I took the phone from the receptionist.

"Sweetheart, it's me." I swear they could turn the volume down on that handset. I think everyone in the lobby could hear her scream.

"I'm almost ready, darling. I'll be there in a minute."

"Take your time, my love. I want you to pack an overnight bag. We aren't coming back tonight." The receptionist dropped her pen behind the desk.

"Really? Oh, darling, I can't wait to be in your arms. It will only take a minute!" Hmm. Elaine was being very vocal and I had a feeling that she had an audience on both ends of the phone.

"Waiting is a pain my heart endures until you are in my arms again, my love," I said. I knew that this time there were several squeals on the other end and a few sighs on this end. I handed the phone back to the receptionist who just held it, staring at me. I reached over the desk and guided the phone to its cradle. Then I went to the other side of the lobby and sat down. I noticed a few other guys waiting for dates looking at me and a couple of their dates. They were all dressed in suits and long gowns. Well, the guys were the ones in the suits ... I thought my double-breasted pin-stripe was pretty sharp. I didn't have long to wait.

Elaine came through the doors at the end of the hall with an entire entourage in her wake. I stood and she dropped the little overnight bag she was carrying and ran into my arms. The kiss she gave me might have been staged, but it and my reaction were sincere. I inhaled, prepared to play this any way she took it.

"Darling!" she said as we parted. "You're out of uniform!"

"I only have twenty-four hours leave, baby. I thought you'd like to see me in civvies."

"You always look so handsome in your uniform. But I love you, anyway. Are we really going away tonight?"

"I want to use every one of those twenty-four hours giving you as much pleasure as I can, my darling."

"You've already started," she said, winking at me.

"Let's take your bag to the car and then let me dance my darling around this ball of yours." Elaine retrieved her bag and I offered her my arm. At the door, she turned back to the other girls who had come down with her.

"If I don't show up at the ball, don't worry. I won't be back tonight," she called.

We headed down the steps and were ten steps away when we both started laughing.

"My husband?" she crowed.

"She thought I was your brother. I couldn't let that go. And what branch of the military am I supposed to be in?"

"You'd make a handsome marine."

"I'm only five-five!"

"Okay. Then let's say you're in a military academy. We'll make one up."

"Danville."

"Where's that?"

"Over near Chicago, I think. I heard there was a veterans' home there."

"No wait. There're only three college level military academies. Maybe four. Does the Coast Guard have an academy? Let's make it ROTC. At, ... uh..."

"Might as well be IU. I at least know what that campus looks like."

"I love you, Brian!"

"I love you, Elaine."

We didn't skip the dance. In fact, I don't think we ever left the dance floor once we arrived. Having eight to seventeen girlfriends had really built up my endurance for dancing non-stop. I was pretty good, too. I'm not saying I was a real ballroom dancer, but I could keep the rhythm and spin my lady around the floor. We even held each other during the fast numbers and Elaine spun away from me and back. We took a short break to get something to drink and I reached down to wipe a bit of a spill with a napkin. I started laughing.