There’s a loud thud when my head hits the top of the bus. I think the bus driver found every pothole in the ninety miles north from Birmingham to Austin. When it happens as we pull into the parking lot, Nate laughs. Nate wants my dignity because I took his power-forward minutes.
“What’s so funny?” I ask. He sits across from me. Our new coach doesn’t assign seats like our last coach, Coach T, who got ousted when we had a losing record last year. Everybody does what they want, kind of like on the court. Our game is playground ball at the high school level, which works for me since my job is to shoot and rebound.
“You. Everything about you.” Like the fat kid in the hall, Nate can’t stop laughing at me.
I put my history textbook in my bag. I studied during the ride, while most of the other guys scrolled through their phones. Part of me wants to spit on Nate too, but I can’t treat a teammate like that. I try to ignore him, but he won’t let up.
“That’s enough, Nate,” Coach Unser says. Nate grumbles like he has rocks in his mouth.
“Maybe if you were more serious, you’d get more playing time,” Coach lectures Nate.
“I had playing time, but you gave it to that gangly giraffe.” Nate makes animal sounds.
“That athlete scores points, brings down rebounds, and crashes the net. And for a forward, he has the vision of a point guard. You do any of those things as good as Lucas, then you’ll play.”
Nate grumbles again before exiting the bus. “Thanks for saying that, Coach,” I say.
“It’s all true. I wish I’d seen it earlier. I don’t know why Coach T didn’t start you.”
“Elijah and David are great guards and I’m too small for center. Paul’s an oak,” I say.
“You see the game like a guard, so you make great passes. That gets you open to get better shots. You give, so you get the ball back to put in the net. That’s basketball, that’s life.”
“You sound like the minister at my grandmother’s church,” I joke. Coach doesn’t laugh.
“Basketball is life, Lucas. Follow the rules and play the game right, and you’ll win.” I nod in agreement, even though everything he just said about life is wrong. Just ask my brother Mark.