The entire weekend at the Strong’s house was excruciating. Friday night after I confessed to taking the money, the Strongs didn’t reprimand me. They just went their separate ways and practically avoided each other and me. As much as I could, I stayed in the guest room. I was still a little weak from my injuries. Plus with the intensity I gave on the football field, I needed to have some quiet.
Though Mrs. Strong’s food was not as good as the baskets Ella brought, everything was pretty good. I was just thankful to be eating. I did not have to worry where my next meal was coming from.
Coach Strong wasn’t even speaking to me. I knew that was bad, not so much because he thought I was trouble, but he was on eggshells because I was causing him trouble. Not wanting to be a bother, I got on the Internet and looked up rooms I could rent. Quickly, I got depressed because even though I found some in our district, I still didn’t have a job.
Searching other places online, I ended up checking my grades. They were horrendous. I knew that something needed to be done about them before I got kicked off the team.
I called up Landon and said, “Wassup, guy? You going to that tutoring thing at the school?”
“I wasn’t, but, uh, I could. I need to go to the mall, though, and pick up a few things. You ain’t hanging with your other brother?” Landon teased.
“You know Blake and I are not cool. Don’t even go there.”
I agreed to go with him to the mall. He agreed to go study with me at the library first. Of course staying at Coach Strong’s house, I couldn’t just come and go as I pleased, but when I told Coach what I was planning on doing, he was with it. He did give me a time to be back home though. That was fine with me because it gave me a reason to make sure Landon did not have me out all night.
Amir was one of the tutors. When I got there, he was not helping anyone. We had some of the same classes. We were just sort of getting to know each other really well. He was new to the football team, but the boy could ball. He was a free safety who could play his side, the strong safety position, and clear cross on the other side too. For depth purposes, if we needed him to play wide receiver, he was capable of that. Coach Strong said he was going to look at putting him in to catch the deep ball on special teams. The little joker had speed.
When I saw Amir sitting there ready to help others, something inside of me kicked in and I thought, “Dang, Leo, you got to get yourself together so that you won’t be so dumb.” There was no way I could afford to repeat a grade. I had already been there and done that. My dad passed when I was in the third grade. I was out of school for a long time because of our accident. I was already older than most, and I knew to be able to play at D1 schools I was going to need better grades than I had. So I was ready for Amir to teach me.
“All right, so talk to me about which part you are missing,” Amir said when we opened up the math book.
I looked at him like, All of this doesn’t make any sense. I don’t get why you asking me specific questions. Aren’t you the tutor? Give me some problems. Let me try and answer ’em. If I can’t, help out.
I do not know if I was too prideful or if I was too slow in the subject, but I really could not tell him what I did not understand. I was real frustrated. Thankfully, somebody sat on the other side, and he started helping that person.
“Look, man, I’m trying to help you,” Amir turned and said once the other girl was working on some problems. “Take a break or something. Come back with the right attitude. You can get this. No need for drama.”
“Aight, man,” I said, really mad at myself because I did not understand it.
When I got up to get some water, Ella came rushing past me. She went in the back of the library. I had never seen her so upset. She was shaking and crying. Instantly, I knew I had to be with her and calm her down.
Then I hesitated. It had been a week, and I had not told her how much I appreciated her. I had to open up. I had to be transparent. I had to be there for her because clearly she was going through something deep.
It took me a while to find her. I saw her on the ground with her knees to her face and her arms wrapped around them. She was crying hard. I bent down and hugged her.
“What’s wrong? Talk to me, Ella.”
“Oh, Leo,” she cried, hugging me real tight.
I was way taller than her, so I leaned down and put my face to hers. Even though her face was wet from the tears, it felt nice rubbing up against her. I did not know what she was saying as she rambled. Trying to calm her down, somehow our lips connected. There in the library we ended up on top of each other. I actually wanted time to stand still. Ella felt so good in my arms.
“You don’t have to take pity on me,” she said, thinking I was not feelin’ her.
“Pity on you? What are you talking about?”
She wanted to get up, so I moved off of her. “I’m a basket case right now, Leo, okay?”
“I’m here because I wanna be. I kissed you because I wanted too. If you trust me, talk to me.”
“I’ll run you away. My life is so crazy right now.”
“Join the club,” I said, letting her know I understood.
“It’s my dad. He’s getting married, and my stepmother-to-be hates me. Maybe she’s jealous of me. I don’t know, but she doesn’t want me in her house. All I wanted to do was just spend time getting to know my dad, you know? It seems like I’m in the way.”
“How do you know this?” I asked, wanting to make sure she wasn’t stressing unnecessarily.
Not that I did not believe her, but sometimes girls had the tendency to exaggerate. I wanted to make sure what she thought was going on was really that. So maybe if she told me everything that happened, I could confirm her suspicions or let her know she was overreacting.
“I walked in on their conversation,” Ella blurted out as evidence to support her theory.
She and I really did have a lot in common. I knew exactly how it felt to walk in on adults talking about you—and not in a comforting way. She was right to be feeling uncomfortable.
“I just don’t feel loved. I just feel like it would have been much better if I didn’t even try to get to know him. But he’s my dad, right? He should care about me. He should wanna be there for me. He should wanna love me.”
All of a sudden, when she said she did not feel loved, I wanted to let her know that there was somebody standing right in front of her who cared. I felt something really deep. I picked her up and put her against some books in that library. Our tongues collided and all was right with our world.
Until we heard Dr. Sapp. “What in the world?”
Trouble found me, and it was becoming more than I could bear. I certainly did not want to go back to ISS or worse. I definitely did not want to get Ella back in trouble. I guess he knew that Ella and I needed the moment and needed more of his grace because he gave us another stern lecture instead of tougher consequences.
After the “Don’t let me catch you again” speech, he sent her on her way and grabbed my arm. “All right, Steele, you are pushing my patience. You fight in my school. Squat in my school. Bring the police to my school. Now you are trying to get busy in my school.”
“Nah, nah, Doc, it wasn’t like that,” I blushed and said.
“Whatever. Again you can’t be doing all that. What you were doing was over-the-top. Both of you are too vulnerable right now. Chill out, dang,” he muttered, hitting me on the back of my head.
He loved doing that. Was I being a knuckle-head? Was I letting my desires lead Ella down the wrong path? I wanted to be good for her. Maybe I did need to slow my roll.
“I got you, Dr. Sapp.”
“You got me?” he questioned. He stood there with his hands folded.
I knew Dr. Sapp was disappointed in me. Everywhere he went the last couple of weeks, he found me in a tough predicament. However, because he got in the mud with me, sort of understood where I was coming from, and did not chastise me for my unfortunate circumstances, I wanted to do right by him. I wanted to do much better for myself too, of course, but I just did not want to let him down anymore. Seriously, I was sick of being a magnet for trouble.
I could still feel Ella’s lips on mine, and I wanted to say something sweet to her. But she was already gone. The tutoring session was over, and I couldn’t get outside quickly because everyone was exiting the building.
But then I spotted the prettiest sight I had ever seen: Ella waiting on a ride. I eased up behind her and put my hands around her waist. I whispered in her ear.
“I really liked that. Hope you’re not mad. I hope you don’t regret it,” I said.
“Darn,” she said.
I wondered, why the “darn”? I was a little confused. Then I saw she was frowning at the car that was pulling up to get her.
She turned around toward me and said, “Out of all the things going wrong in my life, you are what’s right.”
Then the smile vanished. She huffed before getting into the car with a lady. Before the car pulled off, a little boy in the back was waving at me. I noticed it was her little brother, Evan. I waved back. Now I knew why Ella had such a long face. She had to ride with the soon-to-be stepmom that she heard lobbying for her to leave.
Landon patted my back real hard and pushed me toward his ride. “To the mall we go,” he said.
I was so tired, and I did not get much studying done. I knew exams were going to be next week in some of my classes. I was not prepared. The mall was the last place I needed to be. A deal is a deal though. I told him I would go with him to the mall, so hopefully, we could swoop up something quickly, and then he could drop me off at the Strong’s house.
“So wassup? You like Eva’s sister?” Landon asked. I shrugged my shoulders. “Puleeze,” Landon teased, “don’t even give me that.”
“Then why you asking me?” I asked.
“ ’Cause I thought you and I were gonna be playas for life, that’s all. Now you trying to settle down on me and stuff, getting all serious with one girl. I ain’t gonna have my road dog no more. Amir and Brenton already tripping. Can’t go five seconds without being henpecked. Hallie wants me to do that, and Charli wants to do this,” he teased, mocking our boys.
I had to laugh though. “I ain’t gonna be like that.”
Landon replied, “Yeah, right.” When we got to the mall, he slapped two twenties in my hand. “My dad wanted me to give you this.”
“Man, I can’t take this, and your dad didn’t want you to give it to me.”
“You know Pastor King can shell out some loot to the needy,” Landon kidded. “He heard about your story, and there’s more coming. You know our church has got plenty of resources. So take it before I go buy me a new shirt with it.”
Actually, that was a good idea. Having Ella in my life, I wanted to look nice for her. Also, I was hungry.
“I really appreciate it, Landon. You keep showing me that you’re my brother. You aight,” I said to him. I gave him a cool hug.
“You know I know that,” he teased back with his arrogant self.
He loved talking about Blake having a big head, but his head was just as inflated. Who could blame him? His dad had one of the biggest Baptist churches in the South. I knew it was hard not having a dad in your life anymore, but I also saw firsthand being with Landon that it was no picnic having a dad who was rarely around either.
We agreed we would meet up in the food court in an hour. As soon as we got inside, I wanted to call him and tell him to make sure he only spent an hour shopping and doing his thing because Coach gave me a curfew. However, I realized I left my cell phone in his car, which I did not feel like going to get. If it were any other person, it would not have been worth going back because for sure the car would have been locked. Landon was such a scatter brain. He got so excited about hanging out that he sometimes did not lock his car.
Continuing in the mall, I went shopping. I found a shirt that would show off my muscles. I figured Ella would like that.
I was on my way to the food court. Passing by the toy store, I saw little Evan. I did a double take when I saw him standing there crying his eyes out.
I bent down and said, “Evan, it’s your buddy Leo.”
“Leo. Football. Yeah,” he replied, settling down a little.
“Where’s your mom and sister?”
“Football,” Evan responded. He seemed happy to see me and wiped his eyes.
He took my hand and dragged me inside the toy store. I hoped Ella was in there. I saw the lady she was with, but I didn’t think I’d remember her. Certainly Evan would know his mom, so we searched.
He wanted a football. I found a Nerf one for three dollars. I purchased it.
Seeing him smile, I took his hand and said, “Let’s go find Ella.”
After searching for a while, I got real nervous. She had to be going out of her mind wondering where her little brother was. I was determined to find her right away.
“Let’s play football,” Evan said.
“Okay, let’s try to find Ella. Then we can play football. All right, lil’ man?”
The only thing I could think of to do was to get my cell phone from the car. I was hoping Landon had not locked it. I wished I knew Ella’s number by heart. I would have used the phone in the store, but I didn’t. I did not know any of the people in the mall to trust leaving Evan with until I got the phone. We weren’t parked that far from the door, so we walked outside.
I did not get five feet when I heard some cop say, “Put your hands up. Step away from the boy.”
Another cop grabbed Evan. He started crying. I was really irritated.
“Put him down,” I screamed.
The officer snarled and said, “You, put your hands behind your head. You’re under arrest.”
“What for?” I questioned.
“For kidnapping,” the cop said to me, getting a little rough and wanting to show that the law was bigger and stronger.
That was a joke because if I wanted to flex my muscle, I could have gotten away easily. However, I had not done anything wrong—and they had guns.
“This is all a misunderstanding,” I said.
“The mother of this boy has reported him missing. You’re taking him out of the mall, which is illegal,” the officer said to me.
I tried to explain what was going on, but I was being jerked all around. Cops were manhandling me like I was a sexual predator. I was actually glad they turned me around and took me back in the mall instead of to the police car that was out front.
When little Evan saw his mom, he rushed to her. I felt horrible seeing his mother’s devastated face. I knew she was sick with worry. I looked for Ella. I did not want any of this to blow up and be a big deal. However, I could not find her. At least now Evan was okay. Ella’s dad was there too. Once I spotted Ella, I could see that she was mortified when she saw me in handcuffs. Trust me, that was not the way I wanted her or her father to see me.
I finally tried to explain that I was just going to get my cell phone. They told me that I should have gone to mall security with Evan. When they asked Ella why she was so sure I was not trying to kidnap the boy, her answer surprised me.
“Because he’s my boyfriend. I trust him completely,” Ella said boldly.
“And, sir, you’re okay with her boyfriend having your son?” the officer asked Ella’s dad.
Her father said, “Yes, Leo is a fine young man.”
Immediately, they took off the cuffs. I so wanted to pull Ella into my arms and hug her. I was her boyfriend? Though I wasn’t complaining, I was shocked. She was serious enough with her feelings that she said them out loud. I was overwhelmed. I hoped I would not let her down, because to disappoint her would be more than she deserved.
“Dang, man. Handcuffs? What just happened to you?” Landon said after everything was over.
“C’mon, guy, let’s get out of here,” I said to my partner.
Though I was hungry, the mall was the last place I wanted to be. When we got out to his car, I laughed. His car door was locked. So even if I had reached his vehicle, I still would not have been able to get to my phone. Of all the times I needed Landon to not be responsible, he was.
“Blake’s been hitting up my phone trying to figure out where we were. He said his dad was coming down real hard on him about his game,” Landon remarked. “Dads kill me.”
I did not respond because I wished I was in either one of their situations. My dad being alive to fuss at me would be a joy. Neither Blake nor Landon could comprehend that their lives could be much worse if their dads were absent.
Landon saw that I thought he was tripping and said, “Why you looking like that? Like we’re not supposed to get mad when our folks get on us? I know it ain’t good to say, but you got it good. Your dad’s gone, just saying.”
“Boy, please. Don’t even insult me with no foolishness like that. When adults fuss with you, at least they care enough to stick around. My dad’s dead, and my mom has abandoned me. I have no parental support. I have no one bothering me and being overbearing with me.”
Landon put his hands on my shoulders and said, “Yeah, but sometimes it’s just over-the-top. And they need to chill and let us make our own mistakes. At least you got an angel up there looking out for you.”
I just nodded. The thought of my father up in heaven looking down on me gave me pause. Was I living my life in such a way that he would be proud? I knew the answer to that was no.
Yeah, I gave my all on the football field, but I was not giving my all in the classroom. Shoot, socially I had some issues too.
When we got to the Strong’s house, we did not see Blake’s car. Landon texted him. Blake was such a drama king. He knew we were on our way, so where did he go?
When Landon did not get an immediate response, he said, “He should be pulling up any sec. He said we were gonna hang out and do something.”
“Blake ain’t trying to hang out with me,” I said to Landon.
Landon read earlier text messages from Blake. “He said the party already started. That is code for he has already had a lil’ nip. Trust me, he’s ready to hang out. Right about now his dad thinks more of you than he does of him. His ego is a little bruised.”
“Like I made his dad compliment my game over and over and over.”
“Just let’s wait,” Landon said, and he got out of his car.
We walked into the garage. I had no idea how true those words I spoke to Landon were. I did not step six feet into the Strong’s house before Blake’s mom had an empty rum bottle that she held upside down and square in my face.
Mrs. Strong ranted, “Leo, this is absolutely unacceptable. I did not think I had to tell you that you are not supposed to be drinking. I know you are not my son, but you are in my home. I have rules.”
“But, Mrs. Strong, that’s—” Landon said before I grabbed his arm to hush him up. I just let her continue to fuss at me. Obviously, Blake was having some type of meltdown, feeling like I just stepped on his turf. Though I did not want his mother to think I was a bad kid, it was best. With all she was going through, I knew it would be worse for her to deal with if she knew the truth—that her son was the lush.
She continued scolding. “You’re really gonna have some explaining to do when Coach Strong comes in, young man, because this is not okay. I know you got a lot going on right now, but alcohol is not the way to solve your problems. It only makes them worse.”
She was so heated. Finally, she turned around and left. Landon looked at me like his eyes were about to pop out. He was jumping up and down like he was trying to bust through the floor.
“Just hold it in. She don’t need to know it wasn’t me,” I said to my boy.
“Whatever. It was a full bottle. He chugged it all.”
“We better find Blake,” I said, knowing he was not a heavy drinker.
“I do agree with you on that,” Landon said.
He kept calling Blake, but he did not get an answer. I called Brenton and Amir to see if they had seen him. They had not. We thought maybe he went to the school to watch film with his dad, but we drove in the parking lot and only saw the coaches’ cars out there.
“You better go in there and explain to Coach Strong what’s going on. You didn’t wanna hurt his wife’s feelings, but his son is somewhere drunk.”
“It’s just fine,” I said, knowing for me it was not, but I would have to deal with that later.
“The way Blake’s been treating you, I can’t believe you are standing up for him like this.”
Thinking out loud I said, “I know how scared I was when I thought my dad was dying. Before I actually knew he was not going to make it at all, I was unable to breathe. It’s just a lot. I can only imagine that he is truly frightened about losing his mom. Being scared is making him do all kinds of stupid things. As his teammate and friend, I want to be there.”
Landon nodded. We continued searching. I remember he was on-and-off dating this girl named Jackie on the dance team. I had her number and thankfully she answered.
“Hey, Jackie. This is Leo.”
“Wassup, guy? You know some of my girls think you got it going on, out there doing your thing on the football team, and handling the Axes too. Everybody thinks you’re the man. My problem is, two of my girls like you. I can send you pictures, and you can let me know which one you wanna go out with.”
“No, no, no, I’m straight.”
“Playa Leo is straight. I tried to tell them you didn’t want just one girl, but they think they can settle you down,” Jackie said, misunderstanding me.
“Look, I’m not calling about any of that,” I said, moving on. “I’m trying to see if you hooked up with Blake today. Y’all still kickin’ it, right?”
“You know your friend. I was supposed to be seeing him, but he didn’t make it over here.”
“How long ago was that?”
“Long enough for him to be here.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, it’s been like two hours.”
“Aight, well, hit me back if you hear from him,” I urged.
“You’re not worried or anything, are you?” she asked.
Not wanting her to panic too, I said, “No, no, I’m just trying to connect with him.”
“So I can tell my girls they gotta shot,” Jackie diverted back to that.
“Nah, I’m off the market,” I said, wanting to be clear.
“What? Who snagged you?”
“Ella Blount,” I said proudly.
“Not one of them doggone cheerleaders? Please tell me no.”
“See, why you hating on the cheerleaders?”
“They think they are all that, that’s why.”
“I’m just tired of the beef,” I said, really wanting people to stop the drama. “Can we all just get along for real, for real?”
Jackie paused and said, “I hear you, as long as you’re happy. Wow, Leo Steele is settling down.”
“I know, right?” I said. “Remember to call me if you hear from Blake.”
When I got off the phone, I told Landon that she did not know where he was. I also explained that she said he should have been over there a long time ago. We both got knots in our stomach.
“I’m worried, man,” I admitted.
“Yeah, me too,” Landon said. It started getting dark.
We drove everywhere. We went back to the Strong’s house and retraced the drive from Blake’s to Jackie’s house. There was a steep hill along the route. We saw tire marks in the road, so Landon immediately pulled over and parked the car. Seeing the missing railing made us both clutch our hearts in fear. We looked over the edge and were horrified. We saw Blake’s car smashed into a tree at the bottom of a hill. Just the thought that our friend might be gone was too much.