Chapter Thirty-Five: Marcus

My second semester is off to a fantastic start...things couldn't be going better! When I got back to school on Monday, first up was Ms. Hawk's class. She said we were ready to start Romeo and Juliet, and did she have any volunteers for the two main characters. I raised my hand first and said that Camila and me would play the parts, and Ms. Hawk said that would be great. I looked over at Camila after I said that, and she sort of looked away, showing how shy she is. I like for a girl to be shy and submissive around me; it shows that she knows I'm in charge and that she trusts me to make good decisions.

After class, I asked Camila if she would come to the game Tuesday night and root me on and could she wear the sweater to school on Tuesday that I got her for Christmas and again on Tuesday night. That Joshua and Jordan were going to take me home, and maybe the four of us could go somewhere after the game and get a quick bite or something. She said she didn't know if her parents would let her go out on a school night, and she said the sweater was very nice and thanked me for it again. That she would let me know in first period Tuesday about going to the game and all. I know her dad really likes me, she told me that, so I expect we're on for tomorrow night. Got to tend to the ladies, you know.

Things kept getting better and better throughout Monday. At practice that afternoon, Coach Henson put me with the starting unit while we were doing our drills, and I stayed with them the whole time. Then when practice was over for the day, he told me I would be starting at shooting guard Tuesday night and to get plenty of rest because we were going to have a tough game against Springfield. If you ask me, I should have been starting long ago, but at least give credit to Coach Henson for finally wising up. Coach Dell never used me the right way during football season, especially in the last few games.

Tuesday morning, Camila told me her parents wouldn't let her go out on a school night, but thanked me "very much" for asking her, and I said I understood but I was still disappointed. Then I asked her why she didn't have my sweater on like I had asked her, and she said that it didn't match her outfit for the day. I said to be sure to wear it tomorrow, no sweat, that it would go good with that short little blue mini-skirt of hers.

Tuesday night, there's no other way to say it, but I dominated all night long. Quentin and me were in rhythm all night long, and we were in sync from the get-go. Right off the tip, Quentin fed me for a baseline three, and I was just warming up. The next trip down the floor, I drove hard to the basket and made this beautiful up and under move that posterized, absolutely posterized, their power forward. I mean I made that dude look silly.

By halftime, I had sixteen points, Quentin had seven assists, and we were up by five, which should have been more, but Springfield's shooting guard got some lucky bounces on a couple of threes. I have to tell you that Coach Henson took me out for about four minutes halfway through the second quarter, or I would have had even more points. Coach Henson barked at me and said I wasn't focusing enough on defense and letting my man get by me too much. Man, I can't play all-star style offense and defense all the time. I'm carrying the team on offense—get real, Henson.

Anyway, when the second half started, I came out on fire. I mean I really lit up the crowd—Camila should have been there to see me. It all started when Quentin and me got out on a 2-on-1 break, and I slammed that sucker down with authority and the crowd just went wild...absolutely, freaking maniac-type wild. The next time down, I was feeling it and shot a long three, but it rimmed out, but our center Eric tapped it in, and we were up by 9, and we never looked back. I poured in three more threes, made a one-handed slam on a fast break, and ended up with 29 points and we won by 13.and it wasn't that close. In case there were any scouts in the crowd, I even worked on my passing, feeding Eric and Quentin for buckets late in the fourth quarter. I mean, what a dominating performance.

Wednesday morning in English class, Camila and me finally got to read our parts for the first time, and I could tell Ms. Hawk was impressed. I've got to tell you that that Old English writing of Shakespeare's is hard to read, and I don't know what the heck is going on in that play. But my life is going so great now, that I can put up with a little aggravation. Our next game is Friday night against Stephenson, and I'm planning to bust the 30-point barrier. I just may pour in 35; who knows, a 40-point night is possible with the way I'm playing.