Tall Story - Candy Gourlay [32]
And then Ma drew the curtains shut and I tumbled down, down, down into the utter darkness of a bottomless pit.
13
Andi
Lunch time. I avoided the playground and went into the new gym, ignoring the sign that said No Entry Unless Authorized.
Avoiding Rocky had become an integral part of my daily school routine:
Enter by the side gate in case Rocky and his friends were hanging out in front of Saint Simeon’s.
Stay in the library until the bell went.
Eat my packed lunch in a secluded corner, then head straight for the new gym to shoot hoops until the bell rang for afternoon lessons.
I could forget all my troubles when I played. Goodness knows I deserved some upside after finding out I had Fee-fi-fo-fum for a big brother.
It was not as bad as it sounded. Saint Simeon’s gymnasium was fantastic: it even had three-point lines painted on – at my previous school, we didn’t have three-point lines so all my cool long-distance shots were wasted.
Lucky for me, the ball lockers were fastened with the same crummy locks as my old school. It took only one elbow and a kick for the door to fall open. I extracted a basketball and pushed through the double doors to the court.
Oh Holy Mother of God.
There was someone else there, shooting baskets. Someone so tall and hench, he was virtually bursting out of his shirt.
Rocky.
He took aim at the basket and released the ball. He missed.
I whirled round to leave but Rocky’s ball beat me to the exit and banged hard on the double doors in front of me.
‘Hey!’
Oh Holy Mother of God, he spotted me.
I turned round and faked a smile. ‘Hi.’
He looked like he wanted to laugh. ‘You look different in school uniform.’
And you look as stupid in your tie as I do in my skirt, I thought. But what I said aloud was: ‘So do you.’
‘Your name is Andi, right?’
‘Andi with an i.’ I turned towards the door. ‘Well, gotta go.’
‘Wait!’ Rocky called. ‘Were you going to shoot some hoops?’
No, I was going to plant some rice. ‘I was just going to pass the time.’
‘One on one?’
I don’t know what got into me. Instead of marching out of the court, I spun round and passed him my ball. He caught it, leaping into the air like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on hydraulics to hook it at the goal. It looped over our heads but bounced harmlessly off the back board.
I raced after it. Rocky didn’t bother to run after me, he just positioned himself under the basket waiting to pounce when I came close for the shot. No chance, mister. I stopped at the three-point line and made my shot. Swish. The look on his face was a prize.
‘Pow!’ He punched the air, staring at me in wonder. ‘Hey, Andi, you didn’t say you were good.’
You didn’t ask, I thought. But pleasure spread through my stomach like warm water. I shrugged, my face expressionless as I went to collect the ball from under the basket. I toed the three-point line and took another shot. Swish.
Rocky shook his head in wonder and grabbed the ball. ‘Show me some more.’
We played for the rest of the break. Rocky sank exactly two shots. I didn’t count how many baskets I made. I just stayed away from him, running wide – no point getting up close with Rocky blocking the way like a plaster. I shot from the three-point line. Swish. Swish. Swish.
After fifteen solid minutes, we stopped to drink from the water fountain beside the court. My cotton blouse stuck to my back, wet with sweat. But I felt good.
‘You don’t miss, do you?’
‘Nope.’
‘You’re amazing. You’re exactly what the Souls need.’
I stared hopefully up at him. But the doleful expression on his face was enough. He didn’t mean it.
‘I’m sorry, Andi. I can’t change the rules.’
The bell rang. I tossed Rocky the ball and turned away, avoiding the searching look in his eyes. ‘Thanks for the workout.’
Before I could push through the double doors of the exit, Rocky yelled, ‘Wait!’
He sprinted up to me, tossing the ball. I caught it instinctively.
‘There’s nothing in the rulebook that says you can’t train with us.’ The brown eyes