Chapter 18

The game starts thirty minutes and I feel like theres so much energy flowing through my body that if I started running I would never stop. We're playing against West Oaks. Thats Macks school. I haven't seen her since last week when Kris tricked me into that weird intervention. I found out later that they dropped off Macks car at her house so that I wouldn't see it and drive off. Smart. Assholes. Braddock is talking to us, going over plays and strategy. If we win this game we go to the state and that means we could go to the championships. Either way I can't breathe. My leg is shaking up and down and Kris and Sara both keep looking at me. I zone out and focus on my breathing. When Braddock if finally done with his pep talk we all get up to go warm up. Suddenly I feel a hand on my shoulder. I turn around expecting to see Sara or Kris but instead it was Kara.

"Hey, you've got this. Don't worry about it." That was all she said to me but it helped me to calm down and get my head in the game. Warming up I kept looking over my shoulder. I had a bad feeling. I don't know why but I did. Finally the refs called the two captains. Kris and I walked up to the middle fo the court where the refs were. Mack and some other girl met us there.

"Alright ladies we want a clean game and make sure and watch the hands and the reaching. We will call everything we see." Said one of the refs. Mack just looked at me with this look on her face that looked like she was ready to pounce. I just stared back at her indifferently. I knew Kris' little intervention hadn't changed anything. I knew she still hated me, and for some reason taking it out on Kris was what she did about it.

In the huddle Braddock told me that I had to be on number 3, the other captain, and Kris was on 5 which was Mack. This wasn't going to be good. As we broke out and walked onto the court I felt as though the whole room went silent. Finally. I was finally able to breathe. Tip off came and Kristina hit the ball back to Kris. And so the game began.

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It was half time and we were up by 7 points. But in this game 7 points wasn't anything. We may have been winning but we were playing like shit. Kris was playing like an idiot. She didn't want to play all out against Mack, and Mack was taking advantage of it. To make the situation better, any chance she got Mack would purposely hit me and push me. It was annoying but I guess I could take it. Sara was doing her best but the girl she was guarding was faster than her. The girl I was guarding wasn't as fast as me but she knew how to pass which was the one thing that could shut me down. Can't steal the ball if your girl doesn't have it.

"I know you all want this. If you didn't they would be ahead. Get your heads in the game. I know y'all can do this. I know what you are capable of. So go out there and play like you want to be here. Like you want to win." With that we headed back onto the court.

As the ref handed my girl the ball to throw it in I took a breathe and watched her eyes. We needed the ball, we needed to get ahead by as much as we could. Her eyes flickered to the left of me. She threw it and I already knew who was going to catch it. I fell back to follow my girl. Watching Mack with the ball I saw her fake Kris out right as she drove in left. Mistake. As she tried to go past me the I reached out with my left hand and stole the ball. I hauled ass as fast as I could, and with how fast I was going no one could catch me. I went in for a lay up and now the score was 49-40. I looked back and saw Macks face. She looked pissed. I gave her a small smirk as I got back on defense and guarded my girl. As Mack came down the court she looked at me for a split second and ran right past Kris and into Sara throwing her elbow right into her stomach and knocking her to the ground. I ran to Sara, she was on the ground and I saw the tears in her eyes. I felt the anger inside of me burn hotter than it had ever burned before. I ran over to mack.

"What the fuck is your problem!" I screamed

"Get out of my face!" She said shoving me. That was it. I pulled my fist back and launched it right into her face. It knocked her back and she lunged for me and tackled me. She was on top of me trying to hit me when I flipped her over and hit her in the face as hard and as many times as I could. She tried to block my hits with her forearms like a boxer but it only helped a little bit.I got in about 3 good hits before I felt someone trying to pull me off. I fought against who was behind me and tried to get to Mack, who was already up and trying to get at me, but it was no use. I was dragged all the way to the bench. It was Kara who had pulled me off.

"Get the hell off of me." I half screamed when things finally calmed down. I walked over to Sara who was sitting on the other side of the bench still trying to catch her breath.

"Are you okay?" I asked crouching down so I could see her.

"I'm fine. But you're not." She said. I reached up to my lip and felt the blood running down it. There was blood coming out of my nose too. I looked over at Mack and saw her black eye already forming and her lip and nose were bleeding more than mine. I laughed.

"I'm fine I promise." She looked at me and smiled.

Braddock was busy dealing with the refs and the West Oak coaches to see what the hell we were supposed to do now. When Braddock walked back to us all he said was to get into the locker room now. He didn't say it like he was pissed though. More like he didn't know what to say or what to do. I walked to the locker room with Sara. We were holding each other up as we walked; I don't know if either one of us would have made it on our own.

When we got to the locker room Sara and I went to the bathrooms. I sat on the counter as she wet some paper towels and wiped the blood from my nose and lip. My nose wasn't broken thank god, but it still hurt like hell. My lip was still bleeding.

"You didn't have to do that." Sara said not really looking me in the eyes.

"Yes I did." I said. Around that time Braddock walked in.

"Avery!" Braddock screamed "Get over here."

I slowly limped to the front of the locker room with Sara. My hip hurt like hell from when she tackled me. Sara followed behind me. Braddock had already cleared the rest of the team out of the locker room.

"Sara please wait outside." Braddock said. After she left Braddock just looked at me. Like he didn't know what to say or couldn't fathom the reason I would do such a thing.

"I don't know what personal drama you guys have with that team but you almost caused a mob. The people in the stands were already getting ready to rush the court. If Kara hadn't pulled you off when she did it would have been chaos." He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"She pushed me first." I said not daring to look up.

"That may be true but that doesn't mean you have the right to punch her in the face and start a fight. Now we have to wait and see what UIL decides. I don't know if they're going to post pone the game, give it to us because we were ahead or just forfeit the game completely. And now you're suspended from the two next game." Braddock practically screamed throwing his hands in the air. I hung my head low and just waited for him to say something.

"I don't know what was going through your head Avery but I know your a good kid. And I know that you care a lot about Sara." At this I looked up.

"Look," he said crouching down to look me in the eyes. "That girl pulled a dirty move, and maybe she did deserve what you did, but this isn't you. I've known you for four years now, and I've never seen you act like this before."

By this time I was crying. All my anger and pain and sadness were just bursting out of me. I couldn't hold it back. I just put my hands on my face and cried. Braddock continued.

"We're a team. We will get through this as a team." With that he put his hand on my head and walked out of the locker room. When I finished crying, I wasn't sad. I was furious. I was furious that it had come to this. I didn't regret the fight. I don't. I'd do it again. But I didn't know how to do this anymore. I got up, changed my shirt because it had blood all over it and walked out of the locker room. My mom and brother were waiting outside for me.

"Brooo you kicked her ass." Lucas said high fiving me. I just laughed.

"Lucas!" My mother said giving him an angry look. Turning her attention back to me she said, "Get home now. We'll talk about this there." She said. I just nodded my head.

As I limped out of the school I saw Kris waiting for me on the steps. She had her warm ups on and her backpack was slung over her shoulder. I walked up to her because I knew if I couldn't walk past her. There was no avoiding this conversation. As I got closer she turned round and gave me the dirtiest look I'd ever seen her give someone. But her eyes told a different story. It looked like she'd been crying.

"Why the hell would you do that!" She screamed at me. I wanted to scream back. I really did but something in her eyes told me I couldn't. Or that I shouldn't.

"She went after Sara. She hurt her." I said as calmly as I could, but my hand was in a fist and I could feel my nails digging into my skin. Kris just put her hands on her face and screamed.

"Its basketball! People get hit, people get hurt. Thats the sport. And besides, who cares just because you're fucking her doesn't mean you can start a fight with my girlfriend." She screamed back.

"That was a cheap shot and you know it!" Now I was screaming and also flinching in pain at my bruised face. At this she started crying again. I didn't know what to do.

"I'm sorry." was all she said. I didn't know whether she was apologizing for the jab at Sara, this conversation or just apologizing in general. I stayed quiet.

"She said I have to choose. You or her. She said that this is the last time." she mumbled through her tears. As I looked at her I could see how much she was hurting. And it was my fault. All I ever wanted was for her to be happy.

"I just, I don't understand why you and her cant get along. I don't understand it." She said as a fresh set of tears rolled down her face.

"Its because she knows." I said looking anywhere but at her.

"She knows what?" She sniffled.

"She knows that I'm in love with you." I said barley audible, but she heard it. She just looked at me with wide eyes and new tears.

"But I can't do this anymore." I said. Holding back my own tears.

"What do you mean you can't do this anymore?" She said looking at me with that look that made me want to run to her and just hold her. Her blue green eyes were starting to water even more and I couldn't take it anymore.

"I mean I can't go through this pain every time you get hurt because of me. I can't watch you go through this. It hurts too much." I said wiping my tears and some blood off of my face.

I didn't know what to do anymore. Every move I made was wrong. Every word I said was wrong. I couldn't win, and she was the one who got hurt every time. How could I be so selfish as to put her through that. I started to walk away, and I had no intention of looking back. Thats when I felt her hand on my arm. I didn't know if I would be able to will myself to leave if I turned around, so I just kept walking.