feather

eleven: so i can be a best friend

I spent the rest of the day with Matthew because I was worried about him. Instead of letting him go home, where he would be alone until eight, I brought him over to my house. It was only day one of his low mood, but still; no one should be alone when they feel alone. "Do you have a five?" I asked him, and he indolently glanced at the cards in his hands. 

"Go fish," he replied, bored. "Just take all the cards." 

"Come on, Matthew, it's not fun if you don't play along," I harrumphed, pushing my cards into the center. "Do you want something to eat? Or you can watch me run. That usually makes you laugh." 

Matthew cracked a small smile, then sighed and buried his face into his hands. "Sorry, Jamie. I know I'm being really annoying right now. I'm trying not to, believe me." 

"I believe you," I said, and patted my lap. He crawled over and laid his head in my flubby thighs. "So tell me what's wrong. Misery enjoys company." 

"Everything," he groaned, and then rolled around so his head was facing up and looking at my chin. "At soccer practice drills today, I let in five goals." 

"So...?" I trailed off, not really understanding. All I knew was you put the ball into the netty thing to win. 

"That's a lot Jamie, and I'm sure Coach is planning on putting that sophomore as the main sweeper instead of me," Matthew confesed. 

I patted his head. "That's a lie. Coach Marks wouldn't do that to you and you know it." Coach Marks was formerly on the state team but suffered a career-crippling back injury during a trip to the mall where he literally tripped on a baby's sippy cup and fell and hurt his back. Intimidating as he was, he was nice and he loved Matthew since he said Matthew reminded him of himself in high school.

"I just can't," Matthew started, and then broke off because he just couldn't even finish his sentence.

"Here," I put a pillow under Matthew's head and stood up. "I'll whip up some healthy, sugar-free banana ice cream with that fancy ice cream maker you bought me for my birthday last summer, and then we can do homework together while eating ice cream and making jokes about how bad I am at sports, okay?" 

Matthew gave a half-hearted chuckle and nodded before closing his eyes. "Jamie?"

"Yeah?" I asked, looking for the bananas in the fridge. 

"I'm sorry."

I shrugged, and pulled the bananas out. They were starting to brown, but hey, beggars can't be choosers. Not that I was beggar, since I would have to be poor for that to work. But you know what I mean. "I know, Matthew. It's okay." 

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