The Last Lap

Chapter Fifteen

As we entered the gym, some heads turned towards us but they were young and must have been freshmen because of their shy demeanor and awkwardness. They were playing a game of basketball so Alex lead me around the court. Garbage cans on the outskirts collected the water leaking through the ceiling.

A short man that was familiar from all the meets approached us from the other side of the bleachers.

He was a stout gentleman with skin darker than anyone I'd ever met. His sharp beard and fade haircut fit the look of professional but his workout clothing made him look more comfortable. He was probably the type of coach to gain attention when dressed up. The shook hands like Khalil and Alex did. My coach never greeted me in such an affectionate form. It was more of a warm smile and at maximum a high five.

"How have you been Alex? We've missed you. I've missed you," He sighed as he tilted his head to the side while looking at him, "Are you staying out of trouble?"

Unwilling to listen to what the two men were bonding over, I looked around the gym and saw the banners of past championships for other sports hanging on the walls. Their most recent championship was a year ago. They only had four basketballs and the cart that was holding them only rolled with three wheels. The court had two baskets and the floor was in desperate need of waxing. It was so sad how the kids took our own gym for granted. We never really thanked the janitors or the staff for doing their jobs. The air even felt different; friendly but disappointing.

"Ema," Alex interrupted my train of thought, "Let me show you the weight room. Most of it was fundraised by the team." He led me over to the very back of the gym. He pulled open a door and let me enter in first.

There was a scent of sweat and iron. A couple bars and a handful of weights piled up in the corner. I wonder what happened once someone got to the highest weight possible. "I don't know much about weight lifting because I usually avoid it after my run, but aren't you supposed to try to go up after a while?"

He looked down at the pile of weights, "Yeah, you are." He started to clean the whiteboard. No matter how hard he wiped, the shadow of the previous words were still there.

"How can they get better when they reach the max weight?"

"I guess they can't," Alex looked over it again. Almost as if he was reminiscing about what happened in there over the past few years. I looked at the two blocks and three hurdles that were gathered near the cabinets. They were old and their replacement was well overdue. Sets of dumbbells of different colors up to twenty pounds lined the window that was in the weight room. The only thing that seemed new was the quote written on the whiteboard in the room. It read, "Nobody who has ever gave his best has ever regretted it." It was by George Halas.

Alex wrote another quote beneath it, "I have a dream that one day this school will rise up and work together towards the same goal. That it will live by the ambitions laid out by its students and the motivation instilled by its coaches. That we will win together." He signed his name and put the singular red marker down.

I picked it back up and signed my own name underneath it in solidarity. I wanted both teams to win.

"We are both good enough to win," I put my hand on his arm, "I truly believe that."

--

On our way back to town, we grabbed a couple burgers from the local diner and stayed a while. I wondered if anyone noticed our absence at school today. Maybe Alex but definitely not me. I wasn't anybody special. Alex, however, carried a ray of sunshine wherever he went.

"How are you so positive all the time Alex?" I asked him as he thanked the waitress after she put down our drinks. I shook my head, "I guess it's just how my mom is. She's always hyping me up. She says that I'm special to her and that she's so proud of me every time. Especially at the end of the track meets."

I poked at my burger and cut it into smaller pieces. I wonder if I would ever be able to have a positive outlook on my own life like he did. He looked at me with one eyebrow raised, "What are you doing? Why are you eating like that you weirdo," He laughed. I laughed along with him. I stopped cutting my food to explain, "This way it is cleaner and easier to eat. I don't have to worry about dripping mustard everywhere or spilling ketchup on my pants."

He shrugged with a smirk, "That's cute. You do you I guess."

I looked at the way he was eating his burger, "I feel like an idiot now," I commented. I ate the rest of my burger like him.

"Stop. You're not an idiot." I just smiled back at him and he kicked my foot to get my attention, "I mean it. You're very smart. Look at what you're planning. You're going to change the world."

The waitress came over to check in on us and left us alone again. I didn't reply to what he said but I took it in. At least I had someone that believed in me. I wondered if Isaac would say the same thing. I wondered what Jia was doing right now. I looked at the clock. Jia was in Art with Jasmyn. They probably hadn't even noticed that I was gone.

"What's on your mind?" Alex asked me as he looked at his watch. It was only around noon. There was no point in returning to school. There were only two hours left. I didn't want to go to practice either. My shins still hurt.

"I want to do something but I don't wanna go to track. Are you going back to the school?"

"No. There's no point. Reynolds was really making me mad yesterday so now that I have an excuse, I won't," He told me. I waited for him to swallow his food to continue with, "I told him I can't jump six feet. There's no way. At least not with this injured leg of mine, but he kept pushing me. Like calm down there buddy. We know you love track, and so do I, but I am not about to kill myself for the sport," He complained.

I bit on the end of my fork and tilted my head to the side while grabbing on to my necklace. I looked at him, "Yeah I've been trying to avoid a couple people myself."

Alex leaned back in his chair and called over the waitress to bring the check, "Yeah I heard what Jia said. That was tough. Is it true?"

I frowned, "Is what true?"

"That you like that guy Isaac?"

I jolted in my chair and my hands started to turn numb, "I wouldn't say I'm in love like she did. I don't even know if I like him anymore or for what reason. I've known him for a while. I've had a crush on him ever since freshman year. I guess I like the familiarity." The waitress gave us the bill.

Alex seemed curious, "What is so special about him? I mean, out of all the boys at our school, why Isaac?" I gazed outside. The skies were clear and the cars were moving along slowly. The bustling of the diner and people started to grow. Why did I like him?

I thought about Isaac and all our memories together. The times that he'd given me rides when Jia was sick and Jasmyn didn't have her license, the way his eyes glittered in the sunlight and his soft, brown hair swayed in the breeze while we watched the games on the soccer field, and all the times we smiled at each other in the hallway. Yet, I couldn't find a reason that I liked him. So maybe I didn't like him as a crush but more as a friend. A friend that was a piece of art.

"I guess I just find him cute and his presence comforting. He isn't really close with me but I've always admired him for his courage and intelligence. He's what I wish I could be," I confessed to Alex, moving my eyes to my empty plate, "Someone my parents would have wanted me to be if I was the perfect daughter."

He nodded his head, "So you don't love him. You just idealize him. He's your role model. You could say that if anyone asks you or teases you about it."

"You're right but I was planning to avoid everyone for as long as I could. You know sneak around just like a ninja. Look down at my feet as I walk the halls. Maybe even drop out the day before we walk the stage," I joked with him.

He laughed a little before holding my gaze with a serious look, "Ema."

I blinked at him, "Yes, Alex?"

A moment of silence passed between us. He patted his head and picked up his jacket that was on the red leather seat. I mirrored his actions and watched as he put down the money for the bill. I figured that any change would be her tip.

"You should learn not to idealize people, especially those that don't pay much attention to you or when you're vulnerable. They may end up hurting you."