Books, Boys, and Basketball: Junior Year

SORE LOSER

With Thanksgiving coming up, Drew and I make plans to spend time with each other's families. First, he's coming over to Grams' for dinner, and then we're going over to his house. Even though my dad hates me, I plan to go to my parents' house to see them too. But both Drew and Grams think it's a bad idea. I have to try though. I miss my family.

Until then we have a game and I'm tickled pink on the inside that Drew and I will both be wearing our Jordans. Many will pick up on that minor detail, and I'm hoping the sports reporters will too. It's my unofficial official way of claiming Drew as mine.

As happy as I am that he'll be representing us even though no one but me and our close friends will notice, I'm also exhausted. I've been yawning all day thanks to Drew keeping me up last night. Come game time, I'd rather curl up in my bed than play ball, but I don't have that luxury.

My new nighttime activities are affecting my daytime activities and I'm going to have to find a balance or I'm going to kill over from exhaustion one day.

We're two minutes into the first quarter and I'm already sweating. The bleachers are full. The lights feel like they're blaring down on me and I've been making too many mistakes. The score is Liberty seven and Consumnes zero.

I'm focused, but I'm tired and I've been dragging ass since the game started. That's the last time I let Drew stay over the night before a game.

"Sidney, move!" Coach yells at me.

I'm trying, but my feet feel like cinderblocks and every breath feels labored. For the second time, I get picked and the other team runs down the court to score. Pissed, coach Treggle finally has enough, and she pulls me out of the game. No one is more disappointed in me than I am.

"When you're ready Sidney and you've got your head screwed on straight, let me know!" Coach continues to yell at me.

Tears sting my eyes as I take the walk of shame to my seat. I'm playing horribly and I don't know how to fix it, but my teammates need me. "You good?" Drew kneels in front of me to check on me.

"No. I'm tired and I can't get anything right."

"Drink this," he hands me an almost empty Gatorade, but I feel like it's more than just Gatorade.

I ask him what's in it, but he table's that conversation for later. For now, I take the bottle and drink what's left of it. Drew sits down next to me trying to talk me up until coach glares at him. Throwing up his hands he heads to the bleachers and minutes later I feel a jolt of energy.

I'm so juiced up that I can hardly sit still, and the coach finally puts me back in the game after Liberty scores six more points.

She has me start the third quarter and now I'm on fire. I score fourteen points in six minutes to put us back in the lead and show no signs of slowing down. Like us, Liberty is ranked number two so if we beat them, we'll ladder up in ranking, but the game is close.

For every shot we sink, they sink one too, and they have three skilled three-point shooters. I'm having to work twice as hard and thanks to whatever is in that Gatorade, I feel like I can run to Texas and back.

In the fourth quarter, I'm practically a one-woman show. I'm driving to the hole and making shots, I'm juking the opposing team left and right, and I'm sinking three-pointers like my life depends on it.

"That's how you play, Sidney! That's how you play!" Coach sings my praises from the sidelines.

We have seconds left in the game and we're down by three. We have one chance at this, and my heart is in my throat. I don't want to lose this game.