Get You The Moon ✓ [published 2021]

2 | Levi

This one's for Anha,
for always supporting
my writing, online or offline. 

The smell of freshly cut grass and the boisterous laughter of young teens floated around me as I made my way across the school field. I walked out on to the field every Wednesday afternoon, with a rugby ball in my hand and a whistle hanging from my neck. The group of under 15s quieted down as I neared.

"Alright, boys." I passed the rugby ball from one hand to another. "Get started with your laps. Two laps around the field, you have eight minutes." Before I could finish my sentence, the boys were already running.

Today would be the first practice of the new term, and I had almost forgotten how ruthless the sun could be during this time. I lifted a hand to shield myself from the rays and watched everyone run. The sun kissed my skin and I was grateful that I wasn't white as fuck, or I would be rocking a killer sun burn tomorrow.

No doubt, Scarlet Bridge would never let me hear the end of it. The chick looked for any excuse to rip into me. If I had asthma, she'd probably call me out for breathing wrong.

Slowly, the boys trickled in, standing in front of me. I tried not to let my pride show as the fourteen-year-old version of me finished the lap, second. I nodded at Isaiah, the only sign of approval I'd be able to share at the training without showing any favouritism.

I cleared my throat. "Three things for today. First, I want everyone to focus on their passes. I don't want to see any lob throws, flat and hard is the aim here." I stared each and every teenager down waiting for a sexual remark, but none of them dared.

Half impressed with my leadership, I continued, "Second thing, Marcus when you're cutting, run as straight as possible. And the last thing, look at the people you're up against. Try and anticipate their next move. There's no point defending, if you don't know what you're defending against. Clear?"

They echoed the word back and then dispersed into their practice teams. With the sound of the whistle, they started the first play.

It was moments like this that I wished a teacher, or another authority figure was around. I wanted them to see me surpass their expectations. No one thought a Maori kid could be a good head boy or excel in academics. Sure, I could throw a rugby ball around, but they never thought I had the patience and leadership skills to be a good coach.