Theo’s dad had changed his computer password.
“Uh-oh,” Brian said, tossing the basketball to Theo. “Here comes the ol’ ball ’n chain.”
Theo looked over and saw Rain jogging across the park toward them.
“Really?” Theo said to Brian. “Ball ’n chain? You’re going with that?”
“Whatever, dude. Dieting saps my originality.”
“How much weight have you lost?”
“Four pounds. But they were four of the heavier pounds.”
Theo laughed.
Rain ran up to them, her cheeks red from exertion. She smelled like gingerbread. Theo liked gingerbread.
She reached into her pocket and pulled out a granola bar. She handed it to Brian, who quickly peeled the cellophane wrapper like it was a banana.
While chewing, he said, “You don’t have to feed me every time you see me, you know. I already have a mother.”
“You want me to stop?”
“Of course not. A Jewish boy can never have too many mothers.”
Rain laughed and pulled off her orange hoodie, dropping it on the ground. Underneath she wore a white T-shirt with the word FINALLY in small black letters on the chest. She grabbed the ball from Brian’s hands and dribbled out onto the court. “You boys ready to play?”
Theo looked at the word finally on her shirt and smiled. For the first time he knew exactly what she meant without having to puzzle over it. Kind of like shooting a basketball and knowing it is going to go in the net before it even leaves your fingers. Some things you just know.
“I’m ready,” he said, running onto the court.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played basketball for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers, helping his teams win six NBA Championships. He is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, and he also holds the records for the most field goals and the most minutes played. Kareem gave the game the skyhook, considered basketball’s most classic offensive move. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995. Since retiring, he has been an actor, a basketball coach, and a New York Times best-selling author, focusing on history. In 2012 he was selected as a U.S. Cultural Ambassador, and a bronze statue of him making his signature skyhook was unveiled in front of the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA.
Raymond Obstfeld is a novelist, screenwriter, and nonfiction writer. His second novel, Dead Heat, was nominated for an Edgar Award. He also wrote an award-winning young adult novel entitled Joker and the Thief. Raymond has previously collaborated with Kareem on the sports memoir On the Shoulders of Giants: My Journey Through the Harlem Renaissance, and the nonfiction picture book What Color Is My World? Mr. Obstfeld currently teaches creative writing at Orange Coast College as an associate professor.
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