Chapter 1: Basketball
"This world cannot bring me down, because I'm already here."
Tump
Tumptump
Tumptetumptumptump
David passed the ball between his two hands, lifted up his leg, and bounced it under, catching it in the other hand.
He turned on his heel, facing the basket.
Tumptetumptump.
"I won't turn away. I won't turn around."
The ball bounced ff the rim. He ran to catch it on the rebound, dribbling it.
"I'm trying so hard."
This world will not bring me down, because I'm already here."
Tumptumptump.
David paused, catching his breath.
He dribbled faster, running up towards the basket.
"I won't Duck and Run. I won't Duck and Run. I won't Turn Away!"
He jumped, shooting the ball.
It circled on the rim, finally tipping into the basket.
"Because I'm already here!"
David Jumped, Pumping his fist into the air.
Danni and Damien sat next to the blasting boom box. The CD track changed,
"There's another world inside of me that you will never see…" Three Doors Down crooned.
Danni turned down the volume as David passed the ball to his twin, who caught it and ran onto the basketball court. David plopped down beside her and she pulled out a bottle of water from her backpack.
"I go next." She told him. Water ran down the side of David's face.
"Basketball is a boy's sport." He said.
"Nuh-uh. I can fly. I can throw a ball into a basket too if I want to."
"Whatever." David stuck his tongue out at her. Danni returned the gesture.
Damien made a shot, than ran back to the others.
"Hey Danni, you wanna try?" He asked her.
"Yup!" Danni hopped up off the ground.
"Damien, basketball is a boy's sport."
Damien stuck his tongue out at his twin. "You're just afraid she'll be better than you!"
"Am not!"
"Are too!"
Danni skipped the CD ahead to the next song, which was one of her favorites. Kay had bought the three kids all new CDs the other day, but they had all latched onto Kay's selection.
"I took a walk around the world to ease my troubled mind. I left my body lying somewhere in the sands of time. I took a walk to the dark side of the moon, I figure there's nothing I can do, yeah…"
Tump tump te-tump
Danni felt the weight of the ball in her hands.
"Keep bouncing it, Danni!" David yelled out to her.
Danni ran forward, bouncing the ball ahead of her.
"You call me strong you call me weak,
But still your secrets I will keep.
You took for granted all the times I never let you down.
You stumbled in and bumped your head, if not for me then you'd be dead.
I picked you and put you back on solid ground."
Danni jumped, sinking the ball through the basket effortlessly.
"I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might…Kryptonite!"
"Hey! No using your powers, Danni!" David yelled.
Danni noticed that she was floating in midair. She sunk back down to the earth.
"Sorry, I didn't realize I could do that in this form." Danni was surprised; she really hadn't meant to do that.
"Yeah right… wait, really?" David also looked surprised.
"Yeah, usually I can only use a couple of my powers when I'm in human mode."
"Maybe you're getting better." Damien suggested.
Danni shrugged.
The park was empty on Sunday mornings. Kay didn't take her sons to Church, which was a sticking point with her and the others in the community. It gave Danni and the twins the privacy to talk about her powers and ghosts openly.
Ever since the twins had found out about her powers, they had badgered her to tell them stories and to show them the stuff she could do. After they got tired of seeing small ecto-balls and her sticking her hand through David's head, they'd started using her to sneak out at night.
Flying at night with the twins hanging onto her, pointing out the sites had become a favorite pastime.
"My turn!" David jumped up, tossing his water bottle to Damien.
He leapt in front of Danni, grabbing the ball from her.
"No fair, David!" She gave chase, blocking him from a shot.
"See if you can stop me!" he stuck his tongue out at her.
Danni slapped the ball out of his hands.
Damien jumped up from the ground, running onto the court.
Danni passed it to him.
"No fair! It's two against one!" David protested.
"See if you can stop us!" Danni laughed.
The ball thumped against the ground, it's beat matching the recorded drums pounding from the CD player in the grass.
"Hey! Triple Dweebs!"
Danni, David and Damien turned to face the offending voice.
Mike Mores and his posse stood out on the edge of the basketball court. One of Mike's friends, a blonde kid with long hair pulled back in a ponytail, nudged Mike in the shoulder, whispering something to him.
"Feh, fine." He grumbled. "Look, the guys and I want… to…" Mike grimaced, fighting to get the words out.
Seeing his friend wasn't going to finish, the pony-tailed friend continued for him.
"Mike wants to know if you'd like lunch. His parents own the Calico café, so we get to eat for free."
Mike glowered at his friends.
"Sounds good." Said Damien.
"What's the catch?" Asked David, still stewing over the last time he'd done something Mike had asked.
"No catch." Ponytail promised. "And we can have pizza."
"I'm in!" said Danni, her stomach giving a loud gurgle.
David glared at her. When it came to thinking with their stomachs, Danni could give lessons to dogs.
"Two out of three," Damien said, smiling at David's defiant scowl. "Let's go."
……………..
(All songs featured here are from Three Doors Down. The lyrics are used without permission, but who cares? 3 Doors Down can count this as free advertising for their music, 'cause they rock! Wooo!)