I feel like I'm losing steam a bit here, so I'm just trying to write and not worry about if it's perfect or long enough.
I will say I'm enjoying being able to dive a little more into Al's psyche than I did with TYD! And speaking of, this is concurrent with Chapter 4, for those keeping tabs.
It's not like Al means to do it. His cleats are in his locker, and he spent hours of his last day of freedom juggling in the backyard. He's ready for soccer tryouts, he really is.
But then he passes the bulletin board next to the office the baseball coach uses when he's the math teacher, and there's a flyer. It's just a piece of paper, and, at the same time, it's a sudden symbol of all the things he's ever wanted and never been brave enough to take hold of.
Well he's in high school now. If that's not a time to be brave, it's at least a time to be stupid, and for some reason the thought of Arthur's anger—disappointment, whatever—doesn't scare him right now.
In fact, when his heart pounds as he walks past the soccer pitch and towards the baseball diamond, it's only partially because this is what he's always wanted.
It's also because this will be his, and nobody—not Arthur, not even Mattie—has to know.