"That was a foul!" Summer yelled. "Complete and utter!"

Sheryl smiled challengingly, dribbling the ball she'd just stolen from Summer. "You can't dribble. You would have lost it anyway."

"So ask me for it, don't push me!"

Somehow, Sheryl had talked Summer, Gerry and I into playing basketball. Luckily, it wasn't snowing at the moment and the driveway was freshly shoveled. Unluckily however, I had to be Summer's teammate. We were losing terribly.

Sheryl effortlessly made a basket and Gerry clapped. "That's my girl, take it back to centre!"

I grabbed her around the waist and swung her in an arc. She squealed with laughter and dropped the ball. "Lyric!" she giggled as I took her to the ground, tickling her.

"I would have to say that that was not sportsmanlike," Gerry chuckled.

Summer pounced on the ball.

Gerry hovered over her. "Are you going to get up? Or are you just going to remain on the cold frozen ground forever with a basketball under you?"

"It depends," she said. "Can you maybe back up a little?"

"No, sorry."

"Could you promise not to take it from me?"

"Uh…sure. I can do that."

"Thank you." She carefully rose to her feet and then hurled the ball to me.

"Where the hell did you learn to throw?" I cried, running halfway down the driveway for the ball.

"I didn't."

Sheryl was also racing for the ball. She took a running leap and landed on my back.

"Sheryl!" I whined, staggering. "You're too heavy!"

She giggled. "I know. Gerry, go get the ball!"

We all looked up when we saw Sky walking towards us, his head down and his hands shoved in the pockets of his thin hoodie. He looked cold.

"Hi?" Summer called.

"Hi." He shrugged. "Coach sent me out here."

"Summer, I kick you off my team!" I yelled. "Sky, you're with me!"

"Hey!" she cried, offended.

"You should stick with cheerleading," I advised her.

With Sky on my team, we started to catch up. Summer sat on the side throwing dead grass in the air like confetti, unenthusiastically muttering cheers.

"Oh yeah," Sky said to me with a smirk that belonged to the brother I used to know. "Alan's coming over."

"What?" I cried, dropping the ball as I was about to take a shot at the basket. "When?"

"Thank you," he giggled, snatching up the ball. "I just didn't want you to take that shot because I don't have enough faith in you to believe you wouldn't miss."

"You jackass!" I yelled. "So he's not coming? I strongly loathe you, Sky!"

"Hey Alan," Gerry called. "You up for some basketball?"

I looked up and broke out into a grin, seeing Alan making his way up our driveway, his cheeks all rosy from the cold. "Alan!"

"Lyyyyyric," he squawked.

Sky elbowed, still smirking slightly. "I didn't think you'd mind if I called him."

I threw my arms around him before thinking. "Ohh, you're a good brother sometimes."

"That what YOU think. You're off my team." He shouted, "Hey, Bosley, you're with me!" He threw his hoodie to me with a wide, playful smile.

"Hahahahaha!" Summer cackled vengefully.

I sauntered off to sit next to her, but Gerry offered, "Lyric, you can take my place. I'm gonna sit off for awhile."

"Aww man!" Sheryl whined.

"Nah, that's okay, Summer can play," I said.

"Woohoo!" Summer yipped.

"Aww MAN!" Sheryl whined louder.

I watched them play for awhile, hugging my knees to my chest and feeling kinda content. Summer's obvious lack of skill for basketball didn't stop her from having fun. That's why I loved about her; no matter what she was doing, she found a way to make it the time of her life. Sheryl was like the obnoxious prodigal child. Her long blond curls bouncing on her back as she slipped past everyone to make an effortless lay up.

There was something about Alan I could never begin to describe. He was lithely talented at almost any sport he played, but it was just the light in his eyes and the joy in his smile when he was just having fun that made me fall in love over and over again. I laughed as he held the ball above Sheryl's head teasingly. Then he laughed when Summer knocked it out of his hands to Sheryl.

But Sky just broke my heart in a way only a person you have loved all your life could. Sports were what he loved. He didn't join in on the laughing like the others, he just kicked their asses. The talent just burned out of him even when he was playing Make-It-Take-It in the driveway, and it just made me sad because he didn't care and he was destroying his body. The unconditional love I felt for him hit me hard then as I watched, and a terrible feeling of foreshadow fell over me that my days with Sky were numbered. I already missed him.

"So, how long have you and Alan been going out?" Gerry asked, shaking me out of my thoughts.

"Ahh, since September," I replied. "You seeing anyone?"

"Nope. I haven't had a girlfriend since last year." He shrugged. "We drifted too much. And I haven't been…you know, getting out much."

"Sorry," I said, for lack of something better to say.

"It's okay." He wrapped his jacket around himself more tightly. "What's the deal with your brother?" he asked abruptly.

I scoffed.

"He's got track lines on his arms." Gerry looked at me. "He's got a problem, doesn't he?"

"Yep."

"That's a waste. He's got good form."

I grinned at him. "You checking out my brother's form?"

"Oh baby, yes Lyric, I can't keep my eyes off of him," he said with laughing sarcasm. "Maybe I'll try and help him out."

"With his form."

"No," he said impatiently. "It would be a waste to lose talent like that."

"And you're going to do what?"

Gerry stared straight ahead for a long moment before he glanced at me. "I'll get him to take a look at me."