Chapter 6
A week passed and finally the day of the next game arrived. Mary was still felling sick but was feeling better then before.
"So do you think that Mom and Dad will let you play tonight?" Lucy asked Mary, while they were in their room talking.
"I don't know, but I hope so," Mary told her sister as she picked up a squishy ball and tossed it toward the basketball hoop on the back of the bedroom door. The ball hit the door, missing the hoop completely.
"I am going to go talk to them now," Mary said as she went over and picked up the ball and tossed it to her sister, then headed out of the room towards her parent's bedroom.
"Mom, Dad, can I play tonight?" Mary asked her parents once she had reached their bedroom.
"I don't know," Mrs. Camden hesitated.
"Please, I feel a lot better," Mary lied.
"Sure honey. Are you sure you are feeling okay, because if you're not you don't have to play," Mrs. Camden told Mary.
"I am Mom, I promise. Besides the team needs me," Mary told her mother.
"Okay, now go and get ready. Your teammates will be here in twenty minutes to pick you up," Mrs. Camden told Mary.
"Thanks Mom," Mary said as she hugged her mother.
"I love you."
"I love you too honey," Mrs. Camden said as she hugged her daughter back. With that, Mary headed to her room to get ready.
"So what did Mom and Dad say about you playing tonight?" Lucy asked Mary once she had returned.
"They said that if I was not feeling well enough that I didn't have to play if I didn't want to," Mary told Lucy.
"Well are you?" Lucy asked Mary after a few minutes.
"Well, am I what?" Mary asked Lucy, confused.
"Are you feeling well enough to play?" Lucy asked her sister, concerned.
"No, not really, but I am not going to tell Mom and Dad that. This game means the world to me," Mary told Lucy.
"I really think that you should tell them," Lucy told Mary.
"No, I can't and you can't either,' Mary ordered Lucy.
"But…," Lucy urged.
"Luce, promise me that you won't say anything to Mom and Dad," Mary ordered her sister.
"Okay, I promise," Lucy told Mary reluctantly.
"Now, do you mind, my teammates will be here in fifteen minutes to pick me up. I need to get ready," Mary told her sister, glancing over at the time on her alarm clock.
"Sorry,' Lucy told Mary as she got up and left the room to give her sister some privacy.
About fifteen minutes later, the doorbell rang and Mary ran down the stairs to answer it. When she did, she saw her teammates.
"Are you ready to go?" asked one of her teammates.
"Yeah," Mary responded. Just then, her parents came to the front door.
"Bye honey, your brothers and sisters and I will meet you at the game. See you later," Mrs. Camden said.
"Wait, why won't you be at the game Dad?' Mary asked her father.
"Because there was an emergency at the church, but I promise that I will be there as soon as I can," Reverend Camden told Mary.
"I love you."
"I love you too Dad," Mary said, as she hugged her father.
"Bye, see you later," Mary said as she headed out the door.
A half an hour passed and it was about time to leave for Mary's game. Simon, Ruthie, Lucy and Matt were upstairs getting ready for the game when they were called downstairs.
"Guys, it's time to go," Mrs. Camden told the children. A few minutes later, they all came rushing down the stairs and headed out to the car to go to the game. Meanwhile, Mary was waiting on the bench for the start of the game. When the referee blew the whistle to signal the start of the game, Mary hustled out onto the court. As she did, she scanned the crowd for mom, bothers and sisters. Where are they? She thought to herself.
Just then, the whistle blew for the tip-off. The Wildcats won the tip-off and Mary hustled down the court on offense. She got the ball and took the shot and scored. Her team was ahead 2 to 0. Five minutes passed and The Wildcats was now ahead 17 to 14 and the coach called a timeout. During the timeout, Mary scanned the crowd again for her family and spotted them. Good they made it, Mary thought to herself. Just then, the horn blew to signal the end of the timeout. "
1,2,3…Defense," the team yelled and then hustled onto the court. Two more minutes passed before the end of the first quarter. The Wildcats were now ahead 21 to 14. When the quarter ended, Mary and her teammates hustled over to the bench to listen to what coach Cleary had to say.
"Good job, nice defense," coach Cleary told the team.
"Camden, you're still in on point guard. Larson, go in for Carlson," coach Cleary said. With that, the horn blew to signal the start of the second quarter.
"1,2,3…Hustle," the team yelled and then hustled onto the court.
Once on the court, it was the other teams' ball. They took the ball down the floor and scored. Mary got the inbound pass and called out a play while watching for someone to pass the ball to on the inside. When she was unable to find anyone open, she drove the ball up the lane, missing the basket, and drew the foul. She went to the line to shoot two free throws and missed them both. The other team got the rebound and took the ball down the court and scored a three. Now the score was 21 to 17. Just then, the whistle blew to signal a timeout. Mary and her teammates hustled over to the bench out of breath.
"Kelly, can you give me my water bottle?" Mary asked one of her teammates breathlessly. Kelly gave Mary her water bottle and she took a long drink.
Moments later, the horn to signal the end of the timeout sounded and Mary, along with her teammates, hustled out onto the court. They had the ball. One of Mary's teammates in bounded the ball to Mary and she took it down the court. She looked for someone to pass the ball to. She finally spotted someone and passed them the ball. Her teammate took the shot and scored. The Wildcats were ahead 23 to 17. The Wildcats were now on defense. Mary hustled on defense. Suddenly, she noticed that the right side of her lower abdomen was beginning to hurt but she ignored it, figuring it was just a side ache from running so hard. She returned her attention back to the game. Three more minutes passed until the second quarter ended. When it did, Mary and her teammates hustled over to the bench and then followed the coach into the locker room.
Once in the locker room, coach Cleary gave the team some words of encouragement and told them what they needed to concentrate on in the second half. After the team listened to what he had to say, they left the locker room and warmed up while they waited for the third quarter to begin.
With about a minute thirty left on the clock before the start of the third quarter, the team returned to the bench to get ready for the start of the quarter. It was not until then, that Mary was reminded of the sharp pain she was experiencing in her lower abdomen. It hurt more then before, but once again she ignored it. She grabbed her water bottle and took a drink thinking that if she drank water the pain would subside.
"Camden, you're out for awhile, Conway you're in," coach Cleary said. Good, Mary thought to herself. Just then, the whistle to signal the start of the third quarter blew and The Wildcats hustled onto the court. They had the ball. They took the ball down the floor and scored. The score was now 25 to 17. About two minutes passed and the opposing team's coach called a timeout.
"Camden, ready to go in?" coach Cleary asked Mary.
"Yeah," Mary responded, for the pain in her lower abdomen had finally subsided – or at least she thought.