Hey...
So, here's chapter 2.
Just wanted to say thanks to those who read and reviewed.
Summary:He lost the two most important people in his life...fourteen years ago. But even today, he is dealing with the grief. When someone he once knew comes back into his life, will he be able to handle it? Or will he push them away?
BE MY ESCAPE
CHAPTER 2
Not many people in my life get to see the real me, they don't get to see who I really am, what I like, what I don't like. I don't like to let people get too close, and when they do, I tend to start to push them away. It's a defense mechanism I guess, if I don't let them get close then it won't hurt when they leave.
There is only one person in my life that knows every little unimportant detail of my life, knows every dark corner of my mind. One person that I can tell anything and know that they won't hold it against me or take off running if they don't like it. One person that I can truly confide in and know they won't tell a single soul. So what am I supposed to do when that person is the one I'm trying to avoid right now?
I swing my truck around and park it, grab my ball from the back seat and make my way out onto the court. I take a few dribbles and shoot and it goes straight in, all net. I run up and grab the shabby ball, the ball my dad gave me at my birthday right before he died.
Whenever I need to think, or just get away from the outside world, this is where I come, the river court. It's where I can be myself and play without any worries. I get to shoot around a little longer before I see a car pull up beside my truck. The driver gets out and walks towards me.
"Skipping school again Mikey?" He questions. He motions for the ball and I pass it to him. He shoots it and it goes in, but it doesn't surprise me because I know he used to play, and now he is the coach.
"It's Mike." I correct him. With a slight smile I ask him, "I could ask you the same thing Jake." He laughs as he shoots the ball again.
"Well when you didn't show up for gym, and Ashley said you stormed off, I figured you would be here." Jake replied. He passes me the ball, but I don't shoot it, instead just wait for him to tell me why he is here.
"And?" I question. "If it's that big of a deal just give me detention." He laughs again, but I don't.
"Why won't you play?" He questions me.
"Like I told Ryan and Ashley, I do play." I say motioning around the secluded playground.
"Your dad didn't want to play either." Jake offers. "But when he finally did, he was great. He had the time of his life, and that's how he met your mom. That's how he met me, and Peyton, and that's how he finally became brothers with Nate."
"So what?" I ask. "If I were to agree to play, you would just give me a spot on the team?"
"How bout this?" Jake begins. "You play a game against Ryan. If you win, then we leave you alone about playing. But if he wins, then you are on the team."
"That's it?" I state not really believing him. "If I win you just drop it?"
He nods, "One condition though. You have to play at the gym, tonight at seven." Behind him another car pulls up, one that I could recognize anywhere. Jake starts to back away and she walks up.
"Mikey." Ashley calls as she walks up next to Jake. I see Jake raise his brow at that, but I don't care, I just turn my attention back towards her. Jake waves as he drives away. "I didn't mean what I said earlier."
"Don't worry about it." I smile as I walk closer to her. "I overreacted anyway. It's just that…this place. I mean…I could play basketball anywhere. But this court, it has so many memories. This is where my father came from, and when I play here, it just makes me feel closer to him, like he is here watching me."
"And I know that." She replies. "But he also played in that gym. You're letting this place hold you back; you're letting your fears hold you here."
"Jake wants me to play against Ryan tonight, in the gym." I inform her. "I don't know if I'm going to or not."
"I think you should." She states. I shrug lightly and throw my arm around her shoulder and guide her back towards our cars. "I'll be there tonight. I hope you decide to play."
She gets in her car and speeds off down the street. I sit in my truck, my engine running, staring at the court. I take one last glance before I speed off towards the café. Parking my truck I jump out and head into the building.
"Mikey." My grandma smiles as I walk behind the counter and grab an apron. "Thanks, we're getting swamped." She says as she hands me a pen and notepad.
"I figured." I smile. I make my way around taking orders for the better half of an hour before the place finally starts to clear out. I sit down exhausted at the counter as my grandma gives me a sandwich.
"So I heard about the game." She says with a wide smile on her face. "Two more hours. You gonna go?"
I shrug as I take another bite. "I dunno."
She stares at me for a second before grabbing a napkin and writing something on it. "I want you to go to this address Mikey." She says placing the napkin in front of me.
I stare at the napkin and then back up at her confused. "What's there?"
"Just go." She pushes the napkin towards me. "It's a little ways away, but if you hurry you can make it back here in time."
I nod and make my way outside and into my truck. I've already been driving for twenty minutes and I'm just now getting into town. I take a few turns and look at the house numbers; finally I come upon it and I park on the street.
I knock nervously on the front door, not quite sure what to expect. The door opens a few seconds later, and an older man is standing on the other side. "Can I help you?" He questions, and I jump a little at his loud voice.
"I uh…" I say backing up some. "I think I got the wrong address."
"Hey." He says stepping out onto the porch before I can make it down the stairs. "Who are you looking for?"
"Whitey Durham." I state looking at the napkin. He looks me up and down, studying me, trying to figure out who I am.
"Who are you?" He questions. He tilts his head to the side, as if he was trying to remember something, or as if he had seen me before.
"Michael." I state. "My grandma gave me this address, told me to come here."
He continues to stare at me as he takes a seat on a rocker beside him. I can't help but fidget nervously as he takes me in. "Who's your grandma?"
"Karen." I answer him. I can tell by his reaction that it means something to him. His lips start to curl up into a small smile.
"Karen Roe." He states, I nod. He leans forward slightly and lifts his glasses from his eyes to look at me again. "Little Mikey." He laughs to himself. It's my turn to be confused; only people I know ever call me by that. "Come, sit." He says motioning to the chair beside him. I sit nervously, still not sure why my grandma sent me to this guy.
"I'm sorry." I give him an anxious smile. "I'm not sure how you know me."
"How's your Uncle Nathan?" He questions eagerly. "He still married to that brunette girl?"
"He's uh, fine." I answer. "He's married to my Aunt Haley. They have a son, Ryan, he's fifteen."
"Wow." He smiles widely. "Nate has a son. I thought his father screwed him up way to much for him to ever be a father." I am still trying to figure out who he is and how he knows so much about my family history. "Is he a good father?"
"I, I guess so." I stutter a little. "He doesn't hit us or anything."
"What about your grandma, how's she doing?" Who is this guy? And why does he want to know about everybody?
"She's good." I say fidgeting with my shirt. "She works at the café, and sometimes my grandpa helps out."
"Grandpa?" He looks at me curiously. "Karen got married?"
"No sir." I shake my head. "My grandpa Keith."
"Keith!" He exclaims. "I almost forgot about him."
"He isn't married either." I tell him. "He just opened up a car shop a few years back."
"What about you Mikey?" He smiles at me. "What brings you by? How's your life?"
"My grandma said that I should come see you." I inform him. "We were talking about basketball, and then she gave me this address and said to talk to you."
"Basketball." He smiles again. "Your daddy and Uncle Nate were two of the best players I ever coached. They loved the game, and they sure as hell were good at it."
"You knew my dad?" I question him curiously.
"I coached him during high school." He states. "He was a great player. A great man. And your mom, she was something, a real firecracker. They were complete opposites, but somehow they fit. They were crazy in love, and they were crazy about you."
"So any idea why my grandma sent me here?" I question looking at my watch.
"Well you mentioned basketball, you play?" He questions. I nod and he continues. "Let me guess, you play at the river court?" I nod again. "And someone wants you to play for the school?"
"How do you know?" I am now curious.
"Your just like your dad." He laughs to himself. "Son, I'm not gonna give you some big speech. Instead I'll tell you this: Play for that school. Your dad did, and I can guarantee that he did not regret it for a second. If he never did, then he never would have met your mom, and then you never would have been born. He lived for you. I know that he would not change it for anything. Joining my team was probably the best decision of his life."
"I should get going." I smile politely as I stand up. "Thanks for the advice."
"Hold up." He says reaching into his back pocket. "Give this to Nate." He said handing me a card with some phone numbers on it. He reached into his pocket again and pulled out an old tattered photo. "Here. I think you should have this."
I smiled down at the picture, a lump forming in my throat. It was my mom and dad. "That was when they were your age. It was right after him and Nate won the state championship."
"Wow." I smiled lightly as I was trying to hold in a few tears.
"That was the same night your daddy asked her to marry him." Whitey smiled again. My head shot up at his statement. Nobody had ever told me this story before. "They had just won the game, and were celebrating on the court. Your daddy looked up into the stands, grabbed the microphone from the announcer and walked into the middle of the court."
"What did he say?" I asked impatiently.
"Nothing special." Whitey said trying to remember. "He stood in the center of the court, looked up at your mom and asked her to marry him. Then he started running up to where she was sitting, Nate threw him a small box and he knelt down in front of your mom with the ring. A few seconds later he slipped it on her finger and then they kissed."
"Thanks." I smile genuinely. "I gotta go. It was nice to meet you."
He waves goodbye as I get in my truck and drive away. I speed up when I notice that I have to be at the gym in five minutes. I finally arrive at the school, and there are a few cars in the parking lot.
I enter the gym, and it's mesmerizing; this is the first time I've ever been in here. I stand in the middle of the court and take it in. I can almost picture my dad playing; I can picture it full of people cheering him on. I can picture my mom cheering him on from the sidelines.
"You ready?" Ryan said holding the ball out to me. I nod as I take the ball from him. I dribble for a few seconds but he steals it away and scores. I hand him the ball and he dribbles and scores again. "That all you got?"
He goes to shoot again but I block it and I hear people laugh from the benches. I dribble to the ball around him and score. We continue going back and forth until it's tied at ten, the next basket wins and it's my ball.
If I make this shot then I win and I don't have to play; if he makes the next shot then I have to play. I dribble the ball around him some, not letting him get it as I move closer to the rim. I turn towards the right, but then quickly fake back left and it leaves me with a clear shot to the basket. I take a shot and it bounces off the backboard and falls right into Ryan's hands. He shoots the ball and wins the game.
I just shrug my shoulders and watch as they congratulate him. Jake walks over and starts to smile. "Practice is at three, don't be late." Eventually everyone leaves, except Ashley.
"So." She says as she sits next to me on the court. "That was a pretty easy shot."
"What can I say?" I smile lightly. "Can't make them all the time."
"It's just weird." She raises her brow at me. "You can make those shots in your sleep."
"Yeah, weird." I laugh lightly. I'm not sure if I meant to miss the shot, if subconsciously I messed up on purpose, but I'm kinda glad I did. I want to see what it's like to play in front of a big crowd, feel what its like to play in a real game.
"Your dad would be proud." Ashley says quietly as we stare at each other. Ashley and I have known each other since we were nine. Our teacher paired us up on a project, and we've been friends ever since. She grabs my hand in hers, its nothing new for us, we always hold hands. But this time it feels different, something is different.
"I hope so." I whisper quietly as I stare into her eyes. I don't know what comes over me, but I find my self leaning in towards her, our lips almost touching. I can't help but feel butterflies in my stomach. She tilts her head up slightly, and our lips graze each other's; sparks start shooting through my body and I can't help but get caught up.
I use my other hand to hold her chin gently and pull her closer to me. Slowly I pulled away as I realized what I was doing. I stood up quickly as I watched her slowly open her eyes to face me. "I uh…I should go." I said quickly as I walked towards the doors.
"Michael." She stood up and ran towards me. She grabbed my arm as we left the gym. I spun to her quickly; she only used my full name when she was being serious and had something important to say. "What was that?"
I stood quiet for a second, trying to think of something to say. I started fidgeting nervously and looking anywhere but her eyes. "I gotta go." I said trying to shake my arm away from her.
"Michael Lucas Scott." She said gripping my arm as tight as she could, actually causing me to wince a little. I sighed, I should have known she wouldn't just let me leave. She bit her lip nervously, waiting for my answer. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly to calm myself.
"You wanna know?" I question as I step towards her making her take a few steps back. She nods her head slightly, her eyes fixed intently on mine. I take her right hand in mine and lace our fingers together and push her up against the side of the building. I dip my head quickly and push my lips into hers.
At that second, all of my fears vanished. For that brief moment, everything in the world stopped and fell away, and the only thing that was left, was us. My heart sped up as her hand grazed the back of my neck, it send chills down my spine as she played with the small hairs.
"Mikey?" I heard Ryan coming around the corner looking for me. We broke the kiss, both of us out of breath and our hearts still racing. Suddenly the outside world came back, and I just wished that it would go away again.
"What Ryan?" I questioned as he walked into view. Luckily, we seemed to play it off well and he didn't suspect anything.
"Bad time?" He asked curiously. I shook my head no and he continued. "I wanted to know if you wanted to join me and Emma at the café for dinner. Ashley can come too."
"I'll be there in a sec." I stated and he took the hint to leave us alone. I stood staring at Ashley, a foolish grin on my lips. "Come on." I said pulling her hand.
"I dunno." She said as we walked back to our cars. "I think I should be heading home, it's late."
"We've been out later." I said putting on the saddest face I could. "Pretty please?" I begged sticking out my bottom lip for emphasis, something I knew always worked. She sighed and hit me lightly on the shoulder before nodding her head. She got in her car and I watched her drive off.
I got in my truck and found my self under the intense stare of Ryan and Emma. "So?" Ryan smiled.
"We've friends." I stated like he was annoying me. "Besides, you have no room to talk." I said as I backed out of the parking space and drove to the café. We arrive at the café and took our usual booth, Ashley next to me, Emma next to Ryan.
"Hey guys." My grandma greeted us with a smile. "What do you want?"
We all told her our orders as she wrote them down. "I'll help you." I said standing up and following her into the kitchen.
"You kissed her didn't you?" My grandma asked as soon as we were out of listening range of them. I looked at her confused, how would she know something like that? I swear sometimes she is psychic.
"What, I…uh." I stutter trying to think of something to say.
"Please." She said tapping my cheek lightly. "I can tell be your smile. That's the same expression your father had when he first met your mom."
"Do you miss him?" I didn't know where it came from, and it was a stupid question, but it just came out. I could tell she was shocked by her expression.
"Of course." She smiled sadly. She handed me the tray of food and turned me towards the door. "Now you get out there." I gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before I went back to our booth.
We ate dinner together, laughing and talking about everything that was going on in our lives, minus me and Ashley, and everything that was going on in the world. "I should really get going." Ashley said standing up. "My mom is going to start to worry."
"Ya, Aunt Haley too." I said as I stood up. I followed Ashley to her house and jumped out and walked her up to her doorstep.
We both stood nervously, not really sure what to do. I looked back at the car and saw Ryan and Emma watching us, waiting for me to come back. "I'll uh…" I said with a small smile. I moved my lips next to her ear, "I'll kiss you later." I whispered, causing a laugh from her. I waited until she got inside before I went back to my truck.
After dropping Emma off, Ryan and I headed back into our house. I said goodnight to Uncle Nate and gave Aunt Haley a kiss before heading to me room. Exhausted from today I collapsed down on my bed, my eyes instantly landing on my picture.
'I'm stuck inside this rut that I fell into by mistake. I gotta get out of here.' Begins to fill my ears as I dig into my pocket for my phone. 'And I'm begging you, I'm begging you, I'm begging you to be my escape'
"Hey…" Ashley says through the phone and even though I can't see her I can tell she is smiling. I'm staring up at the picture of my parents on my ceiling and I can't help but compare them to us. "I'm just thinking about you."
"Ya, me too..." I smile to myself.