Romeo On and Off the Court

by swervin35

Before Bella, Edward's only love was basketball. His dream is to play for the NBA. When he meets Bella, she turns his world upside down. There's a story behind why Bella doesn't date. So, it doesn't come as any surprise she turned Edward down when he asks her out. Will Edward find out why? Will he convince her to give him a shot? What will happen if Bella gives in?

3. Chapter 3 - Tip Off

Romeo On and Off the Court

Chapter 3: Tip Off

To put the ball in play by throwing it up between two opponents.

Bella

Christopher, a fellow English tutor looked up and over at me as I settled at a nearby table. He had asked me for my opinion on a few papers he reviewed and asked me for help on his from time-to-time, and always repaid the favor by helping me in the same way. A girl joined Christopher, which meant I was the only open English tutor.

The Greek god slid into a chair next to me at the round table I sat. "Hi again," he said. "I'm Edward."

"Bella," I said, giving him a friendly smile.

"Nice to meet you." He flashed me a smile that was all teeth, reminding me of Matthew McConaughey. "I was hoping you could help me with my paper. I can make my point, however, grammar is my downfall."

"Let's see what I can do to help." I held out my hand, surprised he admitted what he needed help with. "I'll need a copy of the assignment, too."

After reading what the professor had assigned, I read through Edward's paper.

"Do you mind if I highlight and write in the margins?" I asked as I pulled a yellow highlighter out of my bag.

"Not at all," he replied when I looked up. "I'm open to whatever help you can be."

He sat next to me patiently as I continued reading, highlighting as I found an error. I saw one place he could strengthen his argument and grabbed my blue highlighter and put corner marks around where.

"Alright," I said, looking up. "Your argument is on point, and your grammar is not as bad as you hinted. Just a few corrections. Let's go over them first and then we can discuss how you can possibly take it up a notch."

A look of astonishment crossed his face. "Not bad?" he asked, his bewilderment coming through more.

"No. Common grammar errors, easily fixed. I even make them."

His astonishment didn't fade as we went through each correction he needed to make. I explained the FANBOYS mnemonic device of knowing where to place commas. Writing it in the on back on his last page what each letter meant, and an example for each.

Edward reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. "Man, I wish I had an English teacher like you in high school. You really know your stuff."

I blushed at the compliment. "Thanks," I whispered.

His hand inched closer to my left. "Now, you mentioned taking it up a notch. How would I do that?"

When I made a similar comment to other students I helped, they didn't remind me. I delighted smile touched my lips for a brief moment.

"Since you are writing about the battle of Agincourt, you might consider adding King Henry's speech from Shakespeare's Henry the Fifth."

Edward looked confused. And I decided to throw him a bone.

"The battle you are writing about took place in 1415, right?"

"Yes."

"On Saint Crispin's Day, if I remember my history right."

He consulted his notes before looking up at me, nodding.

"Well, Shakespeare wrote a speech in his play Henry the Fifth about that day for the King. It was about being a band of brothers, which is the thesis of your paper." I flipped back to the first page, where I had suggested rewriting his opening paragraph. "In the play, King Henry's goal was to motivate his men, saying in effect, that even if they died those who survived would remember them."

Comprehension appeared in his eyes, the color of fresh, dewy grass. "I get what you saying. Where do you feel it would fit best in my paper?"

"Right after your thesis, paragraph two is where I would insert it.' When I found where it would fit, I wrote, "…we few, we happy few, we band of brothers…," drawing an arrow to where I would insert it.

"I noted a line from the speech to help you find it online. Make sure you add the reference to your bibliography. Use a block quotation if you use the whole speech."

"Block quotation?"

I closed my eyes, taking a moment to think and refocus myself. He was not the typical student I helped. He was intriguing and asked questions. If circumstances were different, I could see myself throwing condition to the wind and asking him out. However, one guy using me for a good grade ruined all that.

"Your text is left justified. And simple quotes for a book or article are fine that way. Longer text, multiple lines from a play or poem, you want to indent each line."

"I get it. And if I just wanted to use a few lines, how would I go about that for a play or poem?"

"Left justify with a backslash between lines."

He smiled. "Thank you, Bella. You've been a real help."

My heart skip a beat when my name left his lips. It was like sweet ambrosia, pleasurable to hear.

I glanced at the clock. It was five till six. Closing time. "Well, that's all the time we have. If you make the changes and the addition, your paper will surely get you an A."