Chapter 11
As Sam walked into the school, he saw an aluminum ladder reaching for the ceiling among the streaming bodies. He glanced up and saw Michael standing half way up the rungs replacing a lightbulb that probably didn't really need replacing. It just gave him a bird's eye view of the hall. He neared his classroom and discovered Joel, Nick, and a few others in their gang hanging around the locked door.
"Excuse me, gentlemen," Sam said as he squeaked past and jingled his keys. He shifted his load to his right hand and unlocked the door. "Wow, you're so eager to come to class, you had to bring your friends too, huh?"
"Not exactly." Joel moved to within a few inches of Sam. "I wanted to remind you about our little match. The one we were supposed to have on Friday."
"Look, I said we'd do it if there was time. There wasn't any."
"Then what about today, before class, just you and me." Joel smirked and leaned against the door frame. "You want everybody to think you're this cool guy who was some big hotshot special forces dude, but until you prove to me that you're a better swimmer, I've gotta wonder. And so do a lot of other people. Maybe you're just hype, man."
"I don't have to prove anything to you. But I can see that I'm just not going to get any rest from this broken record of yours so, okay, let's do it. Today, five minutes before the start of class. You're not there, you forfeit. Deal?" He stuck out his hand, and Joel shook it.
"Deal."
The students who weren't in his class broke off and walked down the hall, and Joel and Nick retreated into the classroom. Sam let out a big breath as Michael passed him in the hall. Their eyes met, Michael's chiding him, and Sam's apologetic. There was no other way to end this. Sam held up two fingers. Two pm, be there. Michael nodded and kept moving down the hall.
Word of the swimming match spread like wildfire. In the teacher's cafe, everyone looked at Sam when he entered, but no one spoke to him about the challenge. Only Sue had the nerve to approach him.
"Sam, is it true? Are you really going to swim a race against Joel Hagan?"
"It's true. Why is everyone so excited about it?" He opened his lunch bag and pulled out its contents like he did every day.
"Joel was a JV long-distance swimmer before he came here, and he won tournaments! He's going to kick your butt, Sam!"
"Maybe, maybe not."
"Aren't you afraid of what Mr. Larkin will say?"
"I'm hoping to teach this kid a lesson, that he can't just threaten people and get away with it. What Mr. Larkin does after that lesson is taught, well, that's up to him."
"You've obviously gotten your spin together on this." She shook her head in amazement. "Good luck, Sam. We're all hoping you win."
He glanced around the room. The other teachers looked at him with guarded respect for what he was trying to do. If they weren't so concerned about keeping their jobs, they might have done something a long time ago. It was no wonder that Sam, Jack, and Michael had to come in and save this school from the thugs, but how long would it take after they left for things to go back to the way they were?
After lunch, Sam walked the hall to the pool. It felt as if every eye glanced his way, and he heard his name whispered among the students. Michael came off a side hall and fell into step with him.
"Sam, we have a problem."
"You're telling me! Everybody knows about this!"
"You have to call it off," Michael advised sharply.
"No! If I do that, I'm going to look like a coward and everything I've done up to this point would have been for nothing." He glanced at his friend. "I'm sorry, I have to do it."
"And if you lose, you'll still undo everything."
"That's a chance I have to take. But if I back down, it's a sure bet." He turned toward the locker rooms. "Just have a little faith that I can do this, Mike. Please!"
"He's younger, lighter..."
"But I've been working out, Mike. I'm in better shape than he is, believe it or not. I've seen him smoking outside, he doesn't have the lung capacity to get the job done." He smiled. "You're forgetting that I've seen his relay numbers. They were good for a short distance, but for longer, it's not good enough." Sam pushed the door and entered the locker room, and he turned back once more to add. "You know I can go the distance."
Michael sighed, shook his head, and moved toward the public entrance to the pool along with half the student body. He found Jack already inside staking out a prime spot in the front row of the bleachers that sat on a terrace with easy access to the pool, just in case they would have to jump to Sam's aid. By the time 1355 rolled around by Michael's watch, the bleachers were full on both sides and the ends were packed with students and teachers alike. Mr. Larkin himself appeared with his secretary, and he stood at the finish line, arms crossed, a scowl on his face.
"Looks like Carl isn't too happy about this, but he couldn't stay away."
Michael nodded. "Either that, or he was hoping his presence would stop it."
Jack chuckled. "Not likely. He's never dealt with the mass of stubborn known as Sam Axe."
"That's the truth."
Joel appeared in his tight fitting speedo and a minority of students cheered and whistled for him. He nodded, grinned, and waved to the crowd as if he'd already won.
"Oh dear god, I hope Sam doesn't come out in a..." Michael began, just as Sam exited the locker room.
"You can look, Mike, it's not so bad." Jack laughed at him.
While it wasn't as tight fitting as Joel's suit, Sam ditched the loose, knee-length suit he wore for class and donned something more streamlined. Without a word he stepped up on the platform for lane two, and Joel chose lane four.
The football coach stood up with a cap gun. "Gentlemen, take your marks, get set..." Bang!
The gun went off and Sam got the jump on Joel. His legs sprung him off the platform and he soared over the water for several yards before plunging in. He wasted little time gliding, but took off swimming immediately. Joel was already three yards behind.
With all the screaming and yelling from the stands, it was hard for Sam to hear the splashes of his own strokes, let alone Joel's. So he concentrated on making smooth, even movements to pull himself through the water. The wall came up fast, and he flipped around, pushed off, and gained more distance on Joel. He had to be careful to pace himself. It was a short race of only four laps, but if he wasn't careful he could lose steam at the end and Joel, if he was conserving his energy, could surge ahead.
"Mike, look at him go! He's gonna win," Jack yelled as he jumped in his seat beside the other man. "Come on, Sam! Show 'em what a SEAL is made of!"
Someone started a chant, calling his name over and over. Behind them, Jack saw several of Sam's students sitting on the bleachers. The girls changed the chant and included foot stomping.
"Sam, Sam, he's our man!" Stomp. Stomp. "Sam, Sam, he's our man!" It spread up and down the rows until everyone was doing it. The whole arena throbbed with the sound as Sam and Joel hit the home stretch.
Sam had a body's length on Joel, but the younger man tried to close it down. Michael saw the look on Sam's face as he realized how close the kid was to beating him, and when his face went back into the water, his arms pulled harder to propel him forward. He didn't glide into the finish line, he ran into it with his arms at full speed and his feet hit the pool floor. He swiped the hair out of his eyes as his chest heaved. He turned his head in time to see Joel's hand touch the side of the pool.
The girls behind Jack and Michael screamed so loud, Jack thought he would be deaf for a week. They jumped and hugged each other, rejoicing in their teacher's victory. Jack tapped Michael's arm, and he looked up at them. Then he looked at Jack.
Shaking his head in disbelief, Michael yelled over the chaos. "Sam is not going to believe this when we tell him!"
"I knew he could do it!" Jack beamed and threw his fist in the air in victory.
Michael had his doubts about the race, but after seeing the crowd's reaction, he was proud of Sam. And he showed it by standing up and clapping his hands along with the student body.