'Huh?' Rudy and Jackson exclaimed simultaneously. Even Kenny was confused, though he kept it contained; Shane was more intrigued, whereas Tommy had a sly, disbelieving smile on his face.
'What was all that talk about balance and not obsessing over training?' Jackson asked.
'Yeah. Like, no offence, Mr Woods, but you weren't feeding us a load of shit, were you?' Rudy said.
'Not at all, boys,' Mr Woods responded. 'Sorry if it seems like I went back on what I said, but I really meant it. It's vital to find a balance between football and your life outside of it. … That said, I know how badly all of this means to you, and I trust you to take that lesson to heart. Remember the feelings you experienced today, the peace and serenity of the water and the fish. Hold on to that while we do a little practice … in a fun way.'
Rudy and Jackson shared a look—Jackson was slowly coming to terms with the supposed wisdom, though Rudy looked as if he was still denying it.
'So what the hell are we doing now?' Kenny asked.
'Balance, of course,' Mr Woods answered with a smile. 'There's still a physical aspect to balance.'
'An important skill for every player to have, but especially Receivers,' Tommy added. 'It'll help you hold strong to your line, so nobody can push you off it; it'll help after the catch, so you're harder to knock down and tackle; and it'll even help in your catches, not just at the sideline—though you'll definitely be able to drag your toes better after this—but internal balance plays a big role in how well you can control yourself through the air.'
Rudy's expression softened, his scowl fading. Tommy made some good points, and even if Mr Woods was a little strange, it'd be good to learn from him; any training was appreciated if it got him closer to a varsity spot.
Of course, Shane, Kenny, and Jackson were more than eager to get underway with their training. Shane clapped his hands together loudly, the sharp noise echoing across the lake. 'What do you need us to do, sir?'
'Excellent question. Who here has seen The Karate Kid?'
'You mean Cobra Kai?' Kenny asked. The others looked at him nodding.
'I mean, yeah, I've seen the first season,' Rudy said.
'I've heard good things about it, but I don't watch much TV,' Shane said.
'Oh you should totally check it out, it's really good,' Jackson said.
'When it's focusing on the karate and not the dumb relationships, anyway,' Kenny added.
Tommy groaned, shaking his head. 'No guys, come on. He's talking about the movie.'
Mr Woods breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, someone was on the right path.
'You know, the one with Jackie Chan and Will Smith's kid.'
Mr Woods buried his face in his hands. Had he failed as a father? 'No no no, it's not ANY of those.'
Jackson was taken aback by the pain in his dad's voice.
'I'm talking about The REAL Karate Kid, the one with Mr Miyagi.'
There was a long silence as the younger boys tried to figure out where they'd heard the name before. 'You mean the dead sensei from Cobra Kai?' Kenny said.
'Yes? Anyway, Mr Miyagi was the teacher in the first movie, played by the legendary Pat Morita. He was great! The best part of the movie, easily.'
'Huh. There's an old movie?' Tommy asked. 'I thought it was the one with Jackie Chan. I mean, isn't Jackson named after him?'
'What?!' Jackson looked at his old brother incredulously. It was the first time he was hearing about that origin of his name.
'Is it? I always thought it was because of Michael Jackson,' Mr Woods said. A coy smile let the boys know he was only joking, (or was he?) though Jackson didn't find it particularly funny. 'We're getting off topic. Look, the original Karate Kid movie had lots of great scenes with unorthodox training techniques that were of a great help to Daniel-san both with his karate and life in general. For balance, I was thinking of recreating the boat scene'—he looked at them all—'but there's a few too many of us for that to work. Instead, I had something better in mind.'
His gaze left his audience and travelled beyond them, focusing on the corner of the pier where a thick support post stuck out. The boys followed his gaze, then glanced down at the water waiting below the posts. Water which was sure to be freezing cold.
'Uhh…' was the collective response.
'What?' Mr Woods grinned, it was a strangely unsettling expression on his usually neutral face. 'You're not afraid of a little water are you? Even if you are it shouldn't matter. Keep your balance and you won't get wet.'
'What's the catch?' Jackson said, suspicions raised. It sounded too simple for one of his dad's schemes, especially after the whole fishing debacle.
'There's a lot of catches, actually, seeing as that's what you'll all be doing up on those posts—catching passes. AND seeing as it's about testing your balance, you'll be standing on one leg, of course.'
'There it is,' Jackson said.
'That's all?' Kenny asked.
'Yeah, how long do we have to do that for?' Rudy added.
Mr Woods's disconcerting smile was the only answer he gave. Rudy, Kenny, and Jackson didn't want anything to do with that smile. They could tell, based on Mr Woods's earlier words regarding how they were going to fish until they'd ALL caught something, he probably wouldn't stop until everyone had fallen into the water.
Shane walked over to one post—along with those at the corners at the end of the pier, there were more spread out evenly along the pier—and stepped up onto it.
'That's the initiative I like to see, Shane,' Mr Woods said. 'Tommy, could you please get the balls?'
The other boys sighed. Whilst Tommy went back to his car to retrieve the balls, they all picked out their own posts and took their places atop them. Only once Tommy returned, and he and Mr Woods were ready to begin did the boys shift their stance to one leg, finding their balance.
'Ready?' Mr Woods asked.
The boys looked at each other; both Tommy and Mr Woods had strange looks—Tommy with a cheesy grin, and Mr Woods with that too sweet smile. Some sighed, but all the boys nodded.
In the beginning, all was normal. Mr Woods tossed a ball to Jackson, as Tommy did to Kenny, both caught them with ease, then tossed them back. Shane and Rudy did the same shortly afterwards, and it continued in a loop.
Of course, Mr Woods and Tommy mixed it up, throwing to different people in different orders, sometimes throwing to the same person twice in a row, sometimes not throwing to someone at all for a minute, but even with the randomness, the boys were laser-focused.
It continued for a few minutes until Tommy said: 'I'm surprised, Rudy. If your hands were always this good, maybe you wouldn't have been dropped from varsity.'
Rudy caught the ball Mr Woods tossed at him, but held it in place, staring at Tommy. 'What?' Disbelief overruled anger for the moment; surely he'd heard incorrectly.
'They must've dropped you for some reason, right? Maybe it's because you dropped them first.'
'Back here, Rudy,' Mr Woods said. 'You have to keep focused on what's important. This is all part of your training.'
Tommy grinned, but Rudy was still glaring at him as he tossed the ball back to Mr Woods. It rebounded straight back to Rudy, though he still had the wherewithal to catch it again.
'Good, good,' Tommy said. 'There's still a mental aspect of balance, but it looks like you've got that under control, Rudy. I'm sure it'll be the same for ALL of you.' His grin was much more mischievous, like he was watching someone about to sit on a whoopee cushion.
He tossed the ball to Shane, and while it was travelling through the air he said: 'You're good for someone who can't win the big one.'
Shane laughed as he caught the ball, gently tossing it back. 'I've accepted all my downfalls. They're good mistakes to learn from.'
'Are you learning if you keep repeating them?' It was Tommy who said it, but Mr Woods who threw the next ball at Shane. Still, he caught it without blinking.
Tommy's ball went Jackson's way. A different air was settling over the pier. Not exactly hostile, but it was a far cry from the carefree joy they'd felt whilst fishing.
'What about you, Kenny? Are you learning? Or content to stay second-best. If that,' Tommy said.
Kenny scoffed, catching another ball. 'I'm gonna be the best, just you watch.'
'You say that, but you gotta prove it,' Tommy retorted. 'From where I'm standing, you're only falling further behind.'
Hardened eyes met Tommy's stare.
Tommy turned towards Jackson, though tossed another ball Shane's way. Jackson shrugged his shoulders, lobbing his recent catch back to Dad. He was ready for anything Tommy could dish out.
'I can't help but fell as if I might've pressured you, son,' Mr Woods said. 'You know, it's okay, you don't have to push yourself for our sake. Your mother and I will still love you even if you're a failure.'
The barb was unexpected coming from Dad, but it didn't throw Jackson off. He twisted towards Tommy's ball and caught it, keeping his balance as he shimmied back towards the middle of the pole.
Mr Woods shivered, like he was shaking off the evil of his words, then laughed. 'I'm proud of you boys for being so tough. Lord knows how nasty things can get on the field when it feels like you hate your opponent.'
'They're tough for a bunch of losers,' Tommy said.
Such comments continued for a while. Tommy led the way; Mr Woods was only comfortable enough spouting such false, vile remarks at Jackson. Jackson could see past the lies, and remember they loved each other. However, as the day dragged on, it looked like nobody would fall.
'Phew. I don't know,' Mr Woods said. 'I think they're all too tough for us. Maybe we should've made it harder.'
'Could've tied one of their hands behind their back. But nah, we'll get them to crack soon enough,' Tommy said.
Some of the boys looked like they might drop from boredom rather than loss of balance. Mr Woods smiled, shaking his head. 'They're too tough for that. Especially Jackie. That's what makes him such a good older brother. He really sets an example for Chrissy, and I'm sure he'll do just the same for his new little brother or sister, too.'
The words took a moment to register in Jackson's mind. '…What?!'
As he was coming to grips with what his dad had just said, a ball from Tommy hit him in the shoulder. He tilted back, leg kicking and arms flailing, but couldn't catch himself as he fell off the post. There was a short cry followed by a heavy thwack and loud splash.
Rudy barked with laughter, though couldn't fully enjoy the moment as Mr Woods threw a ball his way. Shane and Kenny looked down at the water with some concern. Tommy walked to the edge and peered over as Jackson burst back up to the surface, a ball floating beside him.
'You alright, Jack?' Tommy asked.
'I was only joking!' Mr Woods shouted.
'I'm… fu… screw you, Dad! That wasn't funny.'
'I think everyone up here with disagree with you, Jackie.'
Snickers escaped Kenny, whilst Rudy was still quietly laughing. Even Shane was grinning broadly, and that guy barely constituted as having a sense of humour! 'We'll see how funny it is when it's all over you in the water,' Jackson mumbled to himself.
'Throw the ball up then swim to shore; there are towels in the back of Dad's car.'
Jackson threw the ball up, a spray of water coming with it, causing Tommy to cry out as he caught the ball. As Jackson swum back to shore, Mr Woods kept the exercise going.
'Actually, his mother was talking about the possibility of having another. I think she got the idea when she was speaking with your mom, Kenny, and learning your parents are expecting.'
'HUH!?'
Kenny's head whipped around just in time to get a football to the face. He tumbled into a backflip, disappearing over the edge of the pier. A pillar of water splashed up to announce his impact.
Rudy busted out laughing again, almost crumbling over and losing his balance solely from that. He had no hope of catching the ball Tommy tossed at him, and was swiftly knocked off to join Kenny in the water. A curse of "oh shit" was cut-off by another splash.
All of a sudden, only one boy remained.
Kenny and Rudy dragged themselves to shore, Rudy scowling at Kenny like it was his fault he'd fallen in; Kenny was quick to grab a towel and start drying himself. He hurried back along the pier. 'Mr Woods, you were joking about my parents too, right? RIGHT?'
'Hah. I don't know, actually. She might've said something like that.'
Kenny's jaw dropped open in abject horror. Mr Woods continued on with the exercise as if he hadn't just given the poor boy an existential crisis.
Mr Woods and Tommy passed balls back and forth with Shane, their speed increasing rapidly. But nothing fazed Shane. They tried different avenues of attack against his mental state, but it was like a fortress. Bringing up past failures washed off him, as did flaws in his game, even trying to insinuate he was going to become a big brother didn't affect him. At the rate they were going, they were going to be stuck there all night.
Tommy sighed. 'I didn't want to do this. But I think I need to use the secret weapon.'
The boys, huddled with towels around them, shared confused looks between themselves, but even Jackson didn't know what he was talking about. Shane shifted on his foot, bracing himself for something nefarious. His hands fidgeted; maybe they'd start throwing both balls at once.
Nobody would've guessed what came out of Tommy's mouth next. As his dad tossed another ball up to Shane, Tommy shouted: 'Your mom wears shorts!'
'Huh?'
The phrase dumbfounded everyone, including Shane, whose hands dropped to his sides. The ball bounced off his head, and he fell back, tucking into a ball. His splash was largest and loudest of all, yet he was the only one to resurface with laughter.
Mr Woods clapped Tommy on the back. It was absurd, but maybe that's why it had worked. The last boy had fallen, and the exercise was finished, just in time for home.
Another towel was given to Shane, and after the boys dried off, they started back to the cars, packing the rods away. Though before they could pile in, Mr Woods took a look at the setting sun, then asked: 'Who's up for some pizza?'
By the time they'd got their pizzas—one pepperoni and one with the lot—and found a carpark with a good view, the sun had set. They parked the cars side-by-side, and sat on the hoods together, Kenny, Jackson, and Tommy on his; Rudy, Shane, and Mr Woods on his.
As they shared the pizza around, they gazed at the stars. There was one final lesson there from Mr Woods, still regarding balance. It was more about re-emphasising how important it was to take some time to stop and enjoy the little things in life.
'I know they're far away,' Mr Woods said, 'and I'm sure you've got more important things to be worrying about, but there's not many sights more beautiful than the stars on a clear night. Enjoy them when you can.'
The boys stared up at the stars. It's funny how even whilst looking at the same dark canvas, they all saw their own unique message in the art. Whether it was a goal to stride towards, a memory of a past foe, a reminder of how small Earth and all it held was, or the wonderment of childhood.
'Football can feel so important at times,' Mr Woods, 'Believe me, I know as well as anyone. But even if it feels like it's YOUR WHOLE WORLD, it won't end after one bad game, not even after ten of them in a row.'
Tommy leaned closer to Jackson. 'Speaking of balance, Jackie, don't you think it's important to have a good balance of your personal and professional life? I know you're not pro YET, but it'd be good to get some practice.'
Jackson frowned around his latest mouthful. He didn't like the direction Tommy was hinting towards.
'What I think is, an easy way to maintain that balance, would be if you had a girlfriend and could spend some proper time with her. You still have that challenge to overcome of making it official with Jasmine.'
Jackson swallowed hard, glad he'd stopped eating to hear Tommy out, otherwise he might've choked on his food. It made sense, what Tommy said … but still … it didn't make the prospect any less daunting.