December 19, 2009
Outside, the sound of the snow falling against the window was like a lullaby, making the person sleeping in his bed not want to leave, knowing that as soon as he took off the blankets, he would feel the cold.
"Ugh." With a sigh of resignation, Aaron couldn't help but groan as soon as his feet touched the cold floor tiles, waking him up and stripping away all the laziness he had to get up.
Stretching as much as possible, he left his room and headed toward the kitchen, seeing that it was indeed empty; only a plate with a note sat on the table.
"You were sleeping soundly, so I left you breakfast. XOXO, Mom," the note said.
As soon as his eyes landed on the words of the note, a smile appeared on Aaron's face as he removed the plastic cover and saw that it was indeed pancakes with some chopped fruit on the side.
With quick steps, he went to the fridge to open it and quickly took out a carton of milk and a glass to pour himself a drink.
"Much better," Aaron said with a smile on his face, then sat down and began to enjoy his meal while picking up his phone to browse for a while until a post caught his attention.
It was a Facebook post from the school page, specifically from the Royals team.
"Royals start the season on the right foot, defeating All Hallows 64-57 🏀🔥"
Below that title, an image could be seen of the team celebrating yesterday in the middle of the court next to the final score of the match.
Curiously, Aaron clicked on the post, opening it to read the note.
Yesterday, the school's men's basketball team demonstrated why we are one of the most respected programs in New York by defeating the All Hallows Gaels with a final score of 64-57. After a complicated first half and a heart-pounding third quarter where the lead was slipping away, the team showed their grit in the final 8 minutes. The defense became a wall, and the attack flowed with a precision that left the visiting crowd in absolute silence.
Highlights of the encounter:
Maurice Barrows: Led the offensive charge in the first half with his characteristic aggressiveness.
Aaron Reed: What a debut for the rookie! The 9th-grade boy (#15) was the X-factor of the game, dominating the paint with spectacular blocks and distributing the ball like a senior. His three-pointer in the final seconds was the dagger that sealed the match.
Coach Joe Arbitello was satisfied with the collective effort: "It's only the beginning. We have a lot to polish, but the chemistry the boys showed at the end is what we want to see all season." These were the coach's statements at the end of the game. Next stop: Tonight we host Cardozo at home. Come support your Royals! 🔵🔴 #RoyalsNation #ChristTheKing #NYCBasketball #QueensPride
After that, Aaron's fingers went directly to the comments.
Brittany L.: OMG! 😍 Where did number 15 come from? He was incredible. Someone pass me his Facebook right now!
That comment couldn't help but bring a smile and a slight blush to Aaron's face.
Jake_Hallows: You guys got lucky. If our team had known how number 15 played from the start, the Royals would be crying today. Enjoy the robbery. 🙄
Kevin_CK: @Jake_Hallows Stop making excuses. The new kid wiped the smile off your faces with that block. You were silent the whole last quarter! GO TO SLEEP! 🤫😴
Sarah Miller: The cheerleaders were great yesterday. Such good energy! Let's win today against Cardozo! 📣❤️
Mike_TheBeast: 15 is good, but he's a rookie. In the next game, we're going to give him a real welcome. He won't be able to shoot so comfortably. 👊
Luis_Queens: I just saw a video of the pass... not bad. But get ready because tonight at the Kelly Gymnasium you won't be so lucky. The Cardozo "Judges" are coming for you. 🐍🏀
Vanessa_12th: It was the best game I've seen in a long time. New blood was needed on the team! The atmosphere was electric.
Brandon_Swish: Lack of precision from Maurice? No, we defended well. The problem was that the referee gave them everything at the end. Bought-off officiating. 🦓❌
Leo_TheKing: @Brandon_Swish Keep crying; the scoreboard doesn't lie. 64-57. See you in the finals, if you even make it there. ✌️🔥
Slowly, Aaron moved his finger across the screen, reading each of the comments—some good, some bad, and others talking about his performance in yesterday's game.
Those comments did nothing but bring a smirk of satisfaction to his face, knowing he was doing things right and that people were starting to notice him.
"They haven't seen anything yet," Aaron thought to himself, knowing he hadn't yet reached his maximum potential or shown everything he had to prove.
Then, a message notification sounded on his phone, making him exit Facebook and enter his messages app to see it was from Drew.
Drew: Friend, look at this 📷, he wrote while quickly attaching a photo of the post Aaron had been checking seconds before.
Aaron: Already saw it, he responded quickly while seeing the three dots of someone typing appear in the chat.
Drew: Are you playing today's game? Drew asked, wanting to know.
Aaron: The coach said only a few minutes, Aaron responded, now remembering the conversation he had with the coach after the game on the bus back to school.
Drew: I want to play already 🙃, was Drew's quick message, anxious to play and debut with the school team.
Aaron: When will your game be? This time it was Aaron's turn to ask, wanting to know how the freshman team was doing.
Drew: This Friday; Coach Derrick said that with luck, I could be the team's starting point guard 😌, was Drew's confident response.
Before Aaron could even respond to his friend's message, he heard the notification of another message. Curiously, he switched windows and opened the new message.
Hannah: Good game yesterday.
It was the only sentence visible in that previously empty chat.
Aaron: Thanks, he quickly sent the message, and then, without knowing why, wrote another one.
Aaron: What are you doing? He couldn't help but ask, wondering what Hannah was doing right now.
Hannah's response didn't take long, as the three dots of a message being typed appeared in the chat.
Hannah: Locked at home, unable to go out 📷, was Hannah's response, followed by a photo of her window showing the streets full of snow.
Aaron: Same here 📷, he said, likewise sharing a photo of how the street looked from his window.
Aaron: Any suggestions to kill time? Was the next message Aaron wrote, not wanting to end the conversation.
Hannah: Read a book? Hannah suggested after a few minutes.
Aaron: Any recommendations?
Hannah: Percy Jackson 🤷♀️.
Aaron: Do you like Riordan's books? Aaron asked, slightly curious about her response, remembering perfectly that he had a phase where he was obsessed with the books and, if his memory served him right, the last book of the series would come out this year.
Hannah: Yes, I love them…
What followed was a debate of theories and favorite moments from the Percy Jackson books and what could happen in the last book, something Hannah was especially excited about and waiting to get.
"I won't spoil the surprise for her," Aaron thought to himself, remembering the end of the series perfectly, but wisely decided to stay silent to avoid ruining the surprise.
Hannah: Good game, by the way, Hannah suddenly added, remembering the main reason she had written to him in the first place.
Aaron: Did you go see it? Aaron quickly asked, with something caught in his chest, waiting for her response.
Hannah: No. That simple response from her, for some strange reason, made Aaron's shoulders slump slightly in disappointment.
Aaron: I hope to see you in the stands sometime, he wrote and sent without thinking much, then slapped his head, not knowing why on earth he had written that, while watching Hannah's response with panic.
Anxiously, Aaron saw the typing dots appear, then disappear, and reappear, causing only more anxiety.
After what felt like an eternity to Aaron, a new message from Hannah appeared.
Hannah: I hope to go to one soon. Simple and blunt, but those simple words made Aaron's heart beat faster than normal.
Hannah: I have to go, was the last message Hannah wrote as a goodbye.
After that, Aaron turned off his phone screen and, leaning his head back, decided to simply relax and rest, not wanting to even go outside with all the snow out there.
Slumping comfortably against the living room sofa, his hands instinctively went to the remote on the coffee table, turning the screen on.
Without thinking twice, Aaron quickly flipped through the TV channels until he reached his destination: SportsCenter.
He decided to watch the highlights and important news happening in the NBA and the sports world currently.
"Boo-yah! Welcome back. We're just six days away from Christmas, and the NBA is giving some of us coal and others diamonds." The unmistakable voice of Stuart Scott was heard from the TV once the commercials ended.
"That's right, Stu," Jon Barry followed. "Pau and Kobe's Lakers are in another galaxy. They have a 21-4 record. They just crushed the Bucks, and Kobe is playing with a fractured finger like nothing is happening. Honestly, I don't see who can stop Phil Jackson's back-to-back if Andrew Bynum stays healthy."
"Careful there, Jon!" a third person interrupted the conversation with a magical smile on his face, heading straight for the camera with rarely seen confidence. "Don't forget my boys in Ohio. The Cleveland Cavaliers just won their fourth straight game. LeBron James is averaging nearly 29 points, and with Shaq's arrival, they finally have the size to fight in the paint," said a smiling Magic Johnson. "The question is: Can 'The King' finally take the ring home or will he fall short again against the Celtics?" he finished with a question, creating more expectations.
"Speaking of the Celtics, Magic, they are tied with Cleveland in the East (21-5). Kevin Garnett seems to have found his legs again, and Rajon Rondo is handing out assists like candy," Stuart Scott added, showing the mentioned statistics below the screen. "But let's look at Florida... Jon, what's up with the Orlando Magic?"
"Dwight Howard is still the 'Superman' of the league, dominating rebounds, but they lost a bit of identity after Turkoglu's departure. Even so, with Vince Carter on the team, they are a real threat. But the real story, Stu, is the Rookie of the Year." Stuart Scott said as the logo changed to show the Orlando Magic logo, showing Dwight Howard's highlights.
"Exactly!" Stuart exclaimed in front of the camera. "Everyone was talking about Blake Griffin, but with his knee injury, the stage was left open. Tyreke Evans in Sacramento is putting up Oscar Robertson numbers, and Brandon Jennings in Milwaukee scored 55 points recently. Fifty-five, being just a kid!" he ended, showing the image of the two mentioned players on the TV screen along with their statistics.
"And let's not forget the kid from Davidson in Golden State. Stephen Curry is starting to heat up. He doesn't have much of a physical frame, but that shot is something we haven't seen in a long time," Magic added, not staying behind in mentioning the player who in the future would revolutionize the game.
"Definitely. And meanwhile, in the world of transitions, Allen Iverson has returned to the Sixers for what seems to be his 'last dance.' Nostalgia is at its peak in Philadelphia," Stuart continued, showing an image of "The Answer" back in a 76ers jersey after his failed stint in Memphis.
"To close, Stu, keep an eye on Denver. Carmelo Anthony is the league's top scorer right now (30.0 PPG). If the Lakers slip up, Chauncey and Melo's Nuggets could give a scare in the conference finals."
"The drama is served! Stay with us, because when we return, we'll analyze if Trevor Ariza's Rockets can survive without Yao Ming. This is NBA Today!!"
Authors thought's
What did you think of today's chapter?
I was writing a new chapter while flying on a plane because I didn't want to leave you with nothing. So, here's a new chapter for you!
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