Page 19 of Off the Rim
Ashton James Jr was the king of campus during his years here. He was the president of Alpha Omega Psi and still maintains the connections he made as part of the elite fraternity. He met my mother at a fraternity mixer. As the son of one of the richest CEOs in the country, I might as well be coming into a throne. All I need is a queen to bear my heirs so I can continue the family line of wealth and power.
It's exhausting, and frankly, it’s gross. My parents know I'm gay, they just don't care. Other than preventing me from being publicly outed and potentially embarrassing them, they seem to make a point to not acknowledge it.
"Involving yourself with that boy will only drag you down." "Their family is nothing but trouble, I thought I told you that." "He probably did it on purpose, so he could get you on camera and blackmail our family."
I’ve never stopped thinking of that night. My involvement might have been wiped from the records, but it was never wiped from my memory.
Turning towards the large open doorway to the lobby, my gaze locks ona pair of brilliant blue eyes I’ve never been able to forget.
Marcus freezes, his face contorted into shock and confusion. I'm likewise frozen, but for a different reason. I knew I'd see him today. I'd expected to run into him before now, but I got in late yesterday and he wasn't at the dorm welcome party last night.
Despite being on edge since the moment I got to campus, I'm still struck dumb by the sight of him.
The shock on his face dissolves, replaced by a cool demeanor that barely covers his seething anger.
Standing, I straighten to my full height and step away from the circle of guys, who have stopped their conversation to see what, or who, has captured my attention. As soon as I take three steps toward him, Marcus breaks eye contact, eyes shifting around the room to the rest of my teammates.Ourteammates. Shaking his head like he's knocking something loose, he backs away and makes a beeline out of the common room.
I run after him, ignoring the curious looks and calls for my attention. As soon as I'm through the front doors of the building, I shout his name, but he's too far ahead to hear me. Or maybe he heard me and doesn't care. I'm sure he's surprised to see me. He probably needs some time to process before he'll talk to me. After everything I did, I can do that for him.
Despite the setbacks my friends caused him, Marcus landed himself at one of the top colleges in the United States, on a teamthat is shaking up the NCAA. It's been over three years since everything happened, and we were young and stupid. Mistakes were made. Surely we can move past it enough to talk to each other. We're going to be teammates, after all.
"Ah, I see you're familiar with the team Bitch Boy?"
My eyes are so wide, the summer breeze stings as I swivel my head to Anderson, one of my teammates and fraternity brothers. "What did you say?"
"Vell," he says, gesturing with his chin to Marcus, who is entering the sports complex. "He's Coach Burke's little pet. Thinks he's better than everyone else. You'll see."
Eyes narrowed, I follow the rest of the team into the sports complex. Almost everyone is already suited up, so we drop our bags in our designated lockers and head out onto the court, where the assistant coaches direct everyone to sit on the bleachers. When Coach comes out, the players all whoop and cheer. Even Anderson, who basically accused Marcus of being a brownnoser, is cheering emphatically.What a douche.
Of course, that douche sits right next to me like we're best friends, grinning and nudging me as Coach quiets everyone down to give an impromptu speech. I'm late to join summer training, the rest of the team has already been here for a week. It seems odd that we wouldn't head straight into practice, but maybe he has a few announcements to get out of the way for the beginning of a new week.
"Gentlemen! Welcome to a new week. You might be wondering why you're not on the court right now, and we'll get to that. I just wanted to give a formal welcome to what is sure to be the best year in CVU Basketball history. With the roster of playerswe have, the perseverance, skill, and dedication I have seen on this court even in just the last few days, I have no doubts that we will make it to at least the Sweet Sixteen. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if we go all the way."
The shouts of excitement are near deafening, and it takes several minutes to get everyone calm enough to continue.
"This year, we will work harder, run faster, push farther, and pass quicker than ever before. You will reach new heights, not just as basketball players, but as students of this fine establishment. And we will bring glory to the Cumberland Valley name." He smiles and nods through more applause, looking more like a politician than an athletic director, down to the full suit he’s wearing. "And to help us reach those goals, you might have noticed that we've added a new player to our roster of excellence. I'm sure he needs no introduction, but please welcome Mr. Ashton James III to our Cougars Basketball family."
This time the applause is for me, and I have to make a concerted effort not to show my embarrassment at being singled out. Aside from one guy sitting several rows down, round ears blazing red with anger, they all seem happy to have me, excited even. Despite their warm welcome, I can't help but feel like an imposter who’s come running to my daddy's home turf with my tail between my legs. I might be transferring from a championship team, but I had little to do with that success. My college basketball career hasn't been the breakout success I was expecting, and coming to this team is a last resort to stand out for NBA scouts. I'm thankful Coach didn't mention my placement on his team also came with a hefty donation, one that will ensure I see the court a lot more than I have these past few years. As ashamed as I am to resort to using my father'sinfluence, I need my senior year to be huge. My dad thinks he's winning right now, but this is my last chance to make it big so I don't have to follow in his footsteps.
Coach Burke welcomes me again, letting me know that Coach Weston, his second in command, will walk me through how they do things. Then a whistle blows, and the team scatters, all of them except Marcus patting me on the shoulder or back to welcome me to the team.
"Mr. James, I'm Horace Weston, Associate Head Coach. It's nice to meet you in person."
"Thank you, sir. I'm glad to be here," I say, shaking his offered hand. It’s a stark reminder that I’m back in the world I grew up in, that one of my coaches is calling me Mr. James.
"Let's start with a tour, and I'll walk you through the basics of how Coach Burke has elevated the Cougars to a championship-bound team."
"Sounds good." I don't tell him that my father and I already did a tour of the facilities last month, when we negotiated my transfer prospects. It's nice to look at everything without my father's critical input.
What I'm impressed by the most, however, isn’t the facilities or amenities. It's watching the team practice, specifically Marcus, that holds my interest.
Watching him on the court is like watching an artist sculpt a masterpiece. One by one, the team lines up to challenge him, but he can't be beat. I wonder if I could still measure up. Shaking my head out of my memories, I wonder out loud why Marcus is wasting away on the scout squad rather than on the court.
"Marcus is a great player, but the rest of the team doesn't mesh well with him."
Maybe because the coaches are hell bent on pitting him against his teammates.They have to know that won’t endear him to any of the other players, don't they?
After a while, I'm eager to get out on the court with the rest of the team, if only so I can get closer to Marcus. I really just want to talk to him, but he's steadfast in his determination to pretend I don't exist. I'm so busy trying to get his attention, that I play like shit. I need to shake it off and get my head in the game before I embarrass myself any further. The last thing I need is Coach Burke calling up my father and telling him I'm slacking off, or not worth the effort of making changes to his team roster.
