Collateral Damage by Patrick Jones

Author:Patrick Jones
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lerner Publishing Group

12

JANUARY 24 / SATURDAY EVENING

SOUTHFIELD HIGH SCHOOL GYM

“Henderson, get up!” Ty heard Coach Carlson yell from the bench, even over the cheering of the Southfield Chiefs’ crowd as they applauded another Warren Wildcats turnover.

The buzzer sounded like a laser as Rondell Henderson ran onto the court, all smiles. “Nice game, Tyshawn,” Rondell said as he passed Ty to replace him on the court. Ty offered a high five, but he couldn’t tell from Rondell’s tone if he was sincere or sarcastic. Given that Ty had more turnovers than points, the only person who thought Ty had a good game was probably the Chiefs’ coach.

Ty took a towel from the bench, a bench he wasn’t used to sitting on for longer than a few minutes, but with his game broken, he knew that more splinters in the butt were in his future.

“Let’s work out there!” Coach Carlson yelled. The rest of the team shouted encouragement, but Ty couldn’t bring himself to fake enthusiasm. Just months ago, he’d been a hero with his dad’s image up on a big screen. Now, he sat at the end of the bench, his dad’s needs looming like a dark cloud over his life.

***

“Tyshawn, I need you! Come here!” Ty hadn’t even closed the front door all the way before his dad yelled for help. On the bus from Southfield, Ty sat alone, pushing away Arquavis, Rondell, and even Coach Carlson. He needed time to process what he’d lost: his minutes on the court, his grades, and hours upon hours of sleep. If he didn’t get it together, he could add lost time with Shania to the list.

“I’m busy!” Ty shouted as he raced downstairs.

“No, I need you to—”

“I don’t want to hear it!”

“Tyshawn, what’s wrong?”

Ty answered his dad by slamming the basement door hard enough that a basketball trophy toppled from a shelf to the floor, breaking in half. “Leave me alone!” Ty yelled at his father. He wanted to shout it at everybody else who wanted more than he could give.

But Ty’s father wouldn’t back down. He pounded on the door over and over. “Tyshawn, I need you.”

“I need—” Ty stopped. He didn’t know how to finish the sentence. More hours in a day? Fewer responsibilities? To go back to how things were before?

The pounding on the door grew louder then suddenly stopped. Ty opened the door and saw his father staring down, massaging his hands. “It hurts too much.”

Ty looked down.

“I’m sorry this is all on you,” his dad said.

“It’s not your fault.”

“I was on point,” his dad mumbled. “It was my fault.”

“Don’t say that. It doesn’t help anything.”

“A man takes responsibility, Tyshawn.” He continued to rub his hands.

Ty put his right hand on his dad’s shoulder. “I’m not on point anymore. I lost my job to Rondell. I’m sorry I let you down. I can’t concentrate anymore. I don’t know what’s wrong.”

“It’s not the end of the world.”

“I worked all these years to start, and I lost it. It’s not fair.”

“Fair?” Ty’s father said.

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