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Post by Anibal Desales on Dec 19, 2009 17:55:02 GMT -5
Anibal seated himself outside the basketball courts, hoping that perhaps Carter would show up and they could play. They hadn't played since the shooting, and Anibal wanted that sense of normalcy that playing hoops with Carter brought. Of course Carter would win; he always did. Winning or losing was beside the point, however. The point was that it was fun to play with Carter, the senior treated him just like he would any other guy. Anibal wasn't sure how the older boy would react if he knew he wasn't just like any other guy, especially not yet, but once he was old enough -- and had the money -- he would get as close as he could.
He wondered if perhaps Carter would want to help him get revenge on Jorge's murderer, but quickly dismissed that idea; Carter was far too nice to go along with something like that. He would have to seek vengeance on his own. He wasn't entirely sure what sort of vengeance he was going to seek -- he would probably just try and rough the other guy up.
Footsteps across the court caught his attention, and he glanced up, bounding to his feet. "Hey, wanna play?"
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Post by Carter Stresemann on Dec 22, 2009 12:10:37 GMT -5
Carter hadn't been out much. Not that he hadn't wanted to be it was just that things had been a little crazy and he just hadn't time or the opportunity. But they were finally settling down now. He finally had an afternoon free where he could do nothing if he so choose. So, with his free afternoon he threw on some basketball shorts and a t-shirt and headed out to the court. He hadn't had a chance to shot any hoops and unwind in what felt like years.
When he got there he saw someone was already on the court. As he got closer he recognized who the person was. He gave a small and nod of greeting as he walked up. "Hey Anibal...hadn't seen you around in awhile. I was beginning to think one of us had fallen off the face of the earth." he laughed.
"Wanna play?" That's why he was here. And a gome of one on one would bet just shooting hoops on his own. Not that he minded that, but another person present gave opportunity for conversation and whatnot. "Let's see how you've improved since last time. See if you worked on any of those tips I gave you."
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Post by Anibal Desales on Dec 22, 2009 21:54:10 GMT -5
Anibal really hadn't worked much on any of the tips that Carter had given him; Jorge's death had truly affected his interest in athletic pursuits, and he was only recently returning to any semblance of a normal life. He still felt broken inside, still wished for revenge, but he could at least enjoy playing casual games of basketball again.
"Err, yeah, of course!" He lied with a grin. He was thrilled that the older boy had arrived, ready to play hoops with him again; Carter and Archana were the only people he counted among his friends, although he was beginning to wonder if perhaps he could count some of his other teammates as well. Ashton hadn't held Jorge's gang activity against him, after all, and he was the son of Coach Johnson. If Ashton didn't care, then surely the rest of the team would follow suit. Now, whether they would care that he wasn't biologically male was yet to be seen, but he hadn't divulged this information to Archana or Carter, either. He wished he had someone to talk to about the whole experience, but he didn't and he couldn't bring himself to trust even those who were friendly to him.
He darted across the court to fetch a ball. "I'll win this time, just you wait, you don't even know how much I've been practicing." He boasted.
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Post by Carter Stresemann on Dec 22, 2009 22:26:38 GMT -5
Carter had been out of town when the shooting took place. It was one time he was pretty glad to have been drug along on one of his parents little trips. Why they had chosen this particular time of the year to go, he still didn't quite understand, but in the end it had worked out. He hadn't been present when the disaster struck Silver, so he wasn't aware of who all had been affected either directly or indirectly. So, he was not really aware of Anibal's connection with Jorge. If he was aware of it he was not really making the connection. Even if he had he was not likely to hold it against the younger boy. That was not in Carter's nature.
Carter laughed a bit at Anibal's reaction to his comment about if he had been practicing those tips he had given him during their last game. He did not think he had been, but it was no big deal. Carter had just been trying to be helpful, and whatever Anibal choose to do with the information he gave him, well that was his decision. "Hhmm, yeah, sounds like you've been working hard."
"Oh, you will huh?" Carter raised a brow. "I look forward to seeing the pro in action." he teased as he waited for the younger boy to return with the ball.
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Post by Anibal Desales on Dec 24, 2009 17:54:24 GMT -5
"Oh, yeah, you'd better watch out." Anibal nodded as they began playing, as though he really expected to beat Carter. "You're goin' down."
That was always the way of their games; friendly bravado on Anibal's part, encouragement on Carter's. Carter was definitely more skilled, but then he was actually on the basketball team, and he was taller and older. Anibal considered the other boy one of the coolest people in the entire school, though he was a bit envious of the fact that Carter didn't see the need to prove himself to anyone. If Anibal'd had that level of confidence, maybe he wouldn't have felt the need to pester that geek Levi. He didn't really have anything against Levi other than he was a dork and kind of annoying.
Hop, throw, miss. A comforting routine, welcome after the unwanted excitement of the last several weeks. He could pretend that everything was the way it had been. "So," he asked, missing the hoop again. "Where have you been lately? I didn't see you at..." He started to mention the memorial, but thought better of it. He hadn't called Carter after the shooting, after all, caught up as he was in his own mourning, but still better not to bring attention to the fact he was that crappy of a friend -- if he could call this getting together for dual basketball games friendship -- so he changed directions. "At anywhere. Lookin' at colleges or somethin'?"
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Post by Carter Stresemann on Dec 25, 2009 23:30:49 GMT -5
Carter enjoyed these games with Anibal. Even the banter between them about who was going to win. Though it did not take a rocket scientist to realize that the odds were stacked against poor Anibal. But he gave it his all. He was not intimidated by Carter. At least he did not seem to be. He would talk big. Tell Carter he was going down and things of that nature. Now if he could just get his confidence level up high enough to believe the things he said he might actually one day beat Carter.
Carter watched as Anibal attempted to make some shots. He did okay. He still came a little short of his goal. But it wasn't all that bad. Carter had seen a whole lot worse from people who thought they were great. And as long Anibal was enjoying himself and the game. That was what really mattered. They were not out here to gain anything from this, or really to win over the other. They were just two friends out to enjoy a game together. "Not bad.." Carter told him as he caught the ball as it bounced by him. Dribbling it a few times before picking it up tossing it rather effortlessly into the hoop with a *swoosh* sound.
"Yeah, I've been out of town. The parental figures decided that now was a great time for the family to take a 'vacation'." he rolled his eyes. "We haven't been back long. Seems that I have missed quite a bit in my absence. So, I guess our timing wasn't so bad after all." he shrugged a little.
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Post by Anibal Desales on Dec 26, 2009 2:13:15 GMT -5
"Out of town?" Anibal prodded, feeling a slight twinge of jealousy. If his family had been out of town...but wishing wasn't going to change anything. "Out of town where? It's not even a holiday..." That didn't stop some families from picking up and going on vacation, of course, particularly some of the wealthier families who thought their trip to the Caribbean or Paris was far more important than their children's schooling, but the Desales family would never have agreed with that line of reasoning. Maybe when Hiroshi started looking at colleges they would relent, but even that was iffy.
"Yeah, you missed out on the bad stuff. Lucky you!" He sighed, missing another shot -- quite badly, this time. He squinted, trying very hard not to start crying. Not now, not in public! He didn't want to break down over this now! How embarrassing! "I hope your vacation was fun, at least. Parents weren't too annoying about it or anything."
He suddenly realized that he was just standing there. "But it doesn't matter, now that you're all out of practice from vacation, I'll finally have a chance to beat you!" He added quickly, as though he was not in fact losing horribly.
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Post by Carter Stresemann on Dec 26, 2009 12:47:50 GMT -5
His trip wasn't anything fancy like the Caribbean or Paris. It would have been more Paris, Texas or some place like. That was much less exotic. It was not like Carter's parents to just pick up and go off somewhere in the middle of the school year. He supposed that with everything that had occurred already up to this point in the year that a little time away was needed by all. But that was just his speculation. "I'm still trying to figure that one. It isn't like my parents to just to take off like that." he shrugged.
"I heard about all that I missed while I was gone." He shook his head a bit sadly. "Seems like we have been on a downward spiral every since the earthquake." he sighed a little with another shake of his head. "But there's no where to go but up from here. Right? Be positive and all that." He caught the ball once more as it bounced past him after Anibal had missed that last shot.
Carter bounced it back across the court toward Anibal. "Do over." he smirked. "Try that shot again you seemed a little distracted." He laughed a bit at the comment about him being out of practice. "I suppose that does put us on a mere even playing field. You just might kick my ass today."
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Post by Anibal Desales on Dec 28, 2009 20:45:34 GMT -5
"Sure." Anibal wasn't entirely convinced that he ought to think positively; it was difficult to accept that he should be anything other than morose. At least his parents hadn't done something idiotic like dragging him to see a counselor; then he might be expected to talk about seeing Jandro stab his brother to death. He didn't want to talk it out, and fortunately (as far as he was concerned) his parents didn't think much of the idea, either. "Positive."
He practically snatched the ball out of the air, tossing it violently at the hoop once more and even almost made the shoot. "Not distracted!" He denied, then, "Maybe a little distracted. Too much talkin'." Of course, they always bantered during play, so that wasn't likely to distract him so much that Carter would notice. Still, maybe if he concentrated more on playing and less on holding a conversation he would actually have a fighting chance.
"Dude, it's more than even! I've been sweating my butt off all week and you've been off playing at the beach or somewhere, I think it's obvious which of us is gonna win." And it really was obvious, especially as his playing was much worse than normal.
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"Good game." Anibal wiped the back of his hand across his forehead, breathing hard. "I haven't worked that hard in....since...since...yeah." He sighed. He didn't want to talk about Jorge, or at least, he had tried to convince himself that he didn't want to. He certainly didn't want to talk to some adult he didn't know. But he knew Carter, and Carter was one of the few genuinely nice, non-judgmental people that Anibal had met. He was sure that the Junior would be understanding and not belittle him for being upset over his brother. He wasn't entirely sure how to bring up his concerns, however.
"Ummm...." He began, twisting his hands behind his back. "So ummmm. You...you missed the shooting and all.....so umm. You don't know......ahhh. Ummm." He cleared his throat, turning away slightly; he felt more comfortable with Carter than most anyone other than Archana, but that didn't mean he wanted the other boy to see him cry. "I mean, did you know Jorge? He was a sophomore?"
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Post by Carter Stresemann on Dec 28, 2009 21:04:29 GMT -5
The game had been good. Like many of their games. Carter was kicking butt, but he did not make a big deal about it. He didn't boast or brag, or put the other boy down for his lack of skill. Carter enjoyed going back to the basic of the game and just playing for fun. Leaving egos and pride on the side lines. Not caring who won or lost. Too bad more people didn't put the emphasis on the fun, and less on the winning and losing. But oh well.
When the game was over he wiped the sweat from his brow and took in some deep breaths. He watched Anibal. Something seemed to be bothering the younger boy. He wasn't quite sure what it was. He wasn't going to pry. If it were something personal he may not want to talk about it. Especially to him, someone he did not know all that well. But if he wanted or needed someone to talk well that was Anibal's call to make.
Then the boy did begin to speak and Carter listened. He nodded now and then. "Yeah, I missed the shooting. I've only heard bits and pieces about it. It's not really something a lot of people have been wanting to talk about. I can't say that I blame them." he said quietly still watching Anibal.
"Jorge?" He pondered the name for several moments. "Sounds familiar. Not sure I knew him real well, but we've moved school so many times lately, that everyone is starting to run together anymore. I can't keep anyone straight."
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