April 12, 2020.
It had been well over a month since the ending of the 2019-2020 basketball season. Despite this I continued to play two on two basketball games every Saturday with Cam, Nathan, and Max. When I wasn't with them, I spent my free time playing various Xbox games with Austin or Luke or watching movies with Harper when she came over. I stayed in touch with the rest of my team at school, in the hallways and between classes. I had even invited Cam, Nathan, and Max to sit with me, Austin, Harper, and Wesley and the Crooked Table during lunch. Everything quickly turned into a new normal, and I liked it that way.
"Are you sure we can hold this many people in our house?" asked my dad, knocking on my door once before entering my bedroom.
"Well they're all my friends," I explained to him. "If I invite one, I invite them all."
My dad raised up his arms in mock surrender. "Hey, it's your birthday party. I'm just saying that I sure didn't have this many friends when I was in high school."
It was my birthday, and so I had invited some people over to the house. It wasn't a party, exactly, but it was as close as you were going to get with a parent home. Every year for as long as I remember I had just been having friends over for my birthday instead of going somewhere for a full birthday party. I liked it better that way anyway. I'd just hang out with my friends for the day. This year I'd invited Austin, Cam, Nathan, and Max like usual, but I'd also invited some of the new friends I had made the past year. I had even considered inviting Luke, but since Cam, Nathan, and Max were going to be there I didn't know how things would go down.
We had ordered in a couple of pizzas for lunch and I suspected people would start arriving soon. As soon as this thought crossed my mind, the doorbell rang. I walked down the stairs and opened the door to reveal Austin standing there.
"Am I late?" Austin asked as he stepped in.
"No, you're not," I said checking my phone for the time. "About ten minutes early actually. The first one here just like you've been for the past couple years."
"Yeah well I figured I'd get a slice of pizza before your basketball friends get here."
"I thought you had warmed up to my teammates."
"I have," Austin said, "but they eat like crazy. I'm not taking any chances."
I had a five minute grace period after that before more people began arriving. The next people to show up were Cam and Nathan.
"Hey," I said. "Where's Max?"
"Dunno?" Cam said, stepping in and looking around for the food. "Said he had something to do before coming. He'll be here."
"Alright, well food's in the kitchen," I told him.
"Happy birthday," Nathan said to me as Cam exited in search of pizza.
"Thanks."
"Hey, I—" Nathan was interrupted by another knock sounding at the door.
"Excuse me," I told Nathan as I went to open the door. This time it was Jackson and Maia, along with Coach Hendrix.
"I'm just dropping them off," the coach explained. "But I wanted to wish you a happy birthday."
"Thanks Coach," I said, leading Jackson and Maia inside. No sooner had the door closed before it was being knocked upon again.
Wesley and Finn arrived, followed by Max and Xavier a few minutes later and Harper a few minutes after that. I stepped aside to let Harper in and she looked around for a second before saying, "Oh no, am I the last one here?"
"As long as no one told anyone else to come, then yes," I told her.
"Look, I know you told everyone not to get you anything, but I brought a gift anyway," she said.
I smiled. "I'll let it slide. You can set it on the table there with everyone else's who disobeyed my wishes."
"Oh, I didn't know Maia was here," Harper said when she returned.
"Yeah, I invited Jackson so I figured I'd invite her too."
"Hey son, is this everyone?" asked my dad, peering out the window as he came down the stairs.
"Should be," I said, doing a quick head count. Everyone had come in a dispersed themselves, starting up conversations with mutual friends as I manned door duty.
"Then let's get this started."
We opened up the pizza boxes and everyone spread out over the tables, chairs, and couches in the house. We all talked and laughed as everyone introduced themselves to the people they weren't familiar with. After eating we played some various games including many short games of ping pong, street basketball, and football. Those who weren't interesting in getting in on the games watched and made conversation as those who were participated in short competitions.
When dinner time came around almost everyone was still around, so we had some left over pizza from lunch and played some more games. Once it became dark and we were all exhausted we came back inside and collasped on the furniture.
"That was more exhausting than practice," said Wesley.
"Yeah, well don't tell the coach," I replied. "He'll give us a whole practice of workouts to start next season off."
"Can't wait for that," Nathan said.
"That was fun," said Harper, who was sitting in one of the chairs.
"Says the one who didn't play our basketball or football tournaments," Cam challenged.
"I'm so sorry that I didn't want to get crushed to the ground by boys that weigh a hundred pounds more than me. Or that I didn't want to go up against literally the entire basketball team," Harper rebutted. "I did beat you in ping pong, though, Cam."
"Can't deny that," said Austin, who was grinning at the back and forth.
"Don't let your ego get too high," Cam warned Harper. "You still got crushed by Blake in the second round."
"He's the one who owns the table!" Harper exclaimed. "Besides, I only lost so that I would get a pity hug from him."
"Well jokes on you," I replied while everyone laughed, "because I would've given you a hug anyway. And even if you let me win, I know that Nathan didn't."
"Hey, you got what was coming to you when Xavier crushed you literally and figuratively in the football game," Nathan pointed out.
"He was on the football team this year," I protested. "He would have beaten any one of us basketball jocks."
We laughed and continued the banter until everyone started to near their curfew and headed out. They exited one by one, just like they had come, until it was just me and Harper left.
"It's late," I told Harper, who was sitting on the couch beside me. When people started to leave, the rest of us had put on a movie downstairs. Now it was just us two watching it. "Won't your parents be worried?"
"I doubt it," Harper muttered. "Besides, I got here last so I should be the last to leave, right?"
"So when am I going to be able to come over to your house?" I asked her. "I mean, you've been over here several times, so..."
"Soon," Harper promised me. "It's just, I haven't told my parents that we're... heck, I don't even know if we're dating or not. Are we?"
She looked over at me, but I kept my eyes on the screen. "We're... really great friends," I said finally, "who really like each other but are taking things slowly. Sound good?"
Harper thought over this for a minute. "Yeah, I can live with that. Happy birthday, by the way. I had a fun time today. Way better than a normal birthday party."
"Yeah I know, right? It was fun."
Harper eventually decided to return home. After she'd left and it was just my dad, Liv, and me alone again, I thought about the past several hours. I recollected the games we'd played and the fun moments we'd shared. I thought about our conversation when we were just chilling on the couch and making each other laugh and I realized something. The people around me really were the most important thing to me. The moments I'd spent with all of them the past year completely surpassed the moments that I'd spent playing basketball the past year. I used to think that shooting a basketball and running up and down the court was the most fun thing I would ever do, but I'd just realized that it wasn't much fun at all if it wasn't for the teammates that were always there to cheer me on. It wasn't about basketball at all really, it was about people. My people.
Whatever happened next, I wanted my people there right along side me. As long as I had the people that I cared for by my side, I was ready for my next challenge. Whatever it may be.
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Blake Manson's story continues in Airball II
Coming November 22, 2021
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