1. Akari Gardner
Twenty Years Later
My chest heaved up and down as I panted heavily.
Damn, I was tired, but I had to keep running.
I was running around the racetrack, something I did on a daily basis.
I wouldn't be defeated. I had to push myself further.
It was something my father taught me. If I gave up too quickly, it would make me out to be a quitter, which was something I wasn't.
"You got this," I told myself.
Once I reached the finish line, I threw my arms in the air.
I leaned forward, put my hands on my knees, and dropped my head.
After getting my breathing under control, I made my way to my things on the ground.
I retrieved my water bottle and squirted some of the water in my mouth and over my face.
I sighed deeply, drinking more of the water.
I had a game tonight and was looking forward to it.
Whenever it was a game day, I tried to relax and not overthink anything.
It helped me out a lot. I came a long way with my basketball career, making me one of the greatest there was.
On the court, I was a different person and talked a lot of shit, too.
"Yo! Yo!" I heard someone call out.
I lifted my head, seeing it was one of my teammates and best friends. I threw my head in a greeting as he made his way on the track.
"Wassup, man? What are you doing out here?" We dapped up, and he dropped his stuff on the ground.
Kennis glanced around the track I'd just finished running. "About to get this running in. Plus, get my mind off my girl and my problems."
I snorted, happy as hell I didn't have that problem. Relationships were for many people, but for me, they weren't.
I chuckled. "Y'all stay mad at each other."
Kennis scoffed with a shake of his head. "If only she believed in me, we wouldn't go through as many problems as we did. She thinks I'm fucking other women when we're on the road."
I didn't know what to say on that. A lot of my teammates went through that with the women in their lives. Kennis got it the worst because whenever we went out, his wife wanted to be where we were. She didn't trust him at all. I couldn't stay in a relationship like that.
Kennis and I grew up together. Since high school, we've been each other's partners in crime. We didn't do anything without the other. It had always been like that, even on the court. We were two peas in a pod.
"Damn, man. I hope y'all get it together," I sincerely voiced.
Hell, hopefully, they did. He and his girl have been together for three years now.
He loved her a lot. I didn't know why she was tripping off of him.
If she were insecure in the relationship, why would she stay with him?
It was only hurting him in the end, especially when it came to a game.
He didn't do his best. They needed to work that shit out.
He grunted. "Yeah, we will see how that works out. No sweat, though. It's gonna be what it be."
I nodded in agreement. "Word. I've got to get out of here. I told my mother I'll stop by this morning. You know how she is if I don't show up."
He chuckled with a nod. "Hell yeah. I don't want her to get that broomstick on you. Go ahead and go."
We laughed and dapped up again before I grabbed my things and headed off the field.
I used my key to enter my family's home with a smile on my face. Everybody was there, including my father. That happened often. It made no sense for my parents to still be talking after my mother broke my father's heart. They were still in each other's lives, but they were divorced.
"Superstar!" my brother Antonio called out.
"Manager!" I called out.
I made sure my sister and brother were eating when it came to my basketball career. Neither of them had to do anything but be there for me. They got paid lovely as hell, too. My sister was my accountant and was in charge of my finances.
"Are you ready for the game tonight?" he asked.
I dropped down on the couch, running a hand down my face. "I'm ready to get it over with. I'm tired as hell and ready to lie down for at least two days."
Whenever I played back-to-back games, it wore my body out. I had to keep pushing, of course, but sometimes, it got me down.
"You'll be able to rest after this game. After this game, you won't have another one until Sunday," Antonio reminded me as if I didn't already know.
I bobbed my head. "Yeah, well, you know I'm about to go MIA for a couple of days."
"And that is expected and understandable," my mother, Megan, said with a beam.
"Yeah, I know. Where is Aisha?" I peered around, not seeing her anywhere.
"On the phone. She had an important phone call come through," my father, Austin, replied.
I peered at all of them. "Y'all just hanging out this morning, I see?"
They all exchanged looks. "You can say that," my mother replied.
"I'm about to head out in a bit. Since mama cooked breakfast already and I ate," Antonio said with a grin.
"Man, whatever." I knew I was going to take some food home to eat before I took a nap.
"Gosh, it makes no sense for a man to be an asshole!" Aisha fussed, making her way into the family room.
"Hey!" my father, Antonio, and I yelled out.
She scoffed and plopped down next to our mother, who laughed.
"What's going on?" our mother asked.
While Aisha filled her in on what was going on, I took a minute to look at my family.
All we had was each other in this world.
I guess that's why my parents kept us as a family.
Neither of them was in a relationship with anyone.
If they were going to continue seeing each other, they might as well get back together.
Growing up, my parents were happy — well, I thought they were.
We always did things as a family, and my parents made sure my siblings and I had the best childhood.
We had never gone without or lacked for anything.
They showed up and showed out for all of us.
They had never argued around my siblings and me.
I was in college when my parents told my siblings and me they were getting a divorce.
That crushed us. The reason was that my mother accused my father of cheating on her.
Come to find out, my father had never stepped out of their marriage and was always faithful to my mother.
He didn't want to hear it when she tried apologizing to him.
Ten years later, they were still friends and were in each other's lives as if they never left, although my father stayed in a condo on the other side of town.
Over the years, the family house was renovated, and rooms were added. My parents didn't have to work if they didn't want to. I took care of them all and was glad to do it.
Aisha turned her attention to me and smiled. "Baby brother, how are you?"
I rolled my eyes, not at all happy that she was calling me that. Since she was the oldest sibling, she called Antonio and me baby brother.
"I'm good. I'm about to go home once I fix myself something to eat. How are you?"
She rolled her eyes. "I am going through it, but I will be okay. Men," she growled with a pout on her lips.
I nodded, knowing not to ask anything further.
Whenever my sister was going through something in her marriage, we stayed out of it.
She and her husband stayed going back and forth with each other.
For them to be separated, they communicated with each other but still fussed and fought.
That was something I didn't understand. I stayed out of her business.
"Will y'all be at the game tonight? Do I need to send a car to get y'all?" I asked my parents.
They shook their heads.
"We will be coming together," my father answered.
Antonio, Aisha, and I exchanged looks with a grin on our faces. That was all I needed to know.
"Word. I'll see you all there then. Take care." I got up and went to the kitchen to fix my plate before I left the house.
It was game night, and I was pumped. I was ready to win this one.
When it came to basketball, I was a beast. It was a game I knew how to play since the age of five years old.
I have been playing it for twenty-five years.
Many people asked me when I would retire, but I didn't have an answer.
I was going to go for as long as I could. The game was inside of me.
I was one of the greatest around. My position on the court was a shooting guard.
I was a beast when it came to shooting threes.
I had many titles, man. The love of basketball kept me going.
Being an all-star player in the league with a high IQ, many people envied me, too.
It didn't matter to me since I was playing for myself and nobody else.
I played because I enjoyed the game, win or lose.
But of course, I loved to win. I had five rings and was working on my sixth one.
People called me a bully on the court. I laughed since it was me.
I was known for talking shit. It got the job done, too.
I went to college for a year before getting drafted to the Skyeville Rayvins, one of the best teams around. This was my home team, and I refused to leave it.
I stretched and shot around before the game began. I tuned out everything that was going on around me and started praying in my head. It helped keep me sane on the court. I was a strong believer in God and had a lot of faith in everything I did, no matter what it was.
When the game started, everything was going well.
I was one of the starters, along with Kennis.
It felt good to have my best friend on the court with me.
Some of the players on the other team were already talking junk.
They were about to find out I was like that.
When I got in my mood, it was going to be over for their asses.
They kept nitpicking with me. I didn't start my trash talk until I was fired up.
They were going to push me, and I was going to set it off. That was how I was.
It was the fourth quarter, and the game had gotten intense. They had to pull Kennis off the court because his hotheaded ass was about to go toe-to-toe with one of the other players.
After a play was set up, one of the players from the other team tried guarding me. It was their ball, which was all good. They wouldn't keep it for too long, though.
"Nah, man. Don't do it to yourself. When I say you were the weakest link, I meant that shit chump."
I almost laughed at myself. He was mad as hell from the way he was glowering at me. As long as he didn't put his hands on me, we were straight. "Don't piss yourself. Ahhh!" I jumped at him, causing him to flinch.
His teammate was passing him the ball, but I caught it and took off.
The crowd went crazy when I shot the three-pointer.
I looked over my shoulder at the player and laughed at the shocked expression on his face.
That was how I got my points. I talked trash, caught their asses off guard, and put in the work.
The crowd went crazy when I shot the ball from half-court just when the buzzer went off.
I threw my arms in the air and thanked God.
I had once again done it again. My teammates came up and cheered us on.
It was one of the best feelings in the world to win a game.
I couldn't wait to get home to crash out for at least two days. I needed it and deserved it.