"Or," Adam blurted out, "maybe he just died of cardiac arrest like we were told from the beginning."
"The funeral's tomorrow," Conner said. "Hopefully all the rumors will stop by Monday."
"I doubt it," Hailey muttered. "Think about it. Kids our age say mean things all the time. A lot of people said mean things about Jared before he died."
Everybody agreed.
Conner said, "Someone will have to put an end to the rumors."
"Probably us." Trevor rubbed the crown of his buzzed head and sighed. "It was the four of us for years. So, we'll have to be the ones to tell everyone to shut the hell up."
Adam said, "After the funeral. Just like we talked about."
Hailey released a subdued gasp. "So you're going?"
"Yeah," Conner said.
"But his parents said—"
"We're going." Conner looked across the table to his buddies.
They both responded with a nod as they continued to eat.
* * *
Lancaster had arrived with the obvious intent of dominating the court and winning the game. Yet, after weeks of intense practice, Newman had proved to be a formidable opponent. Adam had the game high of nineteen points. The winning shot came courtesy of Trevor, who had snatched a loose ball that had bounced from the hands of Lancaster's forward. In the end, Newman won the game 46–43.
As the Newman fans cheered and the Lancaster fans booed, the opposing teams congregated on the court.
Adam approached Curtis Mann, Lancaster's point guard. He extended his hand. "Good game, man. You guys put up a good fight."
Curtis smiled. "Thanks." And then he leaned close to Adam's ear. "You're overrated, dickhead."
"Wow, that's good sportsmanship." Adam shook hands with the next Lancaster player. Then he tugged on Conner's jersey, leading him to the locker room.
At his locker, he kicked the metal door, and the bang filled the nearly empty space with a loud metallic boom. "He's such an effing sore loser."
"Who?"
"Curtis Mann. He told me I was overrated."
"Screw him," Conner said, firmly cupping the back of Adam's neck. "We won. And he's a sore loser, just like you said."
Adam huffed, dropping his jersey to the floor.
Their teammates rushed into the locker room, hooting and hollering with excitement. Several boys patted Adam on the shoulder, slapped his ass as they passed, or ruffled his hair.
Trevor appeared at their side, grinning from ear to ear. "Hell yeah. We aimsta win. And we did." He narrowed his eyes at Adam. "What's up with you, bro?"
"He's annoyed," Conner said.
"Why? What happened?"
"Curtis Mann talking crap."
Sitting on the bench, Adam kicked off his shoes and then punched the locker. "Said I was an overrated player."
"You're not overrated, but you're overreacting. Calm down," Trevor said as he pulled his jersey over his head. "After we shower, we can drive to his house and wait for him to get home. Then we'll kick his ass before he goes inside."
Adam chuckled. "Nah. You're right. I'm not gonna let it get to me."
Trevor gave the thumbs-up. "My dad always says, 'be the better man.' That's us. We're the better men."
Inhaling deeply, Adam closed his eyes. "I'm the better man." Then he exhaled and grabbed his towel. "Whatcha guys wanna do now?"
"I'm starving," Conner said.
"Me too." Trevor gulped water and then tossed the bottle into his locker. "Hailey, Jasmine, and Nate want to meet up at Charlie's."
Adam smiled at the thought of his favorite chicken tenders at the diner the popular crowd frequented. "Sounds good to me."
He draped a towel over his shoulder and then turned toward the showers. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Miguel and Levi headed in their direction. "You effing peeping Toms!"
"Ha. Whatever," Miguel scoffed.
"Great game," Levi said.
Conner smiled. "Thanks. You guys going to Charlie's?"
"Are you?" Miguel asked.
"Yep."
"Then we'll meet you guys there."
"Hailey and Jasmine are going with Nate," Trevor said. "Maybe you guys can catch 'em outside before they go."
Miguel and Levi pushed their way through the crowd as the three hurried to the showers. Under the hot water, Adam listened to the guys excitedly boast about the game and their individual maneuvers on the court. He turned toward the tiled wall, and his smile disappeared. I'm not overrated, dammit. I worked my ass off to be an exceptional player.
Walking into Charlie's, Trevor immediately spotted their friends seated at two booths. His eyes rested on the sight of Nate seated too close to Jasmine, apparently whispering something comical in her ear. Trevor had flirted with her for weeks, but their friendship had never advanced to dating. Now, focused on her dark-colored complexion, Trevor wondered if his light skin was less attractive to her than dark-skinned Nate. Or hopefully, he was overanalyzing her lack of interest in him.
He arrived at the table with a forced smile. "What's up?"
Nate straightened his posture, widening the gap between himself and Jasmine. "You guys made Lancaster work their asses off tonight. Great game."
"Thanks."
Hailey stood and let Trevor slide in next to Jasmine. When Conner sat at the booth with Miguel and Levi, she relocated to their table.
Trevor slumped on the vinyl seat with a grunt. "My legs are sore."
Bumping her shoulder against Trevor's, Jasmine said, "You were tonight's MVP."
"Nah. First game of the season. I gotta earn the MVP title."
"Your shot won the game. You can be my MVP, then."
Trevor grinned and fixed his eyes on Nate's. Hands off, buddy.
Conner lifted his butt from the seat and leaned over the back of the booth, craning his head above Adam's shoulder. "I need a menu."
Seated again, he perused the appetizer section. "You guys order?"
Hailey shook her head as Miguel and Levi responded "no."
"Want to share mozzarella sticks?" she asked him.
He looked at Miguel. "You guys want to split a large with us?"
"I can't," Levi said, "or I'll exceed my fat intake for the day."
"I'll have some," Miguel said.
"You psyched for your match tomorrow?" Conner asked Levi.
"Yeah,
