“Don’t get any ideas,” I told him.
“But it’s so nice.”
“Yeah, yeah. Come on, let’s stop at the Cozy Cup Café and get breakfast, and then we’ll go home and do nothing all day but love on your mom.”
That was how I wanted to spend the day, on the couch with Miri, watching mindless TV and just being with her. Tomorrow would be hard enough.
Chapter 21
Weston
We were a week away from playoffs, and the boys were getting antsy. Our last game hadn’t gone as planned, despite us coming away with the victory. Malik and Cutter were off. They were in early foul trouble, they had problems knocking down their shots, and they were in a funk.
I had noticed it earlier in the day, during class, and tried to pinpoint the issue before the game. Both swore nothing was wrong, but I suspected they weren’t being truthful. The only thing I couldn’t figure out was whether the boys had a problem with each other or if Malik was also having some family matters.
Even now, the boys seemed to be lost in their own worlds.
I suspected Cutter’s shift was due to his mom being in the hospital all week. Antonia at least had brought her to our game last night, which had surprised me. Although, by looking at Miriam or speaking with her, you wouldn’t know she was sick. She was always smiling and, when at the games, cheering her heart out. As a teacher and coach, I knew she’d be sorely missed at the games.
Before I dismissed the class to go get changed, I called Malik over and asked him to help me put the cones away. We were finishing a unit on scooter hockey, which the kids absolutely loved. Thankfully,we hadn’t had any accidents. There was nothing worse than a scooter rolling over a finger.
Malik picked up the cones nearest him and brought them over. He put them in the bag and then started to walk away.
“Malik, can we talk?” Without him turning around to face me, I could already sense the eye roll. It was the way he tilted his head slightly and the visible tension in his shoulders.
He turned, and I saw so much anguish in his eyes. Malik shook his head.
“Do you want to go to my office and talk?”
“Can’t, I got class next.”
“I’ll write you a note, excusing you.”
Malik gave my offer some thought and finally stepped toward me. I walked side by side with him because I didn’t want any of his classmates to think he was in trouble. Besides, I didn’t want him to see me as someone in power, but as his friend. Someone he could confide in.
When we got to my office, Jerome was in there, working on his computer.
“Coach, I’m going to need the room for a minute,” I said as we entered.
“He can stay,” Malik said.
“All right. Let’s sit over here.” For the office of a physical education teacher, mine was a decent size, but it was because I was a coach and the head of the department. The other PE teachers’ office spaces were the size of closets, since they didn’t spend a ton of time in there.
My office, besides my desk, had a two-person sofa and some oversize throw pillows that the athletes liked to sit on when they came in here. I had direct access to the locker room and a door that went out to the fields, making it easy for me to get to the baseball field.
Malik opted for one of the chairs near my desk. I took the other one, moving it to the side of him, and Jerome sat on the couch.
“Coach Levy and I noticed a shift in you this week. We want you to know that you can talk to us if something’s bothering you. You’re avaluable part of our school, team, and community, and we want to be there when you need us.”
Malik leaned over, covered his face with his hands, and groaned. “I’m in trouble.”
“Is it legal trouble? Do you need an attorney?” Jerome asked.
“No, sir,” Malik said as he sat back in the chair. He looked around the office but never at me or Jerome, shaking his head. “Ugh ... Janelle’s pregnant.”
The news hit me square in the chest. Malik wasn’t the first student of ours to experience a teenage pregnancy, but he was the first one of my players in my coaching experience.
Malik was my thinker, the brains behind my offense. As far as I knew, he’d been with Janelle Canson for a few months. She was a year behind him in school.
