“Might need to work on your dance moves a little.”
“Hey!”
“Really, Darius. You looked great out there. Like you were having fun.” He mussed my hair and rested his hand on my shoulder. “I’m so proud of you.”
I got that burning plasma reactor feeling in my chest again, but I managed to smile too.
“Thanks, Dad.” I knelt down so I was level with Laleh. “What did you think? How’d I do?”
“Good,” she said, but then she coughed into the crook of her elbow.
“She wouldn’t stay home,” Mom said. “But at least her fever broke.”
“That’s good.”
I turned back to Laleh.
“I’m glad you came.”
She nodded at me and gave me a weak smile, but then she coughed again.
“We’d better get you home. I’m gonna shower.”
“We’ll get your bike loaded up,” Dad said. “Meet us in the parking lot?”
“Sure.”
“You hungry?” Mom said. “You need anything?”
“I’m good. Thanks, Mom.”
I ran to catch up with the other guys as we did a warm-down and some stretches and then headed for the locker room.
Chapel Hill High School had nice showers, where we all got our own stall, but the shower heads were apparently made for Student Athletes shorter than I was. I had to bend down to get my head under the spray, and the hot water didn’t last nearly long enough, which meant by the time I was clean I was also cold and slightly miserable.
I dried off and wrapped myself in my towel, sucked in my stomach, and went to get dressed.
Most of the guys were gone, but I passed Chip pulling his shirt on as I padded to my locker.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey,” I said, and turned into my row. Gabe was already gone, which was good, because I hated getting dressed next to him.
Between playing soccer every day and my new medication, I had lost a little weight, but it wasn’t like I was suddenly skinny. I still had way more stomach than I wanted, and now the stretch marks had gotten way more noticeable, despite the scar cream I put on at night.
I kind of hated the way I looked.
That’s normal.
Right?
I pulled on my shirt first, even before my underwear, because the risk of someone seeing my cold penis still seemed less alarming than having them see my stomach.
From the other side of the lockers, Chip said, “You headed home after this? You wanna grab a bite or something?”
“My family’s waiting for me.”
“Oh. Cool. Maybe some other time?”
