36Chapter 1: Changing Times
Sweat rolled down his forehead and into his brow, giving his mocha-skin a shining hue. He licked his lips as he looked ahead to his cousin who was standing with his knees bent almost at a 90 degree angle, but not exactly as that would be murder on his knees. This stance was one of the first things they learned when they began to their training in basketball four years ago with their elder cousin.
"Come on Jaqueris, you're boring me just sitting there, hurry up and make a move." Prompted his cousin he was referring to the fact that the sweating teen was holding the ball on his hip with one hand on the top and the other on the side and his knees bent similarly to his cousin, a position known as the Triple Threat.
"Patience, Keenan, I'm deciding how I'm going to beat you." Jaqueris responded with a smirk, in his mind he knew that with just about any move he could get past his cousin whether it was a drive, pull-up or crossover it didn't matter. It wasn't that his cousin was garbage or anything, it was just that he was that good, not that he was bragging.
"Yeah,…if you say so…" while his cousin was talking Jaqueris saw that he had stood up ever so slightly which spelled attack in his mind and he did just that. He took one hard dribble to his left; he loved going left despite being right-handed, this moved made Keenan take a step back to try and get back into is defensive position and recover. Unfortunately, that's exactly what Jaqueris wanted him to do, with his cousin's momentum moving forward in haste and his own under control, he came to a hard stop and grabbed the ball with both hands. He pulled up into his shooting position with his arm in an arc resembling an L. Before he reached the top of his jump he pushed forward releasing the ball as his cousin tried fruitlessly to defend him.
The ball rotated at a beautiful arch as it soared towards the goal, he watched it with confidence knowing the outcome before the ball swished through the net. The look of dejection on his cousin's face was priceless.
"Game, what's the record now 100-5?" he gloated
His cousin put his hands on his hips and smiled but Jaqueris saw the micro expression of anger that he had trained himself to spot flash across his face.
"100-7. I've kept count long enough to know." He said
"You have? I lost count after it became something of a routine, y'know?" he continued
Keenan balled his lips, a sign of irritation, causing Jaqueris to chuckle lightly. "Cheer up, at least Georgia Tech isn't out here to see this game, they might rescind your scholarship."
Keenan gave his cousin a mock glare, this banter of theirs which they employed almost every time they'd seen one another which was very often considering they grew up together had not managed to lose its flavor.
"Funny, not everyone has a million scholarships to choose from so I take pride in mine."
"Yeah." Jaqueris said as he moved to pick up the basketball, "Let's get back we've both got a game tomorrow and the team can't afford to lose its star forward and his trusty sidekick."
He said this last part putting his hand on his cousin's shoulder and smiling receiving one in return. Standing next to one another one could see that Jaqueris was taller by at least 5 inches standing at 6'3. He had a well toned and muscular body but not excessively so the result of years of sports and physical conditioning imposed on him by his coaches and himself. Keenan had a similar build but due to his shorter stature he seemed to have more mass therefore appearing even more muscular.
"You won't be saying that once I hit the game-winning shot tomorrow night." Keenan said in response to his cousin's earlier comment making a shooting motion with his declaration.
"Well, if you do I won't, but we both know that's not going to happen cause Coach Crosby knows you can't hit a jumper to save your life when it's game time." Jaqueris mocked playfully
The cousins laughed aloud as they headed towards the gate. Jaqueris however stopped in the center of the court and turned towards the goal he and his cousin had been playing on. He launched a deep shot from his position towards the goal, as it soared through the air it made a dive once it reached a certain point and headed into the rim rattling around before it finally fell through.
"And the people of New York City go wild, as number 15, Jaqueris Malcolm sinks a dagger to end the game." He said this complete with mock applause
"Okay, Mister All-Star, let's go before Spider-man swings through and webs you for disturbing the peace." Said his cousin
Jaqueris looked towards the skyscrapers like everyone with a cellphone, camera, or a pulse for that matter in New York, he knew about the famous web slinger who fought crime and in fact Jaqueris promised himself that he'd meet him one day. These thoughts were for another time however as he had to get home it was getting late and his mom was making chicken alfredo tonight.
His apartment was a bit away from here as he lived in the deep city area of the Bronx.
"Hey, you wanna catch a cab to my place?" he asked his cousin once he caught up with him.
Keenan gave him an "Are you crazy" look before saying, "Are you crazy? That'd cost a fortune which we don't have. Why anyway you scared we'll get mugged, haven't you been taking some Kung-Fu classes for three years now you can handle some low life thugs."
"Muay Thai Kickboxing. And it's not that I'm just hungry and walking is gonna take a bit to get home." He informed his cousin
Keenan made a "fftt" sound and continued walking before he spotted three rather ominous men in standing on street corner ahead. Jaqueris felt his brow lower and muscles tense up as he clenched his left fist.
"Well…well…well look at these bums." Keenan said loud enough for them to hear.
The three looked up with one shouting back, "Look a' this kid rig' here na." he said as he moved forward. He was dressed like the stereotypical thug Keenan had mentioned before with his sagging pants and no t-shirt. Jaqueris recognized him as Marcus one of Keenan's friends who was taller than Jaqueris by at least three inches.
"What's up." He greeted as he slapped Keenan's hand
He then turned to Jaqueris who had a neutral expression on his face, Marcus then suddenly slapped the ball from his hands before getting into a fighting stance including a street guard.
"What's up, watcha gon do?" he said egging Jaqueris on
Jaqueris quickly got into the stance he'd learned and threw some fake punches while Marcus blocked before grabbing Jaqueris' torso. They all laughed at the playfulness. Jaqueris then turned to the two that had caused his reaction earlier.
"So Marcus, who's those two over there?" he inquired
Marcus looked backed before saying, "Oh that's Spanky and White Boy."
"For real? When they got out? I'm bout to go see what's up." Said Keenan as he made his way to the two.
Marcus and Jaqueris were left alone, Jaqueris moved the ball in front of him and covered it with both his hands, before realizing this was a "barrier" he was putting up which indicated discomfort in body language so he returned it to his side and put his free hand in his pocket with his thumb sticking out. It was still a pacifier but it also showed he was confident and relaxed which was partially true.
"So you ready for that championship tomorrow, I got money ridin' on you boy. You gotta at least drop 30 for me, man." Said Marcus
Jaqueris inhaled audibly, a sign of irritation, he hated when people bet on him it put unnecessary pressure on him as he would try to outperform to blow their expectations out of the water which he normally did.
"We'll see man, I can't make any promises." He replied
"Yeah, I guess so."
Jaqueris saw that Keenan was still talking and it was getting dark, so he made his way towards them. He put his hand on his cousin's shoulder while he greeted the other two with a nod. "Hey, Keenan, we gotta go game tomorrow." He reminded him
Jaqueris noticed that the two leaned back when he said this showing that they didn't like this new development. Keenan's bright smile from before faltered a bit showing he wasn't too keen on this either.
This also showed Jaqueris one of Keenan's less desirable traits, he often didn't have his priorities straight often putting pleasure before business as he was about to demonstrate.
"Oh…um…go on without me I'mma chill for a minute. I'll meet you at the gym tomorrow at 4:00." He said
Jaqueris knew he wasn't going to make him budge but made a slight frown to show that he was disappointed with Keenan's decision. "All right, just be there tomorrow, I don't like running point."
He gave his goodbyes to the two just as he had greeted them and left after giving Keenan a look.
Jaqueris walked for a bit consumed in his thoughts. Keenan had grown up in a less…prosperous section of the Bronx along with his elder brother, sister, and mother. His brother all but ignored him, his sister had a temper, and his mother was a bit too lenient in the parental regard. Effectively Keenan raised himself and found friends within the community who weren't exactly the best role models. Despite this or perhaps because of it, Jaqueris spent a lot of time with his cousin and tried to steer him in the right direction by encouraging his attendance to school, reminding him of assignments, and recently asking about his college plans after school. Though sometimes, times like tonight, he wondered if he had done any good at all.
Due to how focused he was on his own thoughts he didn't notice the crisp black limousine pull up beside him. He looked to his side and didn't acknowledge it but when he registered it again he stopped at looked into the tinted windows. The car stopped and the window rolled down. Jaqueris had his mouth slightly open as he waited to see what was about to transpire, a man of Hispanic descent with shades and slicked back hair in a ponytail poked his head out of the window.
"Get in." he said bluntly
"Sorry, but I was taught not to take rides from strangers." He said jokingly but not as confidently as he would've hoped. He somewhat regretted this however when the man produce a silver Beretta and pointed it at Jaqueris.
"I won't ask twice, amigo." He said smirking
Not in the mood to joke anymore Jaqueris opened the door of the car and got inside. He sat down and saw that the man was in front of him on a seat that was behind the limo drivers.
"I apologize for Toro's assertiveness, but I had to meet you." Said a cool voice
Jaqueris looked in the corner and saw a well dressed man in a black suit with a red tie looking at him. The man was middle aged with brown hair graying a bit on the sides. He had his legs crossed and was leaning forward slightly. He had his head cocked to the side with his index finger holding his head and his thumb under his chin. This man's body language screamed confidence to Jaqueris, but with a hint of danger.
Jaqueris swallowed a bit and sat back in his seat, he spread his legs and put his ball to his side and tried to relax his features. He knew he couldn't show fear to these types, they'd pick up on it and eat him alive.
"Why…do you want to meet me?" said Jaqueris quizzingly
The man smiled and looked at Toro who looked and smirked back before quickly going back to his scowl.
"Isn't it obvious, you're the biggest thing in the Bronx right now kid. Jaqueris Malcolm averaging 27.7 points, 7 rebounds, and 8 assists and 1.5 blocks a game…a top prospect in the country too. You've got everything going for you what with the big game coming up tomorrow." He explained
"Yeah…thanks I'm flattered." Jaqueris said slowly eyeing Toro who had yet to put his pistol away and had its butt sitting on his knee still pointed at Jaqueris.
"But I don't wanna waste your time I'm sure you've gotta rest up. So I'm going straight to the point. You see a lot of people expect things from you kid and I'm sure they've told you that. Now I'm not going to do the same because that would be wrong." He said pointing four of his fingers towards his chest
Jaqueris was not a slow kid, so he could see where this conversation was going. "So, dark limousine, dark clothes, dark shades…shiny gun." Toro's right eyebrow lifted at the last part.
"You guys want me to throw the game tomorrow, right?" he said matter of factly
The mysterious man chuckled lightly and put his hand on Toro's shoulder. "No…no…I'm not going to ask you to go out there and tank kid, a man's got his pride I know." He paused for a bit and cupped his hands and balled his lips slightly.
"What I'm asking you to do is not be the Superman that everyone makes you out to be. You know to make the game a little more interesting."
Jaqueris looked puzzled for a bit before realization hit him hard, "You want me to shave points." This wasn't a question but a statement.
"Well, if you put it that way…yes. You see I've got some money in the pool on this one and I really would appreciate an edge tomorrow." He then leaned forward enough that he put his hand on Jaqueris' shoulder and looked him in the eye, "Can you that for me…son?" The way he said it was as if he knew the answer already.
Jaqueris knew he wasn't really in a position to refuse this "offer" as it were. Especially not with Toro's Beretta aimed at him. He'd seen these types of scenarios in movies and usually the guy that was being threatened like he kind of was would be some well trained commando who could kill someone with their pinkie, but a commando he was not.
"It's…doable." He said letting his head drop a little showing shame in his decision.
The man laughed as he patted down Jaqueris' shoulder and leaned back in his seat. "Now that's what I wanted to hear. Toro here thought he would have to graze you with a bullet or something…can you believe that?" he said amusingly
Jaqueris looked at Toro who let out a small chuckle. The car came to a stop letting Jaqueris know he was at his destination.
"Here you are, this is your home I believe?" said the man, Toro opened the door to let Jaqueris out who got up almost too quickly.
He stepped out of the car and saw that he was in front of his home with a boy of about 11 sitting on the porch dribbling the ball between his legs. He began to walk towards the building when, "Hey, chico…" said Toro, "You forgot something."
He then threw the orange ball towards him causing Jaqueris to promptly catch it. Toro tucked his head back inside the window as it rolled up. The limousine drove off down the dark road.
Jaqueris stared in the direction of the car for a moment running what had just happened over in his head.
"Hey, who was that?" said the boy with the ball
Jaqueris looked towards the boy who he recognized as his little brother Ja'Keyon. "No one, just the NBA giving me a ride home because they know I'm league bound." He lied
His brother scuffed at this, "As if." Jaqueris walked towards the porch and rubbed his brother on the top of his head who moved away from the touch. "Why are you outside so late anyway?" he questioned in normal big brother fashion
"I decided to wait for you and plus I needed to work on my handle a bit before I lay down." He answered.
"Come on, enough of that today. We're going inside." Jaqueris said as he walked up the steps into the apartment building. They walked inside and spotted their mother other the stove cooking, at the sound of the door closing she turned to look at them. She was a 45 year old woman wearing pink apron with that motherly look adorned on her face.
"You two are in so much trouble where have you been, both of you?" she interrogated
The two at first said nothing both waiting for the other to start as they knew how difficult their mother could be. It was Jaqueris who finally broke the silence with, "Sorry, mom I got sidetracked a the courts and Ja'Keyon was just outside on the porch so no worries." He immediately made way towards his room upstairs.
"Where do you think you're going I made Alfredo tonight!" she yelled after him
"I know Mom put mine on a plate in the microwave, I'll eat it later." He called back, truth be told he wasn't the least bit hungry anymore not after his little encounter with the Bronx's local gangster anyway. He opened the door to his room and rolled the ball into the corner. He fell onto his bed and looked up into the ceiling of his dark room.
"What a night." He said to himself
As he ran over everything in his mind and contemplated what he was going to do he furrowed his forehead and brought his fingers to the bridge of his nose. While he was doing this the light began to flicker rapidly on and off catching his attention. Just when he looked at it, it stopped and stayed dark, he looked at his wall and saw that he hadn't thrown the switch into the on position.
"Faulty, electricity." He murmured before rolling on his side facing the window. He closed his eyes and tried to get some semblance of sleep. He didn't dream much, he didn't dream ever, but that night he dreamed of stars.
So how to do you guys like the first chapter of my new story. Leave you input in the reviews so I can see what you think. Oh and did anyone catch the hint I threw in at the end about his powers. See if anyone can try and guess what it is.