Date: Fri, 25 Sep 2015 12:15:17 -0400 From: Paul Knoke Subject: INSTALLMENT THIRTY-THREE of "THE FATHER CONTRACT" INSTALLMENT THIRTY-THREE from THE FATHER CONTRACT by Arthur J. Arrington Edited Paul K. Scott Please consider a donation to understaffed folks at Nifty so that they can keep PJ's story alive and well. He is one boy we never want to lose track of! Chapter Sixty-Two: The Boys Who Would Be King! The following Monday when he arrived for practice, PJ was startled by what he found on the bulletin board. "Erik, look at this!" His roommate came up and peered over his shoulder. PJ pointed. "It's the assignments for Thursday." He put his finger at the top. "You're the starting quarterback, and I'm starting as a wide receiver!" Erik carefully checked over the list. Then he pointed to the name of the school they were playing. "Riverside Heights, that school from New York City. They're an easy team. We killed them last year in everything." PJ frowned and shot back, "Right, that's what we thought about Perry!" Then he shrugged. "Whatever. They're nice kids. I had fun staying with 'em overnight. I wonder if my friend Skip will come. An' what about that red-haired kid you knew from basketball? Does he play football?" "That was Eddie. He plays. At least he did last year." "Cool. Maybe we'll see him. Anyway, it'll be nice to get a chance to start." Erik nodded and added sarcastically, "At least we'll have a good shot at winning this time." PJ followed his roommate to their lockers to change. Erik had been in a grim mood ever since the Perry game. On Saturday, once he and PJ had completed a hard practice, they'd stayed for the end of the scrimmage game the scrubs were having. While PJ worked with Brian, Erik had spent a lot of time on the sideline talking with Phil, who was playing quarterback. After lunch, Erik had led them all to Billy's house and put them through hours of work on their playbook. Then, on Sunday, they'd picked up Billy again, and after another hard workout in the weight room, they'd spent even more time on passing drills over at the base of the Hill. Erik had insisted they all take turns doing the passing, even making Billy take his turn. "It's good experience for you, Billy," he'd explained. "An' PJ and Brian, you need to do it too. For our secret option play. You all gotta pass good enough to make it work. Phil and I will be your receivers." PJ thought about this as he got his equipment on. Jack had told him over and over that hard work was the basis of all success. If practice was what it took to win football games, Erik was going to get them there. An' I'm gonna do everything I can to help him, PJ vowed to himself. The explanation for the starting assignments came right after their warm-up drills. "You've all seen the bulletin board," Coach Lewis told them. "Some of you thought that our first opponent was going to be easy and got fooled. But this next team that we're playing really is below your level. I've gotten information on them from some other coaches. Their football program is relatively new. They're still building it, so they have a lot of young players. What we're going to do is designate this a 'substitution game.' That's why the first-string defense will start on offense. Depending on how things go, we'll be putting a lot of scrubs in later on. All of you second-stringers, not just a few of you, will eventually get to play. This will be your game to win or lose. You older guys on the first string will probably not play at all. You'll have your own special drills all this week. It'll be a good opportunity to work on some of the problems we found. Any questions? Okay, let's have a good practice--and you scrubs especially need to get yourselves ready!" PJ noticed that there was some grumbling about not starting among the older players. He found this hard to comprehend. Why would anybody worry about starting if there was no challenge? He erased it from his mind and went out to do his drills, pushing himself hard and then doing whatever he could in the later non-contact scrimmage to help his roommate execute successful plays. He was tired after dinner and had to splash cold water on himself several times to stay awake and get his classwork done. He wrote a short note to Jack and checked the Red Sox website before getting into bed. He was dismayed to find the Sox were behind eight-to-three in the seventh inning down at Baltimore. The Orioles had given the Red Sox problems all season. A bad series against them now could wreck the Sox's chances for making the playoffs. They only had a one-game lead. The next morning, he groaned when he checked the website before breakfast. "What is it?" Erik asked, coming over quickly. PJ gestured at the screen. "They lost last night. Jack only went one-for-four, and the Yankees are tied with them for the Divisional lead." "Oh man," Erik shook his head. "Geez, I hope they can pull it out." He was sorry that the Red Sox had lost, yet relieved that it was only a baseball game PJ was groaning about. His roommate had recently slept through some nights where things seemed peaceful, and Erik hoped that he'd finally settled down. He didn't want anything else upsetting PJ because ever since he'd showed up at the end of the summer, Erik had been convinced that something was bothering him. He didn't appear to be as happy as he'd been the previous year, and some of the things he did or said seemed strange. At first, Erik had suspected some problem concerning Jack. Eventually, though, he'd rejected that idea. PJ wrote to Jack almost every night, Jack wrote back, and PJ proudly showed him what he'd said. No, it wasn't Jack. But there was something. Whatever or whoever his roommate was bothered about, Erik wished he could find out. If somebody's hurt my best friend, he thought, I'd like to kill them. He followed PJ out the door to go to breakfast. The last few nights have been quiet, he told himself. Probably everything is going to be fine. Brian and Phil, both excited about the chance of playing in Thursday's game, turned up at lunch with news about preparations going on in the Field House. "They're setting up for a big AAU Regional Wrestling Meet," Brian announced. "They do it every year," Erik started to say, but Phil interrupted him. "Brian's gonna be in it!" "Yeah," Brian added. Coach Dutcher gets Gordonsville to sponsor it." Erik patiently began again. "He does that every year" --but once again Phil talked over him. "He does it to get publicity for the team an' get kids to come out for wrestling." He proudly looked around at the others. "An' I get to be Brian's manager for the meet!" "We'll be there to cheer for you, Brian," PJ assured him. "Yeah," said Erik. "And although a certain roommate of yours keeps interrupting me, The Top Floor gang sticks together. So when does your regular wrestling season start?" "After football ends. But we've already started practicing for this AAU meet." Brian pointed at PJ and Phil. "Early in the morning. Like these guys are gonna do for swimming." Then he looked down and said, "I just wish my dad could be here for the game Thursday, an' my wrestling meet on Saturday." "He'll come for one of your games," Erik told him. "You know he will." "An' so will your dad," PJ told Phil. "I sure hope so," the young boy whispered, half to himself. "They'll make it," Erik declared confidently. "This is gonna be a great week! Our football game on Thursday. You guys are gonna play an' show everyone what you can do! Then Saturday wrestling. It'll all be kick-ass! "Yeah!" Brian exclaimed. He and Phil high-fived. The next two days were crowded with activity. Fall classes were in full swing and homework assignments were keeping everybody busy. Brian had his morning wrestling practice, and in the afternoons there was football. Coach Lewis split the boys into three groups: he worked with the thirteen-year-olds, an assistant took Erik, PJ, and the others who would be Thursday's starting offense, and a coach from the Lower School ran drills for the scrubs. Every one of them was pumped up by the prospect of game-day action. In between times, PJ was keeping track of the Red Sox, and the news from Camden Yards was mixed. After losing again to Baltimore in extra innings, Jack's team actually fell a half-game behind the Yankees, until a loss by New York restored the tie. On Thursday, as PJ hurried to the Field House after classes to change for the game, he was still worried about the Red Sox. "They play for the last time against the Orioles tonight," he told Erik. "I hope they do okay." "Let's hope so, PJ." Then Erik had a sudden idea. "Say, if we win our game, you can e-mail Jack about it and the good news might make him want to hit a few homers for you!" But PJ shook his head. "I've never asked Jack to hit any homers for me. I'm not sure he'd like it." "Well, it still wouldn't hurt to send him news that we won." "No, it wouldn't." PJ gave his friend a wry smile. "And it would be nice to win one for a change, too." "You got that right!" They slipped into their uniforms and jogged down to the field, where they found Riverside already warming up. PJ looked to see if he recognized anyone among the players, but it was hard to tell boys apart when they were all dressed so much alike. "Let's go see if our friends are here," he suggested. They trotted over toward the other group. PJ was about to ask one of the boys about Skip when he heard his name being called. A Riverside players was running towards them, waving. "Hey!" PJ yelled delightedly. He recognized the shy boy he'd gotten to know. "PJ!" Skip flashed a big happy smile. "I was hopin' you'd be here! I've been looking for you." He and PJ slapped hands, and PJ pounded his shoulder pads. "You decided to try football this year! That's great!" "I'm not very good," Skip confessed apologetically, "but it's fun." He waved again to get the attention of another boy, who headed over as soon as he saw them. This turned out to be Eddie, Erik's tall friend from basketball. After he and Erik greeted each other enthusiastically, Eddie turned to PJ and asked, "Is Jack gonna be here?" "No, the Red Sox are playing in Baltimore tonight." "If you text him, tell him we're all rooting for him," the red-haired boy said. "Even the Yankee fans." "I will. Hey listen, let's all meet after the game. We've got lots to tell you." After they agreed to this, Erik said, "Look, you know how it is. We're gonna try to win an' everything. But I hope you guys have a great game." "Yeah," PJ added, and told Skip, "I think it's neat that you're playing football. Good luck." After shaking hands, PJ and Erik went to their side of the field where Brian and Phil were waiting. "Who was that you were talking to?" Brian wanted to know. "Some kids we met last season," PJ explained. "They're really nice. You can meet 'em after the game. Jack signed a ball cap for one of them." "PJ," Phil said, "when Jack comes to one of our games, could you please introduce me to him? I've always wanted to meet him." "Yeah," Brian added. "Me, too. Please, PJ?" "Don't worry," Erik told them. "Jack will definitely want to meet you when he hears that you're PJ's friends. He is really a super guy. Now, let's get warmed up." They did a few stretching exercises while waiting for Coach Lewis to arrive, then warmed up with the rest of the team. Afterwards, PJ was standing on the sideline watching the officials finish their pre-game meeting when he heard Billy calling his name. He trotted over to the stands where the boy and his father were waiting. "We got here as soon as we could," Mr. Thatcher said. "I had to get off work." Billy was giving PJ an excited high-five. "We're just about to start," PJ hurriedly told them. "Check this out! Erik, and I are starting on offense today. Erik's the quarterback! Watch and see what he does. I'm gonna be one of the receivers. And I'm betting you get to see Brian and Phil in the game today too! Oh, and Billy, if it's okay with your dad, stick around after the game--there's two kids on the other team I want you to meet--they're both really neat--you'll like them." He was saying all this as fast as he could because the kicking and receiving teams were going out on the field and Erik was making urgent gestures to join him. "Good luck!" Billy yelled as PJ trotted back to the bench. "Billy and his dad are here," he told his roommate. Erik grinned. "Let's see if we can't give 'em a show." Riverside had won the toss and elected to receive. Their offensive unit took the ball on their own twenty after Kip's kick bounced into the end zone. PJ studied them as he stood beside Erik on the sideline, watching the play. "They're not that bad." Erik nodded. "They just don't have enough big guys." The Gordonsville defense stopped the New York team short of a first down. Riverside was forced to punt, but their kicker got off a nice one that bounced out-of-bounds past midfield. Gordonsville took over the ball on their own forty. "Here we go," Erik said, putting on his helmet. As PJ followed him out to the huddle, he was thinking, Our first offensive series as starters! Erik called for runs by his backs on the opening plays to get the ground game established. PJ took advantage of this time to gauge how the opposing defenders were going to cover him. After they got their first down, Erik's eyes flicked to PJ's. He called his number for a pass. As PJ lined up on the play, he checked the defensive alignment. There was no change. On the snap of the ball, he sprinted out into the flat and cut sharply over the middle in the pattern Erik had signaled. The opposing corner back, caught off-guard, fell behind. PJ was now open. There was Erik's pass! It virtually floated into his hands! PJ tucked it under his arm and slanted away from one of the safety men coming across toward him. Putting on a burst of speed, he avoided the tackle, raced down the field, straight-armed the last defender who could've stopped him, and sprinted into the end zone! As he held the ball up in victory, he heard the crowd in the Gordonsville stands cheering. Quickly kneeling down, he touched both chains on his neck. "For you, Erik," he whispered. Then he got up and ran happily to meet his roommate. The two boys smacked shoulder pads and jogged up the sideline together. "Nice catch, PJ," Erik said, keeping his face expressionless.. "Nice pass, Erik," PJ responded equally deadpan. Then, unable to hold back any longer, they both laughed raucously. They high-fived, looked into the stands, and waved to Billy, who was jumping up and down in excitement next to his father. Soon Brian and Phil were there adding their own congratulations. After the four of them watched Tommy boot the extra point, Erik turned to PJ with his eyes flashing, and PJ grinned back. Gordonsville dominated the entire first half of the game. Erik's assessment had been exactly right. It was not that the New York team played badly, but simply that Gordonsville had the bigger, stronger players, particularly on the line. Riverside tried gamely to move the ball, but were unable to overcome that physical disadvantage. When Gordonsville was on offense, the combination of good blocking and Erik's passing ability kept Riverside off-balance no matter how hard they tried. By using PJ and his other receivers skillfully and by mixing in a solid ground attack, Erik engineered another long drive. Riverside mounted a tough goal-line stand, but finally Nate, having his turn as running back, broke through for the touchdown. Even then the New York team refused to let up. They blocked Tommy's extra point attempt, leaving the score 13-0. PJ was having fun, but the high point for him came near the end of the quarter. The other team, fighting as hard as they could to stay in the game, had made a couple of first downs, but were stopped in their own territory and forced again to punt. Coach Lewis sent PJ in to receive, and the wobbly kick came right to him. He sidestepped the first tackler, turned upfield, and drafted behind Erik who was blocking in front of him. He poured on the speed. A mass of opposing jerseys was coming, Erik took out several in a sprawl of bodies, but others remained. PJ straight-armed one defender, but then felt himself grabbed at the knees. He struggled, churning his legs. Suddenly, to his surprise, he was through them and sprinting down the side of the field. He was sure someone had helped him. Something was urging him on . . . He was certain of that . . . He quickly glanced back over his shoulder--but no one was there! With a feeling of tremendous exhilaration, he dashed over the goal line and held up the ball in his usual victory salute! He'd traveled almost sixty yards on his runback! Heart beating rapidly from exertion, the excited cheering of the crowd in his ears, PJ knelt down in the end zone. "That was for you, Jack," he whispered. "Now beat Baltimore tonight!" PJ planned to e-mail Jack right after the game. He had no intention, however, of telling him about the strange phenomenon that had helped him score his touchdown because Jack might think he was weird. He decided not to mention this to anybody else, either, for the same reason. But what might have happened? Had Billy's St. Christopher guided him through those tacklers? Some Bhatt-chain magic? Jack's spiritual presence after all? He couldn't be sure of anything. He guessed there was no way he could ever find an answer. Helmet off, he jogged back up the sideline. In the stands, Billy was waving and cheering. Erik, Brian, and Phil were all waiting to pound his shoulder pads and congratulate him. He felt wonderful! He felt like he and Erik were kings of the gridiron! At the start of the second quarter, with the score now 20-0 and when it was clear that Gordonsville was overpowering Riverside, Coach Lewis put many of the scrubs in on defense, including Brian and Phil. This immediately changed the tempo of the game. The Gordonsville offensive unit spent less time on the field, but Erik still managed to put together two long drives that scored thirteen more points. On the last one, at the end of the half, he brought them down to the eight-yard line and scrambled in himself for the score instead of risking a pass to PJ, who was only a step ahead of double coverage. The half ended with the score 33-6, the New York team having finally been able to score earlier in the quarter. And that was because their offense had driven all the way down to the Gordonsville six-yard line on a forty-three-yard pass completion to Erik's friend Eddie. "Did you see that," cried Erik, clearly delighted. "I thought he only knew how to play basketball!" "We need Eddie to transfer schools," laughed PJ. "We could use him here." Coach Lewis had nothing but praise for the second-teamers during halftime. "You're all doing just fine," he told them, "especially you younger players. This is great experience for you! Now, I want all of you to notice the fine job the other team is doing, too. They know that you guys are bigger and that you have them outmatched. But you notice that they never give up and they keep playing their hardest. That's a well-coached team with a lot of spirit. You should honor them by playing your very best as well and by showing your sportsmanship." The coach got his clipboard out and checked it. "We're making a few changes in the next two quarters so everybody gets some experience. Listen up for your assignments. And remember, . . ." -- the young coach grinned at them--"if I'm taking you out or changing your position, it's not because you're playing badly! It's because you're doing such a good job! We need to give the rest of the developing players a chance while we can, okay? Now, listen up . . . . " PJ paid close attention as Coach read off the changed assignments. To his delight, he heard Brian's and Phil's names. They were both coming in on offense! Phil was to take PJ's place as a wide receiver, Brian was going to be the running back, and PJ was moving to fullback. He smiled at the two younger boys who held up clenched fists, their eyes gleaming with excitement. Erik immediately took them all to one side so he could talk in private. "I told you to be ready to play any position! Well, here we go! This is our chance. But I won't call the running back pass option, Brian. We'll wait until Phil is back there." Brian nodded, his expression deadly serious. "Now listen up!" Erik continued. "Once I'm sure the linemen have their assignments down pat, look out! Be ready for our secret plays! I might call anything!" Chapter Sixty-Three: Best Buddies The third quarter proved to be interesting. Gordonsville received the kickoff to open the second half, and Erik, as he had promised, stuck to the team playbook as he moved the offense down the field. It wasn't as easy as it had been because the best linemen had been replaced by smaller substitutes. Riverside's defense was now more evenly matched. But Brian made some good runs behind PJ's lead blocking, and PJ himself got first downs by managing a few quick darts through the line on short-yardage situations. On the passing plays, Phil and the other receivers were doing a good job getting open. Phil even got one nice completion for seventeen yards despite being a head shorter than the man defending him. PJ liked the way Erik was mixing his calls over the entire range of playbook possibilities. It was a great chance for the replacement lineman to get all their blocking assignments down pat. And PJ decided that he liked blocking or carrying the ball even better than receiving passes. However, just as he was getting a feel for how the defense was playing against the run, an incomplete pass stalled Gordonsville on the Riverside thirty-one. That left Tommy to try a squib punt and retire the offense to the sidelines, where Erik gathered PJ and the others around him. "Okay, we've got our unit clicking now," he told them. "On the next series, we unwrap the fancy stuff, so be ready!" But it was a while before they could try it. The other team put together a solid drive against the replacements on the Gordonsville defense and managed, thanks to a long completion to Eddie, to hammer their way down the field all the way across the goal. After the subsequent kickoff with the score now 33-12, the offensive unit finally got to go back out. They started on their own twenty. Once again, Erik used both his running and his passing game to take them down the field. And this time he mixed in the Top Floor Gang's special plays. The quarterback draw caught the defense completely by surprise! Only a desperation tackle by one of the defensive backs kept Erik from making a huge gain. As it was, he got an easy first down. Then, a few plays later, he sprang the sweep with the run/pass/lateral triple option. He and Brian timed it well. As PJ blocked, Erik ran off to his right with Brian ahead and to his right. Since the defense had been burned by Erik's scrambling all day, they converged on him to make sure it wouldn't happen again. Erik waited until they'd committed themselves, then deftly shoveled the ball out to Brian just the way they'd practiced it in Billy's backyard. As the defense tried desperately to recover, Brian turned upfield for a big gain. One of the safeties finally managed to push him out of bounds. Erik and Brian used that play twice on the drive, both times for good yardage. At that point, Erik took advantage of the defenders' confusion to score a touchdown. He set the situation up with a beautiful pass to Phil that got them down close to the goal line. After that, out came a special play they hadn't used yet--the play that called for PJ to leave the backfield as a receiver. On the snap, Erik rolled out to his right. The defense was thoroughly rattled. They feared that he might be scrambling or running the option again. Plus, they were worried about Phil. No one was watching PJ, who ran undefended over the goal line and took a perfect pass from Erik, giving Gordonsville six more points. It was a beautiful exhibition of smart play-calling and perfect execution. This time when PJ knelt, he reached down and only fingered Billy's round St. Christopher's. You got me into the end zone, Little Brother! The crowd was cheering. PJ enthusiastically congratulated Erik as they jogged to the sidelines. "Thanks, PJ," Erik said, looking at him gratefully. "It's easy to do it when I've got buddies like you and Brian and Phil backing me up!" "The heck with that!" PJ slapped his back. "You're always telling me not to be modest. Don't you be! That was your drive. You were great!" Erik smiled happily. It was the happiest PJ had seen him since they'd come back from the first game at Perry. Coach Lewis was waiting to congratulate them. "You two guys!" he said to Erik with his eyes twinkling. "I know I saw some plays out there that aren't in the book. Nice going!" He put an arm around his young quarterback. "That was a beautiful job." While Erik looked up at him, grinning delightedly, PJ checked back in the stands. There was Billy waving. The boy gave him the "OK" sign with his thumb up and PJ smiled, nodded, and gave him an "OK" in return. In the fourth quarter, Coach Lewis shuffled the offense one more time. Phil became the quarterback, Brian a receiver, and Erik and PJ stayed in the game as Phil's running backs. Phil was clearly nervous about directing the offense. "Erik," he whispered anxiously, "what if I call a play and they don't do it?" "Don't you worry." Erik had an arm on his shoulder. "PJ and I will be right alongside you and so will Brian. If anybody gives you any trouble, I'll sic PJ on 'em. Butterflyers are pretty aggressive people, you know." PJ smiled. "Listen Phil," he told his young buddy, "Jack always says, 'Never let 'em know how scared you are.' Just go in there, look confident, and do your best. We're all right behind you. And don't look at Erik to see if he agrees with your play. Just call it and run it. If it works, fine, and if not, try something else! You're the boss, okay?" Phil took a deep breath. "Okay." He squared his shoulders, trying his best to look like he wasn't scared. Coach Lewis' substitutions made the last quarter the most interesting one of the game. All the replacements had made the teams more or less evenly matched, and the New Yorkers got a touchdown on their next possession, making the score 39-18. PJ felt a little sorry for the other team's kicker, who hadn't yet been able to hit an extra point attempt, despite doing an adequate job on kickoffs. He was pleased to see, however, that Skip was in the game as a receiver and that his friend made a catch during the drive. When it came time for the Gordonsville offense to take the field, PJ already had his helmet and was eager to get going. Of all the positions he played, he enjoyed running back the most. He got a lot of chances to touch the ball, plus he liked the contact that the position attracted. Phil was obviously nervous when he called his opening plays. His first few handoffs to PJ and Erik were hesitant. When he attempted a pass on second down it went incomplete. But PJ and Erik ran for enough yards to get the first down, Phil's next pass was a nice completion to Brian, he gained confidence, and things started to go much better. His biggest problems were that he couldn't throw as far as Erik, and because he was a few inches shorter, had more trouble seeing his receivers. Nevertheless, aided by Erik's and PJ's running, he kept the team moving. He liked to use the pro set and often threw the defense off-balance by directing various run combinations to either side while mixing in the occasional short pass. He stuck closely to the playbook. At first. But gradually he became more daring and began copying Erik. A big success came when he ran the triple option play out of the "I" formation. He lateraled to PJ who almost broke through for a huge gain. Then, in a very adventuresome move, Phil tried that quarterback draw. It went okay and he ran for seven yards. But on the tackle, he got slammed to the ground by a converging and frustrated defense. He got up slowly with some help from Brian, and although a bit wobbly, was able to trot back to the huddle under his own power. Erik made Phil call a timeout in order to give him a stern talking-to. "Listen, I promised PJ I wouldn't say anything, but from now on, that play is out. You're our secret weapon and if you get hurt we won't have you when we need you. Save something for the rest of the season. Give the ball to PJ and let him take the heat. Tacklers bounce off him like bullets off Superman." Phil rubbed the side where he had been hit and smiled ruefully. "Okay, Erik." Taking Erik's advice, he faked a handoff to PJ on the next play and threw to Brian out on the side for a gain of nine. Then, expecting only a short gain of a few yards to get the first down, he made a handoff to PJ in the pro set. PJ followed Erik into the line between tackle and guard. The small hole the lineman had opened was already closing as PJ slipped through. Just beyond it, Erik blocked one of the linebackers. Another was already closing in. PJ cut, twisting away as the boy grabbed for him. He felt hands slide off his waist. Avoiding more would-be tacklers, he broke into the secondary on the right side of the field. Brian had thrown a block which allowed PJ to angle into a clear area. He was at full speed now. In this last quarter of the game when many of the other boys were tiring, PJ's greater endurance and the strength in his sturdy swimmer's body gave him the advantage. As the Riverside safety tried an open-field tackle, PJ literally ran him over by straight-arming him out of the way. He sped into the goal holding the ball up over his head. So much for that first down! he thought triumphantly. As soon as he could, he got on one knee, clutching the chains on his neck. That's for you, Phil, and for Erik and Brian who gave me the blocks. And especially for you, Jack. Beat Baltimore tonight! He bounced to his feet to join his friends who were running to meet him. "There you go, Phil," he said handing his young quarterback the ball. "That was a great drive! Your first one!" "Nice going, Phil," Erik added. "All I did was hand off," Phil protested. "PJ got the touchdown." "I only got it because of the blocks Erik and Brian made," PJ said. "Team effort," Erik chimed in, grinning. "Us buddies stick together!" "Another touchdown, brought to you courtesy of The Top Floor Gang," Brian crowed happily. "Now you've got it!" Erik laughed. Coach Lewis was waiting to congratulate them on the sidelines. After giving PJ a smile and a back slap, he took Erik and Phil off to one side. Phil's eyes were shining with pride when he returned. The game continued to be fast-paced as the clock wound down. The substitutes on the Gordonsville defense put up a good fight, but Riverside managed another touchdown when Eddie made a beautiful catch at the back of the end zone. Even though it meant cheering for the other team, Erik and PJ yelled their heads off for him. Eddie waved in appreciation. When the Riverside kicker finally made an extra point, the score changed to 46-25. Then Phil took the offense back onto the field and started another drive. Again and again, PJ or Erik plunged ahead for the yardage that got the first downs they needed. Phil had plenty of confidence now and barked out plays in the huddle with authority. He kept his poise even after being sacked by a defender who slipped past a sloppy block. When the defense closed up to stop the run, they neglected to watch Brian and the other receivers as closely. Phil dropped back on the next play and threw his longest pass of the day, a twenty-five yard beauty that dropped right into Brian's hands as he scampered over the goal line. Tommy blasted the football through the uprights and the score rose to 53-25. PJ checked the clock as the special teams lined up for Kip's kickoff. There were less than three minutes left in the game. He slipped away from his friends and went quietly over to where the Gordonsville defensive unit was waiting to go out on the field. "Hey Steve," he whispered to one of the backs, "do me a favor." "Sure, PJ," the boy replied softly. "You know that receiver you're defending, the skinny one, number 63?" "Yeah?" "If he's in for this last series, loosen up on him and let him score a touchdown." The boy looked startled. "Geez, PJ, I don't know. . . . I mean, I don't wanna look bad. What's the deal? Is this kid a friend of yours?" PJ nodded. "Yeah. And it's his first time tryin' to play football. He's kinda shy and this'll probably be his only chance to get a score. I'd like to see him get one. Just loosen up on him a little. You don't have to make it obvious. Don't let him know you're doin' it. I mean, look at the score. It won't make any difference. " "I don't know. . . ." Steve still hesitated. With sly calculation, PJ said, "Tell you what. You know that problem set due in math next week? How'd you like to have all the answers? I'll bring 'em to your room tonight." The other boy smirked like a true co-conspirator. "You mean it? Okay, PJ, you got it. If your buddy can manage to catch a pass, he'll get a chance to score." "Thanks, Steve." PJ looked across at the other sideline where the Riverside offense stood gathered around their coach. "Believe me. It'll mean a lot to him." As the defense took the field, PJ went back to stand next to Erik. He watched anxiously for Skip and was relieved to see him coming out with the rest of Riverside's offense. Despite the lopsided score, the New York team showed no lack of spirit. They still wanted to score again, and their quarterback gamely kept them moving. He couldn't pass as well as Erik, but he had two backs that were not afraid to run, and he was able to use them along with an occasional slant pass to Eddie to keep his team advancing. But their progress was slow. As the clock ran down, PJ's heart sank. It looked like Skip wouldn't get his chance. Then, with less than forty seconds to go, Riverside was forced to the air on a third-and-long situation. To PJ's delight, the quarterback dropped back and lofted the ball in Skip's direction. Come on, PJ thought, you can do it! The pass was a little long. For a heart-stopping moment, PJ thought Skip might not be able to get to it. But he reached way out, managed to get his fingers on the ball, bobbled it . . . then clutched it to his chest. The Gordonsville defender appeared to slip just as he was about to make the tackle! Skip's slender form went scampering down the sidelines, just barely escaping another tackle by the safety. And he scored! PJ grinned and bounced up and down on his feet. "Hey, isn't that another of our friends?" Erik asked. PJ nodded, smiling. "That was a nice catch!" his roommate exclaimed. "Yeah. I think he's happy about it," PJ replied. On the other side of the field, Skip was being mobbed by his teammates and congratulated by his coach. The special teams lined up once more for a kickoff, but time ran out before any more plays could be run. The game ended with Gordonsville in possession; final score: 53 to 32. As soon as the last whistle blew, PJ ran to the other team's sideline to find his friend. Skip came over to him, smiling proudly. "PJ, did you see my play? I scored a touchdown!" "Course I saw it!" PJ said, grinning. He pounded Skip's back and put an arm around the boy's shoulders. "Didn't you hear Erik and me cheering for you? What a beautiful catch! Is that your first touchdown?" The boy nodded shyly. "That's great!" PJ told him. "The first one's special. I made my first one for Gordonsville last week. I bet you'll get more, too. Now, don't forget. We're meeting right after we get changed. Erik and I will see you in front of the Field House where your bus is parked." Back on the Gordonsville sideline, Billy and his dad were waiting along with all of PJ's friends. Billy ran to meet him yelling, "PJ, you were awesome!" PJ gave him a quick hug. "Thanks, Little Brother." Mr. Thatcher added his own congratulations with a smile and handshakes. "You guys sure tore up the field," he told the boys. "And if it's okay, your best fan here wants to stick with you for awhile," and of course it was fine with PJ. On the way to the Field House he said to Billy, "I'm glad you're with me, 'cause we're gonna go see these two kids from the other team as soon as we change, and you'll get to meet 'em." In the locker room, PJ thanked Steve for being such a good sport and told him he'd be seeing him later about certain math matters. Coach Lewis made a little speech, grinning as he congratulated the team. "You've got your first win now, boys," he told them. "Let's keep improving and get more. Your opponent next week is going to be tougher, but you can beat them if you play the way I know that you can! I'll see you for practice tomorrow." PJ and Erik showered, changed quickly, and then took Phil, Brian, and Billy out to the front of the Field House. "They should be out here somewhere," PJ said, looking around. "There they are." Eric pointed to where their two friends were waiting behind their bus. They went over and introduced their younger companions. "Man, you guys played an awesome game," Erik's tall friend Eddie said as he shook hands with Brian and Phil. "Us?" exclaimed Erik. "We saw what ya' did! If you'd played the whole darn game, you guys'd prob'ly won! Eddie hung his head in humility. And sheepishly smiled. He, Erik, and Brian started talking about football and the upcoming basketball season. PJ, Billy, and Phil were left alone with Skip. Billy stayed close to PJ, listening to the conversation while PJ explained that Phil was a swimmer. "Oh cool!" Skip exclaimed. "He'll be coming to our school for the overnight when we have our meet. PJ, I went to a swim camp this summer and was on a team. That's what I wanted to tell you about. My times are a lot better! And I saw your name in Swimming World Magazine. You were in a meet in Florida." "Yeah, I was at a sports camp, too," PJ said. He related some of the adventures he'd had. "The thing I most wanted to tell you about," Skip said, "is that this summer I learned how to do the butterfly. I stink at it so far, but I think it really helped my freestyle lots. I'm stronger in the water. PJ, you're fly is great. When you come for our meet, will ya' maybe like warm up with me and kinda take a look at my stroke? I want to show it to you. I have a lotta trouble with the kick." PJ smiled fondly at his friend. "Sure, we'll do that. Listen, even if your fly isn't that good, it helps all your other strokes. It's one of the best things you can do. We'll have some fun. I'll show you some drills you can do to get your kick stronger." "Geez, PJ, thanks," the boy told him. "Hey, I think our team is gonna be way better this year, so maybe we'll give you a good meet. I'm really looking forward to swim season this year! But wait!" he said, interrupting PJ as he was about to reply. "There's something else I have to tell you. You remember when we had our baseball game last spring, right?" PJ nodded. "I remember. You made a good bunt and got on base." Skip looked very pleased that PJ had remembered. "Yup, that's right. An' remember how nervous I was 'cause I had just learned how to bunt, too. Anyway, about a week later, guess what? I got a letter from Jack Canon!" PJ looked at him with a surprised expression. "Jack wrote you? Hey, that's great! I asked him to, but he never told me if he had or not." "I knew it!" Skip beamed at PJ. "I knew you'd asked him. In the letter he said something nice about the bunt I'd made an' I was sure you'd told him." He met PJ's eyes and said very seriously, "PJ, please do something for me. Would you please tell Jack that that letter was . . . was like real special to me. I mean, it wasn't even typed or anything. It was written with a pen. Jack sat down and took the time to write it to me all by himself. It was on stationary from some hotel he was staying at. It was just super nice of him to do that. You know, I wasn't too good at baseball and our team . . . well, you saw it; an' you saw how we had to practice. But Jack said that just getting out and playing was a big accomplishment. And he said I should be proud of myself. He said that he knew plenty of Major Leaguers who couldn't bunt and get on base so he said I should be proud of what I had done and should keep tryin' to learn more. I mean . . . it was so nice, what he wrote. I was ready to quit, but after I got that letter. . ." "Yeah, I know," PJ said, smiling at Skip. "Jack kinda has a way of keeping you going." His feelings, however, were definitely mixed. He couldn't help envying his young friend. "I mean, he took the time to write it to me himself--personally," Skip confided. "I finished the season. An' I got my parents to put me in the swim camp, an' I went out for football this year; an' it's all because of Jack's letter. He's right. It's more fun to try to do stuff, even if you're not too good, than to not do anything. PJ, would you please tell him that for me? Tell him how much I liked his letter. I wrote a thank-you letter to him, but I don't know if he ever got it. But I know you see him all the time. Would you please tell him?" "I'm gonna e-mail him tonight," PJ said. "I'll give him your message. And next time I see him, whenever that is, I'll tell him again." "Thanks, PJ," and there was more than just gratitude in Skip's voice. "I'm glad I got to see you today. You're the best buddy I've ever had in my whole life!" "You're pretty special yourself!" responded PJ, humbled and proud to be his shy friend's 'best' of anything. Skip looked wistfully at Phil. "You're real lucky for getting a chance to play on a good team with guys like Erik and PJ." "I know," Phil told him, nodding his head. "PJ's the greatest," Billy proudly declared. "I wish all our games could be like this one," Skip continued. "It's always neat to play you guys. We always have fun when we get together. Even when we lose, it just seems like we all have a good time, unlike this last week." "What happened?" PJ asked. "We played that school from Philadelphia. They're good, like you guys are, and . . ." "You guys are good, too, you know," PJ interrupted. "It's just that you don't have any big kids yet." "Well, these guys sure made us look bad," Skip continued. "I mean, it was like they were deliberately tryin' to humiliatate us. They ran the score up as high as they could and never put in their subs. It wasn't much fun 'cause we were playing at home and it's sort of embarrassing to lose like that when your parents an' all your friends are watching. I mean, okay, so they're bigger than us. They didn't have to rub it in. An' when they tackled, it was like they were tryin' to hurt us instead of just playing the game. It wasn't any fun at all. It wasn't anything like today. I mean, you beat us, but so what? We all had fun and both our teams made good plays." "And, you got a touchdown!" PJ said, grinning at him. "Yeah!" Skip returned an equally big grin of his own. "Boy, PJ, did that feel good!" He glanced over at the team bus. Boys were lined up getting aboard. "I guess we gotta go. I wish this was an overnight an' we could stay for awhile." He shook hands with Billy and Phil. "It was nice meeting you guys." "Tell your backstrokers that they'll have to be ready for this fella," PJ reminded him, indicating Phil. "He's good!" "I'll tell them." Then without warning, he hugged PJ tightly around his waist. "An' don't forget. You guys are stayin' with me when you come. I'll have those air mattresses waiting!" The two of them backed up and laughed. Erik and Brian came over with Eddie and they went to the bus together. "Tell Jack to get the Red Sox into the playoffs, PJ," the tall red-head said. "We're all rooting for him." "I will," PJ promised. He and the others waited on the sidewalk so they could wave goodbye as the bus left. Then they went to find Mr. Thatcher. "Erik, did Eddie say anything about the game they had last week against Travis' school?" PJ asked. "Yeah, he said they got annihilated by them. Franklyn Prep must be pretty good." "When do we play them?" Brian asked. "It's our last game," Erik told him. "Homecoming." "My dad's gonna be there," said Brian. "So's mine," Phil added. "It sounds like they may see a tough game," Erik said thoughtfully. Billy, as always, had no doubts. "You guys will beat them," he asserted with absolute confidence. After they had delivered Billy safely to his dad, PJ hurried back to his room so he could get an e-mail off to Jack in time for him to read it before the game with Baltimore that night. He wanted Jack to know about all the good things that had happened, especially the touchdown he had dedicated to him. That would make Jack happy and put him in the mood to get lots of hits so the Red Sox would win. PJ put everything into the message: his big runback of a kick, his first rushing touchdown, how well Erik, Brian, and Phil had done, how all their practice was helping, how great it was to be with all his buddies, and, especially, the message from Skip about how much Jack's letter had meant to him. "He said all the kids at his school are rooting for you, Jack," PJ typed. "Even the Yankee fans! And we are all for you here, too. So, you see, every time you get a hit tonight, you can imagine that you hear us all cheering, because we will be! Beat Baltimore!" PJ was so sure that his message with all its good news would put Jack in an upbeat mood that he got the nerve to make a daring suggestion. "I know you said that you did not ever want to see me again or visit me, but I have looked at the playoff schedule and you don't have anything on the dates of our fourth and fifth football games. They will both be big games, one of them is against our biggest rivil, and I just thought that it might be a nice break for you from the playoff pressure if you could maybe come to one of them. You don't even have to talk to me if you don't want to. Just come to watch. If you come Jack, I promise I will try very hard to make a touchdown or catch a pass for you. I would like very much to do something like that just once while your up in the stands watching me. I miss you a lot. Also, our last two games are after the World Series is over. So you could come to one of those insted if you want. The last game is very important because it is a good team who will be hard to beat, and it will be our Homecoming weekend. There is a big dinner afterwards that I was kind of hoping you would go to with me. It's sort of important. You can just come and eat. You don't have to talk to me if you don't want to. Bill will be there. He would really like to see you again, to. Please, please Jack, come for that. Remember, you promised you would. Good luck tonight. I know you will do good. Beat Baltimore. P.S. Skip told me today I was his best buddy. Will you be my best buddy someday again too? Love, PJ." PJ was in such a hurry to get the message off that he didn't even Spell Check it the way he usually did. He just sent it off as soon as he typed the last line. He hoped Jack would check his Palm computer in the next hour or so. He was desperately anxious for Jack to get his message before the game! That night, PJ stayed up as long as he could to watch the Red Sox play Baltimore. He was so exhausted from his own game that he couldn't stay awake past the sixth inning. But the Red Sox had a lead and Jack seemed to be doing well and already had two hits when he went up to bed. * * * Upon waking the next morning, the first thing he did was to check the Red Sox website. They had won! And Jack had gone three for four at the plate! The Red Sox were tied again with the Yankees for the Division lead. PJ breathed a sigh of relief. He was sure Jack had gotten his message in time and that it'd had something to do with his good night at the plate. When he shared the good news with his roommate, Erik said, "I wish the Sox had a big lead on the Yankees instead of bein' just tied with 'em, but tied is better that behind!" "They're gonna win," PJ told him with assurance. "Jack's gonna get 'em there! You'll see. Anything possible!" PJ felt great. It was my e-mail, he was thinking. It must have put him in a good mood. For sure, now, he'll e-mail me back. I know it! I just gotta be patient. Erik was stuffing books and papers into his backpack. "Come on, PJ. Let's make sure Phil's up. We'll grab breakfast. Brian's gonna meet us there. He had early wrestling practice this morning." I hope he does good in that Regional meet tomorrow. PJ began loading up his backpack too. "Yeah." Erik snickered and looked over at him with a mischievous grin. "Hey, wouldn't it be a riot if Jack decided to visit you then and came with us to that meet? Oh, man . . . " Both boys starting laughing, and PJ said, "Riot is right! Remember how mobbed he got when he came to my swim meets? There wouldn't be any wrestling for awhile. It'd be hours before they stopped tryin' for autographs and pictures!" But gradually his laughter stopped and he went on a bit sadly, "But he won't come on a weekend. The Sox are travelin' today, 'an tomorrow they start a series against the Royals in Kansas City." Erik gave his best friend a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. "He'll come to one of your games, PJ. Prob'ly when you least expect him. You know he wants to. An' Bill says he will. For sure he'll be here for Homecoming an' the Father-Son Dinner. That'll be the game with Franklyn. What a game that's gonna be!" "Yeah." But PJ could only force a smile. He'd been feeling so happy and content until Erik''s chatter had almost changed everything. What if Jack never came? What he never showed up for a game, Homecoming, or anything ever again? What if every promise had been a lie? No! PJ refused to pay any more attention to those negative vibes inside of him. He'd enjoyed a wonderful game with Erik and Brian and Phil and Skip too. He'd been with his friends and own best buddies, and nothing, nothing, was going to spoil that! * * * CONCLUSION OF INSTALLMENT THIRTY-THREE Editor Paul K. Scott's e-mail: paulkdoctor@gmail.com I apologize for mistitling the last installment "Thirty-One" instead of "Thirty-Two." In any event, write me back 'cause we love to hear from you guys!