STMH Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Tristan

            I breathe in deeply. It’s my turn to serve. I run down the court and throw the ball up. I hit it with as much force as I can. The ball goes to the other side of the net. The other team receives the ball. Their attacker is about to spike.

            My teammate, Axel, blocks the ball. It hits the floor on the other side!

            “Alright,” my side of the court yells.

            We are one point away from taking the set. My energy is high. I start bouncing on my feet. I serve the ball again since we got the last point. It goes over the net.

            The ball comes back to our side.

            Our libero, Justin, receives the ball. He sends it to me. I set the ball to Drake! He spikes it over. Before anyone is able to receive the ball, it hits the floor!

            “Nice kill, Drake!”

            The whistle blows. All of us are breathing heavily. Luckily this was just a practice match between my team.

            “Good job, everyone, I’ll see you tomorrow. Make sure you eat a decent meal and get plenty of rest,” Coach Darren shouts!

            “Yes. Coach!”

            Drake comes up to me seconds later. He gives me a fist bump. “Yo, Trist, want to practice some spikes with me? Our timing is getting much better.”

            “I agree. Let’s see if Axe will throw some balls for us. Hey Axe!”

            I catch him before he can leave the gym.

            “Sup, Trist?”

            “Want to throw some balls for Drake and me? He wants to practice a little longer.”

            “Yeah, sure, man, let me just call my mom to let her know I’ll be home a little late,” he replies.

            I’m glad Drake asked me to practice some more. It keeps me away from home just a little bit longer.

~

            Half an hour later, Drake and I decide to end practice. We are both breathing heavily. I wipe the sweat off my brow. Drake gulps down some water. Axel is putting the balls away for us.

            “Great job tonight, Trist. Thanks for staying later to practice with me.”

            “Yeah, no problem. It’s good to get some extra practice in.”

            “Agreed, well, see you tomorrow.”

            I nod. Axel locks up the gym. He’s the key monitor this week. Coach Darren knows we like to practice a little longer sometimes. He always leaves the key with one of us.

            Axel and I fist bump before he leaves the gym. Once he walks away the smile drops from my face. I sigh to myself.

            “I wonder if dad’s drunk again,” I think to myself.

            Every day for the last month and a half, I’ve come home to find my dad drunk. A lot of the time, he’s passed out on the couch. I’m usually much happier when he is. When he’s awake, he usually yells at me over the smallest things. Then we get into a huge fight. After the fight, I usually leave the house.

            I always like to clear my head. I take a walk to cool off. Or I practice serving. I don’t always have a great serve. Sometimes, the ball will hit the net. I feel bad when that happens.

            When I walk through the door, Dad is passed out on the couch. I smile a little to myself. There won’t be a fight tonight. I’m not in the mood to argue with my dad. It wastes too much of my energy. I have other things I need to focus on.

            I need to figure out what I’m going to eat for dinner tonight. There isn’t much in the fridge right now. Dad hasn’t gone shopping since last week. I might order something out, but I’m not sure what I want. I also need to pick up something for dad to eat. He has work in the morning.

            Half the time, dad doesn’t eat what I cook. I find a lot of the plates of food I made for him still sitting in the fridge. I usually end up eating it. I don’t want food to go to waste.

            I decide to go to the store to pick up a few things. I think I’m going to make a couple of burgers tonight. I will make Dad one. I hope he actually eats it. If not, I will eat it after volleyball practice tomorrow.

            While I’m walking to the store, I hear my phone ringing in my pocket. My girlfriend, Marie, is calling me. A smile lights up my face. “Hey, baby, what’s up?”

            “Hey, Tristan, not too much right now. I’m about to go home and do some homework. Just wanted to call to see how you were doing. How was practice tonight?”

            “Practice went pretty well tonight. I’m doing alright though. Dad was passed out when I got home. Also, I’m currently at the store right now. How are you doing?”

            “I’m alright too. Well, I have to go for now...we really need to talk after practice.”

            “Alright, babe, I’ll see you tomorrow,” I say. After I hang up the phone, I feel my heart drop in my chest. I really have a bad feeling about tomorrow.

~

            Dad is awake by the time I get home from the store. I sigh. I really don’t know what type of mood he’s in right now. “Hey, dad, I’m about to make dinner. Are you hungry?”

            “Yeah, I am feeling kind of hungry.”

            “I’m going to be making burgers tonight.”

            “Alright, that sounds awesome.”

            I make burgers while Dad sits on the couch. He has the television on in the background. Dad doesn’t like sitting in silence.

            “Son, I’m sorry,” Dad says suddenly.

            I don’t know how to reply at first. “Huh? What are you apologizing for Dad?”

            “I’m sorry for getting drunk a lot lately. Please, be patient with me. I’ve been having a hard time dealing with your mom’s death. Lately, drinking is the only thing that’s been helping me numb the pain.”

            Whoa, I wasn’t expecting this. Dad hardly ever talks to me about his feelings. I can also tell that Dad is completely sober today. “It’s okay. Dad. I know it’s been hard to cope with mom’s loss.”

            He nods. I smile at him. Dad smiles back. I sit next to him on the couch. We eat our burgers together and watch a movie.

Reviews

[Moon]

I like the trio Tristan, Alex and drake