Free Toby Wheeler by Thatcher Heldring

snow. That reminded me of Megan. The first day we met she had asked if it snowed in Pilchuck. For her sake, I hoped it would. Picturing her smiling made me do the same, which must have made me look like a lunatic as I walked into practice dripping wet, sneezing, and smiling stupidly.
    For once, I didn’t stand alone waiting for JJ to join me at the beginning of practice. Instead, while he warmed up alone in the corner, I stretched with Raj and McKlusky. They were talking about a banner that had appeared that morning across the front of the stage in the cafeteria. It was white with frosty blue writing and a picture of a cold wind blowing through a mountain pass. It said: WINTER BLAST—DANCE AND TALENT SHOW: JANUARY 21 ST ! The appearance of the banner had created some buzz around the school, even though the dance was in January and this was still mid-November. In a couple of days, I bet, the talk would die down and everyone would move on to something else. Well, almost everyone.
    Raj psyched himself up as he reached for his toes. “Tomorrow,” he said. “Tomorrow I will ask Cassandra Miller to the dance.”
    “Sure you will,” said McKlusky.
    “Are you calling me a chicken?”
    “It’s just like Risk,” McKlusky said. He did an imitation of Raj, which meant speaking very crisply—like a Spanish teacher introducing a new word. “Tomorrow I’m going to conquer South America. Tomorrow I’m going to move more armies to Madagascar. Tomorrow I’m going to ask Cassandra to the dance. But you never do. You never do.”
    I laughed as Raj and McKlusky went on and on about Risk. Behind them, I saw JJ knocking down jumpers on the court. Catch. Square up. Elevate. Release. Swish. Catch. Square up. Elevate. Release. Swish. He was automatic, all right, but what good was it if he wasn’t having any fun? At least Raj and McKlusky seemed to enjoy themselves, even when they were arguing.
    “Have you asked Melanie yet?” Raj asked, grabbing a ball from the rack.
    “I will as soon as you ask Cassandra.”
    Raj sniffed. “Why do I have to go first?”
    “Because Melanie might not want to go with me unless she knows Cassandra is going with you.”
    “Did it ever occur to you Cassandra might feel the same way?” Raj asked.
    That was when some of the other guys joined the conversation.
    “If you two are talking about the dance,” said Roy, “you better move quick. Girls don’t like to be kept waiting.”
    “Don’t listen to him,” Khalil added. “You gotta take your time. Make sure you ask right. Otherwise you’re gonna get…
rejected
!” Khalil brought his arm up, then waved it forward like he was swatting away a layup.
    “Man, you can’t even run a lap without wheezing,” Ruben joked. “How are you gonna dance for an hour?”
    “Like this,” said Khalil.
    We all watched and laughed as Khalil danced around the gym. It was the first time I felt like I was a part of the team. Nobody was mad at me for screwing up. I wasn’t standing in the corner. Was this what Dad thought he was missing by not playing sports?
    When Khalil was done dancing, Roy said, “So, when are you gonna pop the question to Coach’s daughter?”
    A second passed before I realized he was talking to me. “When am
I
going to ask Coach’s daughter?
Me?
”
    “You’re always with her,” Ruben said. “Eating lunch. Sitting on the end of the bench. You think we don’t notice this stuff? It’s obvious, man.”
    “What’s obvious?”
    “That she
likes
you,” said Roy.
    “I told you,” said Raj.
    “That’s not what you told me. You told me getting mixed up with the daughter of an authority figure was suicide.”
    “Actually, my cousin said that.”
    “Whatever!” I turned back to the team. “The point is, you can all relax because even if Megan does like me, which she doesn’t, there is no way I’m taking her to the Blast or anywhere else there might be dancing.”
    There was no response, so I went on, “I had a bad experience.