Page 8 of Slam Dunk
He still hoped to be more. “Me too.”
“Goodnight.”
Quince really didn’t want to hang up. “Goodnight.” With nothing left to do, Quince hit end. For much longer than he cared to admit, Quince held his phone and stared at the ceiling. It had been a day. For the first time in a long time, he couldn’t wait to see what happened tomorrow.
Chapter Four
Thescreechofrubbersoles on the polished floor and the smell of the game were as familiar to Jathan as breathing. Each time he spotted Artem cheering for him, his chest warmed. He felt a hell of a lot better tonight. His head was fully in the game. This time, when the buzzer sounded on their win, Jathan knew they would go all the way. He felt it in his bones.
Artem jumped up and down, eagerly accepting his sweaty hug. Adrenaline pumped so hard through his veins, he couldn’t retain anything he saw or heard. Life just passed in some odd sort of surreality. He chatted, smiled, hugged, and gave interviews. Everything moved in a blur. He didn’t feel any sense of reality return until he headed for the elevator with his bag tossed over his shoulder and scrolled through his phone. The usualcongratulatory texts from his mom waited along with a text from Quince.
Quince:I’ll be waiting at your place with food by the time you get there.
A smile exploded across Jathan’s face. He hadn’t known if he would hear from Quince. Their drunken conversation—on his side—was a bit of a blur, but Jathan recalled enough. He wanted to see him. Jathan needed to know where this was headed. For once, he felt hopeful about the future in some way other than his career. He absolutely broke the speed limit the entire way home, making record time.
Sure enough, Quince sat in his truck in the driveway. Jathan smiled so hard, he probably looked like a crazy person. The garage door opened. Jathan slowed as he passed and waved for Quince to follow him inside. There was plenty of room inside for him to park. Obviously catching his drift, Quince pulled in next to him. The garage door slid closed behind them, shutting them away from the world.
Quince jumped from the truck, carrying bags of food. He was all smiles. “You fucking did it. I knew you would. You’re amazing.”
It felt beyond fantastic having Quince praise him. He was on top of the world. “One more game to the finals.”
“You’ll get there. I feel it.”
For a moment, they simply stared at each other. Jathan had to break the spell. “We should head inside. Whatever you brought smells delicious.”
“It’s just like hamburgers and fries. I was in a hurry to see you.”
He hadn’t felt this much hope in a long time. Jathan motioned for Quince to follow and headed inside. He grabbed two drinks from the fridge and got them set up in the living room.
“It’s funny. You have this huge house with a perfectly decorated dining room and you eat on the couch.”
Jathan hadn’t even thought. He just sat where he always did. “We can move to the dining room, if you’d like. I didn’t think about how you’d be most comfortable.”
Quince shook his head. “I eat while sitting on the couch too. You just seem like someone who would care if food got spilled on their sofa.”
He had no idea what that meant, but he still laughed. “No. It can be cleaned. What I can’t stand is sitting by myself in the dining room and the silence, eating alone. At least here, the TV keeps me company.”
Quince nodded. “I get it. How’s your mom?” He ate and held Jathan’s stare as he waited for Jathan to answer.
“She thinks her fever finally broke this morning. Since this game won us home advantage, she plans to be at the next one. That leaves an extra seat.” He dug into his food.
“You don’t want to give that to another family member?”
Jathan shook his head as he swallowed his bite. “There’s no one else. It’s just Mom and me.”
“I’d be honored to sit with your mom, then.”
There was so much happiness swelling in his chest. He ate too fast. Jathan really was starved after games. “What about your family? What are they like?” Before Quince could answer, Jathan held up one finger. “I know I’m weird, but I’ll have to listen from down here.” He pushed the coffee table aside and settled on the floor. Flat on his back, he propped his feet on the couch, trying to alleviate some of the pressure on his lower spine. “Okay. Sorry. My back is in awful shape after years of play. Actually, so are my knees and wrists. But that’s neither here nor there. Tell me about your family.”
Quince took a drink and wadded up his trash. He stuffed it in the bag before moving to the floor with Jathan. He stretched out on his side and held his head up with hand and his elbow on the floor. Quince gave Jathan his entire focus. “I don’t really talk to my family anymore. When I went to work for Tip, my dad threw around a lot of F slurs. He made all sorts of shitty remarks about how I needed to watch my back or I might get jumped on like in that movie about two cowboys.” Quince mimicked a voice he supposed was Quince’s dad. “I just got fed up. Tip islike a brother to me, and he’s been nothing but good to me. He’s definitely done more for me than my dad ever did. I just stopped calling one day, and it really highlighted that they never called me. We never spoke again.”
“Damn.” Jathan didn’t want him to get depressed. He flashed Quince a bright smile. “Is Quince short for Quincey or is it just Quince?”
“Just Quince. My mom wanted to name me Quincey. Dad said that was a sissy’s name. His words. Not mine. So they compromised and named me Quince. What about you? I’ve never met another Jathan.”
Jathan wasn’t surprised. “My mom’s name is Jan and my dad’s name is Nathan, so Jathan. Apparently, that’s how people always referred to them, so they thought it would be a cute name for their son.” Jathan laughed. “Then they got divorced before I was a year old.”
“And he’s no longer in your life?”
