Page 47 of Play to Win
16
Three Weeks Later
Ethan stood across the street from the dilapidated house at the corner of Furley Street in Providence. He glanced with fondness at the fire hydrant he and the boys up the street used to break open on the sultry summer days so they could play in the water. The lecture from the fireman and a slap from his father, was worth the fun they’d had.
He heard a car door slam and then another, but he didn’t turn around. He knew who was walking up behind him.
“So, what’s up, E?” Rock asked when he came to a stop beside Ethan. “You called us all over here to look at this shack.”
Noah jabbed an elbow in Rock’s side. “He used to live here, idiot.”
Rock frowned. “I know that, jackass. I’m just trying to figure out why he’s here now. He hasn’t come back down this street since we all returned to Providence.”
“He’s right,” Del said. “What’s going on, E?”
Ethan inhaled and rolled his neck. Rock was right, Ethan hadn’t come back to his childhood home when he returned to Providence. It was a part of his past that he never wanted to relive. So he’d simply steered clear of it. But three weeks ago, Portia had said something before she’d left him standing on the sidewalk alone. She’d told him that their pasts had made them who they were and that it was okay to carry a part of that inside them because it showed their growth.
He had grown since the years he’d spent in this house with his father drinking and physically abusing him. And he’d changed from that boy who was angry about his mother leaving him. He’d changed and he’d made something out of himself, it was time he gave something back in return.
“I bought it,” he announced. “This house, the land and that vacant lot over there. I bought it all.”
“What?” Lance asked. “Why? It’s an eye sore. Nobody lives on this street anymore. It’s a dead end, so there’s not even traffic down here.”
“How’d you afford this?” Jeret asked. “We all gave our savings to open the bar. I thought you were tapped out as far as free money to use.”
“I owned some properties in D.C. I’d been renting them out while I was living and working there trying to offset the huge mortgage on my apartment. When I came back here, I wasn’t sure what I’d be doing for income, so I kept the properties,” he said.
“Good move,” Del added with a nod.
“I sold them last week and with the proceeds negotiated workable terms with the bank to clear this land and build something new.” It felt good to announce that.
He looked around at all his friends and continued, “It’s going to be a rec center, so the kids in Providence have somewhere to go when home isn’t safe. Not a jail or a house designed to be another means of incarceration for kids, but a place where they can go to express themselves and maybe learn a few life skills. To encourage them and put them on the path to success.”
“Oh man,” Rock said. “That’s what’s up.”
Jeret stepped up and clapped a hand on Ethan’s shoulder. “You’re a class act, Ethan Henley. A class act indeed.”
“I’m gonna need some help, so I figured you guys—”
“Absolutely,” Noah interrupted. “Whatever you need. We’ve got your back.”
“Always,” Del said. “Always.”
Lance nodded his agreement. “And because we’ve got your back, we feel we can be totally honest with you.”
Ethan lifted a brow. “Totally honest about what?”
“In short, we think you’re being an ass,” Lance said and then turned to the others for their opinions.
“Outside of this really cool idea you’ve come up with here, yeah, you’re being kind of a jerk,” Rock stated.
It was Jeret’s turn to add his two cents. “For the last three weeks, you’ve been a sulky jerk. You even gave up a couple hundred during our monthly poker game because your mind’s not clear.”
Ethan stared at each of them in confusion. “How is it exactly that my mind’s not clear? I mean I’ve been working hard at the bar and coming up with a great way to give back to our community, and you guys are standing here giving me flack.”
“We’re staging an intervention.” Lance grinned.
Ethan frowned. “You’re not funny.”
