ridge45 0 Report post Posted February 13, 2007 Destiny's Twilight They all said he couldn't do it. His own team, his own family. Why would they saythis to him? Where is the faith? It was only a year earlier when his back met with thewarm relief of defeat in that crowded auditorium. This year would be different. He knowsit. It has to be. "Hey Derek!", Ryan yells down the hall to the brick wall of a 16 year old boywalking towards the gym. "You gettin' ready to go run?" "Yea. I'm 3 over." "Don't worry about it. Come with me and Chuck to the cafiteria." "Sorry, I can't", Derek now gettin' a little frustrated. Ryan has a bad habit of beingable to talk him out of training. Then again, Derek knows that he himself is somewhat toblame. He knows that what he does to his body to make 145 lbs. is dangerous. He justdoesn't care. He has to redeem his loss from the previous season. His falure...his givingup that let down himself and his team. "I'll see you later. I'm probly gonna cut 4th today.Just tell Johnson that i'm sick or somethin'." "Okay. Later, man" "Later" Derek makes his way through the see of basketball players to get to the back endof the gym. He does this every Wednesday. He Creeps to the back of the gym where theteacher couldn't see him and he slips out the door to go running on the track. He neverliked these people. The basketball players. They showed him no respect. Everyday hedrills and practices in gym and they all look at him like he's a 3 legged clown doin'backflips over a giant tortouse. They always call him "spandex boy". Why can't theyunderstand he wonders. It frusterates him to the point of hate. He dispises them. But whatcan he do? He just turns a shoulder and keeps on working. Today was a good day, though. He feels great as he steps onto the broken concreteof the old track. He has only 3 pounds to lose. Eating and drinking will be no challenge toavoid. He has been wrestling for so long that he has trained himself and his body to learnto put off food and to not let it cross his mind. If the temptation did manage to infiltratehis brain, it wouldn't be here. Not in this place. The old abandoned track was surroundedby large shaded trees and a little creek that made him feel like he was miles away fromschool and the pressures of home. This was his favorite place in the world. Nothing todistract him and nothing to frustrate him. Just him, his old running shoes, and the sweetsmell of the leaves laying on the ground around his feet as he runs. "Here we go again", he thinks to himself as he laces up his tattered Adidas andtakes his last sip of water for the day from his I'm a Super Reader bottle. He can'tremember where he got it from. Just another souviner from some locker room of a teamthat he didn't quite like enough not to steal from. He takes off and runs for what seems like forever. Nothing running through hismind. He's ran here so many times that it seems like breathing to him to jump over the bigwhole that he encounters on the far end of the track and to duck under the braches thathang low next to the old run-down concesion stand. After he is done running he looks down at his watch. "Holy shit, it's 1:30! I gotta get to 6th period." His run has lingered longer than hehad planned. He now has only fifty minutes left until he has to be in the mat room withthe rest of the team. More imortantly, though, he has to turn in his project on the ancientMayans and Aztecs. This project could make or break his chances of wrestling the secondpart of the season. His grade is just barely hovering at the manditory 2.0 that he has tomake to play sports. His project is already a day late and he can't afford to lose anotherday's credit on such a significant assingment. He darts back through the gym door and into the hallway to stairwell B. He runsall the way to the third floor to room 347. As he peeks through the window of the door hecan see that Mrs. Relts has her back turned to the door as she is talking on the phone.Slowly he opens the door and dashes to a desk. Sure hope to hell she didn't see me runsthrough his head. She hangs up the phone and walks past him. She stops abruptly andturns toward him. "Derek", there is a long pause. He can't quite read the look on her face, "I believeit's your day to collect homework assignments. I already told Beth to do it because Isomehow didn't see you a few minutes ago. Probly because of that wrestling foolishnes.You're wasting away, you know. Well, i'm sure she won't mind not having to gatherpapers. Hurry it along though, we're going to the computer lab today." "Okay, no problem. Just give me a second. I have that project from yesterday." Mrs. Relts shoots him a little look and goes back to her task at her desk. After collecting the homework Derek drops his project on her desk and scurriesout the door with the rest of the class on their way to the computer lab. They walk downthe hall and about half way to the lab Derek breaks away from everyone else. He hides ina corner by the stairs. This is always where he goes to cut class. He waits a few minutes,leaves the corner, and makes his way down stairs and outside so that he can sit in the matroom. When he opens the mat room doors he looks to see if anyone is there. The coast isclear. He feels the familiar rush of madening heat that he practices everyday during theseason. He figures what better place to lose weight than a 100 degree box of a portable?The room smells of sweat and old unwashed clothing. It doesn't bother him though. Hejust stands under the heater and does sprawls for 35 minutes until the coach enters. Hiscoach, though a member of the school staff, doesn't really care if the wrestler cut class toprepare for a match on that day. "How much you over", his coach asks him, knowing that that is why Derek wasthere. "1.6." Normally, this wouldn't be a problem for Derek to lose this weight but today thematches started at 3 o'clock instead of 4 o'clock. "So, are you gonna be able to make it?" "I think so. I gotta use the bath room really bad. Maybe even a pounds worth." There was no way that Derek wasn't going to make weight on this night. Tonightwas the regional tournament. If he didn't perform well tonight, he wouldn't move on tothe state tournament, leaving him to not be able to wrestle until the next season. Not onlythis, but tonight he would have to wrestle Matt Walling, a senior from Challisdale High.Matt was the one who stole Derek's region championship from him in the finals theseason before. This was to be Matt's last year of wrestling and Derek had never forgottenhow he had given up and got pinned on that night. The memory ran through his mindeach and every day. Never again he'd tell himself. He couldn't lose again, he had to provethat he was better than him. He didn't know why, but the loss to Walling made him hatehim. His face ran through his mind and Derek's blood would boil. Derek kicked the thought of Matt from his mind and get running in place. Rightabout this time the rest of the team walked into the room in one big group. The first tostep into the room was Ryan. Derek didn't even want to look at him for fear of gettingside-tracked by Ryan. He just ran around the room for a few more minutes and thenjumped on the scale. 145.6. He can't believe it. He's so close. Weigh-ins were to be heldat 2:45 today instead of 3:45. This gave him 5 minutes to try to lose the excess weight. Hethrows his clothing back on and heads inside the main school building in search of anopen bathroom stall. He finds one on the first floor and quickly jumps on it. 5 minutes,gotta do this. He can't work up any urine but still feels some pressure on his stomach. Hedrops his pants and tried to force himself to use the bathroom. He gets a little bit out buthe can't wait anymore. He cleans himself and runs into the gym where the weigh-ins arebeing done. "What weight are they at", Derek asks Ryan. Ryan was the 103 pounder and afreshman. He had been wrestling since 7th grade. Derek was always slightly jelous ofRyan because he was always a few pounds underweight and never had to watch what heate.. "140. I was 2 and a half under", Ryan shoots Derek a look as if to give a friendlyacknowledgment of Derek's jelousy. "Better get ready. You're up." One forty-five called the ref that was in charge of the weigh-ins. Derek jumped inline. He was second just behind Matt Walling. He watched carefully to see Matt's weighton the scale. "143.6" "I bet that little bitch hasn't had to cut any weight all day" Ryan thought tohimself. After Matt stepped off the scale it was Derek's turn. He stepped up and let out allhis air...come on...come on...the scale kept flashing and finally... "145.2" Derek's heart stopped. What could he do. He is allowed five minutes to lose theweight. He runs to the bath room and forces a few drops of liquid out and runs back to thescale. And now again, he's having to relive the weigh-in anxiety. He stepsup...flashing...flashing...The scale flashes between 145.0 and 145.2. He has only oneoption. He hops off and drops his boxers. Once again he steps on...flashing...flashing... "145 even", the ref calls to the man holding the sheet of paper to document theweigh-ins. He did it. It took every ounce of him, but he did it. Now he could refuel. He headsover to the concesion stand and buys a bottle of orange juice and a banana. As he sits in the stands watching his teammates battle on the mat, he and his rivalfrom Challisdale High exchange glares. They both know how much this match means.They both look confident but are screaming in anxiousness on the inside. Derek doesn'teven have enough energy to warm-up before his match. He just watches the 140 matchand waits. "145", yells the ref after the conclusion of the 140 bout. Both Derek and Matt run down to the scorers table to check in. They are bothcleared and sent to the middle of the mat. The ref asks if the boys are ready. They bothnod. The intensity in their eyes is like a thousand hurricanes. A million fires burning intheir hearts, eating them alive. Their hands sweat and their bloods courses through theirviens like a race car on the final lap of the Indy 500. The ref tells them to shake hands...hesteps back...the crowd is defining with screams and chants...the whistle blows... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ridge45 0 Report post Posted February 14, 2007 I only posted this here so that my English teacher could find it and grade it. My printer is broke. I wrote it in about 45 minutes. Give me your thoughts on it if you want. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pld103 0 Report post Posted February 14, 2007 Come on now you gotta let us know who wins.LOL Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ridge45 0 Report post Posted February 14, 2007 I was gonna go through the whole match and the aftermath but it was about 1:30 in the morning on a Tuesday and I was like eff that. lol. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
INDIANwrestler 0 Report post Posted February 14, 2007 I just read bits and pieces because I'm procrastinating on my homework...I enjoyed reading that though.. I like you kind of left us in suspense at the end, but an ending proably would've been nice as well Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PATRIOT165 0 Report post Posted February 14, 2007 Thats Really Good. I might just plagerize it!lol But seriously YOu should finish it Cuz I know you spent some time on this! I would read it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thelowseed 0 Report post Posted February 14, 2007 I was gonna go through the whole match and the aftermath but it was about 1:30 in the morning on a Tuesday and I was like eff that. lol. finish this dusty because you used my name and my name never loses! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ridge45 0 Report post Posted February 14, 2007 finish this dusty because you used my name and my name never loses!What? lol. What do you mean I used your name? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites