focus to leaping up and making it to the basket.
I left the ground, and made it. I had dunked the ball. I was hanging off the basket.
Then my lack of proper upper body strength came back, and my grip was lost.
Joel, though, was right behind me, catching me before I planted my spine on the concrete of the court.
"Holy shit, Holly. You actually did it."
A tearing pain hit my calves. "Ow."
"What I'd do?" Joel was looking around to making sure he wasn't stabbing me with something.
I did sense something poking at me, but I don't think it was there until he was holding me like this.
"Calves. Thighs. Feet. My legs in general."
"You overexerted yourself." He placed me on ground, without letting of me. "Can you stand up? Walk?"
I could, although I was slightly limpy. "Yeah, I think I'm done basketballing for the day."
"Good call," Joel said. He glanced over, and a bunch of boys our age were coming. "The other guys are here, anyway. You're good practice, Holly. No matter how bad you suck."
I punched in the chest, he stumbled back laughing. "Let me reiterate, Joel, fuck you."
"You good to walk home?"
"Yeah, yeah. I'll be fine. Just went too far."
"If you're sure."
I hobbled a bit, but I started to head home. I looked back, and Joel was still watching me. Huh, nice of him to care.
It didn't take me long to get home. The world, though, conspired against me. Instead of being able to pass out on the couch, there was a ten-year-old boy crying in my driveway.
"Lady! Lady!" He ran up to me. "My plane! It's stuck!"
He pointed up at one of my gutters. An RC plane was wedged in there. How did he even do that?
"Let me just get a stick and knock it down," I said.
"No! You can't do that! You'll break it! My brother will be mad if I broke his plane!"
"Alright, alright. I'll go up and get it." It couldn't be that hard, I figured. I didn't make climbing on my roof a regular thing. In fact, I'd never done it before.
I grabbed the ladder, and carried it out of the garage, my calves bitching at me the entire time.
"Stay here, I'll get your toy for you." I set up the ladder near it, as close as I could get it anyway. Wild bushes and hedges surrounded the house, and the only place to place a proper ladder was going to require a bit of stretching on my behalf.
First rung, my legs nagged. Second, they nagged harder. Third, they were screaming. I thought about telling the kid 'no', but looking back at him, he looked so hopeful that I was going to get him out of trouble with his brother.
Guess I had more mothering in me than I thought, pushing myself to go up the ladder. My body rebelled, but I told it to shut up.
I was at the top. The toy was just out of reach of my finger tips. I leaned over to try to get a hold of it, finally touching it, but not enough to get a good grip.
The ladder trembled as I shifted my weight. Wasn't there usually some person holding the ladder steady? Oh well, I couldn't ask the kid to do that.
More reaching. Almost had it. I had a grip on it, yes! I grabbed it, then realized the ladder was falling over.
Shit. I was falling too!
I desperately tried to grab for the gutters, the roof, anything to hold myself up, control my fall.
"Holly!" someone called out.
I wasn't going to be able to do that, I was falling too fast. Fingers just grazed my last chance for control.
The sidewalk was right below me - I was about to face-plant on there!
At the last possible second, though, he rescued me. Again.
Not the little boy. Joel.
He held me tight, my weight knocking his ass on the grass. He was breathing hard, hard as I was. Why was he so frightened? He wasn't the one about to face-plant on concrete.
The boy took his toy, which landed safely in a bush. "Thanks, lady!"
Joel helped me to my feet without a word. I glanced at the kid. "No problem. I meant to do it like that."
The kid laughed and ran off.
There was a moment of silence between me and Joel.
He broke it. "What the fuck were you doing,
I left the ground, and made it. I had dunked the ball. I was hanging off the basket.
Then my lack of proper upper body strength came back, and my grip was lost.
Joel, though, was right behind me, catching me before I planted my spine on the concrete of the court.
"Holy shit, Holly. You actually did it."
A tearing pain hit my calves. "Ow."
"What I'd do?" Joel was looking around to making sure he wasn't stabbing me with something.
I did sense something poking at me, but I don't think it was there until he was holding me like this.
"Calves. Thighs. Feet. My legs in general."
"You overexerted yourself." He placed me on ground, without letting of me. "Can you stand up? Walk?"
I could, although I was slightly limpy. "Yeah, I think I'm done basketballing for the day."
"Good call," Joel said. He glanced over, and a bunch of boys our age were coming. "The other guys are here, anyway. You're good practice, Holly. No matter how bad you suck."
I punched in the chest, he stumbled back laughing. "Let me reiterate, Joel, fuck you."
"You good to walk home?"
"Yeah, yeah. I'll be fine. Just went too far."
"If you're sure."
I hobbled a bit, but I started to head home. I looked back, and Joel was still watching me. Huh, nice of him to care.
It didn't take me long to get home. The world, though, conspired against me. Instead of being able to pass out on the couch, there was a ten-year-old boy crying in my driveway.
"Lady! Lady!" He ran up to me. "My plane! It's stuck!"
He pointed up at one of my gutters. An RC plane was wedged in there. How did he even do that?
"Let me just get a stick and knock it down," I said.
"No! You can't do that! You'll break it! My brother will be mad if I broke his plane!"
"Alright, alright. I'll go up and get it." It couldn't be that hard, I figured. I didn't make climbing on my roof a regular thing. In fact, I'd never done it before.
I grabbed the ladder, and carried it out of the garage, my calves bitching at me the entire time.
"Stay here, I'll get your toy for you." I set up the ladder near it, as close as I could get it anyway. Wild bushes and hedges surrounded the house, and the only place to place a proper ladder was going to require a bit of stretching on my behalf.
First rung, my legs nagged. Second, they nagged harder. Third, they were screaming. I thought about telling the kid 'no', but looking back at him, he looked so hopeful that I was going to get him out of trouble with his brother.
Guess I had more mothering in me than I thought, pushing myself to go up the ladder. My body rebelled, but I told it to shut up.
I was at the top. The toy was just out of reach of my finger tips. I leaned over to try to get a hold of it, finally touching it, but not enough to get a good grip.
The ladder trembled as I shifted my weight. Wasn't there usually some person holding the ladder steady? Oh well, I couldn't ask the kid to do that.
More reaching. Almost had it. I had a grip on it, yes! I grabbed it, then realized the ladder was falling over.
Shit. I was falling too!
I desperately tried to grab for the gutters, the roof, anything to hold myself up, control my fall.
"Holly!" someone called out.
I wasn't going to be able to do that, I was falling too fast. Fingers just grazed my last chance for control.
The sidewalk was right below me - I was about to face-plant on there!
At the last possible second, though, he rescued me. Again.
Not the little boy. Joel.
He held me tight, my weight knocking his ass on the grass. He was breathing hard, hard as I was. Why was he so frightened? He wasn't the one about to face-plant on concrete.
The boy took his toy, which landed safely in a bush. "Thanks, lady!"
Joel helped me to my feet without a word. I glanced at the kid. "No problem. I meant to do it like that."
The kid laughed and ran off.
There was a moment of silence between me and Joel.
He broke it. "What the fuck were you doing,
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