Act 2 Chapter 3
A few hours ago…
The early morning sunlight peered through the curtains, shining into Tavon’s shut eyes. Disturbed from his slumber, he reached for his phone on the table and curled back into his sheets. Tavon scrolled through TikToks as he loafed around on his bed. Too lazy to get up, he had already planned to do absolutely nothing this weekend.
“Wait a minute! Just give me another week! I promise I’ll be able to pay then.”
A yelling plea from what sounds like Louise’s voice can be heard coming from downstairs. Tavon hopped out of bed to check out what was happening and satisfy his curiosity.
Tavon tiptoed toward the stairwell and crouched down to see Louise talking to someone outside the doorway. It was an older man with a greying beard.
“Miss, it’s already been almost two weeks since I notified you regarding your rent,” the older man sighed. “I’ve been very lenient with your late payments these past few months. Do you have the money on you or not?”
Louise shook her head. “No, sir. I don’t.”
“Very well,” the man handed over Louise a letter. “You have three more days to either pay up or vacate the premises. Good day to you.”
“That’s one way to say good morning, huh.” Tavon greeted Louise, walking down the stairs.
“Oh, hey,” Louise awkwardly scratched the back of her head. “Did I wake you?”
“Hell yeah, you did. Soooo…what are you gonna do about the payment?”
“That? I’ll figure something out,” Louise placed the letter on the tabletop and opened the refrigerator. “What do you want for breakfast?”
“I’ll pass for today. I’m heading out right now.”
“This early?” The time did not even hit eight o’clock yet.
“Yeah,” Tavon put on his shoes and headed for the door. “A friend invited me over to his house for a project. It’s a bit of a walk so I’m leaving now.”
“Alright, then.” Louise waved. “Be safe, okay?”
“Sure. See you later.”
--
Tavon languidly strolled around the neighborhood. He spontaneously decided to leave the house after overhearing Louise’s conversation. He knew that Louise did not have the money to pay for rent. They were already scraping for food since the start of the month.
“Tavon, is that you?”
“Hm?” Tavon turned around to see two familiar faces. “Oh, it’s you guys. Uh…hold on, give me a second. Now I remember! Jake and Ross! What’s up!”
“My name’s Ron,” one of the boys replied, unamused. “And he’s Josh. Bro, we’ve been in the same class for the past two years. You need to remember your classmates’ names. If you did, maybe you’d have more friends.”
“Yo, come on. You didn’t have to say that.”
“Haha, sorry, sorry. Low blow, I know.” Ron patted Tavon on the shoulder.
“What are you doing around here?” Josh asked.
“I’m bored this morning, so I’m taking a walk. How about you guys?”
“We’re heading over to Cascade Park to warm up for the Eden Prep tryouts today,” Josh sticked out his chest and pointed at him and Ron who was holding a basketball in one hand.
Josh and Ron are starters for the basketball team at Mercer International Middle School…and allegedly Tavon’s classmates according to them.
“Eden Prep?” Tavon raised an eyebrow. “I thought you guys were planning on going to Xanadu next year.” Most of Tavon’s classmates decided on attending Xanadu because it is the closest high school to them, but Josh and Ron were specifically recruited by Xanadu’s basketball head coach.
“We already sent in our applications for Xanadu, but we’re not going to let a chance in getting into Eden go away!” Ron pumps out his fist.
“I’ve been hearing about all this Eden Prep mumbo jumbo. What’s the big deal about that place?”
“It’s one of the top boarding schools in the country. Like, it’s super bougie, bro. The bougie of bougie. While tuition costs an arm and a leg, graduating there sets you for life.”
“I think I heard that somewhere before.”
“In recent years though, they have invested into their athletic programs. They are on par, if not better, than the likes of Montverde and IMG Academy now. Have you heard about David Grace?”
“Yeah, I know Louise likes to listen to White Ladder every now and then.”
“Listen to what?” Ron confused at Tavon’s response.
“White Ladder, the album. It’s the one with “Babylon”, but my favorite song is “Sail Away.”
“What the fuck are you even talking about?”
“Weren’t you asking me if I know about David Gray?”
“I don’t know a fucking David Gray! I’m talking about David Grace! The college basketball player David Grace! He’s a freshman who’s leading Houston to make a run in March Madness this year.”
“Sorry, I don’t follow sportsball.”
Ron groaned with his face covered by his palm. “Why am I even trying to explain this to you?”
“So, what’s this about this Grace guy and Eden Prep?” Tavon tried to get the conversation back on track.
“Oh, that. I forgot about that,” Ron regained his composure and cleared his throat. “Grace transferred into Eden Prep last year and helped them go undefeated. Not only did he end up getting an offer to play at the University of Houston, but the school is also providing full support for his son’s care and is paying his girlfriend’s entire college tuition.”
“That’s kinda cool, I guess.”
“Anyway, rumor is that these tryouts will reward the lucky winner with a full ride scholarship to Eden Prep. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!”
“Full ride scholarship, huh.” Tavon mused over that thought. With his and Louise’s financial situation, his future is currently full of question marks.
“Yup, a full ride scholarship to a school that guarantees you a secured future! What more can you ever ask for!”
“Ok, then. Let’s go.”
“Alright, onwards to Cascade Park! We going to kick some ass today!” Josh started marching his way down the sidewalk before realizing what was happening. “Wait, you’re coming with us?”
Tavon noded.
“Have you even touched a basketball before?” Ron asks before shrugging it off. “Well, I guess it doesn’t matter. This is all good fun, I guess. Let’s get going, shall we?”
Ron and Jake, along with Tavon, proceeded to head towards the park for the tryouts. Little did the two know what was coming for them.
“He was really like that all along?” Ron gazed down on the asphalt, shivering from his unfortunate defeat.
“Come on, man,” Jake taps Ron on the shoulder while trying to hide the tears flowing from his eyes. “We gotta get back on the grind after this.”
Unfortunately for the two Mercer stars, they were eliminated in the early stages of the tryouts while Tavon managed to advance on his own.
--
Present Time
“Not too shabby for someone who has never played organized ball before!” a joyous Mateus raised up his hand in Tavon’s direction. Led by Mateus’s 20 points, Team D had full control of the entire game as they won 50-37 over Team C.
“I guess.”
Staring at his hand and back at Mateus, Tavon returned the gesture by completing the high five.
“He still got put on that nasty poster by TJ Bledsoe, though!” K.J. chuckled.
“Just a small sacrifice for a bigger reward. He’ll have his little viral moment online, but who’s the ones going to Eden Prep?” A grin wide as a baseline popped up on Mateus’s face. “Us, baby!”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself, young fellas.”
The sunglasses-wearing bald man approached the four victors, handing each one an envelope.
“I would like to congratulate the four of you on passing the tryouts here. For your reward, you will be granted a roster spot on Eden Prep’s team next season.”
“Woo, that’s what I’m talking about!” K.J. clapped and dapped everyone up.
The bald man cleared his throat and continued his spiel. “That is, once you all pass the entrance exam.”
“Wait, huh? The entrance exam?” K.J. stopped mid-celebration.
“Why, yes. Of course, Eden Prep is a college prep school. As such, all students must be up to par in terms of their academic abilities.”
“I thought this was going to be a full-ride scholarship!”
“Do you think an institution with such a prestige would waste their time scouring through the waste for prospects? If you lot were truly the cream of the crop, you wouldn’t be standing here as we speak. Our scouting department would have discovered you ages ago. You all should be grateful that you even have an opportunity to have a roster spot on the team.”
“Sir,” Leo raised his hand. “Does that mean we will have to pay for both the entrance exam and tuition?”
“That is correct.”
“And what happens if we can’t afford it? My family can barely keep up with the bills as is.”
“That is a you problem. If you’re unable to figure that out, then you don’t deserve to be at Eden. If your names are not on the enrollment list for next school year, you’re not part of the team. Any more questions?”
The court remained silent aside from the engines of cars roaring down the road and swings teetering at the nearby playground.
“Very well. I hope to see you all in the fall.” The bald man walked off the court and entered a black SUV that had just parked on the side of the street.
“Tavon, what are we going to do?!” K.J. latched on to Tavon’s leg.
“Yo, what the fuck are you doing?! Get off me!” Tavon shook off K.J., resulting in him rolling all the way to center court.
“We have to pass an entrance exam, man!” K.J. clutched onto his head, pulling out locks of hair in the process. “I’m barely getting through this school year as is! How am a dumbass like me supposed to pass an entrance exam for big brain motherfuckers like those Eden Prep kids.”
“Then pick up a damn book.”
“Yeah, right. And look who’s talking. Your grades ain’t too good either, lil’ bro. You got work cut out for you too.”
With one obstacle surmounted, another one appeared before them. Is some school worth all this effort?
--
Frozen in place as he gazed at the door in front of him for the past few minutes, Tavon finally mustered up the energy to grab and turn the knob.
“Ah, welcome back,” Louise gawked at the door and quickly turned back to the show she was watching. “Your dinner is on the table. Just warm it up whenever you want.”
“Hey, Louise,” Tavon sat down on the couch next to Louise. “We need to talk.”
“If you want to go to Eden Prep, you can go on ahead.”
“How did you know?”
“You think I wouldn’t know about it with a video of you having a sack of nuts in your face plastered all over my timeline on Twitter?” Louise pulled out her phone, showing a clip of Tavon getting posterized by TJ Bledsoe at the tryouts.
“Of course, that’s how you would find out.”
“I expected you to stay local, but if you want to dream big then that’s fine. It’s nice that you’re thinking long term about your future.”
“But I didn’t get a scholarship. If I want to go there, then-”
“Here,” Louise threw an envelope over at Tavon’s lap.
Tavon opened the envelope, and his eyes enlarged at the contents inside. “Hold up, you can’t give me this! And where did you even get this?!”
“Don’t worry about it. That’ll be of better use with you than with me.”
Inside the envelope contained a heap of cash that Tavon could not count by eyeballing.
“If you give this to me, then how are you going to pay the rent?”
“I’m planning to move to Yakima to live with my grandparents and help at their shop once you graduate. Since COVID hit, it’s been tough bouncing around jobs. The cost of living in Seattle doesn’t help either.”
“I can’t accept this,” Tavon clenched on to the envelope tightly.
“Take it. To see you pick up a basketball is worth more than any money in the world,” Louise closed her eyes, feeling nostalgic as she watched highlights of Tavon playing during the tryouts. “I know this is what Danny would want.”
“Danny…”
Tavon winced as he heard that name uttered from her mouth. Danny Mortisson, his savior. For once, someone sacrificed themselves to save him instead of getting himself killed like his previous lives. All these years, he abhorred his supernatural gifted talents and avoided the sport of basketball. However, doing so would have let Danny’s death be in vain. It was time for him to stop running away from his fate.
“It’s still not a guarantee that I can get into there. What if I don’t pass the entrance exam?”
“Then you have to do it,” Louise places her pointer finger on Tavon’s chest. “You’re my lottery ticket after all. Pay me back once you make it, got it?”
--
July 2021
The sun started to rise, shining light onto a lone bus parked in a lot. Kids handed over their luggage to the attendant before falling in line as they get ready to embark for Eden Prep. Although there was a month before the new school year would start, some students had to report to the academy weeks in advance for different reasons such as clubs or athletic programs.
“I still can’t believe you managed to pass,” K.J. remarked. “There’s no way you didn’t cheat on that entrance exam. How did you do it?”
“I could say the same for you,” Tavon retorted, “I guessed on every single question on that shit. I thought for sure I failed it right after I left the room. Highkey, it’s a miracle that we both passed.”
“You can say that again,” K.J. assessed the area. “There’s a lot of people here. Are they all here part of the basketball team?”
“Nah, no way. There’s like around a hundred people here. Why would you have that many players on one team?”
“You know IMG and Montverde have multiple teams. Maybe it’s something like that. You got THE team that everyone knows and then some lower-level teams that play in different leagues or stuff.”
“I guess…”
Tavon and K.J. boarded the bus and sat down near the back of the bus. Tavon saw Mateus enter the bus later, whom he tried to wave to but to no avail. Once everyone was seated on the bus, the speakers turned on.
“Ah-ah-ah. Test 1,2. Can everyone hear me? Okay, very good. Thank you all for coming. You will be at your destination shortly. In the mean time, sweet dreams.”
K.J. scratched his head. “Sweet dreams?”
“You smell something funny?” Tavon scanned the interior of the bus, skeptical of the whole situation from the get-go. The only message he received from Eden Prep was those who were chosen for the basketball team must meet up at a rest area north of Seattle off the I-5. Nothing else was noted regarding what the meeting was about.
“Yeah, the hell is that?” K.J. coughs uncontrollably.
As the message ended, the bus driver took out a gas mask from the glove box and put it on. Gas started teeming from the ceiling until it enshrouded the entire inside of the bus. Before anyone could react, all the passengers were fast asleep.
After an indefinite amount of time, Tavon somewhat regained consciousness but was unable to open his eyes. The ride felt much bumpier than he would have expected. A faint whooshing sound could be heard if he focused closely.
Waves? Tavon thought to himself. Where could they possibly be taking him and everyone else was a mystery. He quickly passed out again.
--
“Rise and shine! We’re here!”
A whistle screeched down the hallway, waking everyone up in the process.
Tavon rubs his eyes, still dazed from the contents of the gas. “K.J., get up.” He shook K.J., who was using his shoulder as a pillow.
“Five more minutes…” A stream of drool rolled down K.J.’s mouth and plopped onto Tavon’s arm.
“There’s no five minutes, dumbass!” Tavon used K.J.’s shirt to wipe off the drool and punched dead center on the top of his scalp.
“Ow!” K.J. covered his head. “The fuck you do that for?!”
“We’re getting off. We’re here.”
Getting off the bus, Tavon would have never predicted where they ended up. A small beach surrounded by just lushes of green. Not a single sign of human life in the vicinity aside from those who were just on the bus. Everyone lined up in front of a bald man wearing sunglasses, the same one who was at the tryouts back in Seattle.
“What is the place?! Where’s Eden Prep?”
“I came here to play ball, not to play Survivor!”
“Yeah, what he said!”
“Excuse me, where’s the closest restroom? I need to take a dump.”
Cries of outrage from the passengers roared throughout the beach. To no surprise, nobody would be happy about landing on a deserted island instead of a fancy prep school.
*BANG*
The crowd was promptly silenced, thanks to the gun held high by the sunglasses-wearing man. “Thank goodness, you’ve all calmed down. Now that I’ve got your attention, you may be wondering what’s going on.”
“Where are we and why did you bring us here?” A boy in front muttered out.
“How about you let me speak before opening your mouth? I was just getting to that,” the man holstered his gun while sighing. “This is one of the training facilities for Eden’s basketball team. My name is Ian McCaig, team trainer, and you will be stuck here with me for the next six months.”
“Six months?!”
“We paid the tuition for this?! This is a fucking joke!”
“I’ll shine some truth on all of you,” McCaig smirks in response to the enraged comments. “You know the money you paid to be even standing here? That was used as funds for the first and second teams. This year’s recruiting class may be the best in the nation despite missing out on Andrew Crawford. After last year’s disappointing display at nationals, the entire coaching staff aside from the head coach has been completely revamped.”
“This is outrageous! This got to be illegal or something,” the boy in front spoke out again.
“Randy Murdoch, 5’9” guard. Hometown: Jacksonville, Florida. Attended Trinity Christian Academy from kindergarten until eighth grade. Played on the middle school varsity team last year, averaging 9.6 points per game and 3.8 assists. Mother teaches third graders there while father is a pastor. In seventh grade, you were almost expelled from school after being accused of smoking weed at a winter camp. Fortunately for you, your bunkmate took the fall for you.”
“How did you know all that?” The boy’s mouth was left agape.
“I know every single one of you to the most minute detail. If you’re unhappy about the situation and want to leave, feel free to do so. If you do, then you would be kicked off both the team and the school. Also, for your information, the ship won’t be back here for another two weeks. Any more questions?”
The crowd remained silent.
“Welcome to Hopeful Isle. Here you can only hope of even thinking about reaching Eden Prep’s first team.”
Listen up, you keep your funky ass hands off Geno Tate, you hear! I still haven't forgiven what you did to Recks
