The Courts

The Courts

Brad parks his car and sees the rest of the guys on the court. As he walks up, Benno yells out, “Yo Brad, check out the big man on campus,” and sniggers. Benno is about the same height as Brad, but has dark black curly hair and dark brown eyes. He has pale skin, and it stands out against his dark hair color. Brad shakes his head with a smile and does a slap-grab of Benno’s hand and a halfway hug.
Brad asks Benno, “What’s going on? Are you still seeing Justine?”
Benno replies, “Yeah, but she is working my nerves. She complains too much.”
Jason yells out, “Don’t all women though?” and does a big bear laugh.
Benno defends women and says, “Nah, not all women; I mean, they do, but some just overdo it. Justine is one of those women who overdo it. She wants me to do too much.” Benno mimics Justine’s voice, “Bennie, can you go here with me? Bennie, can you lift this up? Bennie, can you wear this shirt? Bennie, can’t we be exclusive and not date other people? Bennie, what is in our future… and blah blah blah.” Benno continues to say, “And I don’t like that she calls me Bennie too!” Waves his hands in the air with annoyance.
Brad asks, “Have you told her that?”
Benno says, “Nope.”
“Then how would she know that you don’t like her calling you Bennie?” Brad tilted his head to the side, a bit displeased with Benno’s lack of communication style.
“Because if I never told her to call me that; then she should not be calling me that. Benno is my name, goddammit!”
Brad sighs, “Ugh, man, whatever, she’s not a mind reader.”
“What’s up your butt?” Benno slightly slapped Brad on the back of his head.
Jason mentions, “Brad is going through his deep soul-searching routine again.”
Benno groans, “Aaaa ok, why do you always go back to that feeling?”
“Because I don’t know, there is a void living inside me. Can’t explain it, just a feeling I get every now and then.”
He grips the basketball and spreads his fingers around it with his knees bent and hips dropped back as he raises his arms, attempting to shoot it in the hoop. It was his way of changing the subject quickly because describing his feelings is not his strong point.
Leo interrupts and says to Brad,
“Don’t worry man, be patient and trust me; good things are coming your way.”
Leo has blonde hair and blue eyes just like Brad, but still has a baby face.
Ant roars,
“That’s bullshit! Seek and you shall find, m’r f’r!”
Ant has a basketball build and smooth dark brown skin.
All the men cackle and suddenly burst into sprints, pumping their arms as they lean forward with their torsos. Brad feels his calves burning and hears the sounds of fast breaks off the concrete. Now he is really sweating and feels the sweat rolling down his back, and his breath becomes labored. Playing this game actually helps him stay preoccupied and not think so much. This is what he needed: to be distracted. He finds being alone with his thoughts looping.
Some time goes by, and Brad looks over to the other court and notices a woman over there. She is on roller skates and hears her playing the song “You Can Do Magic” by America. He stares at her and smiles, tugging on the bottom of his shirt. As he watched her, his eyes locked onto her and leaning more into his forearm.
Despite looking the same age, her roller skating brings out a youthful spirit. The rest of the guys stopped playing and walked over and now are all looking at her. The song plays a little louder, and each guy, one by one, all has a smile beginning to emerge. She was not a young roller skater doing tricks or anything; just a woman appearing to look in her 50s, enjoying roller skating at her own pace. The way she looked so free and the wind hitting her hair made her look beguiling. This woman was smiling with glee, and the men noticed her knee bends and pivots showcasing her strength in her glutes and quads as she is rolled all over the court. All the men in that moment are simultaneously in awe of her. Brad was the most interested; this is how he wanted to feel. He craved a spark of excitement in life, the one element that could bring him joy.
This possible Gen X woman was twirling, spinning, and roller skating backwards while listening to her 80s music. Making roller skating look effortless and her eyes tracing every facet of the court, almost as if she is using the court as her personal dance room. She smiled to herself and paid no attention to anyone else who was out there. The way she was all in it for herself, doing for herself, and it showed. Jason said to Brad while grabbing hold of the fence, “She reminds me of how we used to be when we were young teenagers, without a care in the world.”
Brad said, “I know, right,” and wrapped his arms around his chest and shoulders. It felt like they were all staring for at least 15 minutes, and the woman did not even notice until suddenly she looked up and saw a bunch of men staring at her. That quickly changed her mood, and she ended up taking her skates off and putting her shoes back on. The woman walked off the court and headed towards her car. Watching her roller skating made them happy and think of a time when they were once young and liberated. Now the men looked melancholy that she is leaving. Staring at her as she is walking off; Brad felt bad, like maybe they had ruined her special time with her skates. He bit his lower lip anxiously and wondered who she was and if he would see her again. He keeps staring at her and watching her carry her skates over her shoulders. Her hair was in a little ponytail with a few strands hanging out on the side of her face, looked like a little girl, but her face looked older.
He mumbles to himself, “Please, oh please come back, so we can see you again.”
The guys kept playing basketball for about 45 min. They wrapped things up and headed home. They go back to their adult lives because what else could they do but keep adulting. As Gen Xers, they’re always on the go. For Brad, though, he was going through something more than the others. He could not explain it: the sleepless nights or constant scrutiny of his life. Then he realized, is this a midlife crisis type of thing?