Page 44 of A Heart of Little Faith

“That’s Gideon’s special basketball chair, Mom. I saw it when I ate dinner at his apartment. It works better than his other chair,” Claire announced proudly. She pointed to him. He moved with an athletic grace different from his usual spare movements. With his center of gravity lower to the ground, he moved faster, spun quicker and handled the ball with a rhythm that made Lily forget about his chair.

“So is he their basketball teacher?” Claire’s question drew Lily’s attention away from Gideon and she swallowed.

“He’s the coach. He practices with these kids after school. They’re a team.”

“What’s the team going to do?” Her eyes were glued to Gideon as he scored and the boys cheered. The acrid odor of sweat drifted toward Lily and Claire. They crinkled their noses.

“They’ll play against other teams.”

The boys continued to practice. Although they were the only ones in the stands, no one noticed them. Fourteen pairs of eyes shifted from Gideon’s face to his hands and back again as he demonstrated a technique or joined in the scrimmage. His low tone instructed more effectively than any shouts could have; his large hands guided smaller ones as he corrected their position or posture; his smile encouraged them better than any bribe or reward. Lily leaned forward, captivated as much as Claire or the boys, and wished she were on the receiving end of his concentration. His focus on her, his hands roaming her body…she began to sweat and blinked away the fantasy.

Gideon saw them, and Lily swore the sun shone brighter into the gymnasium. Pleasure created parentheses on either side of his mouth and he waved. Lily could almost feel the heat and waved back.

“Can I go see them, Mommy?” Claire shot up and only Lily’s outstretched arm prevented her from rushing down the bleachers and onto the court.

“Wait until they finish, okay? We don’t want to disturb them.” Her fingers brushed the soft cotton jersey fabric of Claire’s shirt as she rubbed her daughter’s back to ease the disappointment.

A sudden commotion on the court made Lily whip around and see one of the boys fall down. He screamed and held his leg. Gideon raced over, climbed out of his chair and examined him. Lily raced down the bleachers.

“Where’s it hurt, Michael?” he soothed.

“My leg. My leg hurts!” Gideon lifted the pant leg. A lump protruded from his shin. The other boys crowded around Michael and Gideon, their faces pale. In their silence, Michael’s screams echoed in the gym.

“What can I do?” Lily asked from behind Gideon. She reached down and touched his hot neck.

Gideon jumped and wiped a trickle of sweat from his brow. “Do you have your cell phone with you?”

“Yes.”

“Call 911.” He focused his attention on Michael. “It’s okay Michael; everything is going to be fine, buddy. Guys, practice is over. Go into the study and get started on your homework. I’ll take Michael to the hospital, and leave a message here for you when you come in tomorrow to let you know what’s happening, okay?”

The boys filed out, their lack of talking emphasizing the gravity of the situation.

“I thought you don’t like hospitals?” Lily asked. She bit her lip as the question rolled off her tongue. Gideon stiffened more.Why did I bring it up?

“He can’t go by himself,” Gideon snapped.

She stroked his neck and willed him to relax. “Do you want me to go too?”

“No, go home and stay with Claire. I’ll take care of this.”

Tony led the EMTs into the gym. As they worked on Michael, he leaned over to Gideon. “You really want to go with him?” His slate-colored eyes pierced Gideon’s.

“No, but I don’t have any choice,” he said as he climbed into his chair and avoided Lily’s gaze. “I can’t abandon him.”

****

For the rest of the evening, Lily did her best to reassure Claire, but she got out of bed crying several times. Finally, at ten o’clock, Lily managed to get her to sleep. Just then, the doorbell rang. With a quick peek into Claire’s room to check she still slept, she rushed to the door and saw Gideon through the peephole. She opened the door. His mouth was pressed together, his body stiff, and lines of strain radiated from his eyes behind the glasses.

“How’s Michael?”

“He’s got a broken leg, but he’s going to be all right.” His voice was a monotone.

Her heart ached for Gideon and the stress he’d gone through, but she was relieved about the boy. “I’m glad. The poor kid seemed scared.”

“Yeah. He was in a lot of pain. Plus, he thought he’d hurt me somehow because I was on the floor with him.” Gideon shook his head and rubbed his leg.

Her laughter made him freeze. For a moment, he remained motionless then he joined in. “How’s Claire?”