Daniel stepped surreptitiously into the lunchroom, hoping no one had noticed him. The clatter of silverware over the hum of kids talking masked his slow sigh. He had been at the new school for 3 weeks now, and really only had one new friend. He was worried he would never fit in. He glanced up and saw Tim, his new friend waving his arms above the crowd.

 

“Hey Dan!” he yelled over the crowd. “Sit over here.”

 

Daniel sat down at a long lunch table with 5 other boys. He could sense the excitement. Something was up this morning. Something was different.

 

“Dan, tryouts for the basketball team are this afternoon. Are you coming?”

 

Daniel saw the heads swivel his way as they awaited his answer. You could see that they hadn’t really even considered this new boy up to this point. Could he be a threat to them?

 

“I don’t think so,” Daniel replied. “I might come to watch, though.”

 

He could see their shoulders visibly lower as they relaxed and continued on with their excitement about the tryouts and the upcoming season. This was an important year for all of them since they were seniors. Whether they played at college could be determined by their high school team rank and their performance during the string of upcoming tournaments.

 

After school Daniel headed over to the gym with Tim. He was talking nonstop about basketball and all the players on the school team. Daniel could tell that this was like a second family to Tim. He missed that feeling from his old school where he was the star forward for their team. He knew he wouldn’t fit in here, though. These boys had played together for three years and knew everyone’s moves. They completed each other’s sentences and nodded sometimes with the slightest sign – as if they had a secret code. Luckily he had his new friend Tim to hang out with this last year of high school.

 

The boys went into the locker room to change and Daniel took a seat in the bleachers. The familiar smell of plastic, wood and sweat made him want to jump onto the court. He watched the boys warm up, noticing each player’s rhythm. He was so engrossed in watching the back and forth of the drills that he didn’t even notice the coach come up besides him.

 

“ Hello, son. Interested in basketball?” Coach asked.

 

“Oh yes,” he answered. “My school last year placed third in the district.”

 

“Why don’t you get your gym clothes on and swoosh a few balls?”

 

Daniel stammered, “Well, er, I really just came to watch. I’m new at this school and I don’t know the other players.”

 

The coach said, “We’re always looking for new players. Come on, show me what you’ve got.”

 

With that Daniel rushed into the locker room, changed into his gym clothes and raced onto the basketball court. He could feel his skin begin to burn from the glares of the other boys on the court. He picked up a basketball. Immediately it felt as if it was an extension of his hand. The distractions of the pounding balls on the court and the yells of the players gave way to a pinpoint focus on the hoop. He dribbled to the basket like he was running the 50 yard dash and easily made the lay-up. He was in his element. Not only had he been a forward for his other school, he had spent the past summer playing basketball in his driveway to past the time. The loneliness of summer had been replaced by his daily routine of basketball practice. It had paid off. The ball seemed to be at home in his hand. He felt happy and secure just dribbling it around the court. 

 

The extra confidence showed. The other boys were in tune with him. When they ran drills, the boys began to look to him for signals and direction. The adrenaline was lifting his mood.

 

After practice Daniel went to talk to Tim about the tryout, but Tim ducked out with his other friends and barely gave him a second glance. The next day at school Tim did not seek him out and even sat at a different table than him at lunch. Daniel was confused. He didn’t know what he’d done.

 

After school he saw a bunch of boys huddled around the bulletin board near the P.E. coach’s office. He sauntered over, pretending to not be anxious about the results of the tryouts. He waited his turn, then scanned the paper tacked onto the board. There, near the top, was his name with a notation of “Starter”. Daniel felt lighter than air. He not only had made the team but he was going to be one of the first 5! He was so excited that he barely noticed Tim’s glare in his direction.

 

“Hey Tim, I noticed you made the team. Congratulations!” Daniel said.

 

“Yeah,” Tim said. “I don’t get to start like last year, though.”

 

It was then that Daniel realized what had happened. Because he had tried out, he had bumped Tim down to second string, the replacement players. He knew how disappointed Tim must feel. He would have to find a way to make it up to Tim.

 

“Tim, do you want to shoot some hoops this weekend?”

 

“I’m not sure,” he mumbled.

 

“Well, try to come by around 10 on Saturday. I was hoping you could show me that cool jump shot you have.”

 

He saw a small glimmer of a smile on Tim’s face as he said, “Okay, I’ll be by.”

 

Daniel and Tim practiced hard that Saturday and worked together at team practices too. Tim showed him his jump shot and Daniel showed him his dribbling practices. Together they became lifelong true friends that shared their skills with one another. Not only did Tim get over his jealousy of Daniel, but by showing his ability to work together and improve his dribbling skills, the coach moved him up to a starter mid-season.

 

The boys went on to play college ball together and cemented their lifelong friendship. They had learned that the green-eyed monster of jealousy only gets in the way of improving yourself. Daniel had also learned that working with others and sharing your skills will help you improve as well. Their friendship proved to be very valuable to both of them.