Team Manager COACH!
Chapter 32
SINCE HE DIDN’T need to return to BHS Wednesday, Dennis stayed in Boone and went to watch Brenda’s practice. He watched his girlfriend, of course, but was keen on observing her coach as he worked the team. This coach also spent time on fundamentals, but was much more into traditional offensive and defensive plays.
“Hey, Dennis!” Brenda called after the practice. He came out of the bleachers to greet his girlfriend with a kiss.
“Passing those out freely?” the tall forward, Donna, asked, playfully trying to nudge Brenda out of the way.
“Oh, no. There’s a whole approval process you have to go through, first,” Dennis deadpanned. “And you have to meet my mother and bring a box of condoms for admission.”
“Whoa! I was only teasing. Believe me, you wouldn’t need a condom around me. Not interested,” Donna laughed. “Now, Shorty, what’s this you say about your coach here being able to help me get my dunk?”
“Dennis, Donna is so close to slamming the ball but can’t make it over the rim. I told her you’d helped both Daniella and Roberta get the last couple of inches. Maybe you can help her. Please, honey?” Brenda pled.
“Sure,” Dennis said. “If your coach is okay with it. Let’s see what you’ve got,” he said to Donna. “Bren, set her up.” Donna started charging the basket and Brenda passed the ball to her just two steps away. Donna jumped hard and almost made it. Her fingers were definitely above the rim, but the ball hit the rim and bounced away. Dennis switched to the other side to observe her again. He wasn’t watching or concerned with whether she made the shot or not. He was watching her feet and legs.
After the third try, he called them over to the bleachers and had Donna sit. He got down and pulled her right foot to his knee.
“Is that break giving you pain this year?” he asked. The first time they met, Donna was wearing a cast on her right foot. It was the first game of Bartley’s first season. They’d chatted briefly and Dennis found out the break was causing Donna to sit out the season.
“It’s fine,” she said. “I can’t believe you remember I broke it.”
“You were in a cast the first time I met you.”
“I don’t remember that.”
“I grew some since then. You wanted me to give you Daniella’s number,” Dennis laughed. “I did, by the way.”
“Yeah, I know. We’ve talked a few times. I started getting jealous of her when she made that slam dunk in the State finals. She got involved with… Oh, geez! That’s you?”
“It’s me. You’re still favoring that foot.”
“I am? You’re kidding. It feels fine,” Donna said.
“Then favoring it is a learned behavior and you need to unlearn it. And how much did you warm up before practice?” Dennis asked.
“Just the usual.”
“There’s no reason your legs and ankles should be this tight after a practice like you had today.” Dennis continued massaging Donna’s right foot and ankle, then called for her left. “Start warmups sooner and spend at least twenty minutes just getting your muscles warmed up. Then stretch out before you get on the floor. That’s more important than shooting drills, as far as I’m concerned. Let me see your hands.” Donna held out her hands and Dennis confirmed what he thought he saw when she tried to dunk the ball. “You can’t palm the ball, can you?”
“No. My hands are too small. Don’t tell me you can make my fingers grow,” Donna laughed.
“No, but Brenda, Daniella, and Roberta all have the same problem. You need a different technique if you have small hands. Like me.”
“I suppose you can dunk, too,” Donna said, lacing up her shoes. Dennis was quiet. “No. You can’t mean that… You’re like what, five-ten?”
“Height plays a role, but it’s not the most important thing,” Dennis said. “Jumping and ball control are both more important.” He stood back as Donna finished her shoes.
“Wow! My legs feel awesome,” she said.
Dennis took the ball from Brenda and dribbled out to half court. He dribbled toward the basket, pumping the ball onto the backboard when he reached the foul line. In two more steps, he picked up the rebound and slammed it home.
He motioned to Donna to take her place and run for the board. He launched a high curve and she picked it up with her left hand and popped it through the hoop.
“Brenda, if you can feed her the ball so she doesn’t have to carry it with her on her way up, she’s got it nailed.”
Brenda took her position and launched the ball exactly the way Dennis had. Donna picked it up in the air and slammed it home.
“Okay! Okay!” Donna panted. “I need to stop by the drugstore and pick up some condoms. How soon can I meet your mother?”
They all had a good laugh and the girls headed down to the locker room for showers as Dennis changed shoes to get ready to go home.
“That was impressive,” Brenda’s coach said as he approached. Dennis snapped up to stand.
“Sir! I hope it was okay to help Donna, sir!”
“Relax, son. So, you’re the trainer Brenda has talked about. High school? Planning to come here next year?” the coach asked.
“Um… Not exactly, sir. I mean, I still have another year of high school left.”
“You’re how old?”
“Sixteen, sir. Almost seventeen.”
“Playing varsity?”
“No, sir. I manage the girls’ basketball team. I guess I can say now that I’m the Student Assistant Coach. I work with the players on sports conditioning and skills,” Dennis said.
“Why not play?”
“Coach, I believe girls’ basketball is the best sport ever invented. Why would I give up working with them to play on a boys’ team?” Dennis asked.
The coach started laughing and nodding his head.
“Have to say, I agree. Well, anytime you can show up here, let me know you’re coming and I’ll have the ladies ready for a workout. You just did a world of good for Donna. She’ll transfer to State next year. No question. Drive carefully getting home. It’s pretty nasty out there.”
Thursday classes at Bartley were chaotic. The term had just started and they’d missed one day with a late start on another. At least roads were mostly clear and the Angelines got to practice in the afternoon. There were a lot of whispered conversations going on as they shifted from conditioning to team practice. As they finished layup skills, the team halted and faced Dennis. Ardith had been standing to shout instructions and was taken off guard when Liz spoke up.
“Coach, we’ve all found out you’ve been holding out on us. We want to see you dunk a basketball.”
Dennis sighed and hung his head.
“Is that true, Dennis?” Ardith asked. “I thought you were coaching Daniella and Roberta with techniques you saw on videos. Can you really do it?”
“Yeah. I guess so. I knew showing off at DMACC yesterday was a bad idea.”
“Okay. Now I want to see, too. Take it away, Coach,” Ardith said, tossing him a basketball. Dennis took it to half court and dribbled toward the basket, giving it an alley-oop from the foul line and then jumping. He picked up the rebound off the backboard and slammed it through the rim. The girls were all silent.
“Could you do this all last year?” Natalie asked in amazement.
“No. I couldn’t do it until I grew. Running this fall helped, too. And I’ve been giving you all exercises to get you to jump higher. I do all the exercises, too,” Dennis said. “Natalie, you’re getting close. I think you’ll be able to dunk by the end of the season. Tori, next year is your year. Daphne and Rosie, it’s not beyond your ability. Keep working those legs and ankles.”
“Okay,” Ardith said. “Dunking is a good skill to have, but it’s not the focus of the game. If you’re going to beat the Saints tomorrow, we need the whole game put together. Red team is Liz, Daniella, Amy, Diane, and Janice. Report to Dennis. Blue to me: Natalie, Roberta, Leanne, Daphne, and Jaydyn. Let’s see some action.”
It was a tough practice, but the girls all looked to Dennis with renewed respect.
The Angelines were too keyed up Friday night when they met the Saints. The Saints had dealt them their only loss in the third game of the season and for a while, it looked like this would be a repeat of that first matchup, only worse. The Angelines trailed 15-19 at the end of the first quarter and by eight points at the half. The Saints had succeeded in slowing the game down, controlling the ball for the majority of the time. What was worse, only the Armor girls had scored. The shorter and younger girls had simply been overpowered. Ardith called the girls into a huddle at the third quarter break, trailing 39-51.
“We’ve tried to play their game, but we just aren’t hitting from anywhere on the court,” she said. “So, we’re going to pull the stops out on this quarter or we’ll be facing our home fans with our tails between our legs. Natalie, Daniella, Roberta.” She paused and looked at the rest of the team carefully. She needed good ball handlers. “Amy and Diane. This quarter belongs to you. There’s no time for substitutions. We’re going to hit them full force with what we’re known for. We need to get the ball, control the ball, and score. Every opportunity. Every possession. Get the rebounds. Get the steals. And score! You know what that means.”
“Run and gun,” Natalie said with grim determination. She was already leading the team with seventeen points. Daniella had fifteen and Roberta had seven. They were the only ones who had scored so far.
“What are we going to do?” Dennis shouted.
“Beat ’em!”
“How will we do it?”
“Run run run!”
“Who are we?”
“Angelines!”
If the Saints expected a beaten team to take the floor for the fourth quarter, they were sadly mistaken. Roberta went up against their center and controlled the tip to Amy. Amy was overwhelmed with defenders and passed between their legs to Natalie. Natalie launched the ball downcourt to Daniella who threw an alley-oop toward the basket. Roberta appeared from nowhere to slam it through the hoop. Natalie stole the ball on the inbound and drove to the basket for a quick two. Amy picked up her offensive player and to everyone’s surprise, rose into the air to block her shot. In two minutes, the twelve-point deficit had been cut to six and the Angelines were running the Saints into the ground, forcing errors and stealing the ball. They ignored normal balancing around the team and simply passed the ball to whichever of the Armors was open.
And they ran. They were aggressive under the boards. They stole the ball and blocked the Saints’ shots. It looked like a different team than had played the first three quarters. When Amy sank two foul shots to put the Angelines ahead with two minutes to play, the home fans went wild. They weren’t finished yet and Natalie drove for two more layups and Daniella popped a three-pointer from the corner. In the fourth quarter, they outscored the Saints 20-4 and ended with a 59-55 victory.
Dennis went straight into the locker room with the team and held his three Armor girlfriends in a tight hug. The rest of the team surrounded them, hugging so tightly they could hardly breathe.
Dennis and Lana cut the tape off the players and Team A cheerleaders, all of whom were naked when they sat down. Fred even joined the girls in the shower, which no one seemed to mind.
“I’m so glad we didn’t lose right before my birthday party!” Lana said. “I know that’s a selfish way to put it, but I’m still glad.”
“I think everyone was thinking the same thing,” Dennis laughed. “I’m just amazed that Natalie, Daniella, and Roberta won the game by themselves. They scored fifty-seven of our fifty-nine points.”
“You know what Coach says. Every point is the winning point. It was Amy’s two free throws that put us ahead.”
“Yes, and I shouldn’t say anything that makes the other girls discouraged,” Dennis admitted. “So, tell me, Miss Sweet Sixteen, what else would you like for your birthday?”
“Hmm. Well, from the day I met you, I knew I’d never reach ‘sixteen and never been kissed.’ You can kiss me some more, though,” Lana giggled.
“Mmm. I’ll do that all you want. You can’t really mean from the day you met me, though. I distinctly remember a girl who never wanted to be touched by a boy again,” Dennis said.
“Well, that’s true,” Lana sighed. “But you were already my hero. You defended me in the locker room and took me under your wing. I’d have done anything for you, whether I really wanted to or not. Thankfully, you waited until I really wanted to. Um… I don’t think I’ll be a virgin by my next birthday. I love you, Dennis.”
“I love you, Lana. But I’m not going to ask you to do that. Not now or any other time, until I know for a fact you really want to.” He pulled up to her house where most of the team and cheerleaders had already gathered.
“Oh, I’m not ready for it tonight, for sure!” she laughed. “But I get more ready every time you kiss me. So, kiss me again, lover. Maybe I don’t really want to make love yet, but I want to want to.” He gladly kissed her.
“I don’t know,” Natalie said. “I just kept throwing the ball at the basket and it kept dropping in.”
“Thank heavens you just kept throwing it!” Amy said. “And Daniella couldn’t miss from three-point range. What happened to the rest of us?”
“No excuses,” Judith said. “I couldn’t even keep hold of the ball.”
“I haven’t dribbled it off my foot since our first week last year until tonight!” Rosie said.
“It’s kind of a relief, you know?” Bobbie said. “I mean, I’m glad we won and that Natalie and Daniella and Roberta came to our rescue. But it’s kind of comforting to know that even the Angelines on the team last year can have an off night and not be superstars. Like there’s still hope for the rest of us.”
“Bobbie, you might be the most improved player of the year. It’s too bad we didn’t have enough to field a freshman team or JV team this year. You’d have played in every game and would truly be ready for next year,” Dennis said. “All we can do is work you hard and drill the exercises into you so your playing time advances you.”
“Have you guys noticed your eighth grade cheer block?” Sara asked.
“What’s that?” Leanne said.
“There’s a group of about a dozen eighth grade girls who are at every game. Renée Lambert sits with them at most games. I think they all have visions of playing for the Angelines next year. I don’t think they’re there to watch the cheerleaders,” she laughed.
“That would be cool,” Liz said. “It would almost certainly mean we’d have a JV team next year. I’d be happy playing JV instead of varsity.”
“Don’t sell yourself short, Liz. You’re doing great,” Dennis said. “Maybe I should talk to Coach Lambert about getting her girls ready to play.”
“You could have a whole new harem,” Rae laughed.
“No. Oh, no! We aren’t going to encourage any little girls to be anything but great basketball players. No harems!” Dennis said.
“You’ve worked hard to turn us into basketball players,” Janice said. “And we still have fun teasing you. Even if we’re not part of the infamous harem.”
“Are we infamous?” Judith asked.
“Are we a harem?” Rosie joined in.
“Somehow, I think I’m missing out on something,” Debbie laughed. “Like what was that box of condoms for that I brought over to your house?”
“You didn’t! Seriously?” Roz asked.
“None of us could become a girlfriend unless we brought a box of condoms—even if we didn’t plan to use them,” Lana said dramatically. “Imagine my embarrassment! I was an innocent cheerleader when the Angelines corrupted me. My parents gave me a lecture on the proper use and care of a boy. It’s a steep learning curve.”
“I trust you have a lot of learning yet to do,” Fru Elsa said as she brought the birthday cake into the room with its sixteen candles glowing. The harem conversation ceased as everyone sang happy birthday to Lana.
Dennis picked Lana up at noon on Saturday to go to Brenda’s basketball game. Other girlfriends were also going, but this was officially Dennis’s date with sixteen-year-old Lana. It was an hour-and-a-half drive to the Tritons and after the game, Dennis was taking Lana out for a birthday dinner.
The DMACC Bears trailed at the half 37-40. They weren’t playing poorly, but didn’t seem to be getting any breaks. They almost looked like a different team in the fourth quarter. One of the Tritons fouled out and three of their starters were in foul trouble. The Bears capitalized on the opportunity by playing closer to their opponents, forcing them to back off to avoid fouls. That little advantage opened up the Bears’ shooting and they outscored the Tritons 19-10 in the last quarter.
As if to punctuate their victory, in the last five seconds of the game, Brenda sent an alley-oop pass toward the backboard. Donna leaped and picked the ball up in the air, slamming it home for the first dunk of her college career.
It was really too early for dinner, so Lana and Dennis did what any American teens would do: They went to the mall. They weren’t really planning to buy anything, but walked into any shop that looked interesting. Lana spotted a lingerie store and dragged an embarrassed Dennis into it.
“I never really got in on all the teasing the other girls did last year. I mean, not really, you know. So, you just sit here a few minutes. I’m going to try a couple of things on.” She seated Dennis where he could see the dressing rooms and proceeded to grab half a dozen sets to try on. The first thing she tried on was a lacy bra. She didn’t take her jeans off, but somehow, stepping out of the dressing room in her jeans and a bra was more tantalizing than if she’d been completely naked.
She got much closer to naked, though. Another bra. A nightie. A slip. She finished her show with a sheer lace teddy that left nothing to the imagination. Dennis was near catatonic as she pranced in front of him.
“I think I’ll buy this as a little birthday present to me,” she said. “But I’ll wear it for you.”
The next stop was at a sporting goods store for a jump rope.
“You want to jump rope? I haven’t done that since sixth grade. It used to be fun,” Lana said as he tested the length and weight of a rope.
“After I demonstrated that I could dunk the basketball, Natalie and Tori have been on me to help them get to that point. I did some reading and found a bunch of exercises for jumping higher and a jump rope is one of the main components of the plan. I want to try it out before I start trying it on other people.”
“So, this exercise is supposed to make you jump higher? I want to try it, too. I’m still planning to high jump in track this year and really want to improve from last year. I never even made it close to five feet last year,” Lana said.
“You can help me work the exercises out. I’ll buy you a rope, too, and call it my birthday present to you.”
“You’re the best boyfriend ever.”
The two headed out to eat at an all-American grill that seemed to specialize in pasta. They laughed about how that was considered all-American food these days. But they ate heartily and then Dennis took her hand to walk to his car.
“I’ve had such a good time on our date, Den,” Lana said. “I wish it didn’t end.”
“Well, the good part about being sixteen is that now you and I can date whenever we want,” he laughed.
“Um… within the limits of not ignoring our other girlfriends. Dennis, I never want to interfere with any of the other girls in your life. Our lives. Mom talked to me while we were laundering the cheerleaders’ outfits this morning and wanted to know how I was going to handle not being the only girl you were dating. It was a good conversation,” Lana said.
“It’s such a weird situation, I don’t know how any of us handle it. I’d be a crazy man if my girlfriends wanted to date other men. I don’t think I could handle it,” Dennis said. “I suppose that makes me a medieval pig, doesn’t it?”
“Not quite. You might be jealous if girls had another man in their lives, but you don’t treat us like you own us. We all understand how intimacy gets crazy when you add other people. We haven’t even made love yet and I can’t imagine letting another man put his penis in my vagina. It’s revolting. But I’d welcome you there. Over and over again. Soon.”
“But you know my cock’s been in other pussies,” Dennis said. “That doesn’t bother you?”
“Um… My fingers have explored some of those pussies and I didn’t find anything to be jealous about,” Lana said.
“This is… uh… kind of an arousing conversation to be having,” Dennis said, shifting uncomfortably as his stiff cock pressed against his jeans.
“Why don’t you drive on down to the field you took care of this summer instead of taking me straight home. Maybe we can find a way to make the conversation more comfortable,” Lana whispered. Dennis drove to the field about half a mile past her house and pulled off the road. He put the car in park and turned to Lana. She was already out of the car and getting in the back seat. He got the hint and joined her, without turning off the engine or the heater.
They kissed immediately and pulled the blanket up around them. Lana’s kiss was sweet and passionate and hopeful.
“Lover of mine,” she whispered, “I don’t want to lose my virginity in the back seat of your car, but I want to touch you and feel you touching me. Kiss me and hold me and find out how wet I am, waiting for your fingers.”
They kissed. And kissed. In the midst of kissing, Lana’s breath caught and held as she felt every muscle in her body tense and release and tense again. Her orgasm was made even more intense when Dennis began pulsing in her hand, spraying his come on both of them.
“My love, my lover,” Lana gasped. “I’m really getting used to the idea of making love to you. This summer, when you are out on the tractor and I bring lunch to you in the field, you’ll find me naked and waiting to welcome you into my body. I love you.”
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