Smart Choices

Mrs. Niedbala
4w
 
Hello, my name is Trae and I am seventeen years old and I live with my friend Will. I have been friends with Will since kindergarten we have a very close relationship. I live with him because my mom died in a shootout when I was sixteen. So Wills mom, Deja, “Ma” is what we call her took me in like her own child. Now I am in a gang called, “Blood.” I also play basketball for my school team called the Lincoln Vikings, I play starting point guard for them. I am a senior and I am getting scouted by the North Carolina Tar Heels. I plan to stay here and not go to college. I want to help Deja and Will for all they did for me, but they tell me to leave and get out of this town.
So yesterday after school The “Bloods” and I went to go see what was going on with the Crips our rivals and the people responsible for my mom’s death. They were sitting outside a crack house one walked up to us.
He said, “What you fools doing at our territory?”
Carter said, “Just checking up on you punks!”
The Crip made a move on Carter “C” and C shot him in his leg. The Crip dropped and we ran. While we were running gun shots were fired, thankfully no one was hurt except for the punk who tried to mess with C. We went back to C’s crib and we had to be ready if they attacked.
So C asked everyone “if they were strapped,”
I had a pistol, Will had a SK (scorpion) with extra clips that’s why we call him “loaded”, and Tyrone “Pysch” had a knife. So C gave Tyrone a Glock 21 and me another 9mm clip. The worst thing is that I have a game tonight. It’s the semifinals and I have to be rested. So they told me to head to the game. I went to the game and I was ten minutes late.
Coach told me, “take a lap then head out with team,”
I took off and was with the team in fifteen seconds. We stretched and did layups and jump shots. The game started and I led the team to another victory.
That night the gang and I went out to party. We had a party at Will’s friends house but of course we had to be strapped so C and Tyrone hooked us up. At the party there were drugs, alcohol, pop and water. I just drank water so I would be okay for the next game. I went to the bathroom and then a guy grabbed me, he tried to punch me, I ducked it hit him in the face and he dropped then I felt metal at the back of my head.
He said, “You’re coming with me,”
I recognized the voice it was one of the crips, I was looking for one of the bloods. Then I saw Will he gave me a look to be calm and showing he can help. As I walked out the door I was scared to death then Tyrone and Will hit the in Crip in the leg with a pistol I ducked and shot the guy who tried to hit me. The guy who tried to hit me dropped again and we dipped out of there, C was in the car waiting and we were gone. I went to sleep as soon as I got home.
The next day was game day. We play the best team in the state of Chicago the Franklin High Bobcats. They have a kid name Tracy Mclain. He also is in a gang, and it is the Crips. They say he is going to The University of Duke. He is an arch rival of my gang, my high school and even college. He has all the moves I have but he is just a little quicker and an inch taller, and I have to guard him. He plays point guard just like me but I have one advantage on him, self control. The game starts in an hour. I just got to the gym, I walked to think about what I am going to do and calm myself down. We started to stretch and all I had on my mind is winning this game. We started layups and jump shots; I hit every jumper and layup. When I felt ball in my hands and I was zoned in so instead of taking a layup or a jump shot I dunked it. The feeling of myself in the air told me I had a gift that I cannot spoil. Then we took our benches, coach told us that we need to keep our heads in the game no matter what happens out there.
We took the floor and coach pulled me aside.
He said, “This is your chance to show everyone that we are the best team in the state not them, and it is you that will lead our team.”
I took that to my heart and on the first play I got the tip and took it to the rim and dunked it. As I ran down to our end of the floor coach gave me thumbs up. By the end of the quarter we were leading twenty to ten, I had twelve points already and I kept Mclain to just three. At the start of the next quarter Mclain came out with a dunk and a three pointer, so coach called a time out.
He told us, “just keep playing, we cannot let Mclain get on those score streaks.”
We took the court and pushed ourselves that quarter but Mclain kept their team in the game. The score was forty - five to forty and it was halftime. In the locker room we were all hyped up and coach settled us down.
He told us, “To keep playing and keep eyes Mclain, he had seventeen out of there forty points.”
Then coach came over to me.
Coach said, “You have twenty seven points and the North Carolina scout is here taking notes so keep playing hard.”
Halftime is over and we started to go onto the court and the Bobcats got the ball. They tried to pass the ball to Mclain but I stole it and took it to the rim hard dunked it and they blew the whistle. The call was a foul on Mclain he flipped.
Mclain said, “Hey Trae you suck you know I did not touch you,”
I said, “Bro chill,”
He came at me, he swung at me a ducked the punch, he swung again I caught his fist and the ref grabbed him and threw him out. Then they could not keep up with us and we won.
As I left the gym the scout told me to give him a call, I told him I will definitely give him a call. And on that day I made my decision that I was getting out of that town. The next day I told the guys I was out of the gang, they understood. Then I went to apply for a job at “Giant Eagle.”It is just minimum wage, but I have to buy books for college and have money for food and drinks.
Giant Eagle told me, “That I start next week,”
I was really happy so on my way home I stopped at a church. I used to go to church when I lived with my mom, but I never thought to go again. When I went in I sat in the first pew and just prayed for about an hour. It felt like my mother was sitting right next to me the whole time. As I was about to leave the church I felt that something good was going to happen. I do not know what it was but I was ready for anything. I went to Wills house and it was around ten o’clock and it was a Saturday so I just went to bed.
I woke up by the sound of Wills Mom saying, “hurry hurry outside,”
When I went outside there was a 2012 Cadillac CTSv outside! I forgot that I put a card in the box for the free give away for the Cadillac at the mall. Right now everything was going so great right now so I took it to a shop and asked them to hold it here for ten bucks a month.
They said, “They would and asked why?”
I told them, “I am going to college and I live in a bad part of town and do not want anything bad to happen to it,”
They said, “Okay and good luck,”
I thanked them and left and went to Giant Eagle and asked if I can see what I was going to do there and how.
The manager laughed and said, “Okay and said you can follow me around,”
I said, “Does that mean I am going to be a manager?”
He laughed again and said, “Nope but a co-manager, anyone who comes early and asks to learn about this job deserves more than a clerk job,”
I was excited and knew everything was going to work out, so I called the college and told them I would be attending next year. I knew I would be able to go because I was making fourteen dollars an hour and I didn’t even have to pay any bills except for the car for when I go to college. And on that day I knew my life was going to go uphill from here not downhill.