Traveller - L.W. Samuelson (free e books to read online TXT) 📗

/> “Yes. Boni bon bon.” Those humans are different colored he thought when he saw that they were black.
ISU team members cleared the ball first. Traveller stood near the rim. This will be easy. Everytime they shoot the ball, I’ll prevent it from going in. He waited until a guard from ISU tried a short range jump shot. Just before the ball entered the rim, Traveller jumped up and knocked it out.
“Goal tending. Two points,” the guy who shot the ball said.
Traveller looked at Jesse who said, “You can’t block it on the way down.”
“Who say white people can’t jump?” one of forwards from ISU said with admiration.
Jesse cleared the ball. Traveller stood near the basket with a forward fronting him. He impelled to the middle of the key. Jesse threw him the ball but when he pivoted to shoot it, it was knocked out of his hands.
The other team quickly cleared the basketball. Traveller stood with disappointment while his teammates guarded three players with the forth coming open near the foul line. The ISU player shot the ball, swish. It was now four to nothing.
“You’ve gotta guard your man,” said Tim pointing at the forward who scored.
Jesse dribbled the ball up with the guard from the other team smothering him. Tim set a pick and then rolled to the basket. Jesse passed the ball to him. He laid it in for two points.
“Boni bon bon,” said Traveller marvelling at the cooperation between Jesse and Tim.
An ISU guard brought the ball up. The forward that Traveller was guarding backed him down as he dribbled with his back to the basket. Suddenly, he pivoted on one foot for a hook shot just like Jesse had. Traveller impelled anticipating the ball’s trajectory and then snatched it out of the air. He threw it to Jesse who shot it for a score.
The ISU players had a great advantage because they had played together so much. They were just able to stay ahead of Traveller and his friends. The score was fourteen to eighteen. Sweat drenched the ISU team as well as Traveller’s. The alien had been boxed out all game. He hadn’t been able to score.
Jesse brought the ball up. It went to Tim then back to Bill who drove to the basket. Traveller’s opponent left him to double team Bill who shoveled the ball back to him. He caught the ball and slammed it into the hoop so hard that the rim bent. “Sixteen, eighteen,” said Jesse.
After clearing it, the ISU ball handler dribbled toward the basket with Jesse in front him. The forward Traveller was guarding screened Jesse off. Traveller back pedaled in front of the guy with the ball. Unexpectedly, the ball handler stopped and jump shot the ball before Traveller could react. When the ball came down through the hoop, the shooter caught it, threw it back to Traveller and said, “Twenty to sixteen, game over.”
The forward the alien had been guarding came over with his palms up in front of Traveller, “Man, white boy you keep practicin’ you gonna have game. You can jump like nobody’s bidness.”
Traveller slapped the guy’s palms with his own. “Good game,” he said.
“You all made us work for everything we got,” said one of the ISU guards.
Over fifty students had gathered to watch the game. They applauded Traveller’s team for their effort.
Traveller had decided to practice his English after he practiced basketball. “I go now,” he told Jesse.
“Where ya goin’?”
“To learn English.”
“Let me walk with you to Lori’s. We can practice speaking on the way,” said Jesse. They said their goodbyes and left.
On the way home, Taveller would point to objects and Jesse would tell him what they were. Jesse walked him right up to the door pointing down to say, “steps,” then opened the door to say, “door.”
“I’m not coming in,” Jesse said to Traveller’s back. “I’ve gotta do some studying myself.”
Traveller turned around. He hugged Jesse. “Thank you,” he said with tears of gratitude. “I bon basketball. Everybody malik wonki.”
Jesse felt something he had never experienced before, complete, unquestioning acceptance. Somehow Traveller’s embrace made him want to go back to the dorms to study. He resolved to improve his grades.

Wednesday and Thursday consisted of learning to speak English and practicing basketball. On Wednesday night Lori cooked macaroni and cheese for dinner. Traveller ate a whole pot of it. “More?” he said when it was gone. Lori cooked another batch. He ate it, too.
On Thursday night, Lori brought home four McDonald’s double cheeseburgers with French fries. Traveller ate three of the burgers with great enjoyment. He smothered the French fries in catsup. “Boni bon bon bon bon,” he said as he savored each fry individually while Lori ate her burger.
“Mas?” he asked when he finished.
Lori teared up. “I’m sorry,” she said sitting at the table.
Traveller got up to put an arm around her shoulders. His touch conveyed that it was all right. “Thank you very very much,” he said.

Later that night, Traveller overheard Lori talking to her father on the telephone. He switched his translator on and listened. “Hi Dad. I’m fine. How are you? . . . Good.”
She was silent as she listened to her father. Finally, she explained the reason for the call. “Hey Dad. I’m running a little short on money this month. No. Yes, he’s borrowed some, but he wanted to go to the Neil Diamond concert.”
She was silent for a long time. Even an alien could tell she was being lectured. A few minutes later, she said, “Two hundred dollars. I get paid next Friday. I can pay it back twenty-five dollars a check.”
Traveller was surprised at her plaintive tone when she said, “Please?”
There was a pause before Lori said, “Thank you Dad. I love you. Good-bye.”
Traveller came into the kitchen where the phone was attached to the wall. He sat his translator on the table. “Are you well?” he asked.
“Me? Sure, I’m okay.”
“What is money?”
"It's something you get to exchange for food, clothing, or other goods."
"You mean like those coins and pieces of paper that Jesse used to get the burritos with?"
"Yes. I get those coins and pieces of paper for the work I do then I trade the money for something else."
"So you have to work for the food you give to me? And now you have to ask your parents for some?"
"Yes. I also use the money to rent this apartment, buy gas, and pay for electricity."
"How can I help?" Traveller asked.
"You're my guest. You don't have to help. But we do need to discuss your plans."
"I don't really have any. I have been enjoying myself so much. I have friends now. I've never had friends my own age to play with. I love basketball. All I can think about is learning how to play the game. I am getting better at it."
"So I've heard. You've been good for Jesse. I thought he was going to drop out of college. Now he's even studying. I think he's realized how much fun school is."
"I will ask Jesse about money. Maybe he knows how to get some."
"Please, please don't. I don't want you two robbing a bank or something."
"What is a bank?"
"A place to keep money."
"What is rob?"
"Stealing, taking without permission. It means they'll catch you and put you in jail."
"What is jail?"
"It's like a bank. It's a place to store people who steal money or commit other crimes."
They talked well into the night. Traveller would ask a question, Lori would answer it. He was beginning to get a rudimentary understanding of the world around him.
When he saw Lori's eyes drooping, her lids laden with sleep, he said, "You had better go to bed. Thanks for giving me so much to think about."
Traveller lay on the couch thinking about Lori. She had a good heart and mind. She had sacrificed for him. He would do something to return the favor.
Chapter 17 - Three on Three

The next morning, Traveller fixed toast and poured a bowl of corn flakes for Lori. He had them sitting on the table with a cup of coffee when she came out dressed for work. "Are you ready to eat?" he asked.
"You fixed breakfast?"
"Yes. If you're ready to eat, I'll pour milk on your corn flakes."
"Sure," she said. She sat down, sipped her coffee, and ate.
"Thank you," Lori said getting up from the table and grabbing her keys. "I get off work at four o'clock. What time is your game?"
"Six-thirty," Traveller said. Jesse had taught him how to tell time. He had even given Traveller an old watch so they could coordinate practice and studying.

Traveller spent the morning watching T.V. and practicing his English. Jesse and Tim came over at noon. "I'm hungry. How 'bout you guys?" Jesse asked.
"I could eat," said Tim.
"Hungry," said Traveller rubbing his stomach. He hadn't eaten breakfast. He didn't want to cost Lori money. He got his translator and placed it on the table.
Jesse pulled a loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter out of the cupboard, some grape jelly out of the fridge. He fixed three peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches.
Traveller lit up with surprise when he took his first bite. Yet another delightful treat! "Mas, mas," he said licking his fingers after the last bite. Jesse made another round of sandwhiches.
Tim finished his first one before he explained the basketball tournament. "There are sixty-four teams. The games are scheduled for thirty minutes or twenty points whichever comes first. I paid our entry fee. It was ten bucks. You guys can pay me back by winning. The first place team gets $330.00, second $120.00, and third $90.00. Surely we can at least place third or second."
Traveller had just bit into his second sandwhich when Tim finished. "Firth playth," he said with peanut butter jamming his gums. When his mouth cleared, he repeated himself, "First place. Lori needs money."
"First place it is then," said Jesse. "We'd better go practice. Work out a strategy."
"We'll play an inside, outside game," said Tim. He looked at Jesse. "I'll pick for you and roll to the basket. Traveller can play around the key and rebound or move to the open spot. We'll play one on one defense."
"Sounds like a plan," said Jesse.
Tim looked at Traveller's translator machine. "I've never seen anything like that before. What is it?"
"It's a Russian translator. It converts Russian to English and English to Russian," Jesse answered.
"But it looks so advanced, like something off of Star Trek," said Tim suspiciously.
"Russians aren't as backward as everyone thinks," said Jesse.
"That's another thing. Whatever he's saying isn't Russian."
"Well, let's go practice," said Jesse changing the subject. “Bring your translator so we can make sure you understand what to do, Travis.”
They practiced on the cement court down the alley. Traveller would try to guard Jesse while Tim practiced screening him off. If Tim was successful Jesse scored. Sometimes Traveller fought his way through the screen. It was then that Jesse threw the ball back to Tim for a jump shot. Sometimes though, he blocked either Tim’s or Jesse’s shot. He learned to watch their eyes at the same time he watched the ball. The more they played, the harder it got for the two of them to score.
Eventually, they switched. Tim guarded Jesse and him. If Tim guarded Jesse, Traveller got the ball underneath for a dunk. If he guarded Traveller, Jesse shot an outside shot. Only when Jesse missed