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spookymultimedia · 3 years

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A Summer to Remember Ch4

CW: internalized homophobia

the f slur and queer used as a slur

[Ned Pov]

My eyes fluttered open to the sound of birds early in the morning. It was still dark outside. I looked down at Maude who was spooned into my arms. I recalled the conversation we had last night. As much as I wanted to hide from it, it was clear that I was homosexual. . .a queer. The word queer made me wince for some reason. I was gay, I was a gay man. It made too much sense. I bit my lip suddenly remembering something that happened in my youth. I remembered being in a group of. . . secular non-Christian people. It was the early 70s and no one knew where I was. They didn't have to know. It was simple teen curiosity; there was a desire to explore the world that was kept away from me. Again, I always had an innate curiosity to understand. It's impossible for a person to be perfectly free from sin. It was only human nature to have sinful tendencies. What I'm trying to say is I tried marijuana. It wasn't that bad. I actually felt less stressed than I usually was but let's not focus on that. There was this boy. This boy who was good with the guitar. He had long hair and wore blush from time to time. He called himself bisexual. I remembered how comfortable I had gotten with him one afternoon where we all were hanging out by a river. I remember the smoke and the lesbians who had made love in the shallow water. There were s'mores and homemade tea. By all logic I should have felt scared I was there; I wasn't.

I got up close to him by my own will, I remember. He asked me if I had ever kissed a boy before. I hadn't. He asked if I wanted to. Despite the quiet guilt in my soul I nodded. We kissed and kissed again and again until I got a hang of the rhythm. I liked it. The more I reflected on the memory, I remembered how much I enjoyed it. I stared at the window thinking while watching the warm glow of sunrise touch the curtains. I really am gay aren't I?

I looked down when I felt Maude move and wake up. She stretched her arms and legs and blinked awake. She smiled at me, "Good morning."

"Mornin."

She pressed a small kiss on my cheek and sat up.

"You don't have to do that kind of stuff to me if you're not comfortable."

"Hm? Oh. .I'm sorry it just felt natural I don't know. Are you uncomfortable?"

"No, not at all. . .shouldn't I be uncomfortable?"She shrugged. "It doesn't mean anything inherently romantic to me. . .does that sound silly?"

I shook my head, "I don't think so. .but I get what you mean."

She rubbed her eyes and played with her hair.

"So. . when you said you where gay last night do you mean. .?"

"That I'm a. . . lesbian? Yeah, yeah I think I'm a lesbian. Sounds right."

"That's just lovely Maude."

She frowned, "Is it? I. .thought it wasn't right to be. .-"

I laid there thinking for a minute, "Is it really wrong?"

"I'm not sure. . "

"It's just love. I can't see what's so wrong about it. . . Maude I. .I kissed a boy when I was younger." Why did I suddenly feel ashamed? It was just a kiss. Imagine what my uncle would say. He'd probably call me a f*gg*t or something. What would Reverend Lovejoy say? I suddenly felt sick to my stomach.

"Oh? Hm. . . was it nice?"

"Yeah. ." I stared at the wall again.

"Are you going to tell them?"

"Me?"

She nodded.

"I'm not sure. You?"

"I'm too scared."

"I understand." I pet her upper back to comfort her.

[Maude pov]

After breakfast we followed Tim and Helen led us to the Rock climbing area. There was this gigantic wall in front of us. It had multicolored rubber rocks that I adored. It wasn't my first rodeo with rock climbing. I had climbed with Ned plenty of times. I smiled up at them with anticipation. I had on some white tee from a church event and

jean shorts that reached my knees.

"Now this exercise is supposed to encourage teamwork and support in each other. When this world brings you down you need to have someone to encourage you." Helen explained as Timothy put on a harness. Helen looked at me puzzled as I put on one myself.

"What? It's not on backwards is it?"

"Oh, no it's just that. . ." She trailed off looking at my harness. She bit her lip lightly for a second before her concentration quickly returned. "Well I was going to have Ned climbing the wall but that's fine that works. . .Maude, are you sure you can?"

"I've done this many times." I smiled and laughed.

"Oh. Okay." She said a bit surprised.

Was it just me or did she blush? Was she checking me out. . .? No, no it had to be my imagination. I dismissed any other possibility of why she looked at me like that.

Once me and Tim were set up we started our climb. I made a speedy start grabbing onto each rock I saw available. It was fairly easy. I made a mental note of the colors. I loved them. Red pink yellow pink orange red blue green red turquoise. I focused on the rocks and moving.

"You got this Maude!" Ned cheered. I smiled and kept on climbing. I glanced over at Timothy who was only a couple feet from the ground. It seemed I had more upper arm strength than him. I wouldn't have guessed.

"I believe in you Timothy! You're doing great. One at a time." Helen cheered, encouraging him. God bless her, she's so sweet. He nodded and slowly found himself a bit higher. At some point I got stuck.

"Go left, use your legs!" Ned coached. I nodded and did as he advised. Tim had caught up with me before I made my way ahead of him again. Before I knew it I was at the very top.

I sat on the wall and smiled as Ned clapped for me. Helen was clapping too. So cute of her. I stared out at the trees and the shimmering lake as Tim was making the rest of his way up. Do I like Helen? I asked myself. Of course I did, she's been my best friend for years. But, Ned was also mine for longer. Yet, something in her sparkled that hadn't in Ned. Every time I had saw her, things we're better. I felt . .giddy. Oh. . .oh. I do love her. I love her more than anything. My chest had ached. Oh God, I love her.

"I'm so proud of you!" I looked down at Helen who was cheering at her husband who loved her too. She loved him. She loves him, not me. She's straight, I think. It didn't matter anyways. I sighed. Still I couldn't help but smile. I was in love and couldn't do anything about it. I wonder how Ned was coping with this yearning. I then faced the wall and quickly leaped my way down. With gravity and my emotions taking over me I couldn't help but laugh. I landed on the ground giggling. "That was fun." I snorted and covered my mouth blushing. But then she laughed too. "Oh Maude, that's adorable." She put an arm around my shoulder. Oh God I could kiss her right now. She's so close yet so far from reach. So I just stood there blushing and smiling. Tim slowly but surely came down with a bit of a dizzy stumble. Ned was close and caught him. For a moment the two men were arm in arm. Tim smiled bashfully and a tad embarrassed.

"Thanks."

Ned stared at him a moment before helping him stand-up straight. "You did great, Reverend." Neddy said smiling. The poor thing. He must feel the same ache in his soul. He has to.

[Ned pov]

Later that day I found Timothy by the river. He was just sitting there watching it flow. I had to ask. I needed to know what he thought on the matter. Despite everything, I felt in my soul it was right and only natural. But I just needed to know. You always need to know, it'll be death of you, Ned. I sighed and walked up to him before sitting by him on the grass by the sore. "Hi Reverend."

"Ned, we're friends, you can just call me Timothy. Really I insist."

"Of course. Timothy," his name was so intense. Calling him by his name was so tender and intimate it almost felt wrong. "I wanted to talk to you about something. Well, I at least wanted to hear your thoughts on the matter."

"What is it?" He looked at me slightly exhausted. I felt a pang of guilt. He probably wanted a break from being asked things everyday. It had to be exhausting. But I needed to know. I knew it was important.

"What do you think about homosexuality?"

"Hmm. . ." He hummed and looked out on the lake. "Sexual deviance isn't a good thing."

"Deviance?" I felt a bit hurt. Was it really cheating if my wife knew how I felt. I mean, it would be if I kissed a married man. I wanted to kiss a married man. Am I lusting? Is this sin? The homosexuality couldn't be though. "Is it really deviance??"

Tim paused to think again. "Well. Hm. There are some verses-"

"I know, I've heard about them. But I don't think they're talking about homosexuality. It could be just an error. It could be referring to a completely different sin. But if you don't mind my boldness Reverend, I really don't think it's a sin at all."

He nodded slowly, pensive.

"There are verses that have forbidden the consumption of some meats that were unsafe at the time. . .hmm. That's not a sin at all anymore. Perhaps there was a misunderstanding. Prophets are still human after all." He stared at the water. "I suppose homosexuality isn't so bad. Why, it's not bad at all. I mean everyone feels sexuality . . .right?" He looked a bit confused. I wasn't sure why. Was he gay? No. . . was he?

"I believe so."

He stared at the water thinking, I assume. I looked at those hands that tempted me. Guilt was burning me alive.

"Timothy I've been sinning!"

He looked at me startled at my outburst.

"Ned. . Ned, why are you asking me about this? Is. .this why you and Maude are having issues? Are you gay?"

I froze.

"Ned you said it yourself and I agree, I don't think homosexuality is a legit sin."

"No. I mean, no that's not the issue." I felt my eyes water.

"Ned. ."

"I've been lusting after a married man! That's a sin!"

"Ned. . .are you talking about me? Do you like me that way?" His eyes were wide.

"I do." I started to cry.

"Why are you crying?"

I looked at him like he was absurd.

"It's lusting!"

"Eh, well. You're not acting on it. I'm sure the Lord understands your intentions and will forgive them."

I shrugged, "I understand if you're uncomfortable. ."

"Not really. Don't worry about it."

"I just don't want to ruin anything."

"I understand."

"How long have you felt like this?"

"I . .I don't know. Maybe I was born like this."

"Born??" He looked confused.

"Well not literally. I mean. I've just always liked men." I rubbed my arm anxiously. I was still trying to make peace with myself.

Timothy stared at the ground, his eyes furrowed.

"Like them?"

"Yeah. Like I've just always wanted to. . .kiss them and stuff. You know?"

He slowly shook his head looking a bit lost.

"I don't understand."

I suddenly felt sick. Did he think my attraction was that weird?

"It's just the same feeling that you get with women."

He fiddled with his hands. He looked really uncomfortable.

"What's wrong? Is it me?"

"No it's not you. You're fine Ned I promise. I'm glad you decided to come to me about this." He closed his eyes and bit at his finger gingerly. I had seen him do this a couple times. It was usually when he got stressed or something. "Does Maude know?"

"Yeah. She took it well."

"Good." He stood up and walked off.

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sgtbradfords · 3 years

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Please could you write a Chenford prompt with this: “Who were you with?”. Thank you! 💖

Thank you for the prompt hon! I hope this does what you requested some justice! It almost stumped me, but then I had an idea about the future and well lord knows my muse had enough fun with it then. ;) Enjoy!

Captain Tim and Lieutenant Lucy Bradford had both turned in for the night, laying in their king-sized bed, talking off and on about things they had heard throughout the day at the department as Tim read the book in his hand, Lucy reading something on her phone.

“He’s going to be late.” She mumbled, noticing the time.

Tim never looked up, turning the page in his book. “He won’t be late.”

“Admit it, he’s going to be late and you can finally pay up.”

Tim looked over at the clock on the nightstand. “He’ll cut it close but he won’t be late, he’s never been late a day in his life.”

“No, because he’s your son. But you may as well pay up now Bradford, he has less than two minutes.”

“Only when he walks through the door at 23:01 Bradford, will you be getting any form of payment.”

The clock hit 10:59 and Lucy began counting down the seconds in her head, making it to twenty-three seconds left when the sound of a thud, something heavy hitting the ground echoed through the house.

They both jolted, Tim’s right hand and Lucy’s left reaching for their guns in the nightstands before thinking better of it.

Heavy footsteps sounded as the person climbed the stairs, stepping on the eighth step, the wood creaking under the pressure as it always had over the past twenty years.

“You ok?” Lucy asked, arching an eyebrow as the person walked into their room. “Just learning to walk?”

“I’m fine, tripped over my feet.” He said, carefully falling onto his stomach on the bed, burying his face into the comforter.

“Did you lock up?”

He sighed, rolling his eyes as he lifted his head. “Yes dad.”

“Did you turn off the lights?”

“I think?” he said after a second “I’ll check before I head to bed.”

Lucy wrinkled her nose as a smell assaulted her senses, “Larson Wade Bradford. Did you not shower after the game?”

“Yeah.”

“Did you use soap? Because you smell like a locker room.”

“Yes mom. You can smell test me if you want.” The teen said as he stuck an arm out.

“I’d prefer not to.” She told him, pressing his arm back down. “Just shower again before bed.”

“You done good tonight. That hit in the third looked brutal, you feeling ok?” Tim asked, placing his book to the side, taking off his reading glasses.

“Conners checked me out and said I was good to go but I swear that linesman hit me right in the lung, knocked the breath out of me. I’m sore, and my head hurts a little.” He shrugged.

“Let me see.” Tim said as he got up from the bed, moving next to his son.

Larson lifted his shirt, the left side of his skin black and blue as Tim began pressing on his side, Larson wincing when it became painful.

“Shit!” he cursed before gritting his teeth.

“Nothing’s broken.”

Lucy cringed at the sight of his marred skin as she got out of the bed, moving to the bathroom, searching the drawers for what she was looking for. She came back, two small white bottles in hand.

“Here, take these.” She said, opening and shaking out two pills into her palm, as he grabbed them and threw them back, dry swallowing. “And put this on after you shower again.”

“Was she this nice to you after you almost died?” joked Larson as he sat back down on the bed.

“Which time?” Tim asked as Lucy lightly slapped his shoulder.

“There’s not been that many.” Lucy told them, rolling her eyes as she climbed back into the bed.

“I was shot on your second day, you flipped the shop, I was infected with a virus, yet another car crash, you were buried alive, another car crash, and how can I ever forget the day you had to ride with Harper and you found that bomb. All within your first year as a boot, sweetheart.”

“You weren’t there for the bomb, I threw the guy out the window.” She smirked. “Besides, look at all the fun we experienced together!”

Tim rolled his eyes. “Your mom calls getting stabbed and shot at fun.”

“No, I’m not talking about that!” She said with a look on her face. “We used to have to go undercover together all the time even after my probationary year.”

“Why?”

“Pretty sure Wade shipped it.” Lucy told him simply.

“No one says shipped any more mom.” Said Larson.

“I’m pretty sure half the department shipped it Luce, you know how much money Wesley won from that bet.”

“Uncle Wesley won over like seven hundred dollars, right?”

“Correct, each person had to bet a hundred dollars.”

“A bunch of cops betting for when two people would hook up, who would have thought.” The seventeen-year-old said rolling his eyes.

“Hey! We got nine hundred dollars to put in your college fund from a bet so no complaining. It’s go big or go home.”

“What is a bet going on right now that involves us?”

“There’s the one of whether or not you father will retire with in the next five years.”

“Not happening.” Tim said as he placed his glasses back on, returning to his book.

“That’s what he thinks.” She stage whispered. “You were cutting it close to curfew tonight.”

Larson grimaced as he rubbed the back of his neck, looking away, a tell-tale sign he had inherited from his father. “Sorry.”

“Who were you with?”

“Hailey, Tyrell, Jonas, Nyah and Max. We went to the diner on Apex.”

“The one with the smiley face pancakes? And you didn’t invite me?”

“No I didn’t invite you, you’re kinda old mom.”

“I am not, I am forty seven! Forty seven is not old! Your father’s closer to sixty than fifty, if anyone is old it’s him!”

“Leave me out of this Luce. Besides, your daughter already thinks I’m a grandpa.”

“She’s twelve, besides she’s only calling you that because she doesn’t like it when you pick her up from school in the shop.”

“It was one time. When you get a call from the principal asking you to come for a meeting because your child punched someone and broke their nose, it warrants the shop. Besides that was before I knew she had punched another kid for bullying someone. We even went for ice cream! I think she is just calling me a grandpa to spite me.”

“Are we sure she’s not adopted? Because I was an angel at her age.”

They both looked at Larson, giving him a dubious look. “Sure you were and remind me again, who broke the window with a slingshot when they were her age?”

“Don’t forget he called 9-1-1 when he was six because he couldn’t remember a phone number.”

“Why remember a number when it’s programmed in your phone!” he argued.

“Scared me to death when you came flying up the drive, I had no idea what was going on.”

“He hung up the phone! And when I couldn’t get ahold of you, not knowing he hid the phone, I freaked out ok.”

“I know honey.” She said placing a kiss on cheek. “To answer your original question Larson, I know for a fact I spent thirteen hours in labor with her, she is in fact your sister, thank you.”

“She’s just inherited your mother’s rebellious streak a few years early.”

“My rebellious streak? You were the definition of a stereotypical bad boy Mr. Bradford.”

“You would have loved it.” He smirked.

“I find it hard to believe you had a rebellious phase mom.”

“Have you met your grandparents?”

“Good point.” He said as a yawn escaped. “I think I’m going turn in for the night, coach wants us at the field house by nine to review the tape.”

“Night kiddo, love you.”

“Love you guys too.” He said as he sluggishly walked out the door. “Oh, I’m taking Hailey out for lunch so I won’t be home until sometime tomorrow afternoon.”

“Ok, be careful. Text one of us if something changes.” Lucy said as he closed the bedroom door.

“You know, I think we’ve done a pretty good job with him.”

Tim smiled a twinkle in his eye as he placed the glasses and book on the nightstand. “I think we have too. Let’s just hope Angela and Wesley are ok with our son dating their youngest daughter.”

“How much you wanna bet Bradford, that they’ll both be boots by the time they’re twenty-five?” Lucy asked smirking as she walked her fingers up his arm, causing Tim to growl as he tackled his wife to the bed, his bodyweight pinning her to the mattress.

“How much do you wanna bet boot, that they’ll be married to each other by the time they’re twenty-eight?

“Wager the usual?” Lucy asked as Tim began kissing and sucking on her neck, causing her to shiver, even after close to being married for twenty years.

“As long as they don’t give us grandkids within the next ten years, it’s a bet.”

“We haven’t done this while they’ve been home in a while.” She gasped in his ear as his lower half thrusted against her, Lucy pulling down the sweatpants he was wearing. “Think we can still keep quiet and not get caught old man?”

Tim smirked as he reached for the hem of her nightgown, pulling it up as she pulled her upper body off the mattress, placing a thirsty kiss to his mouth before mumbling against his lips. “Guess we’ll find out tomorrow sweetheart.”

#the rookie fic #tim bradford x lucy chen #chenford fanfic #chenford fic #chenford #fanfic

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chiefcj · 3 years

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My first post

Hey all. This is my first time using this platform. I heard about it from Gary Vaynerchuk in his book Crush IT. I had never heard of this place before and I thinks it’s pretty cool so far, especially since I’m trying to start my own blog. If you are into books for self improvement or business check out my blog on blogger.com “10 Books For a Better You”. Check it out and let me know what you think. I value your opinions.

So real quick, a little about me, I come from a very modest upbringing in a middle American industry town. I have traveled all over the country before joining the Navy right out of high school. Since then I have traveled the world, met new people and learned a lot. I’ve been in the Navy now for 24 years. I’m a division commander (that’s basically a drill instructor) who motivates, coaches, teaches, and mentors fresh college students, developing them into newly minted Naval Officers or Junior Staff Corps Officers. I enjoy teaching and mentoring in the ways of leadership, management, and self betterment. It is said that leaders are readers and I have made it a goal to read 1 book per week. That is a challenge for me considering I’m a slow reader. But I haven’t let that stop me. As a matter of fact it has made me want to read more because of my curious nature. It also helps me be a better instructor when I know the subject. So, a lot of my content will be about the books that I’ve read and the lessons that I’ve learned, and hopefully I will inspire some of you to be successful. This journey of mine is an attempt at breaking free from the confines of a 9-5 J.O.B. and break out on my own as an entrepreneur. I’ll take y’all along with me and share the things that I have learned so hopefully, you can apply the same techniques and create your own bit of fortune.

On my journey I have read up on many successful business executives, influencers, and entrepreneurs to see how they made it. I was reading The 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris, and he talked about having a good morning routine. This became a recurring theme with top performers, so I figured there must be something to it. I found some great books on morning routines to get me going. The 5 AM Club, The Miracle Morning, and The Compound Effect are all great books on the positive effects of a strong morning routine. Your morning routine sets the tone for your whole day and helps you get the most out of it. I can honestly say that I accomplish more with my morning before most people are even out of bed.

The 5 AM Club talks about the 20/20/20 principle, where you get up at 5 am and spend that first hour split into three 20 minute periods of “Move, Reflect, and Grow”. The first 20 minutes should be spent on some type of exercise (Move), the second 20 minutes is to reflect with either journaling or meditation. And, the last 20 minutes is to Grow your mind with a good non-fiction book about your interests to improve your skills and learn something. There is sooooo much more packed into this book, but if you take nothing else away from this book, that should be it. Now I know, some of you are cringing at the thought of getting up at 5 AM. It’s ok. It’s not that bad. Trust me.

The Miracle Morning takes a little different approach with the acronym S.A.V.E.R.S. which stands for Silence, Affirmations, Visualization, Exercise, Reading, Scribing (Journaling). I really like this one because it starts your day off with meditation. Meditation has become a big part of my life. It helps me to get my mind focused and primed for the day, and often times I find answers to questions I’ve had, simply pop into my head and I can bang out some new ideas. It’s really been transformational for me. I used to think it was a bunch of hippy hocus pocus junk, but when many of the top performers and millionaires do it, I figured there must be something to it. So, I gave it a shot. Now I do it every day without fail. The Navy is even teaching a form of mindfulness called Warrior Toughness and has even integrated it into our routines. You can imagine my delight when they asked me to teach it to the new Officers.

The Compound Effect gets a little more in depth on the morning routine to include gratitude, reviewing your goals, and making your to-do list to get the most out of your day, week, month, and life. There is more great content in this book than just the morning routine, and is great for making major impacts on your life just by changing the way you look at things. This one is definitely a must read.

I have adopted a combination of the three methods to form my own morning routine and I block my time so nothing else gets in the way of making moves in the right direction. I start my day off early, before anyone else is up, with 20 minutes of meditation, followed by 30 minutes of reading, (I’m currently reading Tony Robbins’ Awaken The Giant Within, this one will change your life, really I mean it. I’ll write more about this one in another post). I write in my journal about whatever I’m thinking that morning, usually questions I’ve had running around in my head and answers that have come to me during meditation, or what I want to do. But, I always finish it off with 3 things I’m grateful for, 3 things that will make today awesome, and my daily affirmations (thanks Tim Ferris, that one’s from you). I cap my morning off with a dedicated hour of working on my immediate goal or project that will be the most productive for me that day. And then it’s off to get in some PT (Physical Training), usually a 2.5 mile run with my dog or some calisthenics and kettle bell exercises.

By incorporating these things into my morning routine it helps me to build good habits and make the most out of my day. In the past I was just all over the place and couldn’t seem to get much accomplished. I’d have a bunch of projects started, but never finished any of them. I’d have all these unfinished jobs around the house and my wife would hound me to get something done so our home didn’t look like a construction zone. I would spread myself too thin at work and miss deadlines. And, I would constantly get distracted by unimportant things that would monopolize my time and at the end of the day, regardless of how “busy” I was, it seemed like nothing got accomplished. I couldn’t focus and I would forget things all the time. Since I have taken back my mornings and prioritized things, I have taken my time sacred to focus on what is truly important and impactful so I can start moving forward in life instead of getting stuck in neutral with my engine redlining.

It has been a huge change for me and an exciting journey that is just beginning. I’ve read way more books, learned so much, turned around my finances, and checked off many of my projects. Things are looking up. As an educator my aim is to inspire you and show you how you take back your life and make a change for the positive. I hope that my story has been an inspiration to be great. I will be sharing more on here as I learn more and figure things out. So stick around and let’s make things happen. Thanks for being a sounding board and go ahead and leave me a note. I’d love to hear your stories too. We can be an inspiration to each other and change the world, one success at a time. And I’d love to know what books you are reading. Jim Rohn once said “What books are you reading to move you toward your goal?”

I have linked all of the books that I have read in this post so you too can take advantage of the great lessons and content they have to offer. A big thanks to the authors who have taken the time to write these books and make it possible for us to prosper. Until next time, Peace Y’all.

Chief C.J.

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diarrheaofthekeyboard · 4 years

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#41

9.4.2020 - 9.8.2020

At age 5, sometime in the summer of 1983, I went to my first Mets game. I know they played the Montreal Expos. I’m pretty sure George Bamburger was still the manager. Tom Seaver was on the team. I do not know if he pitched that game. But I know I saw him pitch on tv as a Met that year.

My early childhood from that point forward was consumed with baseball (and cartoons) until about 1989 when the Mets were bad again. They just got worse until I went to college, but I still watched. I couldn’t watch Mets games in college, so I mostly forgot about baseball. I graduated in 2000 and came home to the Mets and Yankees in the Subway Series. And I was back in it.

The Mets predictably lost, and it was the worst because the Yankees were dynastic, but something else happened. After raising me as a Mets fan, my father outed himself as a Yankee fan.

My dad was born in Brooklyn in 1950 and raised in Sheepshead Bay, which is close to Coney Island. Story goes he asked my grandfather to go see the Dodgers and was told “next year”. That was 1957. He never got to see the Dodgers in Brooklyn. They, and the New York Giants, moved to California before the 1958 season. This is pretty fucked up. And though I never asked him while he was alive, it would make no sense for my grandfather to have claimed he didn’t know the Dodgers were leaving. It was the biggest news in Brooklyn.

For 4 years, there was only one New York team. The Yankees. They won the World Series in 1958 and 1961. They lost the World Series in 1960. The Mets first season was 1962 and promptly set the record for most games lost in a season, in the modern era. The Yankees beat the San Francisco Giants in the World Series that year. In 1963 the Yankees lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers, but who could root for the Dodgers after they left Brooklyn? That was traitorous. In ‘64 the Yankees lost the World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals. They were terrible after that.

In 1967, Tom Seaver debuted for the New York Mets. They were still the worst team in baseball. In 1969, led by Seaver, the Mets were champions. My dad, by this time in college, became a fan.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in tracing his sports allegiances, it’s that he’s a bandwagoner. We never watched hockey, but for some reason had 4 copies of an Islanders record from the early 80s. We never really watched football, but he did like to watch the Cowboys. Why wasn’t he a Giants fan? Or a Jets fan? It never really made sense.

The entire reason we went to that game in 1983 was my dad got tickets from work. The owner of the company he worked for had box seats about 10 rows behind the third base dugout. We would go once or twice a year and my dad would complain about traffic. We went to Game 1 of the 1986 World Series. I still have my ticket. It was a big moment for me, having just turned all of 9 years old. It’s still a big moment for me. We sat 6 rows from the back of the stadium and couldn’t see anything. But we were there.

I never had reason to believe my dad was anything other than a Mets fan. And then, there I am, freaking out in 2000 as Benny Agbayani hands the ball to a fan in the stands because he thought there were three outs, and my dad is outing himself further as a Yankee fan with every moment.

I don’t remember when this took place, but I know it happened. I was so angry I was raised a Mets fan. But it went something like this:

Why would you do this to your child? You know how bad they are. You read the paper. You never bothered to tell me the Yankees won the World Series in 1978. I could have gone through life as a carefree Yankee fan, not ever having to know the intricacies of the game, and never beating myself up in the years they weren’t competitive because they’re the fucking Yankees! They always come back.

At that point, I couldn’t give up the Mets. For the damage being invested in their losing had done to me, and for what it would continue to do to me. For 20 years until I left New York, I probably watched 150 games a year, whether on tv or at Shea. I didn’t just double down. It became all consuming. And gut wrenching. Hey! You had a shit day at work! Let’s agonize over this garbage team and argue with the tv announcers every day. As I bounced from apartment to apartment, job to job, there would always be the constant, soothing misery of the Mets.

The 2000 baseball season had been my introduction to Tom Seaver the announcer. Keith Hernandez too. I actually got to see him play. He was the quintessential first baseman. Now I got to listen to them regularly. Along with Ralph Kiner, Gary Thorne, and Howie Rose, they were fantastic. They talked about the game like a coach should talk about the game. Every game, regardless of how bad the team was, became a clinic in “How to Baseball”. I loved it.

In 2006, the Mets got their own broadcasting network and consolidated the announcing team. Ralph Kiner’s health had declined over the years and he would only return on home Sunday games. Fran Healy and Tim McCarver were finally, mercifully gone. Seaver left too. He had gone into winemaking in ‘05 and wanted to pursue it full time. Taking over play-by-play was radio announcer Gary Cohen. He had been Bob Murphy’s understudy and was a familiar pick. Keith Hernandez stayed and fellow 80s Met Ron Darling was added as well. They’re still in the booth today, and they’re fantastic.

Seaver would show up from time to time. There was never a down, dull moment with him. You’d get an adrenaline rush just listening to him.

I’m going to say something controversial. I hated Shea Stadium. It was a nasty, ugly place. But there’s one thing about it that CitiField just can’t replace. The entire stadium was built from concrete blocks and it was very closed in. Each entrance to the seating area from the concourse was like its own little tunnel into another world. You come out of the darkness and into the light of the greenest field you’ve ever seen. I got goosebumps and would nearly be on the verge of tears, every time I walked through, from that first game in 1983, until they tore the place down at the end of the 2008 season.

I did make sure to be there at the last game. It was terrible. The Mets needed to beat the Marlins to get into the Wild Card and it didn’t happen. Then we waited seemingly forever for the post-game ceremony to begin, absolutely fuming that we had been duped by this shit team again. Finally, things got started. Mets greats were announced. And Tom Seaver and Mike Piazza closed the centerfield gate together, formally closing the book on Shea. It was a good moment even though the season ended terribly.

We moved to California two years ago. This was my opportunity to finally get rid of the Mets. I was determined to do it. I started watching A’s and Giants games. I even started watching Dodger games. At the start of the season, I was set to ride the A’s and Dodgers all the way to a California World Series. Then COVID hit. The season was cancelled. I lost my job. School was cancelled. Bad news increased exponentially. And when the baseball season finally started in July, my wife said she wanted to watch the Mets. She wasn’t going to give me a choice either.

We met in 2006. She had moved to NYC the previous year and kinda bandwagoned her way into Yankee fandom. Because why not. She was really a football fan anyway. One of her previous boyfriends was apparently a huge Cubs fan. She says every time they lost he’d be upset for days. Which, historically, is a tough place to be as a Cubs fan. As we dated and got closer she saw just how many games I would watch on a yearly basis. It’s a lot.

She got used to me pacing around, guitar in hand, yelling at the TV. She studied for the bar exam through this. One time, I forget what was going on, she’s reading flashcards and I had taken issue with something Gary Cohen said. And I hear quietly, “don’t argue with Gary!” I can still hear the inflection in her voice in my head. I turned around and started telling her why I disagreed with him and her only response was “did I say that out loud?” Gary, Keith, and Ron were hugely important to not only her tolerance of my baseball tv domination, but also her appreciation of the game. She only knew Ralph Kiner as this cute old man. And every so often, Seaver would come back and she’d see me well up with visceral feelings.

I cried when Ralph Kiner died. Around 2014/2015 I wrote a blog titled “The Common Sense Mets Fan”. At the time, I was convinced the Sandy Alderson administration would right the team and keep the Wilpons at bay. I was wrong. Anyway, here’s what I wrote:

On the last day of the season, as usual, Gary Cohen said goodbye to Ralph Kiner. But there was something different about it this time. There was fear in Gary’s face, as though he knew this was his last opportunity to sign off with Ralph. I had seen hints of it in years past, but never like this. Sadly, Ralph passed today, I hope peacefully.

As a Mets fan, this is like losing a grandfather or great uncle. Ralph had always been there. From his stories about Elizabeth Taylor to his willingness to argue advanced metrics and hitting style with Keith Hernandez, he was ever present in the Mets broadcast booth. I’ll never be able to hear the game again the same way. Thank you, Ralph.

At the time, I said to my wife, “the next time I cry about the Mets, it’ll be when Tom Seaver dies.” This was before their 2015 run. Before the Wilmer Flores incident. Before I was sitting on my couch with a 1 year old, watching them in a World Series, as I did my best impression of Randy Quaid from Major League. I refused to allow myself to enjoy the success of the team because I knew they would lose. It was just a matter of when. And of course, they did lose to the Kansas City Royals. But they got a lot further than I thought they would.

When MLB decided to move forward with a truncated 2020 season, I was reluctant to watch. It’s not safe for anyone involved and seems to be all about corporate greed. But of course, like moths to a flame, we watched. And as I mentioned, my wife said, “we’re watching the Mets.” I didn’t want to. But she was right. In a year like we’ve never seen before, Gary Cohen, Ron Darling, and Keith Hernandez did something, and are doing something, nobody else is. They gave us levity and calm. Led by Gary, they are unafraid to address the news of the day while knowing the escape they provide. The BLM t-shirt moment was unparalleled. And unfortunately, they’d have another day to provide calm the next week.

As you well know by now, George Thomas Seaver died last week. He had contracted lyme disease years ago, while working in the vineyards. For some people, lyme goes undiagnosed for years while doctors treat the symptoms without putting it all together. This seems to have been what happened to Tom. It progressed with complications and he developed Lewy Body dementia. His family announced his retirement from public life and the Mets announced they would erect a statue to him outside of CitiField. They changed the address of the stadium to 41 Seaver Way. But in true Wilpon Mets fashion, still no statue.

Finally, last week, Tom died due to complications from COVID. I was sitting on the couch, watching some random baseball game and reading Twitter. I saw the Baseball Hall of Fame announcement on Twitter, exclaimed “oh no!”, and went upstairs to be alone for a minute. My wife was on the phone. She ran upstairs to see me sitting with my head in my hands and asked what happened. I told her and then told her how stupid I felt for letting this get to me. And she said, “yeah, but you said after Ralph died this would happen”.

Our son came upstairs to see what he was missing. I told him. He said “who’s that?” And we had a long talk I think bored him. And it’s then it hit me what had happened. As I’ve detailed in the past 4 pages of text, Tom Seaver meant a lot to me, even though in my experience as a Mets fan, he was really just a peripheral character. I saw him on the field a couple of times. He was talked about. He was an announcer for a few years, and he’s mostly been out of the spotlight for the past 15 years. Here I was, having a visceral, uncontrollable reaction to a childhood figure I never met. How the fuck were people who actually knew him going to keep it together?

They couldn’t do it. Gary and Ron did their best. Apparently, Keith’s mom also had dementia, and he lost it. There was a lot of silence during the game. A lot of big sighs from Keith. A lot of on air hurting. It was gut wrenching. I saw an Ed Kranepool quote that said, “this was a terrible ending to a horseshit year.” And it’s only September!

At this point, nearly a week later, it’s difficult to remember where I saw it. But here it is. The reason I’ve spent all this time spilling my guts about a guy I never met. Tom Seaver was a beacon. He wasn’t just someone who had a talent and pursued it. He was constantly trying to reinvent himself and pursue that passion, whether he was good at it or not. But even moreso, he was a positive influence on everyone around him. I’ve never heard a story about Seaver fighting with anyone. He wanted to be Rembrandt with a baseball. And he wanted to lift people up around him.

I feel isolated and alone. There’s not much I feel like I can control. I can get out my thoughts, I can be a good husband and a good father. I can explore my music. And I can use the latter to pull myself out of the former. That’s what Tom would tell me to do.

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formerprincess · 5 years

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A tale written with fangs and claws || Chapter 48

Chapters: 48/? Fandom: Teen Wolf (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Liam Dunbar/Theo Raeken, Corey Bryant/Mason Hewitt Characters: Liam Dunbar, Theo Raeken, Mason Hewitt, Corey Bryant, Nolan (Teen Wolf) Additional Tags: Alpha Liam Dunbar, Slow Build, Friends to Lovers, Dunbar Pack, Bisexual Liam Dunbar, Werewolf Theo Raeken, Alpha Theo Raeken, Canon-Typical Violence, Smut, Mates, Liam and Theo are mates, Top Theo Raeken, Bottom Theo Raeken, Top Liam, Bottom Liam Dunbar Series: Part 1 of Morning Dew Pack

Thanks to an idea from Mason, Liam becomes a volunteer for a school program. In the end, Liam gains so much more than he would have ever dreamed off and...steals a child?

A few days later, Theo and Liam sat with the rest of the pack plus Caden and ate their dinner. The room was filled with the delicious smell of their Chinese food and they all chatted with each other about their days and what they had experienced. Brett and Nolan talked about the meaning of flowers. Several days ago Brett had found a job in a small flower shop and he really loved it. It gave him something to do and was also useful for the pack since Brett brought his knowledge to their garden as well. And Nolan was amazed by what different flowers could say and what you could express through a bouquet. He asked question after question and Brett seemed happy to answer.

Liam had watched them but a sigh to his right made him turn away. Tim pocketed his phone and looked like he was in actual pain. He nudged his Beta. “What’s wrong, Timmy?” “My sister won another competition and she brags in the family chat and just asked me when the last time I won a gold medal had been.” “Your sister is a bitch.” Sometimes Liam’s mouth was faster than his brain and he said things he rather not have said. Right now was a perfect example. “I mean…Sorry.” “She is mean,” Tim concluded. “And she knows very well I have never won any trophy when it came to athletic tournaments. I’m just not good at sports.” “But you’re good at other things, shouldn’t that count?” Caden had listened to their conversation and now voiced his opinion softly. “Not for them.” Tim shook his head. “Huh.” Caden seemed baffled. “I can’t imagine having such a relationship with my siblings. I love them to pieces and they love me. They’re great.” “Lucky guy. I always thought it would get better when we grow older but it got worse instead.” Liam shook his head in disbelief. “I don’t get it. If I had a little sister or a little brother, I would try to maintain a great relationship with them and be proud of them, no matter what.” “That’s sweet of you.” Tim smiled slightly. Liam had always wanted a sibling when he had been a kid. Even when his mother and stepdad married, he had wished for a little brother or sister but sadly it never happened. “I would have loved to be a big brother,” he muttered. “You are our big brother!” Tim protested and Liam chuckled. “I know but I meant an actual little kid. Someone I can teach things and who maybe shares some of my hobbies. We could have gone to lacrosse games, for example, or go to the movies or draw pictures. That would have been awesome.” “Well, why don’t you become one?” Mason now chimed into their conversation. “There are programs like Big Brother & Sisters, why don’t you volunteer? That way you could also do a good deed. It’s not biological but the next closest thing.” Liam had never thought of this option but now that his best friend mentioned it, it sounded appealing. “You think I could volunteer?” “Why not? Mason shrugged casually. “There can never be too many volunteers.” “Huh,” Liam said, “You’re probably right. But what if I’m not the right person to volunteer?” “There’s only one way to get an answer to that question, Lee.”

The thought of volunteering didn’t leave him for the next days and he even went so far to research about some organizations doing this kind of stuff. Not all were for Liam though. Some had a higher age requirement or some asked for qualifications, so it was a bit tricky. One day he complained about that to Sadie after lacrosse practice when Rod overheard them. “Are you talking about those honorary Big Siblings programs?” The coach asked and peeked out of his office. “Yeah. I’m an only child and would have liked to meet a boy or girl I could be a big brother for, you know?” Liam explained. Rod pointed at him. “My son’s school has such a program. It’s not a big one, like those official things all over the country, but they do it to help some less fortunate children. Many of their students come from lower-income families and the school has many programs and activities to support them. I could ask my wife if she can give you the contact, she’s involved in chaperoning many of those activities.” “You would do that? Rod that would be amazing! Thank you in advance.” “I see what I can do, Liam. I always believed in charity and helping others. Maybe the team should do something for charity as well.” “Uh, that would be wonderful. Good publicity though,” Sadie declared. She was not wrong.

And Roderick stayed true to his words. Next training he gave Liam the number of the school and the name of the responsible person. A really nice teacher named Sonya Melrose and she was over the moon of Liam wanting to volunteer as a Big Brother. She talked non-stop for at least ten minutes about the program and the kids involved. It was announced as an after-school activity as the music club for example so the kids could choose if they wanted to attend or not and didn’t feel pressured. That they felt good was the most important thing and Liam could get behind that. He willingly answered the questions she then had for him and then stated his e-mail-address so she could send him all the documents he needed to fill out for his application.

“Jesus, look at all these forms,” he muttered when he printed what she had sent him. “I’m surprised they didn’t ask for my blood type.” “I think they’re just cautious when it comes to the children. Sure, you can lie on these forms but you need some sort of basic information about the people taking part in your program,” Theo said without looking up from his book. Liam glanced over. The older sat on the couch in the library, Aka next to him and his head on Theo’s leg, and the Beta read while he gently petted the dog every now and then. It looked domestic. “I get this. It’s still a lot and I hate filling out forms.” “It’s for a good cause. Just think of the little kid getting you as Big Brother. How happy they will be.” “You think they will be happy about getting paired with me?” Liam wanted whatever kid would be paired with him to like him and so he naturally worried about that not being the case. Theo often said Liam was likable but you could never be so sure. “They will be over the moon. You are a great big brother to our pack, even to me, and we learned in the past kids love you. Just don’t touch any finger paint and glitter, okay? Or if you do, don’t touch my truck.” “You are still traumatized by that, what?” “I see it in my dreams. It was a pain in the ass to clean it.” Liam just snickered and began to fill out the forms. The sooner he could send them back, the sooner he would get a Little Sibling.

****** It took a few days after Liam sent the forms back before he got the confirmation. The school had approved of everything Liam sent them and also mentioned that Ayla Mays, Roderick’s wife, had vouched for Liam being responsible and a good addition to the program so they would spare the interview usually following the application. Instead, they were happy to welcome Liam as Big Brother. Corey was the only one who witnessed the little victory dance Liam made when he received the email and for a moment Liam worried the other would split his face in half with the large grin he had on but Corey promised he would be fine. “If the program is as good as it looks, I might join as well,” he then added. Liam smirked. “I’m sure you would be an amazing Big Brother as well.” Corey shrugged. “You never know. I will consider it if they don’t kick you out after a week,” he joked and laughed at Liam’s piqued face. But then Liam’s phone announced another mail and he got all the details at what day the program would take part and when Liam should arrive at the school to meet Mrs. Melrose so Corey was safe of any teasing from Liam.

****** When the day finally came, Liam arrived a few minutes earlier than appointed and admired the colorful paintings on the walls, all undoubtedly made by the children attending the school. He heard singing from one classroom and music from another one. Rod had not been wrong when he said the school offered many activities after school.

“Are you Liam?” A black haired teacher in her early thirties had stepped out of a classroom and made her way over to him in large steps. She smiled and extended her hand to greet him. “I am, yes. Nice to meet you.” Liam shook her hand and smiled. “Perfect, perfect. My name is Sonya Melrose and I’m in charge of chaperoning the Big Brother – Big Sister program. I am always happy to welcome new volunteers. These kids deserve someone they can look up to and who goes out of their way to make them feel special. By the way, thank you for filling out all the forms I sent you. This makes it easier today and we can jump right into it. You would wonder how often people discuss with us if they have to fill out everything.” “I don’t get why. I hate filling out forms but I know why I’m doing it so there’s no point in discussing.” Liam shrugged.

“I agree, I never understand it either but that’s how it is. Now let me explain to you how this will work. From experiences, we learned the kids feel comfortable in the school environment while meeting new people, so for the first few weeks, the meetings would take place here. We can schedule it so it works with your plan as well. It’s also to make sure the kids are in good hands, I hope you don’t mind that. The forms are one thing but seeing how the children react to the volunteers is another thing.” “Oh, I understand, don’t worry. There are people without good intentions in this world, sadly. Meeting here is fine by me.” “You can paint, play or read, use whatever we have in the classroom and in the playground behind the building to have a fun time with your Little Sibling,” she explained. The big smile gave away how much she loved what she was doing and how much she cared for the program. It made Liam smile too. The world needed more teachers like her.

“Based on the questionnaire you filled out, I picked a child for you in advance and I’m positive you both will get along great. His name is Landon, he’s currently nine years old. He is a bit shy, don’t mind that, and sometimes he gets scared when he’s around people he doesn’t know well. But he is willing to participate in this program yet we never had the perfect person for him until now. I think you are a good match.” “I hope so. He sounds like a great little guy.” Liam was excited to meet the little boy. The shy part reminded Liam about himself when he had been very little. His friendship with Mason made him get out of his shell, but Liam remembered little him hiding behind his mother’s legs when strangers approached and barely talking to neighbors or old friends of his mother’s.

Mrs. Melrose now led Liam into the classroom. It was a large room with a little library and reading corner with bean bags in one corner, some colorful tables littered with paints, brushes, and other material to get creative, a spot where you could build with toy blocks, another spot littered with plushies and toys, a door across the room led outside and to the playground. Big windows soaked the room in sun and it was a happy place. A girl and a woman were at the tables and finger-painted with glittery colors. They laughed together and showed their hands to each other. A man and a boy were playing soccer outside. “He’s over there.” The teacher pointed towards the reading corner and Liam followed her over. In a red bean sack sat a thin boy wearing a grey shirt and jeans shorts with little red sneakers, completely lost in a book concerning the animals living in the ocean. “Landon? The young man I picked as your Big Brother is here. Would you like to meet him?” Landon looked up and the first things Liam noticed were his big blue eyes. Now, Liam himself had countless encounters where people gushed to his mom how pretty his eyes were and how many girls would kill for those eyes. It always made Liam blush and he didn’t know what to say. To him, his eyes were not the most striking feature about him (He didn’t know what the most striking feature about him was but nobody asked for it anyway, so thank you very much). Yet, Liam couldn’t help but notice the boys’ eyes. Seemed like the first thing they had in common, as superficial as it may seem. It was a start. Landon now looked at Liam with curiosity written all over his young face. His skin was fair, almost pale but maybe he had been sick before or didn’t like to be outside very much, and a button nose. His smile was shy, hesitant as if he was afraid to show emotion, but he couldn’t hide his curiosity. Liam crouched down so they were eye to eye. “Hey, Landon, my name is Liam, it’s nice to meet you.” He held out his hand as he greeted the boy and Landon looked at it for a moment before he shook it. “You’re an L too, just like me. It’s nice to meet you.” His voice was still a bit hesitant but the usual child-like innocence came through. “I’m an L as well, yeah.” Liam smiled. Mrs. Melrose squeezed his shoulder and then excused herself so the two boys could get to know each other better.

Landon held the book up. “I’m reading about the ocean. Do you like the ocean? Dolphins and sharks live there.” “Oh, I like the sea very much. Turtles live in the sea as well.” “I like turtles.” Landon skipped a few pages in the book and showed Liam a large picture of a turtle swimming underwater. Liam sat next to him and admired the picture. “But my dad says they are weak compared to sharks. He likes sharks because of their teeth.” “And your mother? Does she also like turtles?” Landon shook his head. “I don’t have a mommy. She died when I was born.” He fidgeted with the edge of the book. “It’s my fault she is dead, you know?” “What?” Liam had not really expected a child to say that. “Who told you that?” Landon’s eyes widened in panic and he seemed to realize what he said. “No one. She went to heaven when I was born so I know that.” His chemosignals turned sour and sad. Liam made a face but then he tried to be positive. “I’m sure she is your personal angel and watches over you every day. My personal angel is my grandfather. He watches over me as well.” “You believe in angels?” Landon asked curiously and Liam nodded. “Sure. Why not?” “Because angels are dumb, says my dad.” “Hm, maybe he says that because he as never seen an angel before,” Liam thought out loud. “Have you ever seen an angel before?” Now Landon was all ears and completely excited. His eyes sparkled. “I have never seen an angel but I know there are some things on this earth most people don’t know about.” It was the most innocent description Liam could give. He sure as hell wouldn’t tell a child about werewolves and witches. “Liam, want to draw angels with me?” Landon pointed at the crafting tables. Liam nodded. “I’d love that very much.”

****** When Liam came home he and Landon had drawn for a while and then read the book about the ocean together. They also talked and learned some things about each other. Liam now knew Landon’s favorite color was yellow and he liked to play soccer. Liam promised him they could play soccer next time and the boy beamed happily at him. They parted on a very good note and Mrs. Melrose had also expressed how happy she was about that. “He really opened up to you. You two had an instant connection, a wonderful thing to see.” “Thanks for pairing us together,” Liam replied and then bid goodbye to drive home.

At the house, his pack was literally pouncing him and asking all kind of questions. “How did it go?” “Did you get a boy or a girl?” “What did you do?” “How are they? I bet they love you already.” Liam laughed. “It’s a boy, his name is Landon and he’s nine. He is the sweetest little boy I ever met in my entire life. A bit shy but his teacher said he’s always like this. He reminds me of me in elementary school, before my IED really broke through and all, and not only because he’s also blond and has blue eyes. We colored and then read a book and he asked me all kind of questions. His mom died during childbirth and so it’s only him and his dad.” “He sounds lovely,” Maya said with a smile. “A great match for you. When are you bringing him over?” “The school would like to keep the meetings in the school environment for the first few weeks so that might take a little while,” Liam explained while he grabbed himself a bottle of water and opened it to take a sip. “Next time we want to play soccer. He likes playing soccer.” “With you as Big Brother, he will learn to love lacrosse as well,” Theo teased lightly and kissed Liam. “Dinner’s almost ready, by the way. Maya and Lori were in charge.” “Ah, thank you, guys, I’m starving.”

****** “And that’s my best friend Mason, we’ve been friends since kindergarten. He’s like my brother.” Liam showed Landon pictures on his phone and told him who every single member of the core pack was. Landon was incredibly interested in learning more about Liam and his friends and he loved seeing pictures. Now he blinked up at Liam. “I’m your brother too, right? Your Little Brother.” He smiled. “Yeah, you are. I have two brothers now. You and Mason.” The more time he spent with Landon the more he liked the little one. Three weeks since they first met already and every meeting was still filled with lots of laughter and learning things about each other.

Liam continued to browse through the pictures and landed on one picture of him and Theo posing for the camera with their arms wrapped around each other’s waist. Landon pointed on it. “Is he like your brother too? You seem to like him very much.” To be honest, Liam had not called Theo his boyfriend yet and just said he was someone really important to Liam. He had no idea how to really breach the subject of bisexuality and same-sex relationships to a child and he didn’t know how Landon had been raised in this regards. Now he huffed. “Theo is my...boyfriend actually. I love him and he loves me.” Landon frowned. “Boyfriend? Love him like a mom loves a dad?” “Yeah, just like that. We kiss and hold hands and all that stuff.” “Hm.” The boy thought about this. “My dad says two men can’t love each other. It’s against nature. And two women can’t love each other but he still watches this with his friends.” “He watches it with his...Oh god!” The mental picture made Liam pinch the bridge of his nose. What type of parent watched those videos when your child was around? He groaned internally and Landon poked him. “Liam, are you alright?” “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” He decided to cover his horror. “Say, Landon, do you also think men shouldn’t love men?” Landon tilted his head. “I don’t. Is he nice to you?” Liam chuckled. “He’s very nice.” “Then I’m okay with it. Can you show me more pictures?” “Sure.” Liam smiled softly. Children were so innocent and it was proof how much some parents influenced their kids. He was happy Landon seemed to be too carefree to have any prejudices against Liam and his relationship.

They landed on a picture of Liam and his mom and Landon grabbed the phone to study it. He then studied Liam. “You look like her. She is very pretty. But you don’t have her eyes.” “I have my father’s eyes, yes. My mom is pretty, I agree.” “Do you have a picture of your father in your phone too?” Liam shook his head. “My father is not with us. He’s gone.” “Oh. Is he in heaven like mommy?” “No. You know, sometimes mommies and daddies don’t stay together and daddies leave. He’s somewhere in this world, I don’t know.” Liam waved it off. “But my mom married a few years later and he became my dad. That’s him.” He showed Landon a picture of Lucas. “What about dad, Landon? Does he helps you with your homework and plays soccer with you? Want to tell me something about him?”

A wave of sadness hit his nose and Liam frowned in response to that. He looked down at Landon. The blonde boy played with the seam of his shirt and moved his shoes on the floor. “He doesn’t like soccer and he’s mostly with his friends,” he explained sadly. “He doesn’t really play with me, he’s busy.” “I’m sorry.” Liam raised a hand and Landon flinched suddenly. The movement came so fastly and unexpectedly Liam was surprised and his hand lingered in the air ere he dropped it again. “It’s alright,” Landon said. “Are those your dogs?” He had clicked on the next picture in Liam’s phone.

Liam’s eyes lingered on the boy’s form for a moment. Something was strange about the way Landon talked about his father but he could not really name it. He could not shake these thoughts, not when he further talked about his friends and pack and not when he was at home and sat in the kitchen, eating a yogurt.

“I think Landon’s dad is a jerk,” he suddenly announced to Theo who had stepped into the kitchen, skateboard under his arm. “A part of me tells me I will regret asking but why is that so?” Theo grabbed a bottle of water. “He seems too busy to spend time with his son. He’s also a homophobe.” “Two very unfriendly traits, I give you that but so what? There are many parents out there who would never win a Parent of the Year award and yet they still take care of their kids. My father also never really spent time with me, you know that.” Theo stepped to him. “I also know this look on your face, little Alpha. You’re not interfering in that boy’s family drama!” Liam made a face of outrage. “I wasn’t going to!” “I know you,” Theo reminded him and kissed him. “You can’t save anybody from any bad experience. If there was something wrong, school surely would take action. Stay out of it,” he warned Liam and pecked his lips one last time. “Yeah, yeah, go to the skate park and stop patronizing me!” Liam shooed his mate away and Theo really left him alone.

He wasn’t alone for long when Tim came home. He unceremoniously dropped his bag on the floor. “Do we have any headache pills us weres can use?” “I’m afraid not,” Liam denied. “Classes that hard today?” “There was this group in the coffee shop and their laughter...Do you know those people with those loud and annoying laughs? The whole group laughed like that. I can still hear it. I’m the last person to make fun of anyone but my head hurts from their laughter so much,” he whined and rubbed his temples. “I don’t think pills will help you but maybe Ever has a potion she can give you. Just go ask her.” “She’s on a date with Caden. I think I will take a nap.” Tim dragged himself upstairs just when Brett entered the kitchen.

“What is this? Relay?” Liam asked sarcastically. The tall werewolf yawned and stretched. “I like working at the flower shop but today was insanely busy so leave me alone!” “Uh, someone’s cranky. Is this just because of work?” Liam questioned and continued to eat his yogurt. Brett dropped in the chair next to him. “I need sex again! Don’t laugh! I considered this and I came to the conclusion I need the physical activity. My hormones are in overdrive.” He gave Brett a strange look. “Just sex or do you want someone like Ever? Someone to go on dates and kiss and be cute.” “He gave her a teddy bear the other day. Who wants that? I’m not made for being a romantic.” Brett shuddered as if that was the greatest horror he ever saw. “It was an owl, not a bear. She likes owls,” Liam corrected and Brett rolled his eyes. “Also, I’m sticking with what I told you at the zoo. One day you will find someone and then it will come easily to you. And you probably get as much sex out of it as you want.” “Talking from experience, Dunbar?” “Hey, I have an amazing sex life.” Liam grinned. “Have you seen the man I’m sharing a bed with?” “I hate you so much right now!” Brett shook his head. “The thought of me being in a relationship just doesn’t work for me. I’m not made for that type of commitment.” “One day you will find...” “Shut up!” Brett grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl and threw it at Liam’s head. Liam’s hand shot up and he caught the apple without missing a beat. Brett stared. “Fuck, I forgot Alpha reflexes are faster.” “I’d love to play lacrosse with you now,” Liam smirked again and Brett huffed. “I bet you would. But for now, I need a cold shower. Ice cold.” He spun around and stormed upstairs. “One day you will find your one true love and it will be wonderful!!” Liam yelled after him just because he could and he knew it annoyed Brett. None one ever said the Alpha was mature all the time.

****** “Hey, buddy, I made some cupcakes yesterday and brought some for you. Hope you like double chocolate?” Buddy had somehow become one of the nicknames Liam had for Landon. The younger always giggled when he heard it and this time was no different. But then he stared at the box full of cupcakes as if he was not sure if they were there or not. “You can bake?” “Yeah. I bake and I cook and even want to make this my career after college. Why is this so surprising?” Liam sometimes had a hard time to understand where Landon was coming from. “Dad says cooking and baking is the woman’s duty and it’s gay for a man to cook. But you are a man. I don’t understand.” He shook his head. “Hey,” Liam knelt down. “There are many women who cook and bake for their families, that is true, but I also like it. It doesn’t matter if you’re a boy or a girl; when you like something you like it. And nobody should judge that. This is important, okay? Never let somebody judge you because you do the things you like. Not even your dad.” Landon gnawed on his lower lip. And then he asked very quietly: “Well, can you show me?” “How to cook?” Liam inquired and Landon nodded. “I’d love to. When Mrs. Monrose says you and I can meet somewhere else, you come to our house and we cook together, okay?” Landon beamed happily and pressed the box with the cupcakes against his chest. “I’m so happy you became my Big Brother, Liam.” “I’m happy too, bud.” This time Landon didn’t even flinch when Liam raised his hand and ruffled his hair. Liam took it as a sign that the kid trusted him more and more.

“I also brought a new book about the wildlife in Africa. Want to read it with me?” “Uuhh, we’re currently talking about Africa in school. Did you know the Lion King takes place there?” “I had no idea. You’re so smart, buddy.” Liam smiled at the nine-year-old and Landon gave a shy smile back. “I like to learn things,” he simply brushed it off. It was a habit Liam had noticed a few times already. While his little buddy was usually a happy child, he seemingly had a hard time accepting praise. It again reminded Liam of himself as little kid, especially when he had been under the influence of his biological father. “You're not used to people praising you, huh?” Liam stated matter-of-factly. “The teachers tell me I do good.” Landon nodded. “What about your dad? Isn’t he proud of you and tells you that?” Landon’s face turned passive. “My dad is my dad. He takes care of me,” he said defensively. “Of course, of course. He does. I didn’t mean to insult his job as a dad. I’m sorry, bud.” He felt sorry for making the kid mad. His little friend just shrugged. “Can we read the book?” “Sure.”

And still, Liam couldn’t shake the thoughts off. He had a problem with how Landon’s father acted and he couldn’t get it out of his head, even when he was at home.

“Stop that!” Mason scolded when Liam voiced his thoughts. “Stop what?” Liam questioned innocently but his best friend flicked his nose. “You’re projecting. Just because you had a piece of shit as a father doesn’t mean Landon suffers the same fate. Yes, his dad might not be the greatest but you are comparing the two of you and that’s unfair. You went through totally different experiences than Landon himself. Stop seeing yourself in him!” “You sound like Theo,” Liam grumbled while he rubbed his nose. “Why do the two of you always have to be that rational?” “Because we can and somebody has to make sure you’re not completely losing your marbles. Because right now you’re obsessing about saving the kid from something that isn’t even there. Or has he ever gave you any reason to believe his dad abuses him?” “No.” Liam had to admit that. There were no unusual bruises or contusions on his arms or legs or in his face and he didn’t act like he was in pain. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe I am just comparing him with me at age seven. I should probably stop that.” “You can bet I am right and you absolutely stop that,” Mason confirmed with a firm nod.

****** Liam was running late. He had stopped by a coffee shop near Landon’s school to grab himself an iced coffee and a muffin for his Little Brother but the line had been so long that when Liam finally received his order, he had to run back to his car and sped towards the school.

How he managed to arrive on time was a minor miracle but it gave him time to chuck down a large gulp of his coffee. And just because life was unfair and the cup could, the lid opened and the liquid spilled down the front of Liam’s light blue shirt. “Son of a fucking bitch!” Liam cursed loudly and an elderly woman glared at him when she passed by his car. He paid her no mind and grabbed a tissue to wipe away on his shirt. He growled. “Fuck, fuck, fuck!” The stain was huge and there was no way Liam would show up with coffee all over his shirt. He jammed the cup into the cup holder and then reached for his bag sitting in the backseat. It contained his lacrosse gear which he had washed and already packed in his car for the next training. He dragged the bag towards him and opened it, digging for his jersey. He found it and pulled it out with a triumphant yell. Liam didn’t care the slightest he was still in his car when he pulled his stained t-shirt over his head and put his jersey on. Not the best outfit but for now it would do and Landon surely wouldn’t mind. His second-favorite color was blue so he probably would like Liam’s navy blue jersey.

When he was finally dressed Liam dashed out of his car and sped towards the school’s entrance while locking the car over his shoulder. His sneakers squeaked on the linoleum floor when he dashed down the hallway. He almost ran into Sonya Melrose and she squeaked. “Shit, sorry, Mrs. Melrose.” The young Alpha stopped in the doorframe. “Didn’t mean to scare you.” “No, no. I’m alright,” she declared yet she put a hand over her heart. “But good that I see you before you speak to Landon today. He’s in a bad mood but won’t tell me what’s wrong. He seems distressed.” She pointed to the crafting table where Landon sat but didn’t craft and cuddled a plush octopus instead. His posture was sunken as if he wanted to curl up in himself and didn’t want anybody to see him. Liam immediately pitied him. “I’ll see what I can do. Thanks for telling me.”

The twenty-years-old made his way over to Landon and sat down on one of the chairs next to him. “Hey, thundercloud, who has eaten your bowl of sunshine this morning?” He asked light-heartedly. The scowl on Landon’s face didn’t disappear but he cast a look at Liam. “Nothing.” “Are you sure?” He didn’t even think about it when he reached out and put his hand on Landon’s naked arm. The boy was wearing a red t-shirt and so Liam didn’t even have to move any clothing, however, the minute his fingers came in contact with the skin, Liam saw black veins creep up and he hastily withdrew his hand. He didn’t even mean to but he had begun to take Landon’s pain. The little one was hurting! “Landon, are you hurt? What happened?” The scared look he gave Liam made the Alpha’s stomach churn. He had a flashback to seven-year-old him, scared and hurt from his father’s hits. “I fell. From the swing, yesterday after school.” Tears shimmered in Landon’s blue eyes and he blinked. “I fell on my arm. I’m clumsy.” “Shh, shh, it’s okay?” Liam gently rubbed Landon’s back. “Did you dad take you to a doctor after it happened?” Landon hesitated and his little heartbeat skyrocketed. “He said I should stop crying. Crying is weak. It would teach me how to be strong.” “Oh, baby boy,” Liam said, voice filled with emotion. “It’s okay to cry when you’re hurt. That’s normal, everyone does.” Landon wrapped his arms around himself. The movement made his sleeve lift a little bit and Liam saw the bruise on his upper arm. He stopped short. His childhood had been filled with falling from swings and other things on the playground and so Liam knew the bruises coming with those accidents. That didn’t look like a bruise from falling off a swing. It looked like someone had violently closed their hand around Landon’s upper arm...

“Landon, come here.” Liam moved closer so nobody could overhear what they were saying. “Look at me.” Landon did and there were still tears glistening in his eyes. It broke Liam’s heart. Physical pain he could take but he couldn’t take the pain from a hurt soul. “My biological father, he was very mean to me. He shouted and said very mean things and he liked to make me cry and then yell at me. But he also hurt me. Very often. I’m telling you this to show you it’s okay if you want to tell me something. I’m not going to be mad at you, it’s not your fault. But, buddy, does your father hurt you?” The child looked absolutely terrified at that and while he shook his head so fast Liam worried he would give himself whiplash, his heartbeat gave it away. He was panicking. “My dad takes care of me. He is my dad,” he repeated the same sentence from days before. Liam knew from experience putting pressure on the kid wouldn’t get him anywhere, so he grabbed a piece of paper and a pen from the table nearby. “Okay. I’m sure he does.” He wrote down his address and his phone number and then he carefully folded the paper to hand it over. “Let’s do it that way. This is my address and my number. I want you to have it. You can always call me, no matter what time it is. Whenever you fall off a swing again, you can call me, okay?” Landon’s fingers trembled when he reached for the piece of paper. “Okay,” he said meekly. “Do you want to write down your address as well?” Liam gently prompted and Landon hesitated again, But then he grabbed the pen and scribbled down his own address. Liam took it and put it in the pocket of his jeans. “What do you think? Should I grab one of your favorites books from the reading corner and read it to you? Your little friend can read with us.” He pointed at the plushie and Landon pressed it against his chest. He nodded. It was probably for the best to give him something to take his mind off. Poor little guy.

Liam got up and walked over to the reading corner. He knew where Landon’s favorite book stood and grabbed it without looking. When he turned around and walked back to Landon, the younger boy stared at him, wide-eyed and shock clearly written all over his face. Liam had no idea what happened but his buddy looked like he saw a ghost. “Is this your last name?” He questioned and grabbed the seam of Liam’s jersey with his hand. “On my back? Yeah, that’s my lacrosse jersey. My name is Liam Dunbar.” They had never talked about last names since they met they always had been Landon and Liam. And now Landon stared at Liam and suddenly flung himself at the young Alpha. His tiny arms wrapped around Liam’s waist and he pressed his face against Liam’s stomach. “Whoa, hey, what’s wrong, buddy?” He really started to worry, especially when Landon began to sob quietly. Liam gently wrapped his arms around Landon as well and held him. It seemed like Landon needed someone to console him.

Their little moment was interrupted by some ruckus at the door. A man had arrived and argued with Mrs. Monrose. Liam’s sensitive nose picked up the smell of alcohol and he frowned. That guy stank like a whole bar but since he still stood on his own two feet and walked straight meant he was used to drinking a lot. Landon’s teacher tried to talk to him in a civil manner but soon gave up and made a beeline for Landon and Liam. “Landon, your father is here to pick you up,” she announced tightly and Liam felt Landon tense. And then his friend moved away from Liam as if he had been burned and wiped his face. “I’m coming,” he said and then walked over to his father. It turned Liam’s full attention to the man for the first time and he felt like the air had been knocked out of his lungs. He watched how the man grabbed Landon by the hand and dragged him out while chiding him for not coming home after school immediately. Landon said nothing and just took his father yelling at him while he led them out and Liam felt like throwing up. Blood boiled in his veins and his stomach twisted in so many knots, it hurt. His throat was dry and he couldn’t speak but even if he had been able to, Liam was at loss for words. A thousand thoughts in his mind and nothing made sense. This was surreal.

A car engine broke him out of his stupor and Liam ran outside, after Landon. Man and child were gone and it felt like a switch had been turned. Liam worked on autopilot when he got into his car and drove back home. Mind still spinning it was probably good that way since Liam paid no real attention to the traffic. Tears were burning in his eyes when he thought about Landon and how sad he had been. His heart ached and his stomach twisted in some more knots again.

Theo’s truck was parked in the driveway when Liam came home and he immediately called for his mate when he entered the house. Or rather yelled. “THEO!!! THEO!!!!” “Library!” Theo came running and they met in the hallway. “What’s wrong? Liam, what happened?” He gripped Liam’s shoulders and checked him for any superficial injuries. “Are you hurt? You’re shaking. Baby, what’s wrong?” “I need you because I’m about to lose it. I don’t know how long I can hold it in. Please, help me! I can’t.” He grabbed Theo’s wrists. “Calm down, deep breaths. Just try to focus on my heartbeat. And then tell me what happened. I’m here, everything will be okay.” But it didn’t help Liam, not this time. His grip on Theo’s wrist had to hurt but his boyfriend didn’t flinch. “Landon was sad today and he was hurt. There was a bruise on his arm and then I met his father. I know his father.” “Liam, Liam, deep breaths. You’re close to hyperventilating. Take deep breaths.”

Liam felt tears prickle in his eyes again when he now shouted at Theo. “Don’t you get it?? Landon’s father is the same man that tormented me for years! His father is Emmet Dunbar!” He felt the tears beginning to fall and he could do nothing about it. “And that means the boy a teacher in a program chose as my Little Brother...” “Is your actual little brother,” Theo finished the sentence and then frowned. “Are you really sure? Sometimes people look alike.” “I know my biological father! I know his voice, it’s etched in my memories. Besides, Landon said the same things I used to say. My dad is my dad. Crying is weak. Nothing’s changed, the man is still the same alcoholic he was back then and he still hits his son.” “Did Landon tell you that? That his father abuses him? I get why you’re thinking it but did he confirm?” Liam glared at Theo. “He didn’t have to. I know how a child acts when it’s a victim of domestic violence,” he snapped and Theo flinched. Liam felt immediately sorry for snapping at his boyfriend. “I’m sorry. I...I just don’t know...” He shrugged helplessly and wiped away some tears. He was way over his head with this and he had absolutely no idea how he was supposed to react. What was the protocol for this? Theo proofed how great he was at reading Liam because he didn’t even comment on the Alpha snapping at him but wrapped his arms around Liam and pulled him into a tight embrace. Having his anchor’s warmth and scent around him helped Liam feel more grounded than before, though his head was still spinning. He wrapped his arms around Theo’s waist.

“What is your plan? What will you do?” Theo inquired after they stood there for a while and just held each other. Liam shook his head. “No idea. I feel like I should drive there, to their house.” “And then? If you’re right, and I’m unfortunately pretty sure you are right, your father won’t be the right person to have a normal conversation with. You’re riled up, I don’t want you to make a mistake.” It was his mate’s logical way of thinking that Liam needed. He was impulsive and ruled by his emotions, he needed Theo to keep him in check. Running to the next fight surely was not the right solution to their problem. But really, Liam didn’t know what was...

He groaned and let go of Theo to lean against the wall and slide down until he sat on the floor. Theo sat next to him and took Liam’s hand in his. “This is so crazy. What are the odds? I mean, come on, who would have thought? He met another woman and had a child with her three years after my parents divorced.” Liam played with Theo’s fingers, it helped him stay as calm as he could at the moment. “It’s undoubtedly crazy but that kind of explains why you and Landon had such a connection right from the start.” “Hm, maybe. I don’t know if this brotherly bound is really a thing if you didn’t grow up together.” “Looks like it is,” Theo stated and gently bumped his shoulder against Liam’s. It made Liam smile weakly.

And then his phone rang. When Liam pulled it out of his pocket, an unknown number flashed on the screen and he accepted the call with a confused look. "Hello, it’s Liam.” First, there were just sniffles and Liam was inclined to hang up when a small voice spoke. “Liam, hello?” “Landon? Its that you? Hey, buddy. What’s going on?” He put the call on speaker so Theo could hear better. Landon sniffled again. “He got mad when we came home. It is really bad. He...he said he saw me hugging you and he didn’t like me hugging strangers. He got really mad and he punched me.” The child started crying again and it broke Liam’s heart. A powerful wave of the need to protect rushed through Liam. “Where is he now? Is he still around?” “No, he...went to his friend. Can you come and get me? He’s drinking again.” It wasn’t even a question, Liam was already on his feet before Landon had finished the question. “I will be there as fast as I can, buddy. Stay calm, okay? I’m coming.”

He ended the call, already on his way out and towards the car. Theo hurried after him and grabbed his arm. “You can’t drive, not in the state you’re currently in. Let me drive!” He said and unlocked his truck. Again, Liam was happy to have this man. “Thank you,” he said when he climbed into the passenger seat. Theo just nodded and turned on the ignition. The couple didn’t speak for the drive aside from Liam telling Theo the address.

The neighborhood Landon lived in consisted of small houses and trailers with parched gardens, trash on the brown grass and in the dusty streets. Liam had expected his little one to live in a sad neighborhood but this outstripped his concerns. Theo parked in front of a very small house with brown paint on the walls and a grey roof. The color looked bleached from sunlight and spalled. Cigarette ends and empty beer bottles and cans littered the yard and an empty camping chair revealed Emmet’s favorite place to sit. Nothing gave away that a child lived her, it looked sad and unfriendly. How could Landon play here and be a happy child? Liam’s stomach twisted again. “I’m happy you are here with me. I don’t know what will happen when I meet him,” he mumbled towards Theo. Theo hummed. “I’m your anchor. You won’t lash out on him, you’re better than that. And I’m here to remind you of that. Don’t worry.” It still felt better to have that one person by his side who could reign him in and had always been good at keeping a grip on Liam. It made the situation a little less overwhelming. Liam still knew he needed his anchor now more than ever.

The front door was crooked, paint also spalling down there. It made a rustling sound when Liam knocked. “Landon? It’s me. Are you there?” He listened for anything inside and heard nothing at first but then tiny footsteps came from inside and then the door slowly opened. Landon peeked out and when he saw it was just Liam (and well Theo but not his father) he wrenched the door opened. Tears were streaming down his face and his left cheek was red, already slightly swollen from undoubtedly Emmet’s hand. Anger boiled up inside Liam but he willed it down for now and knelt down. “He talked about you! Said I’m just as much of a sissy as his first failure of a son. He called you Liam, the weakling. Always, when he was really really drunk and angry.” “Shh, forget that it’s not important anymore. I’m here now and he will never ever yell at you,” Liam promised him. “Where did he hurt you? What did he do?” “He punched me and grabbed my arm.” Landon showed him the bruises on his upper arm. Theo growled behind him and Liam pulled his little brother in a protective hug. “I’m here now. He will never hurt you again,” he vowed to the crying child in his arms. Landon pressed against him and fisted Liam’s shirt in his hands. “Please. I’m scared. I don’t want to get hurt anymore.” “I know, I know.” Liam gently rubbed his back and kissed Landon on top of his head.

“Liam...”, Theo said but was cut off by: “What is going on here?” Liam’s froze. The slurred words behind him alerted him to the arrival of the person he really didn’t want to see. He had heard him approach and his wolf snarled inside him. He pried himself away from Landon and slowly got up to his full height.

“Landon, what are you doing with this losers?” gurgled Emmet. Liam turned around. He took his time accessing his father, the bloodshot eyes, the filthy appearance, and how he swayed on his feet. It disgusted him. The young Alpha slowly stepped closer to his begetter. “Don’t remember me? Come on, did you drink your brain away that much? I get that I got older but really, you don’t remember the face of a boy you last saw in court when he was seven years old? That’s bad, even for you.” Realization gleamed in Emmet’s eyes and he scoffed. “Would you look at that, my failure of a firstborn. I’d have never expected you pussy here.” He clicked his fingers. “Landon! Come here!” Except Liam blocked the way between his father and his brother. “He is not a dog! And he won’t obey anymore. I won’t let you abuse my brother any longer.” Emmet laughed scornfully. “How cute, the two brothers found each other. I don’t have time for that. Landon, go and buy me some beer at the gas station before I make you!” Liam growled and made a few more steps. Theo’s hand closed around his wrist and stopped him from inching even closer to Emmet. The distance was better to stay in control. But Emmet saw it and glared at the two young men. “Don’t tell me you are a fag. That is disgusting. You aren’t my son.” “Go to hell. He surely doesn’t want to be your son,” Theo coldly chimed in and if looks could kill Emmet would have died right then and there. But Emmet kept on drunkenly rambling. “This happens when you don’t have a real man in your life. I am ashamed. A weak sissy, nothing more. Fucking cock-sucker!”

Liam growled and was faster in front of his father than he would have imagined after he yanked his wrist out of Theo’s grip. One hand grabbed the front of Emmet’s shirt and pulled him in, the other raised as a fist and ready to strike. “You deserve to get every bone broken in your lousy body. You’re calling Landon and me weak? Look at you! You’re hitting innocent children, people smaller than you! Your life is so fucking miserable, you have to hate on others and you drink so much, you can’t stand straight anymore. There is nothing I want more than to ram my fist into your face and only stop when you have no teeth left. Do to you what you do to others,” he snarled menacingly. “But you know what? I have a mother and she made sure I never turn into the type of person you are. I have many reasons not to become like you, you little rat! If I were you I would thank my mother and my friends, especially my boyfriend, that you’re leaving this confrontation on your own two feet and not in an ambulance. Because they all made me better than you will ever be!”

Liam lowered his fist and then shoved Emmet back. He stumbled and fell over his camping chair. The man landed on the ground with a groan and glared at his son. Liam snarled again and pointed a finger at him. “Stay there and don’t you dare to get up or I will forget any reason I have and beat the living crap out of you.” He looked back at Landon who hovered in the doorway. “Go and grab your favorite things. There is no way I’m leaving you with him.” He glanced back at Emmet on the ground. “Stay or I will rip you apart!”

He turned around and followed Landon into the small house. A small kitchen with an old table and open living room area with a very small tv and a dirty old couch. Landon’s room was right next to the kitchen, barely big enough for the single bed. There were no real toys there or posters and Landon just grabbed a very worn donkey plushie and two comics and put them in a small yellow-red backpack. Liam helped him in stuffing a few clothes inside and lastly Landon grabbed a blue ball but then he nodded. “That’s all?” Liam asked. It was very little but this room was so empty and not right for a child. His father had absolutely not cared for his son at all. Landon looked around but then ran to his bed and pulled something from under the mattress. It was a photo of a petite woman with bright blonde hair sitting on an elephant’s back and waving at the camera. “That’s my mom. I stole the picture from a friend of hers.” “We will get you a nice frame for it when we’re home. Now, let’s go.” He took Landon’s hand and together the brothers left the house again.

Theo had guarded Emmet who still ranted about his weak sons and how much of a faggot Liam was but had not moved from his spot on the ground. He paid Landon no mind when they passed. “Come on, none of us should have to stay here any longer,” Liam exclaimed and Theo nodded. This time, Emmet had to have the last word: “You look like your slut of a mother!” He yelped in pain and when Liam looked over his shoulder he saw Theo had stepped on his hand. From the crunch of the bones, Liam knew the fingers had been broken. His mate looked down at Emmet. “Did that hurt?” Theo’s face twisted into the typical cold but menacing facade he could do so well. “Good. Let me tell you, Liam may have his reasons to not give you what you deserve but I don’t share the same sentiments. So if you keep insulting them, you will learn why they call me psychopath.” He left Emmet behind and joined Liam and Landon to the car and the man fell back on the grass.

When Theo unlocked the truck, Liam slipped in the backseat with Landon and Theo made sure they were soon on the road. It gave them a breather and Liam leaned back. “Are you okay?” He asked his little brother and Landon played with the strap of his backpack and then looked panicked. Liam smiled sadly. “It’s okay, you can tell me. Tell me when you’re hurt, it doesn’t make you weak.” Landon considered it and then he pointed at his arm. “Hurts.” Liam reached out and gently put his hand on Landon’s arm. He concentrated and the black veins began to crawl up his arm. Landon gasped. “How are you doing that?” Frankly, Liam had only thought about easing the pain, not about an explanation. “It’s an ability only good big brothers get. And you have the best big brother in the whole wide world,” Theo suddenly said calmly and glanced in the rearview mirror. Landon looked at him and then at Liam and he smiled for the first time that day. He inched closer and hugged Liam’s waist. Liam smiled and hugged him back while he searched for Theo’s glance in the mirror. “Thank you,” he mouthed and Theo nodded softly with a soft smile.

This day had been crazy. He just had found out he was a big brother and then he had more or less stolen the child from his begetter. But Liam had not been able to leave without Landon. The boy deserved a happy life and he couldn’t get it with Emmet. Liam had no idea how his life was now going to be but he had Landon and Theo and the others and together they would make it work. They always did.

Author’s note:

That’s Landon

I know this chapter focused heavily on Liam but it was an important chapter. I waited so long to write it, and now it fits perfectly with the rest of the story. It's another one of the things I wanted to write so badly and I was excited about it. It also adds another layer to Liam's personality and we will see how this goes from here. How he does justice to his new role. I cannot wait to see what you think about Landon and everything that transpired in this chapter. As always, tell me in the comments.

Have a great day!

#thiam #A tale written with fangs and claws #Morning Dew Pack series #My writing #alpha!liam

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itspileofgoodthings · 1 year

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#coach said ‘as usual my wife is right’ to tim and it is not the same as some lazy ass ‘ho hum i’m just her servant i go where she tells me’

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I love that the end of Pride and Prejudice is just the vindication of things sometimes being good, good all the way down. Lizzy struggles the last third of the novel with trying to reconcile what she thinks life is, as a self-professed cynic/realist/someone who is not going to fall into dumb traps that will ruin her happiness, and what she hopes it WILL be as a woman who has actually met the love of her life. And it ends up being all that she wanted and more. Darcy’s love is not only unchanged by all the things she was afraid would undo it, the depth and enduring quality of that love has been revealed to her by those very things. The end of the book confirms his generosity, his heart, his faithfulness in ways she could never dream of hoping for, and in those last several chapters desperately tries not to hope for, constantly tries to talk herself out of wanting or expecting. But it’s all true. He is handsome and he’s rich and marriageable, he checks all the standard boxes, but so much more importantly he’s also good and faithful and sensitive and endlessly generous and the most ultimately solid and trustworthy and good person she’s ever met in her entire life. And she gets to marry him! The fairy tale, in this case, is TRUE; her cynicism--and even her funniest most light-hearted truest jokes about the unfairness of the world were still a kind of cynicism--is not. I love it, it’s everything.

377 notes - Posted February 24, 2022

every Bruce/Selina moment is just so perfectly sweet and calibrated. when she asks him who he is under there or if he’s just hideously scarred and you can feel him laugh and loosen up even though he barely responds audibly; when she’s stealing the passport and he holds her back so they both don’t get caught and it’s this struggle but it’s almost a dance between them and on his side almost this strong and gentle embrace? and she’s mad at him but also knows she can trust him??? you can tell she is not in the least physically afraid of him// It’s a Lot.; the almost kiss at the end and the way you can feel the magnetic longing between them, especially on his side; the actual kiss —her sweet impulsive daring almost interrupting his offer to help and stipulations on it, he said he would help and that’s enough for her, his quiet immediate instinctive response to it all the more poignant because he is not a man who responds quickly or to everyone; when he stops her from shooting falcone and it’s the most loving struggle you’ve ever seen and he’s using his body almost like a shield between her and her dad but he’s to the side and he’s giving her SPACE because it’s her choice and her struggle and he’s not going to let her do it but he’s also not going to treat her like a child, he’s just going to BE THERE next to her ready to fight for and protect her body and soul; when he calls her Selina in the kitchen the first time with his whole soul looking out of his eyes just quietly watching her—the immediate naming she has such a hard time with, the sudden, and in a man like Bruce, surprising way he has just let her into his heart; the way his face softens and saddens when she says “we need to talk where can we meet” because he’s been thinking about her SO. MUCH.; when she kisses him again and it’s like sleeping beauty levels of softness and then when he loses his mind when she’s attacked right after; when she says “run away with me” and you can feel her wanting him to say yes with her whole self while knowing he won’t because the reason she wants him to is the reason he has to stay, he is so solid and faithful and TRUE, he is the roots and the steadiness she’s never had and so him saying no hurts her but he wouldn’t be who she wanted if he said yes; when he says “take care of yourself” and means it knowing that she can and will but also saying “be gentle with yourself the way I would be with you;” his heartsick desperate fear when he thinks it’s her at the funeral; the way they ride their motorbikes in this perfect weaving dance until they have to split and go different ways; him watching her leave in the rearview mirror, a final reminder of what she means to him, literally every single Bruce and Selina moment

388 notes - Posted April 2, 2022

you know that meme about how extroverts choose introverts to love and that’s how introverts have somebody to love? pride and prejudice is the OPPOSITE of that. Darcy is the quiet introvert watching Elizabeth from across the room (literally) and deciding within himself with calm certainty “that one, I want that one” and the rest of the story is honestly Elizabeth reacting to this revelation with great defensiveness and anger until she realizes that she does actually want to be chosen by him.

519 notes - Posted February 24, 2022

Good morning what are the movies or tv shows that traumatized you as a kid mine are the BBC production of A Christmas Carol and a handful of David Suchet Poirot episodes

551 notes - Posted October 2, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

good writing, fiction or non-fiction tbh, comes from staring at the world really hard for a long time and then through words trying to reproduce the unseen experience of all that staring.

708 notes - Posted April 17, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#my 2022 tumblr year in review #Yep sure did reblog from past Maria the most #Also yeah to batcat and stancy!

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dukereviewsmovies · 4 years

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Duke Reviews: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street

Hello, I'm Andrew Leduc And Welcome To Duke Reviews Where I Want To Apologize For Not Finishing Duke's Monsterween This Year...

Alot Has Happened In My Life Since I Disappeared, My Mom The One Person Who Believed In Me And My Reviews Passed Away Due To Organ Failure And Possibly Leukemia, Leaving My Whole Life In Question To The Point That I Don't Know If I'm Going To Continue Doing This Or Not...

But Until It's Figured Out And Handled, The Show Must Go On As It's What My Mom Would Have Wanted So, Slowly I Am Going To Return To Doing Duke Reviews...

But I Am Going To Release Them On My Time And Do Whatever I Want Not Just Something On One Subject So For Now Our Look At Disney Is Over...

But Lately I Have Been Watching Some Musicals, So To End Duke's Monsterween Right, We're Going To Look At Horror Related Musical But Since I Don't Own Rocky Horror And I'm Definitely Not Ready To Dive Into Phantom Yet, Let's End Monsterween With Tim Burton And Sweeney Todd...

With Music By Stephen Sondheim, This Film Is About A Former Barber Named Benjamin Barker Returning Home To London After Spending Time In Jail On A False Charge Only To Find That His Wife Is Dead And His Daughter Is Living With The Man Who Had Him Arrested...

This Leads Barker To Become Sweeney Todd And Go Down A Path Of Revenge Against The Man Who Wronged Him...

So, Let's Watch Sweeney Todd And See How Tim Burton Handles The Musical Genre..

So After A Bloody Opening...

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We Open At The London Bridge On A Boat As We Meet Our Supporting Protagonist, Antony (Played By Jamie Campbell Bower) Who Is With Our Main Protagonist Benjamin Barker (Played By Johnny Depp) As We Get Our First Song There's No Place Like London

Where As They Arrive Into The Port, Benjamin Tells Antony His Backstory...

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(Start At 2:24, End At 3:56)

As The 2 Separate, Barker Heads Into Town Until He Reaches Mrs. Lovett's Pie Shop Where He Meets The Owner Herself, Mrs. Lovett (Played By Helena Bonham Carter) Who Sings Our Next Song The Worst Pies In London

But Despite Me Having No Problem With Bonham Carter, She's Still Not As Good As The Original Mrs. Lovett, Angela Lansbury Who Actually Recently Celebrated Her Birthday...

Happy Belated Birthday, Angela!

Feeling Bad For Barker When He Eats Her Rotten Pie, Lovett Takes Barker Up To Her Apartment Where He Asks If That Room Upstairs Is For Rent But She Tells Him No But That's Mainly Because No One Will Go Near It Because It's Haunted Which Leads Her To Tell A Story...

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(Start At 0:39, End At 3:13)

With Lovett Figuring Out Who He Is, Barker Asks Where His Wife Is Only For Lovett To Tell Him That His Wife Is Dead And His Daughter Is With The Man Who Arranged For His Arrest, Judge Turpin (Played By The Late Alan Rickman)

This Leads Barker To Decide To Change His Name To Sweeney Todd And Have His Revenge On Turpin...

Going Upstairs, He Finds His Old Shaving Equipment Which Leads To Our Next Song, My Friends

Which Is One Of My Favorite Songs In The Musical And Depp Pulls It Off Well...

Meanwhile, On The Other Side Of Town, Antony Spies On Barker's Daughter Johanna And After Learning Her Name From A Homeless Woman, He Instantly Falls In Love With Her To The Point He Starts Singing A Love Song...

But His Interest Is Spotted By Her Caretaker, Judge Turpin Who While Nice At First Ends Up Having His Right Hand Man, Beedle Bamford (Played By Peter Petigrew)...

I Guess Once A Rat Always A Rat...

Beat The Hell Out Of Antony With His Cane Before Sending Him On His Way, Which Leads Antony To Swear To Save Johanna From The Clutches Of The Evil Turpin...

Travelling To The Town Square, Barker And Lovett Watch A Show Run By Kid Named Toby...

Thank God It's A Kid Here As In The Show It's Usually A Guy Who Plays This Role When Actually It Should Be A Kid Playing This Role...

Who Is Attempting To Sell A Miracle Elixar Created By A Man Named Pirelli Which Is Guaranteed To Grow Back Hair, But When Sweeney And Lovett To Be Nothing But Pee (I Refuse To Say P***) And Ink, Pirelli (Played By Borat) Himself Comes Out To Confront Them...

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(Start At 3:05, End At 7:39)

After The Contest A Guy Who I'm Laying 10 To 1 Is Giles From Buffy's Ancestor (Because He's Played By The Same Guy) And Beedle Bamford Himself Offer Todd Congratulations As They Promise To Visit His New Barber Shop Above Mrs. Lovett's Shop By The End Of The Week...

Days Later, Johanna Tosses Antony A Key To Her Room, Before We Cut Back To Sweeney And Lovett As They Wait For Bamford To Visit With Todd's Patience Starting To Run Out Which Leads To Our Next Song...

Afterwards, Antony Drops In To Tell Todd About His Plans With Johanna And Asks If He Can Hide Her There In The Shop Until He Can Get A Coach Which Will Take Them Away From London Forever To Which He Agrees...

But As Antony Leaves, Pirelli Arrives To Talk With Todd While Lovett Takes His Assistant Toby Into His Shop To Give Him One Of Her Pies Which Surprisingly He Likes...

Entering His Shop, Pirelli Reveals His Name Is Really Davey Collins And That He Knows Who Todd Really Is Mainly Because He Used To Work For Him Years Ago...

With Collins Blackmailing Him, Todd Decides To Kill Him By Bashing Him With A Teapot Before Hiding Him In A Case As Toby Comes In Looking For Pirelli...

But Telling Toby To Tell Mrs Lovett To Open A Bottle Of Gin On Him, Toby Leaves So Todd Can Finish Off Pirelli By Slitting His Throat...

Meanwhile At The Courthouse, Beedle Bamford Talks With Judge Turpin Who Has Decided To Marry Johanna In An Effort To Shield Her From "The Evils Of The World"...

But With Johanna Showing Reluctance To Turpin, It Leads To Our Next Song...

As Lovett Comes Up For Todd To Show Her That He Killed Pirelli And To Tell Her That He Intends To Kill Toby But Mrs Lovett Convinces Him To Spare Toby's Life As She Wanted To Hire Someone To Help Her Run The Shop...

Noticing That Turpin And Beedle Bamford Are Coming He Tells Mrs. Lovett To Get Out, So He Can Prepare For Turpin Who Eventually Enters, Leading To Our Next Song...

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(End At 4:06)

But As Todd Is About To Kill Turpin, Antony Enters Which Causes Turpin To Storm Out Promising That He Will Never Be Back Again Which Leads To Our Next Song And One Of My Favorites, Epiphany And Depp Seriously Nails This Song...

It Was Like It Was Made For Him As He Expresses Every Emotion That Sweeney Is Feeling At This Particular Moment Perfectly...

Going Downstairs, They Plan To Get Rid Of Pirelli's Body As Toby Sleeps Off The Booze But Mrs. Lovett Comes Up With A Better Plan Leading To Our Next Song...

And This Song Is Just Devious With It's Rhymes...

Returning Home, Judge Turpin Decides To Teach Johanna Some Respect By Having Beedle Bamford Throw Her Into Fogg's Asylum...

Don't Do That, A Nun Told Me A Girl Got Raped There Only Be Born With The Bastard Son Of 100 Maniacs...

This Leads To A Reprise Of Johanna Between Todd And Antony Who Walks In The Streets While Todd Kills People While Shaving Them, Practicing For The Day That Turpin Returns...

While Downstairs, Mrs Lovett And Toby Feed People Her New Pies Made Out Of People...

Leading To Our Next Song...

The Next Day, Lovett, Toby And Todd Go Down To The Park Where Lovett Talks About Her Buisness Despite Sweeney's Mind Being On The Judge Either Way Though It Leads To Our Next Song...

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(Start At 0:47, End At 3:26)

And I Swear, Throughout This Song Johnny Depp Only Has One Expression, To The Point You're Begging For Him To Blink Or Something.,..

Eventually Antony Drops By To Tell Sweeney What Turpin Did With Johanna, This Leads Him To Suggest That Antony Pose As A Wig Maker's Apprentice In An Attempt To Bust Her Out Of The Asylum...

Afterwards, Todd Has Toby Deliver A Letter To Turpin About Antony And Johanna In An Effort To Lure Him To His Parlor So He Can Kill Him...

Later That Evening, Toby Returns To Mrs Lovett After Delivering The Letter To Turpin, Leading To Probably The Most Well Known Song From This Musical, Not While I'm Around...

I Mainly Say That Because Every Singer From Michael Ball To Josh Groban Has Most Likely Done This Song...

Discovering That Mrs Lovett Has Pirelli's Coin Purse, Toby Is About To Go To Beedle Bamford So He Can Arrest Todd But Convincing Him To Hold Off Doing That, Lovett Takes Him Down To The Pie Room Telling Him To Eat As Many Pies As He Wants While She Runs An Errand...

And By That She Means, Tell Todd What Toby Said So He Can Kill Him But Before He Can Do That, Beedle Bamford Shows Up Complaining About The Smell From Their Chimney, Which Leads Todd To Offer Him A Free Shave Which Bamford Takes Despite Wanting To Do His Civic Duties First...

So, As Todd Kills Beedle And Scaring Toby After The Body Falls Into The Pie Room, Antony Saves Johanna From Fogg's Asylum While Todd And Lovett Look For Toby Who Has Run Off Into The Sewers To Hide From Them...

Taking Johanna To Todd's Shop, She Hides In The Box Where Todd Had Pirelli's Body As The Old Beggar Woman Who Talked With Antony Earlier Enters Looking For Beedle Only To Be Confronted By Todd Who Kills Her As Turpin Is Arriving...

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With The Somewhat Dead Turpin Scaring Lovett, Sweeney Enters Telling Her To Open The Oven Door And When She Does, Todd Makes A Discovery About The Old Beggar Woman He Killed, It Turns Out That She Was His Beloved Wife....

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(Start At 0:23, End At 1:56)

As Todd Holds His Wife's Dead Body, Toby Comes Out Of The Sewers, Grabbing One Of Todd's Razors Before Going Behind Him To Slit Todd's Throat Killing Him Once And For All, Ending Our Film

And That's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street And Tim Burton Makes A Good Musical...

The Film Is A Visual Wonder, The Cast Does Well In Their Roles, The Songs Are Well Transfered From Stage To Screen And The Effects And Camera Work In This Movie Are Very Well Done All In All I Say It's One Of Burton's Best And I Say See It...

Till Next Time, This Is Duke, Signing Off...

#sweeney todd the demon barber of fleet street #johnny depp #Helena Bonham Carter #Sasha Baron Cohen #Alan Rickman #Timothy Spall #stephen sondheim

0 notes

dpinoycosmonaut · 3 years

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ANOTHER PUREFOODS ICON GOES

by Bert A. Ramirez / June 3, 2021

Marc Pingris blocks a bigger Asi Taulava in a defensive play typical of the Purefoods frontliner’s PBA career. (Photo from philstar.com)

How do you remember a legend? Obviously, this question is now being asked after Marc Pingris, the last remaining member of the Magnolia Hotshots’ iconic Big Three that also included James Yap, now in his last legs with Rain or Shine, and Peter Jun Simon, who retired from the game last year to start a family of his own, announced his own retirement from basketball last week.

Pingris, or simply “Ping” or the “Pinoy Sakuragi” to fans who have identified him with that anime character in “Slam Dunk” that their favorite has declared a liking for, leaves behind a legacy that in basketball parlance may be considered as revolving around the intangibles and character he brought to the sport. If one were looking for gaudy statistics, the 6-foot-4 native of Pozorrubio, Pangasinan will pale in comparison to other all-time greats. In a 16-year career spanning 658 games, after all, he never averaged more than 9.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, 1.6 blocked shots and 3.1 assists, finishing with career averages of just 7.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and less than a block.

But Pingris is one of those players whose value would go way beyond the usual numbers, whose presence provided the team he played for the leadership, the hustle, the intensity and the winning ingredient that’s so essential in any team sport. He never cared about stats; all he cared about was winning a damn game and, at the right opportunity, a championship. His value was like that of a Ben Wallace, the former Detroit Pistons center who was recently elected to the Hall of Fame despite never scoring in double figures in his career (although he did lead the NBA in rebounds twice), yet was always considered an indispensable cog on the team he played for. The similarity between Pingris and Wallace may be reflected in the fact that both were multiple-time Defensive Player of the Year awardees in their respective leagues, with Pingris winning it three times and Wallace four.

“He was the consummate soldier,” former coach Ryan Gregorio said of Pingris, whom the then-Purefoods TJ Hotdogs acquired in a 2005 trade from the now-defunct FedEx Express, who picked the power forward third in the 2004 draft after Rich Alvarez and Yap, the future Purefoods superstar with whom Pingris would form a long partnership along with another player, Simon, whom Gregorio also signed as a free agent in the same year both Yap and Pingris were drafted.

Gregorio was trying to rebuild the Hotdogs who had then fallen on hard times with the retirement in 2004 of Alvin Patrimonio, the face of the franchise the previous 16 years, just after Yap and Simon had come aboard. And Pingris appeared to have completed that rebuild.

"His raw enthusiasm. That is where it all started," Gregorio said of Pingris. "And we would always have a discussion on where he came from. This guy came from the school of hard knocks, and every time you see people like that, you know that they're gonna fight to survive, put food on the table, and will always try to wiggle off from any challenges just to make sure that their head is above water."

Indeed, Pingris had humble beginnings, providing a classic rags-to-riches story where one’s perseverance would pay off in the end. Brought up by his single mother, Erlinda, after his French father, Jean Marc Sr., left them when Marc was just three years old to work in Morocco, they eventually lost touch for some reason and Marc thus eventually had to help his mom make both ends meet.

"We really had a difficult life growing up,” Ping related. “So after I got drafted, the first person I really looked for was my mother. I hugged her and thanked her for helping us get through such incredibly difficult times in Pangasinan. No matter what happened, she always managed to put food on the table and never allowed me and my siblings to miss even a single meal in a day.

"Basketball truly gave my family a comfortable life," he continued. "Who would imagine that a kid who worked and slept in the wet market would become a PBA player? When my name was called on draft night, I told myself that this is the start of great things, that I will not let go of this opportunity."

True enough, Pingris became the prototypical workhorse, particularly when Purefoods traded for him a year after being drafted. But perhaps because of that survival baggage that he carried, Pingris was at first short-tempered and literally fought his way around the court. But Gregorio found a way to tame him, partly because Marc was a really good guy and partly because Ryan knew how to push the buttons.

"When I acquired him in 2005, I got a player who was basically a live wire – he could not control his emotions and he would easily get into a fight," recalled Gregorio. "But my message to him then was just to channel your raw emotions into a positive energy and just focus on three things that you're good at."

And Gregorio found a guy who was willing to do anything and lay it all out on the court. "When people would say that things can't be done, Marc Pingris would say, 'ako na bahala dyan, coach,'" Gregorio looked back with fondness.

Pingris quickly led his new team, now called the Giants, to the Philippine Cup title in 2006, the team’s first title victory since 2002, in the process clinching Finals MVP honors as Purefoods defeated Red Bull 4-2. In Game 2 of the series, he scored 21 points to lead the Giants to a 93-82 victory.

Still, the partnership would take a turn. After then-incumbent center Rommel Adducul was diagnosed with nasopharynx cancer, the Giants in 2008 traded Pingris to the then-Magnolia Beverage Masters (now San Miguel Beer) for center Enrico Villanueva, thinking that Villanueva would make for a perfect replacement for the stricken former San Sebastian star. It was a huge mistake that Gregorio later had to anxiously make amends for. While Pingris won a championship with his new team, the Giants struggled.

"I traded Ping because I thought we knew the big guy,” Gregorio later recalled. “We needed a big guy because the opposition was trying to do it (and) was starting to get bigger and heavier. Unfortunately, the experiment didn't pan out."

Gregorio had to plead with then-team president Butch Alejo as well as Patrimonio, then already the team manager, and governor Rene Pardo to find a way to bring back Pingris as well as Paul Artadi, whom the team also traded away, as he knew the duo would vastly improve the team’s defense, especially Pingris who would “make it miserable for the opponent to at least score inside the paint.

“We would have gotten a lot of championships if I didn't break the team,” Gregorio admitted.

Pingris’ return to Purefoods was thus orchestrated before the 2009-10 season, with Marc first being shipped to Burger King and then Purefoods reacquiring him 24 hours later in exchange for the Giants’ first- and second-round picks in 2010.

"For some people, when you get traded, there is animosity but with Ping, I just told him that it was just a basketball decision," Gregorio recalled. "True enough… he was ready to heed a call to go back to Purefoods and we won a championship."

The 2010 Philippine Cup championship that the team, now called B-Meg Llamados, would clinch via a 4-0 sweep of Alaska in the finals would, however, be the last title Pingris would win with Gregorio, who then moved over to Meralco later that year to coach the comebacking Bolts.

But it also started a partnership with a new coach, Tim Cone, who came over from Alaska in 2011 and would steer the franchise to five more championships, including a historic grand slam and “four-peat” in 2014, and Pingris would be one of the bulwarks of those milestone victories along with, of course, his Big Three partners, Yap and Simon, plus such players as Mark Barroca, Joe Devance, Alex Mallari, Allein Maliksi, Ian Sangalang Rafi Reavis and Justin Melton.

None of those titles, however, would come easily. In that 2012 Commissioner’s Cup championship, B-Meg had to rely on import Denzel Bowles’ two free shots to send Game 7 of its series against Talk ‘N Text into overtime, where the Llamados pounced on the Texters to clinch it. Marc then had to play magnificently in another seven-game barnburner in the 2013 Governors’ Cup finals against the powerhouse Petron Blaze team (another of SMB’s past incarnations) for the Llamados to clinch the first of four straight championships en route to that historic grand slam, in the process earning for Pingris a second Finals MVP trophy.

Looking back at that partnership with Cone, the winningest coach in PBA history with 23 championships, Pingris thanked the now-Giñebra mentor, saying he “grew to understand the sport as more than a game.” Unknown to many, Marc’s stint under Cone did not start smoothly as he found it hard to adjust to Cone’s triangle offense to the point that he requested for a trade for fear that he wouldn’t be able to cope with his new coach’s system. Eventually, however, Pingris realized how that system would help the team win and he eventually bought into it.

Cone, meanwhile, found in Marc such a great soldier that he can only look back with fondness at his former frontcourt lynchpin. When Pingris announced his retirement, Cone referred to it as the “end of an era.

“Certainly one of a kind,” he wrote of Pingris in his Twitter post. “I loved, in every way, coaching Ping. Tough as nails on the court, gentle in spirit off it. @MPingris will be the standard from which I coach future players. My fav.”

It was that gentleness in spirit as well as sincerity and sense of humor off the court that probably attracted Marc’s wife Danica to him. Danica, the daughter of TV host and movie star Vic Sotto by actress Dina Bonnevie who also appeared in movies and TV before she got hitched with Pingris in March 2007, now has two kids with him, son Michael, 12, and daughter Micaela, eight. It was Danica who would exert tremendous effort to enable Pingris to find and later get reunited with his estranged father in 2007. They’ve since met and spent time with each other in the succeeding years particularly when Marc played with the Gilas Pilipinas national team in various tournaments in Europe, including the 2014 FIBA World Cup in Spain.

With his retirement, Pingris intends to spend more time with his family that includes wife Danica and children Michael and Micaela. (Photo from Danica Pingris’ Instagram account)

Truth is, other coaches also found in Pingris a special trait not often seen in other players. His last coach, current Magnolia Hotshots mentor Chito Victolero, thought so highly of him that he reserved a slot on the team for Marc even if he had hardly played in the last two years after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in the 2018 Philippine Cup. That notwithstanding, an assortment of injuries, including a right calf injury that prevented him from joining the Hotshots in the bubble last year, finally made Pingris decide to call it a career.

"Coach Chito actually wanted me to start practicing again, and I told him I'll come back. But along the way, I understood that I had other priorities," Pingris explained. "So I talked to coach and apologized, and I thanked him because he really fought to keep my spot in the team. I was embarrassed, of course, but I knew he understood my decision since he was once a player himself.

"I'm really thankful that he's there not just as a coach, but as a friend and as an older brother who had my back all the way," Ping, who will turn 40 years old this coming October 16, added.

Victolero paid tribute to Marc once he has decided to finally hang up his sneakers. “A team need(s) good players like you,” Chito wrote on Twitter. “You gained people's respect for your exemplary sportsmanship, humility, hard work, right attitude and of course your Big Puso. Your success is not a surprise and you deserve it.

“Thanks for the memories, brotherhood, championships at lahat ng pinagsamahan natin. I will treasure everything. The players, the coaching staff, the support staff, the fans and the game itself will miss you always! Thank you for your years of dedication that has given us endless entertainment. You may be retiring, but a new phase of your life is beginning. Wish you a wonderful future ahead. See you around and good luck!! God bless you Ping. Salute to our Pinoy Sakuragi. I love you brother,” Victolero concluded.

Comebacking TNT Tropang Giga coach Chot Reyes, who coached Pingris on those Gilas Pilipinas teams from 2013 to 2014, said the power forward's "work ethic, selflessness and deep love for country" were what set him apart.

"Retirements are always bittersweet," said Reyes in a message to ESPN5. "On one hand I'll be seeing the last of a player who is very special to me; but on the other hand I'm glad he's retiring on his own terms and beginning a new phase of his still young life. He WAS #puso not only in 2014 but also in the FIBA Asia in 2013."

Indeed, it was Pingris who probably best exemplified the “puso” mantra that Chot first built around that Gilas Pilipinas team that won the silver medal in the 2013 FIBA Asia Championships held here in Manila, which enabled the Philippines to make it back to the FIBA World Cup for the first time since 1978 the following year. In perhaps the most memorable game that Pingris played for in the country’s semifinal matchup against South Korea before a full house that included then-President Noynoy Aquino at the Mall of Asia Arena, it was Pingris who sparked the nationals to a landmark victory over the Koreans, whom as everybody would remember had seemingly cast a spell over the Filipinos every time they met in Asian competitions. And he did it even with a sprained foot he sustained before the halftime break even as the Gilas team had lost naturalized import Marcus Douthit the rest of the game with an injury in the first half.

Pingris gallantly battled the Koreans’ big men to spark his teammates’ confidence even without the 6-foot-10 Douthit, scoring 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds as the Philippines beat Korea 86-79 to make it to the finals against China.

“I prayed,” Pingris said after injuring his ankle. “I asked Him to help me not feel the pain. That moment when we won against Korea, that was the happiest because every Filipino was crying (out of joy). Everyone, people beside me, even if I didn’t know them, (they were saying) ‘thank you, thank you.’ Even if it was us who should have been thanking them. We were thankful for the fans because of the energy they gave us. (The fans) were really the key in that win, their cheers.”

Despite the role he played on many of those Gilas teams, Pingris still thought it was he who owed it, not the other way around. "I'm thankful to coach Chot Reyes and to the MVP Group for giving me the opportunity to play for the Philippines. I wasn't a star player in the PBA. I was just a role player. But they gave me an opportunity to try out and play for Gilas," Marc declared. "It's truly an honor wearing the Philippine jersey and playing for the flag."

Of course, his exploits with Gilas were typical of the effort that Pjngris always brought on the court, something that made him one of the most popular players in the local pro league while playing for what many consider the second-most popular PBA team next only to Giñebra, with whom Purefoods has spawned a rivalry called “Manila Clasico.”

When it was over, Pingris will be remembered for such style of play that was rewarded with not only those championships, nine of them overall, but such individual honors as 15 All-Star Game berths, three PBA Mythical Second Team selections, eight All-Defensive Team slots, and recognition as one of the league’s 40 Greatest Players when the league celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2015.

No wonder Pingris is also one of the most admired and respected players by both his peers and basketball cognoscenti alike.

Long-time Gilas captain and Rain or Shine stalwart Gabe Norwood, for example, said, "One of the true GREATS of the PBA is hanging up his kicks. Greatly appreciate you, (Marc Pingris)! Competing against you and repping the flag together are memories that'll stay with me forever. More power to you, roommate!"

Six-time league MVP June Mar Fajardo of SMB, meanwhile, said, “Salamat 'tol sa friendship at bilang kuya! Good luck sa bagong career mo at enjoy retirement! Mami-miss kita sa loob ng court!"

Another SMB star, Terrence Romeo, said, "Maraming salamat kuya Marc sa lahat ng nagawa mo sa basketball. Isa ka sa mga iniidolo ko on and off the court. Napaka-humble at napakabait mo at laging nandyan yung puso sa game! Salamat sa mga payo mo sakin kuya. Good luck sa next chapter ng life mo. God bless you and your family always!"

Fellow retirees Ranidel de Ocampo, Dondon Hontiveros and Doug Kramer also had something to say to Marc.

"Thank you 'tol sa buong puso mo! Salamat at naging part kami ng journey mo mula sa simula,” De Ocampo wrote on Instagram. “Good luck sa bagong chapter. God bless you and your family! Happy retirement!"

"Congrats bro!” said Hontiveros, a teammate with the SMB franchise during Pingris’ brief stint there as well as with Gilas in 2015. “Hindi lang sa napaka-successful na career mo, pati sa pagiging magandang halimbawa. Marami kang napahanga sa galing at tapang mo. PUSO!"

"Congrats Ping! Awesome career! Ph legend status. God bless you bro!" said Kramer.

And former PBA commissioner Noli Eala wrote on Twitter: "I first saw Marc Pingris play with the Cebuana Lhuillier National Team as a guest team in a PBA invitational when I was commish. He impressed with his energy, strength, and passion. He kept that all through his pro career. Happy I saw it all. Thanks Marc for making the game better."

The most emotional comments, of course, came from his Purefoods teammates. Yap, in his Instagram account, recalled the many wars they went through.

“Madami-dami din tayong pinagdaanan na giyera sa loob ng court, magkasama tayo sa hirap at sa saya. Sabay tayo nagsimula in 2004 kaya nagulat ako na mag-retire ka na,” said Yap. “Gusto ko na take tong opportunity na to na pasalamatan ka @jeanmarc15 sa lahat ng ginawa mo para sakin. You were one of the best teammates I’ve ever had.

“Our brotherhood and friendship started with basketball (but I know) that we go beyond that, na kahit di na tayo pareho naglalaro di magbabago ang samahan natin. Congrats on the retirement ‘tol. See you around!”

Barroca also cherished the long friendship he and Marc have forged through the years. "Congratulations sa napakagandang career!” Barroca told Pingris. “Napakaraming humahanga sayo on and off court. Higit sa lahat, salamat sa napakagandang pagkakaibigan sa mga taong nagdaan at magdadaan pa. Mahal namin kayo @jeanmarc15 @danicaspingris."

Younger teammate Jack Corpuz, meanwhile, said, “Dati, napapanuod lang kita. Pinapangarap na makalaban ka sa basketball at maging teammate. Salamat sa mga advice at pag-motivate lagi sa akin. Lagi ko tatandaan lahat ng sinasabi mo sa akin. Stay safe. God bless Idol. See you soon.”

Definitely, Marc leaves a mark in the game that not many, even those who might have had more impressive numbers, probably would simply for his persona that’s associated not only with winning but also with great comradeship. And that’s just consistent with how he wants to be remembered, which he said will hopefully influence a generation that plays with the same passion that he played with.

"I don't regret anything because I've given it my all for 16 years here in the PBA," he said. "And I gave my heart to the game. I want people to remember me for that. I wasn't the most skilled player out there, but my heart was bigger than my talents. That's why I played the way I played."

So how do you remember a legend? You remember him with fondness. With gratitude. And with the hope that someday, somehow, someone like him will emerge from the streets of one small, obscure and far-flung town in the countryside like Marc Pingris did, and create a similar legend that he did.

#Pingris Magnolia Purefoods PBA

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marilynngmesalo · 5 years

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Tim McGraw, Titans coach talk about NFL draft

Tim McGraw, Titans coach talk about NFL draft Tim McGraw, Titans coach talk about NFL draft https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

NASHVILLE — Country music star Tim McGraw watched as Philadelphia hosted the NFL draft in 2017 with more than 250,000 people on hand and immediately had a vision of how to make the three-day event even better: Bring it to Nashville and add the Music City touch.

“My first thought was, ‘Man I’d love to be down there and do a big concert right in the middle of Broadway down there with the stadium as a backdrop for the weekend of the draft,”‘ McGraw said. “I just thought it was something very special and I wanted to be involved with it. And I wanted to get it here.”

McGraw will cap Friday night performing on the draft stage across the Cumberland River from Nissan Stadium, home of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans.

McGraw sat down with coach Mike Vrabel and The Associated Press at the Titans’ practice facility for a conversation about why hosting the NFL draft means so much to Nashville, a country music town that has grown by leaps and bounds since the late Bud Adams first talked of bringing his Houston Oilers to Tennessee in 1995.

That’s when McGraw was first breaking out as a country artist, his own dreams of playing professional baseball ended by a knee injury, traded for a guitar.

Vrabel was finishing his college career as an All-American at Ohio State, while McGraw played the honky tonks on Broadway and Printer’s Alley before he started touring.

“As the stadium was going up, it just really filled everybody with a tremendous amount of pride and expectation having an NFL football team come to your place, and then to take over that side of the river and make it a place that’s a destination and make it something that really, really beautifies the city and makes the city look like a big city,” McGraw said. “And I think that for me anyway, I couldn’t be more excited about it.

“I mean every day you’d see it go further and further up, and you just couldn’t wait for the first games to be played there.”

An Ohio native and Cleveland Browns fan, Vrabel was aware that the Oilers were looking for a new home. He even played as a rookie with Pittsburgh in the Oilers’ last game in Memphis as nomadic lame ducks in 1997. He was with the Steelers in 1999 for a visit to the renamed Titans’ brand-new stadium.

“I remember the industrial feel, the red beams stood out,” Vrabel said. “I remember the skyline in the background.”

McGraw chimed in: “The crowd noise?”

Nope. Vrabel just remembers the beams.

“That was a new sight for me, I think, just playing in some older stadiums when I got into the league, or college stadiums,” Vrabel said. “This seemed to have a real new urban feel to it with the bright red beams.”

McGraw’s investment in football continued to grow when he joined Adams as a minority owner of the Arena League’s Nashville Kats in late 2004. Now the Louisiana native is a three-time Grammy-winning artist who has sold more than 37 million albums in the U.S. alone, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. Some of his biggest hits include Humble and Kind, Live Like You Were Dying, Don’t Take The Girl, and Highway Don’t Care. McGraw is also an actor, appearing in movies such as Friday Night Lights and The Blind Side.

Nashville was considered a bit of a longshot to host the 2019 draft. Vrabel took part in a uniform unveiling on April 4, 2018 that drew approximately 20,000 for a fashion show and free concert. That was Nashville’s last chip in swaying the NFL, with a lobbying push from Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk. League owners chose Music City last May.

“She wants to be able to show the NFL that we can have a first-class event and be an organization that can help the NFL,” Vrabel said of Strunk. “Now we want people to come and enjoy the concerts, enjoy the fan experience, and I think she’s excited to show them that, to have the stadium as a backdrop and then obviously enjoy everything that’s going on on Lower Broadway.”

Vrabel has friends and family coming into Nashville who will get to enjoy all the music and parties of draft weekend. Heading into his second season with the Titans, Vrabel will be busy as the Titans try to improve a roster that went 9-7 in his debut year.

A country music fan, he’s usually standing about 5 feet away from the latest anthem singer before home games, and his wife and son have to point out when a celebrity is on the sideline. Vrabel stays focused on the task at hand.

“No idea who’s here or why they’re here,” Vrabel said. “I hope they have a good time, and I hope that we can win. And I’ll see you guys in three hours.”

Handling the anthem is something McGraw stays away from, though not for political reasons. He says he absolutely butchered the anthem once and nailed it another time, so he prefers to leave that to his wife, fellow singer Faith Hill, who performed it for the Titans’ lone Super Bowl appearance in January 2000.

McGraw performed at the NFL’s tailgate show before the Super Bowl in February, also has done a concert on Pro Football Hall of Fame weekend, and he will perform a free concert Friday night after the final selection in the third round is called.

Some musicians reportedly turned down offers to perform at the Super Bowl over Colin Kaepernick not being in the NFL. McGraw said he bases his decisions on his love of football and the lessons sports teach.

“The other stuff I get and understand, and I’m certainly all for people speaking their minds and progressing themselves and learning more about each other,” McGraw said. “I’m all for that. But for me when I make my decision, I love the game and I love the spirit of the game and that’s what I try to capture.”

It’s almost showtime for a gig that McGraw, also a member of Nashville’s organizing committee, has anticipated for months, on a stage at the base of Broadway’s honky-tonk district.

Nashville has hosted very big parties for the 2017 Stanley Cup Final, the annual Country Music Association awards, and New Year’s Eve. This will be bigger, with 100,000 fans expected each day.

A house band will play between draft selections Thursday and Friday night, and Dierks Bentley will perform Saturday as part of more than 20 Nashville-based acts ranging from alt-rock to hip-hop and more country.

“We have sort of an opportunity to plant a flag and say this is the way it’s supposed to be done,” McGraw said. “And I think we’ve got the right people here in Nashville. I think it’s the right setup, the right enthusiasm and the right sort of combination of people to make this thing something really special, and something big and sort of be the watermark for drafts to come.”

//<![CDATA[ ( function() { pnLoadVideo( "videos", "xbUdZP_kkrY", "pn_video_655368", "", "", {"controls":1,"autoplay":0,"is_mobile":""} ); } )(); //]]> Click for update news Bangla news http://bit.ly/2ZuvJ0q world news

#metronews24 bangla #Latest Online Breaking Bangla News #Breaking Bangla News #prothom alo #bangla news #b

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funnythingshere0-blog · 6 years

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The Best Sporting Moments Happen Off The Field

New Post has been published on http://funnythingshere.xyz/the-best-sporting-moments-happen-off-the-field/

The Best Sporting Moments Happen Off The Field

AFL great Neale Daniher is facing his toughest-ever adversary, and Australians are heeding the battle call.

“I’m realistic. This will probably be my last opportunity to talk,” Neale Daniher said this week.

“Next year, if I’m alive, I’ll be grunting, trying to grunt funny jokes,” he told AFL 360.

But as always, the AFL champion, husband, father and motor neuron disease sufferer and fighter is selflessly and fearlessly staring down the face of adversity with his trademark philosophy: “Just play on.”

When Melbourne and Collingwood meet in the AFL’s traditional Queen’s Birthday clash at the MCG later today, a crowd of more than 80,000 will come together to cheer a hero.

But it won’t be big-marking Magpie Jeremy Howe, Demons goal kicker Jesse Hogan or the other 42 players who will take the field.

Yet he is courageous, much-loved and will receive the applause of every member of the crowd, regardless of the colour of their guernsey.

The Big Freeze at the ‘G fundraiser, in its fourth year, is former Essendon footballer and Melbourne coach Daniher’s day.

Neale Daniher leads the walk to the MCG for Freeze MND on June 12, 2017 in Melbourne. (Image: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

Each year, celebrities and sportspeople don fun costumes and make their way down a slide into an ice pool to raise awareness and crucial funds for the insidious disease, which slowly paralyses the human body, with no cure.

In an incredible show of support, all 18 AFL coaches will participate in the slide on Monday.

Last year $4.6 million was raised. This year, the federal government will match donations dollar-for-dollar with the money going towards new clinical trials.

Neale Daniher pushes Tim Watson into an icebath to raise money for Motor Neurone Disease on June 8, 2015 in Melbourne. (Image: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

Neale, 57, was diagnosed in 2014 and with the love and support of his incredible family — wife Jan and children Bec, Lauren, Ben and Luke — has since dedicated his life to educating Australians about the terminal illness and fundraising for Fight MND.

His selfless work surpasses his achievements on the field as a player and in the coaches’ box over the course of 305 matches.

In March, I had the great honour of being asked to host the inaugural ladies lunch for Fight MND.

Neale was guest speaker. I’d never met him before but we were introduced in the green room beforehand and he was warm, made sure I was ready and comfortable and thanked me for giving up my time to MC the function. It was the very least I could do.

Megan Hustwaite and Neale Daniher at this year’s Ladies Lunch for Fight MND. (Image: Supplied)

I introduced Neale on to the stage and the room sat in complete silence watching a video then listening to him speak, hanging on every word. It was clearly taxing on him, physically and mentally, but he delivered a wonderful speech, moved the huge crowd and did what he always does, made everyone smile, laugh and feel better.

Neale Daniher and daughter Bec share a laugh as part of the Big Freeze 3 in 2017. (Image: Michael Willson/AFL Media/Getty Images)

Neale appeared on television on Wednesday night and among his usual infectious positivity and great sense of humour was his heartbreaking reality.

“MND is a progressive disease, it takes things from you. All the things you love,” he told AFL 360.

“I love to run, I love to play golf, I love to play tennis. You can’t do that. You can’t drive, I can’t dress myself, I’m struggling to talk.

“But there’s one thing it can’t take from me. MND takes everything from you except your last great freedom; and that’s your right to choose your attitude.

“You choose your own way and my attitude is don’t give up, don’t give in. It can’t take that from you.”

Well over 80,000 of the trademark blue MND beanies have already been sold this year with more available at the ground on game day which will sell quicker than hotcakes. Australians continue to donate generously all year round. This morning I heard a father ring talkback radio to say his four-year-old son wanted to set up a lemonade stand to raise money for Neale.

Neale Daniher accepts a cheque from Joe Daniher and the Bombers team to help the Cure for MND Foundation, on June 9, 2016 in Melbourne. (Image: Michael Dodge/Getty Images)

It’s truly special stuff and a reminder of how sport, a critical fabric of Australian society, brings people together, supports and lifts its own and wraps them in love.

We so often hear stories about sportspeople or fans behaving badly but this really is a tale worthy of all the headlines for all the right reasons.

And the best headline is yet to come: “Neale Daniher, 2019 Australian of the year.”

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medproish · 6 years

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Manu Ginobili will turn 41 in July. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

The first round of the NBA playoffs continues today with three Game 5s, including two possible elimination games. Follow along here for the latest analysis and commentary from The Post’s NBA reporter Tim Bontemps, and ask him questions in the comments section. Catch up on yesterday’s games here.

Schedule and results | Pregame reading | Comments section Q&A

• Manu Ginobili just finished his 17th season with the Spurs, but he will take some time to decide whether he wants to retire.

• Gregg Popovich missed another playoff game for the Spurs, while grieving the recent death of his wide, Erin.

• The Sixers again owned the second half against the Heat, and Philadelphia is advancing in the playoffs for the first time in six years.

• Celtics took a 3-2 series lead over the Bucks after a no-call on a shot-clock violation that couldn’t be reviewed.

• Meek Mills rung the ceremonial bell before Game 5 of Sixers-Heat, hours after being released from prison

Chris Webber was serving as the color analyst during Game 5 of Warriors-Spurs Tuesday night when he made this comment about Draymond Green:

“This is the impact Draymond Green has,” Webber said, as a highlight was shown of Green driving to the basket and passing to a teammate for a score. “Yes, if he was on other teams and expected to score, he may not be in the starting lineup on some teams.”

Webber went on to say he is one of Golden State’s most valuable players because he keeps their system going, he’s unselfish and he locks down defensively. It didn’t sound like he was trying to criticize Green.

But the idea that Green – a two-time all-star and reigning defensive player of the year – potentially wouldn’t start on other teams was a curious idea.

So, naturally, Green was asked about it. Naturally, he had plenty to say.

“I don’t have a scorer’s mentality, especially for the team that I play on,” Green said. “I think if I did have a scorer’s mentality, it would throw all this off and it wouldn’t work out.

“You know, I think there are times in the game where I probably need to score more, but it’s hard to turn a scorer’s mentality on and off. I’ve had that once before in my life. You don’t just click that on or off. Nonetheless, I do know when I need to be more aggressive and that helps my team out.

“But I don’t care. I’ve done some great things in this league. I’ve been to all-star (games) twice averaging like 11 points, ten points or something like that. Look, you know, I don’t need to score.

“However, I don’t think he can find many GMs are coaches that wouldn’t say I wouldn’t start on their team, and you know, my — I’m fine without scoring the ball. I think I’ve created a new lane for guys in this league to where you don’t have to score 20 points to be an all-star or be a starter in this league and it is what it is.

“That’s fine and my jersey fit well. So I’m doing really pretty good. You know, much love to C-Web, though, from Michigan, State of Michigan, you know, we good.”

By this point, Green was standing up, holding the microphone in his hand. And, as he was, he decided to take a second to recognize someone who wasn’t at Tuesday’s game: Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich, who remains in San Antonio after his wife, Erin, passed away last Wednesday after a lengthy illness.

“One other thing, man, I think when I look at life — you know, seriously, this is dead serious. When I look at life, when somebody pass away, we tend to think we’re there for one day or two days and then we float away and think like their problem go away.

“So I just want to send my love to Pop and his family, again. It was kind of a thing the first day and happened and then it’s like gone. That probably don’t leave for him so much. Love Pop and I send my prayers and best wishes to him and his family.”

Then – as Green remained standing – he was asked about the decidedly odd incident involving a local television reporter stealing the jacket of Ralph Walker, the Warriors’ longtime security guard, after the team’s shootaround in San Antonio last Thursday.

“Yeah, I ain’t saw the video,” Green said. “I think we got great security staff in Ralph, Tony and Jeff. But did they find out what happened and found where the jacket was at?

“Obviously it’s unfortunate. I think, you know, what it boils down to it, it’s a jacket but I think it’s more so the principle. You’re in your own space and you want to return your jacket, and all of us do and so I think it’s more so the principle than the actual thing.

“Like, you know, if I got a dollar sitting here, it’s a dollar, but it’s my dollar. I wouldn’t expect nobody to take it. That’s an unfortunate situation. We got a great front office and great media PR staff that will figure it all out.”

And, with that, yet another eventful Draymond Green press conference had come to an end.

Manu Ginobili still isn’t sure what his future will look like.

The Argentine legend, who will turn 41 in July, said after the Spurs suffered a season-ending 99-91 loss to the Warriors in Game 5 of their first round series the same thing he said last week: that he will take time this summer to contemplate his future before making a decision about whether to return for a 17th NBA season.

“I’ve been contemplating retirement forever,” Ginobili said with a smile. “Nothing changed.

“I’ll let a month or two months go by, and then i’ll see how I feel. I’m not the type of guy that makes decisions on the fly, or when you’re upset or hurt or whatever.

“I usually let it sink in and see how it feels.”

The Spurs will have Ginobili as part of their organization for as long as he’s willing to be part of it. They’d love for him to return again next season, as he’s remained an integral part of their bench – even as one of the oldest players in the league.

“Is there anything that surprises you about Manu?” Spurs interim coach Ettore Messina asked after Ginobili had 10 points, five rebounds and seven assists in nearly 25 minutes Tuesday. “So, I mean, it will be another unbelievable proof of who he is as a man and as a professional player. It’s unbelievable. What can I tell you?

“He was not even doing well today. He had a problem in his foot and he started a little bit — he was not doing well but then he decided he wanted to play. It’s unbelievable, really.”

That feeling is shared by people across the NBA, as few players are as beloved around the league as Ginobili. Just look at this interaction between him and Warriors Coach Steve Kerr – his teammate back in 2002-03, Ginobili’s rookie year – on the court after Game 5.

Kerr then expounded on that feeling in his postgame press conference.

“You know, that’s my guy,” Kerr said with a smile. “We were teammates, 2003, a long time ago. It’s amazing to see him out there continuing to play and play with so much joy and passion.

“So I’m hoping that’s not his last game. I just told him I hope he keeps playing because he’s been just amazing for the league and so fun to watch night-in and night-out.”

He’s not alone.

Remember that line about barring a total collapse in the fourth quarter?

Well, about that …

The Golden State Warriors made it far, far more interesting than they would’ve liked. But, in the end, they managed to survive a late comeback by the San Antonio Spurs to emerge with a 99-91 victory –and, with it, the right to advance to the second round of the NBA playoffs, where they’ll face the New Orleans Pelicans.

The Warriors saw their lead reduced to two points when LaMarcus Aldridge made a pair of free throws inside the final minute to cap a brilliant night with 30 points and 12 rebounds. Kevin Durant, though, came back and buried a jumper from the top of the key to extend Golden State’s lead to four, and ensured the Warriors would emerge from this game – and series – victorious.

Now the focus will shift to how the Warriors match up with the Pelicans – and to whether Manu Ginobili and Kawhi Leonard will be back in San Antonio next season – although for two very different reasons.

Barring a total collapse in the fourth quarter, the Golden State Warriors will be advancing to the second round of the playoffs.

Finally creating some separation from the San Antonio Spurs, the Warriors now lead 79-65 after three, clamping down on their opponents defensively in the same way they did during the opening three games of this series – and failed to in Game 4, which is why tonight’s game is happening in the first place.

San Antonio is shooting just 33 percent from the floor overall, and 6-for-25 from three-point range. If Golden State was having even an average shooting game from three-point range itself – the Warriors are 5-for-21 from three – this game would be over already.

That said, it essentially is.

The Golden State Warriors are playing better than they did in Game 4 — but not well enough to put away the San Antonio Spurs so far in Game 5.

Early in the second half, the Warriors hold a nine-point lead, as they’ve been able to limit San Antonio to 30.6 percent shooting from the floor.

The reason the Warriors haven’t been able to put the game away, though, is because they aren’t making much themselves — including going 4 for 17 from three-point range.

Remarkably, three of those made three-pointers are by the team’s two most suspect main shooters: Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala. So far, both men are a combined 3 for 8 from the field — a percentage Golden State will happily take for the remainder of the playoffs, if it can get it.

With the Miami Heat now officially eliminated from the playoffs, one of the big questions surrounding the Heat heading into the summer is about the status of future Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade.

Wade spent the first 13 years of his career in Miami before spending last season in Chicago and the first half of this year in Cleveland — only to be traded back to South Florida at the deadline instead of getting released.

He settled into a nice role coming off the bench in Miami — one that his game is well-suited to filling for the next few seasons. But will he? Or will he choose to retire instead?

Wade wasn’t saying Tuesday night.

“There will be no breaking news here in Philly,” Wade joked after the loss to the Sixers in Game 5 of their first-round series.

“You can lose with effort. You can lose to a better team. And that’s what they are. We had some moments we would like to have back. Ultimately they had more than us.”

If it was up to Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra, though, Wade won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.

“I’ve coached him now in this role, which I don’t think either one of us ever would have imagined that Dwyane Wade would be coming off the bench,” Spoelstra said. “But he’s handled all of these roles with incredible class and dignity.

“He could play this role forever. I don’t know if he will choose to do that, but it also, again, speaks to his character and his humility, you know, that he’d be willing to take on a role like this. He knew what the deal was. We were already kind of set with our rotation, that was one of the first things he said, ‘I don’t want to disrupt anything. I’ll come off the bench, I’ll play with the second unit, and we’ll make this work. Don’t worry about me.’ And that’s awesome.

“There probably aren’t a lot of Hall of Fame players at his age … who would be willing to do that.”

Now the Heat will wait and see if Wade chooses to do that again next season. He clearly won’t be playing anywhere else. The question is if he’ll be playing at all.

The Golden State Warriors were upset they allowed themselves to have to come back to Oakland and play Game 5 of this series against the San Antonio Spurs by letting Game 4 slip away from them.

They haven’t looked much better at the start of Game 5.

Despite the Spurs struggling from the field early on (going 9 for 27 to start the game), they are managing to hang around thanks to four of those shots they’ve made being from three-point range.

Golden State, on the other hand, is just 2 for 9 from deep, though it does have a 6-0 edge in fast break points and a 16-10 edge in points in the paint.

Once again, Gregg Popovich is missing from the bench for the San Antonio Spurs in a playoff game.

Ettore Messina, Popovich’s lead assistant and one of the most decorated coaches in European basketball history, led the team for a third straight game Tuesday night as the Spurs tried to extend their first-round series with the Golden State Warriors to a sixth game.

The last time Popovich made a public appearance with the team was after practice last Wednesday in San Antonio. It was later that day that the team announced his wife, Erin, had passed away after a lengthy battle with an undisclosed illness.

[‘It’s going to be very hard to play basketball today’: NBA mourns death of Gregg Popovich’s wife]

Popovich didn’t coach either Game 3 or Game 4 in San Antonio, and the team announced Monday he would not be with the Spurs in Oakland for Game 5 Tuesday night.

There has been no word yet on whether Popovich would be available if the Spurs can force Game 6 back in San Antonio Thursday night.

When asked before the game about his recent conversations with Popovich, Messina said, “There are more important things than screens and transition defense.”

Then he paused.

“Even if transition defense is very, very important,” he added.

It was a small moment of levity in a week that has been full of anything but for Popovich and the team he’s been with for more than two decades.

The Philadelphia 76ers owned the second half of each game of their first-round series with the Miami Heat. It’s why they have advanced to the second round for the first time in six years.

Philadelphia emerged with a 104-91 victory over Miami Tuesday night at Wells Fargo Center — a game that was noted across the country for rapper Meek Mill’s first public appearance after being released on bail after five months in prison earlier in the day.

[After release from prison, Meek Mill rings the bell at Game 5 of Sixers-Heat]

But it also wound up following a familiar refrain for Philadelphia in this series: struggle to pull away from Miami in the first half, then demolish the Heat in the second.

The two teams were tied at 46 at halftime Tuesday, only for the Sixers to pull away after halftime. In the five games in the series, Philadelphia outscored Miami by 78 points in the second half.

In the first half? Miami actually outscored Philadelphia by 24 points.

It was a fitting result, though, as Philadelphia is the far superior team from a talent standpoint. The Heat gamely hung in the series thanks to the grit and experience it had across the roster — not to mention the coaching acumen of Erik Spoelstra, one of the league’s best tacticians.

But the young Sixers responded brilliantly to every challenge thrown their way and look like a potential Finals contender — despite this being the first time the team has made the playoffs since 2012 and the first playoff appearance of the careers of stars Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, along with valuable role players Dario Saric and Robert Covington.

The Boston Celtics took a 3-2 lead in their best-of-seven series with the Milwaukee Bucks thanks to a 93-87 victory Tuesday night, but the main talking points afterward was a missed shot clock violation that went in favor of the Celtics with 1:16 remaining.

With the Celtics leading 84-79, Horford caught the ball on the wing as the shot clock wound down and hoisted up a three-pointer. It clanged off the rim and landed in the hands of Celtics forward Semi Ojeleye, who corralled the offensive rebound and was fouled.

There was just one problem: The play could not be reviewed. Why? Because going back and checking if the shot clock expired when it hadn’t been called in the first place is not one of the things that triggers a replay review.

So while Boston wound up not scoring on the possession, it caused another 27 seconds to run off the clock — 27 seconds that the Bucks could’ve used as they tried to cut into Boston’s lead in the final minute.

Ironically, it would have been better for Milwaukee if Horford’s shot had gone in. Had it, the Bucks would have gotten the ball back, and his shot would have been looked at later, and the points would have been taken off the board.

But because Horford’s shot missed, there wasn’t a way for it to be looked at. It’s similar to how the league handles goaltending calls. If a goaltending is called, the referees can go and review it to determine whether it was or not. If goaltending is not called, it can’t be looked at it.

The same goes for shot clock violations, as the Bucks found out the hard way Tuesday night.

The Philadelphia 76ers haven’t gotten the boost from Meek Mill’s return and courtside perch that they would’ve hoped.

The Sixers and Miami Heat are tied at 46 at halftime of Game 5, as Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons haven’t gotten much help from their teammates. Embiid (11 points) and Simmons (10) are the only players in double-figures for Philadelphia, who has shot 2 for 12 from three.

Miami, meanwhile, has gone 5 for 18 from three, is shooting just 38 percent overall and has committed seven turnovers that have become 14 Sixers points. By that math, the Heat should feel fortunate this is even a tie game.

The Milwaukee Bucks have managed to hang around as Game 5 has wore on. And, as the game has ebbed into the fourth quarter, the Bucks have pulled back to within 72-68.

The latest surge — the second time in the second half Milwaukee has pulled this close to the Boston Celtics — has been led by Jabari Parker, who has an and-one layup and a dunk in the Bucks’ past two trips. On a night when Milwaukee simply can’t buy a basket, it would be huge for the Bucks to get another scoring option going alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton.

Meek Mill, just hours after being released from prison on bail, rang the bell prior to the start of Game 5 of the Philadelphia 76ers’ playoff series against the Miami Heat.

Mill, a prominent rapper and Philadelphia native, came to the game with minority owner Michael Rubin and comedian Kevin Hart, and spent time with the team in the locker room prior to the game.

He also exchanged a greeting with star center Joel Embiid before tip from his court-side seat — where Mill is wearing an Embiid jersey.

With the Milwaukee Bucks staring at a 16-point deficit late in the first half, it looked like Game 5 of their series with the Boston Celtics could be over by the halftime break.

That, however, was before a late 7-2 Bucks run over the final 90 seconds of the half to get Milwaukee within 11 at the half.

Predictably, the Celtics have shot better at home, but the bigger issue so far in this game is that Milwaukee can’t make anything. The Bucks are shooting 34.9 percent (15 for 43) at halftime, and 3 for 14 (21.4 percent) from three-point range.

Outside of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton, though, Milwaukee is shooting 6 for 28 overall and 2 for 13 from three-point range. Simply put, that has to change in the second half for the Bucks to have a chance to win this game.

The Boston Celtics hit some shots in the first quarter of Game 5. The Milwaukee Bucks hit even less.

In a series that’s been ugly thus far, these first 12 minutes may have sunk to a new low. The Bucks went a dismal 6 for 22 from the field, including 1 for 7 from three. The Celtics went 9 for 21 and 2 for 8. Both teams committed five turnovers.

The Celtics, though, ended it leading 23-15 and have to feel good about where things stand. Role players always play better at home, and with so many role players on both teams, that has to benefit Boston (as it did in Games 1 and 2).

Marcus Smart is the emotional heartbeat of the Boston Celtics, and is precisely the type of player the blue-collar city is known to love.

Thus, it should come as a surprise to no one that Smart received a standing ovation when he checked in at the 4:08 mark of Game 5 of Boston’s first-round series with the Milwaukee Bucks.

That said: How much of an impact will Smart actually make in this series?

Yes, he has strengths that can help a team in the playoffs — particularly his ability to switch defensively because of his size and strength as a guard, and he can operate the pick-and-roll with some proficiency.

But Smart’s strengths are not in scoring — which is the thing Boston has struggled with so far in this series. If his return means less minutes for the combination of Aron Baynes and Semi Ojeleye, that’s one thing. But if it means less minutes for Terry Rozier, Jaylen Brown or Jayson Tatum? That might not work out so well for a Boston team that needs every potential scoring avenue it can find.

Rapper Meek Mill has arrived at Wells Fargo Center and was seen entering the Sixers locker room pregame.

Meek Mill was released from prison earlier Tuesday on bail after serving five months. Sixers minority owner Michael Rubin picked up the rapper in Chester, Pa., and it appears he was flown to Philadelphia in a helicopter.

Trailing 2-0 in a series last season against the Chicago Bulls, Boston Celtics Coach Brad Stevens put Gerald Green into the starting lineup for Game 3. That (plus Rajon Rondo’s injured thumb) wound up being the catalyst for Boston winning the next four games of the series, and eventually reaching the Eastern Conference finals.

This year, with Boston tied 2-2 after dropping a pair of games in Milwaukee, Stevens decided to shake things up once again.

Rookie forward Semi Ojeleye came into the starting lineup, replacing Australian center Aron Baynes, with the hope of providing more spacing and improved switching on defensive for the Celtics. And, in the opening minutes, Ojeleye managed to knock down a three-pointer from the corner (though he missed another).

In a series of tweets Tuesday afternoon, rapper Meek Mill confirmed he had been released on bail from a state correction institution in Chester, Pa., five months after he’d been incarcerated for a probation violation.

I’d like to thank God, my family, and all my public advocates for their love, support and encouragement during this difficult time. While the past five months have been a nightmare, the prayers, visits, calls, letters and rallies have helped me stay positive.

— Meek Mill (@MeekMill) April 24, 2018

To the Philly District Attorney’s office, I’m grateful for your commitment to justice. I understand that many people of color across the country don’t have that luxury and I plan to use my platform to shine a light on those issues.

— Meek Mill (@MeekMill) April 24, 2018

In the meantime, I plan to work closely with my legal team to overturn this unwarranted conviction and look forward to reuniting with my family and resuming my music career.

— Meek Mill (@MeekMill) April 24, 2018

Mill, whose given name is Robert Williams, has received a visit earlier Tuesday from comedian Kevin Hart and Sixers minority owner Michael Rubin. A short time later, Rubin posted on Instagram a picture of himself, Mill and Hart at a Sixers game, and said he was going back to the prison to pick the rapper up.

Mill’s case has been championed by players across the NBA — including Sixers rookies Ben Simmons and Markelle Fultz, who reportedly went to visit him in prison, as well.

Before each home game, Philadelphia has someone different serve as the team’s ceremonial bell-ringer, hitting a replica of the Liberty Bell just before tip-off to wind up the crowd inside Wells Fargo Center.

The bell-ringer for Game 1 was Joel Embiid, who was injured at the time. For Game 2, it was Hart.

If he’s able to get there in time, could Mill do it for Game 5? According to the New York Times, yes.

Just spoke to Sixers co-owner Michael Rubin. He said it’s “more likely than not” Meek Mill will attend Game 5 tonight, and he’ll ring the ceremonial bell pre-game if he can get there in time.

— Daniel Victor (@bydanielvictor) April 24, 2018

Just the idea of the rapper being court-side for Tuesday night’s game — which, if the Sixers win, will mean they advance to the second round for the first time in six years, where they’ll face either the Milwaukee Bucks or Boston Celtics, swept across the internet.

Meek Mill is free.

Sixers winning by 100 tonight.

— Cycle (@bycycle) April 24, 2018

if meek mill is courtside tonight, sixers by 50

— kelly cohen (@politiCOHEN_) April 24, 2018

It took meek mill 5 months to get out of jail but this guy from the Waffle House shooting can potentially be out by next week on BAIL. #OnlyInAmerica

— kuz (@kylekuzma) April 24, 2018

Tuesday’s schedule:

Boston Celtics 92, Milwaukee Bucks 87 (Celtics lead, 3-2)

Philadelphia 76ers 104, Miami Heat 91 (Sixers win series, 4-1)

Golden State Warriors 99, San Antonio Spurs 91 (Warriors win series, 4-1)

Additional reading:

Russell Westbrook and the Thunder don’t appear to have any idea how to beat the Jazz

Why is there a snake on the Philadelphia 76ers’ court?

Shining a spotlight on the 2018 NBA playoffs underachievers

John Wall has regained point god form, and that’s just what the Wizards need

Jazz boots Thunder to the brink in testy win; Rockets’ 50-point quarter fuels rout

Lance Stephenson got to LeBron James, but the Cavaliers got the win

Wizards reach their breaking point against Raptors. Then they get it together.

It turns out this year might not be so different for the Raptors after all

After first-round sweep, Blazers’ next steps could include trading away their stars

‘All my best games I was medicated’: Matt Barnes on his game-day use of marijuana

Adam Silver: One of the WNBA’s problems is that not enough young women pay attention to it

‘Get off her back’: LeBron James defends TNT reporter who asked him about Erin Popovich’s death

NBA, Twitch reach deal on 2K League streaming rights

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