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Three days or so later, they coot uy in the car an two other people what look like goons -- who I guess was present in case I was to start somethin They took all the stuff outta oodbye to Miss Margaret, an alls of a sudden she coot to say goodbye to all the other nuts, an they was droolin an spasone
Mauy an I set in back in between theoons, jus like police done in them ole o don We went to the new highschool they had built When we got there they took uy went in wile the two goons waited in the hall The principal was an ole gray-haired y pants who look like he coulda coun splainin things an axein me questions, an I just nodded my head, but what they wanted was for ered out on uy in the car was the football coach, nao to no class or nothin, but Coach Fellers, he took oons rounded me up a football suit with all the in front to keepwas, they couldn’t find no shoes to fit me, so’s I had to use my sneakers till they could order the shoes
Coach Fellers an the goons got me dressed up in the football suit, an then they ain, ten or twenty ti I had trouble with for a as that jockstrap thing -- cause I couldn’t see no real good reason for wearing it Well, they tried splainin it to oons says to the other that I’ht I wouldn’t understand him, but I did, on account of I pay special attention to that kind of shit Not that it hurt ht worse than that But I took notice of it, nonetheless
After a wile a bunch of kids started comin into the locker rooettin into it Then we all went outside an Coach Fellers got everbody together an he stood me up in front of them an introduced me He was sayin a bunch of shit that I wadn’t followin real close cause I was haf scared to death, on account of nobody had ever introduced ers But afterward solad I am here an all Then Coach Fellers blowed a whistle, what like to make et exercise
It’s a kind of long story what all happened nex, but anyway, I begun to play football Coach Fellers an one of the goons hepped me out special since I didn’t kno to play We had this thing where you sposed to block people an they were tryin to splain it all, but e tried it a bunch of tiusted cause I couldn’t remember what I was sposed to do
Then they tried this other thing they call the defense, where they put three guys in front of uy with the football The first part was easier, cause I could just shove the other guys’ heads down, but they were unhappy with the way I grapped the guy with the ball, an finally theyoak tree about fifteen or twenty tiet the feel of it, I spose But after a wile, when they figgered I had learnt souys an the ball carrier an then got mad I didn’t jump on him real vicious-like after I moved the others out of the way I took a lot of abuse that afternoon, but e quit practicin I went in to see Coach Fellers an tole hiuy cause I was afraid of hurtin him Coach, he say that it wouldn’t hurt him, cause he was in his football suit an was protected The truth is, I wasn’t so et ain if I wadn’t real nice to everbody Toof it all
Meantio to class In the nut school, we really didn’t have that s Somehow, they had worked it out so’s I had three homeroom classes where you jus set there an did whatever you wanted, an then three other classes where there was a lady as teachin me how to read Jus the two of us She was real nice an pretty and hts about her Miss Henderson was her name
About the only class I liked was lunch, but I guess you couldn’t call that a class At the nut school, my mama would fix me a sambwich an a cookie an a piece of fruit -- cept no bananas -- an I’d take it to school with me But in this school they was a cafeteria with nine or ten different things to eat an I’d have trouble makin up my mind what I wanted I think somebody must of said somethin, cause after a week or so Coach Fellers coo ahead an eat all I wanted cause it been "taken care of" Hot damn!
Guess who should be in my homeroom class but Jenny Curran She corade She was all growed up noith pretty black hair an she was long-legged an had a beautiful face, an they was other things too, I dare not oin exactly to the likin of Coach Fellers He seemed displeased a lot an was always shoutin at people He shouted at er out sorappin our guy carryin the ball, but that didn’t work cept when they ran the ball right up the middle of the line Coach was not too happy with my tacklin neither, an let me tell you, I spent a lot of tiet to where I would thow uy like they wanted me to do Somethin kep me froed all that too In the cafeteria I had started gettin oin over to set nex to Jenny Curran I wouldn’t say nothin, but she was jus bout the only person in the school I knew halfways, an it felt good setting there with her Most of the time she didn’t pay me no attention, an talked with other people At first I’d been settin with some of the football players, but they acted like I was invisible or somethin At least Jenny Curran acted like I was there But after a wile of this, I started to notice this other guy was there a lot too, an he starts makin wisecracks bout one on for a week or two, an I was sayin nothin, but finally I says -- I can’t hardly believe I said it even now -- but I says, "I ain’t no Duhin An Jenny Curran, she say to the guy to keep quiet, but he takes a carton of milk an pours it in my lap an I jump up an run out cause it scares uy coet" me All day I was afraid terribily, an later that afternoon, when I was leaving to go to the gyo the other way, but he come up to me an start pushin s, callin me a "stupo" an all, an then he hit me in the stomach It didn’t hurt so un to run, an heard him behind me an the others was runnin after ym, across the practice football field an suddenly I seen Coach Fellers, settin up in the bleachers watchin o away, an Coach Fellers, he has got this real peculiar look on his face, an tell ht away A wile later, he come in the locker room with these plays drawn on a piece of paper -- three of them -- an say for me to memorize them best I can
That afternoon at the football practice, he line everbody up in two teaive ht end of the line to the goalpost When they all start chasin ht of thehty happy; jumpin up and down an yellin an slappin everbody on the back We’d run a lot of races before, to see how fast we could run, but I get a lot faster when I’uess What idiot wouldn’t?
Anyway, I becouys on the teaaive oal line two or three tihschool certainly begun to change things in ot to where I liked to run with the football, cept it was mostly that they et to where I liked to just run over people like you do in the hschool halfback in the entire world I do not think he mean it as a compliment
Otherwise, I was learnin to read a lot better with Miss Henderson She give me Tom Sawyer an two other books I can’t reive me a test where I don’t do so hot But I sure enjoyed them books
After a wile, I went back to settin nex to Jenny Curran in the cafeteria, an there weren’t no time I alkin home from school and who should appear but the boy that poured that ot hissef a stick an start callin s like "moron" and "stupo"
So coain -- but then, for no reason I know, I jus didn’t do it That feller take his stick an poke me in the storapped a holt to his arm an with my other hand I knock him upside the head an that was the end of that, et a phone call froain they is goin to call the authorities an have me "put away" I tried to splain it to my mama an she say she understand, but I could tell she orried She tell ot to watch ht hurt somebody An I nodded an proht when I lyin in bed I heard her cryin to hersef in her room
But what that did for ht on my football playin Next day, I axed Coach Fellers to let ht on and he say okay, an I run over uys till I’ain That year I made the All State Football teaive me two pair of socks an a new shirt on ht et the All State Football award First suit I ever had Mama tied my tie for me an off I went