The Cut

1The list would go up on the gym door at four o’clock. Jordan had known this all week, and all week he had pretended not to care.

2There were twenty-two players trying out for the state under-16 basketball squad. There were twelve places. Jordan had worked out, more times than he wanted to admit, that he was probably the eleventh or twelfth best, or the thirteenth.

3At 3:55, a crowd had gathered in the corridor. Nobody was talking much. Sam Okoro was bouncing a ball against the wall in a steady, nervous rhythm until a teacher told him to stop. Jordan stood near the back, his hands in his pockets so no one would see them shaking.

4Coach Ramirez came out at four exactly, pinned up a single sheet of paper, and walked away without looking at anyone. The crowd surged forward in a cacophony of shouts, questions and squeaking shoes.

5Jordan did not push. He waited until the front rows broke apart, some boys whooping, some turning away with faces set like stone. Then he stepped up and read the list from top to bottom. Then again, from bottom to top, in case he had missed it.

6He had not missed it. His name was not there. Sam’s was, at number twelve.

7Jordan felt something heavy settle in his chest. He thought of the mornings at the outdoor court before school, the free throws in the rain, the way his dad had driven him to every training session for two years. He had told himself he would be fine either way. He had been wrong.

8Sam found him in the car park. For a moment neither said anything.

9“You should have got it,” Sam said finally. “Your defence is better than mine.”

10“Your shooting’s better,” Jordan said. It was true, and saying it was harder than he expected. “Congratulations. Really.”

11At home, his dad did not ask. He just looked at Jordan’s face and nodded. After dinner, he picked up his car keys.

12“Court?” he said.

13Jordan almost said no. Then he thought about the next trials, in eleven months, and about the eleventh, twelfth and thirteenth places, and how close they really were.

14He went to get his shoes.