Guest Post by: nonotnolan
Being one of the tutors for the Basketball Team had its advantages. For starters, it meant that none of the athletes on campus would be giving me any grief for being so bookish. It also meant I was invited to all of the big dorm parties. Not that I ever went, of course… but I could have. Of course, there were a few weird things as well. "If one of us ever ends up with a high risk of academic suspension, we’re stealing your smarts.“ That’s what the players always told me. That’s what the players told all of us tutors. I never took them seriously, of course… how would that even work?
Of course, one day in mid-March, I found out exactly what they meant. I was just minding my own business, reading something for my English Lit class, when Clark– one of the lead point guards– came barging into my room, backed by two of the biggest cronies I’d ever seen. "I’m about to fail Calculus,” Clark said, looking at me with a wry smirk. "Hey, Nathan. Coach says it’s time to pick someone’s brain, and I’ve decided on yours.“
"Wait… I… are you serious?” I yelled. "That’s not real. You can’t do this! Look at me! My intelligence is all I have!“
"As if I care,” Clark said. His two friends laughed, and cracked their knuckles. "You can come peacefully, or we can have Mitch and Justin drag you there by force. Either way, we’re going to Coach’s office.“
