Team Meeting Part 2 An Unlikely Friend   by Andrea Lena DiMaggio Copyright © 2010 Andrea Lena DiMaggio All Rights Reserved.   Some things are just more important than football...

"I don't understand, Sammi...why can't we see each other?" Rita's expression was equally angry and sad.

"I've got a lot of thinking to do...I have been thinking." Sammi looked down, not wanting to face Rita. She knew how upset and hurt Rita was, but it couldn't be helped. After a long talk with her brother Dan, she realized it was entirely unfair to have started the relationship in the first place. It wasn't like she didn't care for Rita. She did...it was that she cared that made her break it off.

"We shoulda never started, honey..." Tears streamed down both their faces as Sammi continued.

"I was more intrested in screwin' you, Rita...and that's wrong. I never thought about you other than someone to make out with, and that's wrong." Sammi looked into Rita's eyes, and while Rita was angry, she began to understand, or so Sammi thought.

"Let me get this straight. You love me so you don't want to be with me? What the fuck are you tryin' to pull here? You come here dressed like a fuckin' tart. You fuckin' queer." Rita might have been much kinder if she hadn't been so upset, but she did say some words she would come to regret later.

'Rita...no, it's not like that. I'm sorry, but..." Rita cut her off.

"Fuck you, you bastard...get out...just get the fuck out." Rita didn't even wait for Sammi to leave. She ran upstairs, crying. Sammi heard Rita's bedroom door slam. Her own tears cascaded like a waterfall down her face and onto the carpet in the foyer. She turned and opened the front door. Standing there for a moment, she tried to think of something that might make Rita understand, but nothing came to her, so she walked out and down the steps of the house, and right into a fist.

"I knew if I waited long enough, you fuckin' queer, I'd get my chance." Leon Lucas stood over Sammi's prostrate body.

"Yeah, you queer," Leon's toady, a one Marty Calabrese, stood behind Leon, almost afraid...actually he was afraid to do anything without Leon's approval.

Leon reached down and picked Sammi up by her belt. He thrust Sammi into Marty's arms, saying..."Hold him...tight."

Marty gripped Sammi by her arms, and Leon proceeded to punch Sammi repeatedly... stomach... arms...face.

"Okay, Marty...let him go." Leon said with a smirk. Sammi fell to the ground, cracking her head on the slate sidewalk.

"Fuck you, you fuckin' faggot," Leon said, and spat on Sammi as they walked away.

"Yeah, fuck you, you faggot." Marty spat, but his spittle hit a gust of wind and ended up on his new throwback Sixer's jersey.

"Aw fuck..." Marty looked down as Leon laughed. They took one more look at Sammi and nodded. Picking her up, they carried her around to the alley in back of Rita's house and dumped her in the pile of trash leaning up against the storm fence.

"Keep away from her, or this isn't over, you fuckin' queer!" Leon said as they walked away.

Rita's brother Julio walked down the alley toward his house. He saw Sammi lying in the pile of refuse. He walked up and looked down.

"Well, you fucker...finally got what's comin' to you...you queer." Julio kicked Sammi in the side, eliciting a low groan. "Stay away from my sister, you faggot." He spat on Sammi and walked up to his house, laughing. Sammi rolled over and tried to get up, but her two cracked ribs and the bruises on her arms kept her from getting up.

She crawled out to the street behind Rita's house, but made it no further than to the corner of the block fifty feet away before collapsing once again.

Louie Perrone, co-captain of the football team at school, was the defensive counterpart to Chris on offense. Unlike Chris, however, Louie made many of his decisions regarding the defense on the field, not on what was in the best interests of the team, but what would make him look good. That he was a superb athlete helped, but he made it difficult for his teammates to improve by making it all about him. It might come back and haunt him later on when the schedule got tougher, but he really didn't think about it.

Sammi had risen to a sitting position. Her face sported a few bruises as well as a knot over her right eye. Leon had been so out of control that his aim was bad enough to miss shattering Sammi's eye socket. She was crying, both from the humiliation and the pain, and the frustration of not being able to get up.

"Well, if it isn't Sammi Compagno. What's wrong sissy boy...your girlfriend beat you up?" Louie snickered.

"H...help me...please." Sammi raised a hand, painfully from the bruises and her cracked ribs."

"Why the fuck should I care about you...you fuckin' faggot. As far as I'm concerned, you got what you deserved. Pick yourself up." Louie laughed as he turned around the corner and disappeared. Sammi slumped back to the sidewalk and began to cry.

Jimmy Samartino was the captain of the cross-town sister school of the Lions. The Panthers were in a battle with the Lions for the last playoff spot for the state sectionals, and he was determined that nothing would keep them from the crown. He was delivering pizza in the neighborhood, and as he walked away from the house he noticed a figure lying on the ground across the street. He walked over quickly and noticed it was a girl. On closer inspection he realized it was a boy in girls’ clothing, and he was a mess. His dress was torn, and his face was bruised and bleeding. Jimmy felt uncomfortable, not knowing what to do. This was the first time he had ever seen one of "them" up close and it bothered him. It wasn't right, he thought, but he noticed the boy was crying, hard.

Reluctantly, Jimmy leaned over and asked the obvious but unnecessary question,

"Are you okay?" He looked at Sammi, who tried to rise up on one elbow, but finally gave into the pain and passed out.

Jimmy really didn't want to get involved; he really didn't even want to know what happened, but something inside him took over; you know...the good that sometimes pushes the stupidity and ignorance out of the way. He reached down and helped Sammi to his feet. Then he walked him over to the car and put him in the passenger seat and strapped him in.

"Fuck...this fucking sucks," he said to himself. "If I lose my job over this..." He turned to face Sammi and noticed that he had passed out once again.

"Oh shit...alright...what to do...?" He thought for a moment and then called the Pizzeria.

"Yeah...I just finished delivering over on Clancy Street...I found this kid passed out...looks like he was beaten up pretty bad...I'm takin' him over to St. Clare's to the ER...what....no...I'll get back when I'm finished...what.....you know, Carmine... you're... what? No...I'll see you later...I don't know when...Look I don't care if your dad owns the place...Yeah? You too, asshole!" Jimmy pulled away from the curb and sped off to the hospital.

The loud chime rang overhead as Jimmy sat in the waiting room to the ER. Sammi was in and out of it all the way to the hospital and Jimmy found out his name and his brother's cell, so he was waiting for someone from the family to show up. The hospital had asked for some guarantee, so Jimmy told them to put it on his medical card, and that his dad would try and settle it later. After signing some papers he sat down in one of those stiff plastic chairs that make you wish you'd never come there. He was bored and anxious. The TV was turned to the cooking channel and some white haired lady was going on about how good the biscuits would taste with butter.

The door to the waiting room opened and several figures walked in, all looking anxious and concerned. Dan Compagno, Sammi's brother, walked to the front desk and identified himself. They told him where to enter and he went through a door and was gone.

"What the fuck is he doing here," Pete Stone said. Mara Felice, Pete's girlfriend, punched him hard in the arm.

"Pete...Watch the language, huh?' She smiled to take away the sting of the rebuke, and Pete looked at her and apologized

"Hey Jim," a voice from behind him called. Chris Sovrano, captain of the Lions, stood behind Pete and Mara with Pete's brother Andy. Both walked up to Jim, who was puzzled by the tone of Chris' voice. He had expected some teasing and banter, like when rivals size each other up...some trash talk.

"Thanks for helping Sammi." Chris said, as he put his hand on Jimmy's shoulder.

"What the...” Pete would have finished the invective but for the fist punching his ribcage...hard. He turned and frowned at Mara who looked up at him and smiled.

"Sorry..." Pete shrugged his shoulder and turned his attention back to the trio by the seats. Andrew had turned around and put both of his hands out, palms down, as if to tell his older brother to calm down.

"H...hey Chris. How...how's it goin'?" Chris and Jimmy knew each other from middle school, before the township built a second high school. Once teammates, they were now rivals and Jimmy didn't know what to do with that. Chris did.

"Thanks for bringing Sammi to the hospital. Her parents are out of town, and Dan was worried sick all the way over here. Not too many people would have thought to call. Thanks for waiting."

"Her...Chris...that kid is a guy...what the....he's a faggot." Jimmy didn't look upset or angry, just confused.

"Sammi is Dan's sister...it's hard to explain, but she's not a "faggot, Jim. Even if she was gay, should that matter? She's a human being who needed help, and obviously it didn't matter enough to leave her where you found her."

"I know...I'm sorry...it just...I don't understand it all, but he....ah...she was hurt. All I could think of was that she might die if I didn't do something. She said two other people just walked on by...Who can do something like that?"

Jimmy shook his head, more out of concern and wonder about the teen lying in a bed in the ER than his confusion. Their talk was interrupted by the reappearance of Dan.

"Good news...no broken bones in her face...came close to shattering her eye socket. Other than bruises and a couple of cracked ribs. They're going to keep her in overnight for observation but she's going to be okay...She's going to be okay!" Dan had tears in his eyes as he turned to Jimmy. He leaned close and enveloped Jimmy in a bear hug.

"Thank you...this was....thank you." Dan wiped his tears with his sleeve. "I sorted out the insurance with admitting, so our insurance is on the bill." Dan paused before continuing. He smiled back at Andrew and Chris.

"Sammi wanted you to know she really thanks you. She wanted to give you this, so I hope you don't mind." Dan leaned close once again and hugged Jimmy, kissing him on the cheek, which caused him to turn red.

"O...okay..." Jimmy pulled back, more out of surprise than the still evident embarrassment.

"I guess you'll be getting back to your job now, huh?" Andrew said.

"Not really. When I called up to tell them I was still at the hospital they said I was fired. I gotta stop by tomorrow to give them their sign and pick up my last check." Jim looked down, embarrassed at the revelation.

"Jim....I know it's not much...especially after what you did for my sister." Dan looked him in the eye, sorta the old "man-to-man" expression.

"My dad owns a hardware store in town, right near the divide (the divide being the demarcation between the two high schools). He's looking for some help in the store, and we could use someone so....conscientious. The job is yours if you want it." Dan smiled at Jimmy, whose face began to redden again; this time more out of embarrassment and shame. He had just called this guy's little brother a faggot, and now he's being offered a job?

"My sister said she understands....it's okay." Dan said, and Jimmy knew exactly what Dan was referring to.

"I...I gotta get home...we play the Titans this weekend and coach wants us rested up." Jimmy just wanted to leave...he was filled with shame and confusion and more than a few regrets.

"Hey Jim,” Chris said as Jimmy turned to leave. Walking up to him, Chris offered him a hand. Pulling him into himself, Chris clasped Jimmy's hand while bumping shoulders. "Have a great game!"

"Thhhthanks. Chris...you too." Jimmy smiled sheepishly and turned to leave. He had just reached the exit when he stopped and turned.

"Hey Dan?" He called out. Everyone turned and looked.

"Tell your bro...Tell your sister I hope she gets better real quick." He tried to hide it, but as he turned back and walked through the exit, they noticed the tears streaming down his face.

based on the passage, Luke 10:29-37