On a late summer day a gym class of students were walking out to the High School Football Field. It was a noon gym class after an ordinary school day. Classes dragged on but gym was an eagerly awaited final class. The class followed their instructor across the pavement to the field. One of the students, a young man named Shawn, lagged behind the group. He was dressed as the rest of his class was, in a green and white gym uniform.
Most of the High school boys ran excitedly towards the football field under the watch of their teacher, much like puppies released from a kennel. Shawn followed slowly behind them but he noticed a lawn chair on a hill by the field. It was cheap and flimsy looking, the classic red and white striped plastic chair looked as if it was brand new. It hadn’t been there yesterday, but he came to the conclusion that the gym teacher had bought it for when he watched the class run laps. Still, the chair seemed to demand attention, whether it was the chair or the unnatural hill beneath it, he didn’t know.
Instinctively, Shawn jogged alongside the same classmate he does every other day.
“Hey Teo.” Shawn said, anticipating a small tirade.
“You weren’t at the game last night! Where were you?” Teo began, glancing back towards his friend as they kept pace with the class. “We lost the game and dropped down a rank, you better have a good reason for flaking!” His voice was irritated but still held the fondness of a friend who couldn’t stay mad.
“Yeah, sorry about that.” Shawn reached to scratch his head before stopping himself. “My mom needed help with something in the garden, you know how it is.”
His friend's face softened and he sighed as they turned a corner on the track. “Yeah, I know,”
After the last student finished the warm up laps, the practice game began. Throughout the game, Shawn glanced back at the chair, not once did he see the coach sit. Well, if he wasn’t going to sit there, Shawn would rest there himself. He preferred basketball anyways.
Towards the end of the gym period he grew tired of football and walked up the hill to the lawn chair. The class was starting to wind down and the coach didn’t notice him slip away. The chair was still there, and looked like a perfect spot to rest. As soon as he laid in the chair and got comfortable, he immediately fell asleep.
***


