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  Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Names: Aro, David.

  Title: Nothing but net / David Aro.

  Description: New York : West 44, 2020. | Series: Alton heights all-stars

  Identifiers: ISBN 9781538382134 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781538382141 (library bound) | ISBN 9781538383070 (ebook)

  Subjects: LCSH: Basketball--Juvenile fiction. | Teamwork (Sports)--Juvenile fiction. | Friendship--Juvenile fiction.

  Classification: LCC PZ7.A76 No 2019 | DDC [E]--dc23

  First Edition

  Published in 2020 by

  Enslow Publishing LLC

  101 West 23rd Street, Suite #240

  New York, NY 10011

  Copyright © 2020 Enslow Publishing LLC

  Editor: Theresa Emminizer

  Designer: Seth Hughes

  Photo credits: cover Riccardo Del Bianco/EyeEm/Getty Images.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer.

  Printed in the United States of America

  CPSIA compliance information: Batch #CS18W44: For further information contact Enslow Publishing LLC, New York, New York at 1-800-542-2595.

  CHAPTER ONE

  SPRING

  PRACTICE

  The Alton Heights All-Stars were ready to hit the court.

  The cold weather had turned warm. No ice hung from the roofs. The snow had melted on the basketball court.

  They could once again wear shorts and sweatshirts outside. To kids at Center Park Elementary, this was a big deal.

  It meant the start of spring. And the big kickball game at the park.

  The All-Stars split into teams. Tyler, Jasmine, and Brianna ran to the outfield.

  Brianna yelled, “You’re going down!” Then she pointed to Cam and Markus.

  Markus stuck his tongue out at her.

  Cam kicked the ball. It flew over Tyler’s head. He chased it down. Cam ran around the bases. Tyler kicked it back into play. The ball landed in a puddle next to third base. Mud splashed on Cam’s legs.

  “Thanks a lot,” said Cam. He wiped off his legs with his sleeve.

  “Well, next time don’t kick it so far!” yelled Tyler from the outfield.

  They smiled at each other.

  “Easy out. Easy out,” called out Brianna. She moved toward second base.

  Markus rubbed his hands together. He waited for the ball to roll to him. He kicked it over Brianna’s head. She ran for it. Then dived. She slid across the muddy grass. She pushed herself up.

  “That’s the third out,” she said. She wiped the mud off her face.

  Markus walked by Brianna when they switched sides. “Looks like you missed a spot,” he said.

  Brianna wiped her hand off on Markus’s shirt. “Thanks,” she laughed.

  Jasmine kicked the ball between first and second base. It bounced between Cam and Markus. Jasmine rounded third base. Cam sent the ball flying from the outfield. Jasmine slid. She beat the ball.

  “Safe!” yelled Tyler.

  Jasmine gave Tyler a high five. Then dusted herself off.

  The whole field was a big mud pit by the end of the game. But none of the kids cared. Kickball at the park was a yearly event. Their parents had started it way back when they were kids.

  For the All-Stars, spring meant something else, too. It meant they didn’t have to stay inside playing video games. They could finally get back to basketball.

  Or so they thought.

  They went back to the park the next morning. They ran to warm up. Did some drills. Tyler even made their first play: up. Then men in yellow hard hats and orange vests showed up.

  They carried fancy cameras. They took pictures near the benches. They looked over the grassy spot where the kids had played kickball. Then set up near the basketball court.

  Jasmine made a shot. The ball took three bounces before Cam rolled it back to her. Jasmine stopped the ball with her foot. She didn’t ask why Cam didn’t just pass it to her. Instead, she kept her foot on top of the ball. She stood quietly like the rest of the team.

  Tyler walked to the corner of the court. He faced the hoop like he was thinking about the game. But really, he was listening to the workers behind him.

  “Almost done. Just need one more shot,” said one of the men.

  “Sounds good. We’re going to fit a lot of cars in the new parking lot,” said another man with a clipboard.

  Tyler walked back over to his team.

  “What’s going on?” asked Brianna.

  Tyler’s face turned white.

  “You okay?” Cam snapped his fingers in front of Tyler’s face. “What did you hear?”

  Tyler couldn’t look at his team.

  “I don’t know if we’ll be able to practice anymore,” said Tyler. “I heard those guys say the park is going to be turned into a parking lot.”

  The five friends didn’t take another shot. They watched the workers pack up. Then leave.

  Markus picked the ball up. “If we don’t have a place to practice anymore… does that mean we’re not a team anymore?”

  Jasmine put her hand on Markus’s shoulder. “We’ll always have each other.”

  Tyler grabbed the ball from Markus. “As for this,” he said. He squeezed it between his hands. “Guys, what’s going to happen?”

  CHAPTER TWO

  LIFE

  IS

  OVER

  The Alton Heights All-Stars quietly made their way home.

  Tyler only dribbled the ball twice. Jasmine dragged the bottoms of her shoes on the sidewalk. So did Cam. Markus pulled a gummy worm from his pocket. He looked at it for a while. Then put it back.

  They reached the first building in the Alton Heights housing complex. Brianna kicked open the door. She pushed it so hard it hit the wall.

  The five friends didn’t feel like talking. But they didn’t want to be alone. They walked down the stairs to where Tyler lived. His mom was working. No one would bother them.

  Tyler didn’t bring the ball to his room like usual. He let go of it once he walked through the door. Cam kicked it. It rolled into the kitchen.

  Tyler flopped onto the couch. Brianna sat on the other end. Markus sat in the middle. Jasmine curled up on the armrest. Cam leaned against the couch on the floor.

  After five minutes of staring at a blank TV screen, Tyler grabbed the remote. He flipped through channels. Fast.

  Jasmine stared out the half-sized windows that were just above the ground. They had a perfect view of the parking lot.

  Markus made a fart noise to break the silence.

  “Gross!” Brianna pushed Markus away.

  Markus knocked into Tyler. He dropped the remote.

  “Great. The news,” said Cam. He rolled his eyes.

  Tyler picked up the remote. Then turned up the sound. All five friends turned to watch the TV.

  “In breaking news, Mayor Stevens has revealed his plan to turn the city park into a parking lot this summer,” said the reporter, Valerie Hart.

  “The added parking spaces will make it easier for shoppers,” said Mayor Stevens. “That will help local businesses.”

  “How can he do this?” said Brianna.

  Tyler turned off the TV. “You know what this means, don’t you?”

  Markus slumped back on the couch. He put his foot on the coffee table. “That we’re done watching TV?”

  Tyler stood. He walked to the other side of the family room. Then faced the team.

  “They aren’t turning the park into a parking lot until this s
ummer. Maybe we have time to do something about it!”

  Jasmine sat up. She dangled her feet over the armrest. “Like try to save the park?”

  “Yeah,” said Tyler. “If we can save the park, we can save our team.”

  “How can we do that?” asked Markus.

  “It’s just like Mrs. Avery said. When we didn’t think we’d find two more players for our team.” Tyler bit one of his fingernails. “We won’t know if we don’t try.”

  Cam jumped to his feet. He looked at Jasmine and Brianna. “Well, it’s a good thing we didn’t give up last time.”

  Jasmine and Brianna both stood and smiled.

  “Do you really think there’s something we can do?” asked Markus. He pushed his hands off his knees and got up from the couch.

  “I don’t know,” said Tyler. “But I’m not giving up on us yet.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  SAVE

  THE

  PARK

  The Alton Heights All-Stars met at Tyler’s after school. Every day for three days. They made sign after sign.

  “Save the park.”

  “The park is our home.”

  They even ran out of paper.

  Markus dug through the bottom of his closet and under his bed. Jasmine and Brianna found a box of blank papers in a closet. Tyler and Cam pulled big pieces of cardboard from the trash. They cut it into signs that read:

  “We need a park. Not a parking lot.”

  The All-Stars hung signs anywhere they could. They taped them to the halls of their building. They put them on telephone poles. They put them on the cars at the corner store. Then on cars parked on the street.

  “Maybe we could put some at Lil Scoop,” said Jasmine one day after class.

  “I’m proud of you guys,” said Mrs. Avery, their teacher.

  “For what?” asked Cam.

  Mrs. Avery walked around her desk. “For standing up for something bigger than yourselves.”

  “Bigger than us?” asked Markus.

  Mrs. Avery sat at the kids’ table. “That’s right,” she said.

  “If they ruin the park, we won’t have a place to practice,” said Tyler.

  “True,” Mrs. Avery agreed. “But this affects more than just your team.”

  “You mean you want them to put in a parking lot?” Brianna pushed her books into her bag. Then got up.

  “I didn’t say that,” said Mrs. Avery. She tapped the chair for Brianna to sit back down.

  “I meant, the park has been a part of this place for as long as I can remember. For years, families have used it as a place a play. A place to walk. Jog. Or have a picnic.”

  “So, you don’t want it to be a parking lot?” Brianna sat back down.

  “Not at all,” answered Mrs. Avery. “In fact, I think there’s an even better way you could spread the message.”

  Cam pulled his chair in closer to the table. “How?”

  “I know we don’t always have the latest tools,” said Mrs. Avery. She reached to the other side of the table. She picked up the tablet. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t reach more people.”

  “What a great idea!” said Tyler.

  Mrs. Avery handed Tyler the tablet. She went back to her desk. “Take as much time as you guys need. I have lots of work to catch up on.”

  Tyler, Cam, Markus, Jasmine, and Brianna all stayed after school.

  They each took turns posting messages on social media. Before they finished, Jasmine found the email address for the TV news reporter, Valerie Hart.

  “Can we send her an email?” Jasmine asked Mrs. Avery.

  Mrs. Avery called the team over to her desk. She handed them a piece of paper. [email protected] was written on it. “Use my email address,” she said.

  The kids took their time writing the email. They double-checked for spelling mistakes before hitting send.

  “Now let’s just hope it worked,” said Markus.

  Mrs. Avery opened the jar on her desk. She handed each of the kids a piece of candy. “Keep your heads up,” she said. “I’m sure it helped.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  A

  NEW

  GAME

  The All-Stars left home early Saturday morning.

  “We might as well enjoy the park while we still can,” said Tyler.

  Tyler, Cam, Markus, Jasmine, and Brianna couldn’t believe what was waiting for them when they got there.

  Markus rubbed his eyes. Jasmine pinched herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming.

  There were more people in the park than they had ever seen before.

  A mother parked her stroller next to the playground. She rocked her baby on her shoulder. She talked to other parents pushing their kids on the swings. When a spot opened up, she pushed her baby in the swing.

  A father sat on a nearby bench. He fed his baby a bottle. He watched his other kids on the playground. “If you can’t see me, then I can’t see you,” he said to his kids.

  The playground was a little rusty. But the kids still enjoyed it.

  They ran up the slide. Hung on bars. Pretended to be pirates on the bridge.

  “ARGH, matey!” yelled one of the kids.

  Some kids ran around on the wood chips playing tag.

  The All-Stars walked into the park. The open field came into view. They stopped in their tracks.

  Brianna’s older brother was playing football with his friends.

  “Are you seeing what I’m seeing?” asked Brianna.

  Tyler spun the basketball between his hands. “I think so,” he said.

  The All-Stars headed over to the basketball court. They watched some older men playing a slower game.

  A man with his belly sticking over his shorts knocked down an open shot. Then he walked over to the side of the court where the All-Stars were sitting. “One of you kids want to sub in for me?”

  Jasmine looked to Cam. Brianna looked to Markus. Then all four of them looked at Tyler.

  “I guess I will,” said Tyler.

  “Go get ‘em,” said Cam.

  Most of the men were slow and out of shape. They passed the ball more than they dribbled. But that didn’t make it any easier on Tyler.

  The man held the ball above his head. He looked to pass it.

  Tyler stepped in close and matched the man’s movements. Tyler tried to pretend he couldn’t see the man’s chest hair. It came out of the top of his shirt.

  “Coming to you, Hank,” the man said.

  Hank caught the pass. He wore old short shorts. It looked like they shrunk in the wash. His socks almost reached his knees. Hank shot the ball without jumping in the air. It went in.

  The old men made more shots than they missed.

  Tyler pretended to toss the ball. The man guarding him didn’t move. Tyler jabbed with his foot. The man still didn’t move. Tyler put the ball to the floor. He drove right past his defender. Tyler stopped just in front of the hoop. He knocked down the shot.

  “Woo-hoo!” called out Markus.

  Brianna clapped. “Way to go, Tyler.”

  One of the men from the other team grabbed the ball out of the hoop. He moved a little quicker than most of the other guys. He looked like he used to play. He stepped out of bounds. Then threw the basketball like a football down the court.

  The man that had guarded Tyler was already at the other end. Tyler ran as fast as he could down the court. But the ball moved quicker than him. The man caught the pass. He made a layup before Tyler could reach him.

  The man pointed toward the guy that threw the ball. He rested his hands on his knees. “Sub,” he called out.

  “I got this one,” said Jasmine. She jumped up and ran onto the court.

  “Thanks,” said the man as he walked off.

  Jasmine guarded Chuck, a man much bigger than her. He backed her down from the wing. Jasmine held her arm against the back of his sweaty shirt. But Chuck was too big. He backed in closer and closer to the hoop. When they reached the paint, Jasmine slipped ar
ound him. She stole the ball before he could shoot.

  Chuck turned and ran up the court. He moved his arms like he was power walking.

  Jasmine slowed up on the other side of the court. She passed the ball to one of her teammates.

  Chuck finally caught up to her. “Not bad,” he said, a little out of breath. “Aren’t you guys the kids I’ve seen with the flyers?” he asked.

  “Yup,” answered Jasmine. “This is where we practice. Or at least where we did practice.”

  The man in a white T-shirt on Jasmine’s team made a shot. “Game.”

  Everyone took a seat on the side of the court.

  “Hey, Hank,” yelled the man that Jasmine had guarded.

  “Yeah, Chuck,” said the man in short shorts and high socks.

  “These guys practice here like we used to,” said Chuck.

  “Wait,” said Cam. “You guys used to play here?”

  “Sure did.” Chuck drank some water. “It’s a shame what they want to do with it.”

  “Sure is,” said Hank. “I don’t know what we would have gotten into growing up if it weren’t for this place.”

  Markus picked up their worn-out ball. Then walked onto the court to shoot around.

  “Thanks for the game,” said Tyler. He shook the men’s hands.

  “You, too,” said Chuck.

  The old men watched the All-Stars shoot around for a while before they left.

  “Good luck saving the park,” Hank called. He waved goodbye.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  A CHANGE

  IN PLANS

  The All-Stars kept shooting long after the old men left.

  They didn’t get into a match of two on two. Or work through any tough drills. They kept it easy.

  They each took turns shooting all the way around the inside of the arc. Like a mini three-point contest. Five shots in the corner. Five on the wing. Five at the top of the key. Then five on the other wing and other corner. The last shot in each spot was the money ball. It was worth two points.

  Markus went first. He ended with nine points. Brianna also had nine. Cam hit the money ball in the last spot to one-up Markus and Brianna. Jasmine made two baskets for eleven points total.