The fall school year started for Darren right after Labor Day and he fell back into his regular teaching and coaching routine. I sometimes went to his basketball games. I’d sit in the stands with the students, parents, and other assorted visitors and watch the games. Given that I was often one of only a few white people or, on occasion, the only white person there, many people assumed I was a college recruiter. I had more than a few parents approach me and ask for help in getting sports scholarships for their daughter. I always responded by apologizing and telling them that I was just a friend of Coach Nichols. I never revealed the true nature of my relationship with Darren because I wasn’t entirely sure that he was out at work.
One night, I showed up still wearing my scrubs. My last appo
