Takedown Read Online Free PDF Page A

they reached the Boulevard.
    “Who we meeting?” Donald asked.
    “Anthony. Maybe Calvin.”
    Donald and Manny had been best friends since they were little, but Manny’s circle had grown larger because of the track-and-field team. Donald had been jealous of that at first.
    They reached Villa Roma, which was crowded with high-school kids. A television above the pizza counter was tuned to a music-video station, and the other one in the opposite corner was showing a college basketball game. But both sets were drowned out by the jukebox, which was playing an old Rolling Stones song. The place smelled warm and toasty from the pizzas baking in the large ovens.
    Donald spotted Anthony and Calvin in the corner near the video games.
    “You guys order a pie?” Manny said.
    “Yep,” said Anthony, getting Manny in a gentle headlock. Anthony Martin was probably the biggest guy in seventh grade—a football lineman and a shot-putter on the track team. Calvin Tait also played football and ran track. He and Manny often teamed up on relays.
    “Spotted any girls?” Calvin asked.
    “None our age,” Donald said. “Mostly high-school people in here tonight.”
    “Yeah, they took all the tables,” Anthony said.
    “We’ll have to sit on the floor to eat.”
    “No problem,” Donald said. He leaned against the wall, hands in the big front pocket of his sweatshirt, which said GIANTS.
    Anthony went up to the counter and brought back the pizza, which he set on top of the video game. He grabbed a slice and took a seat on the floor next to Calvin, their backs against the wall.
    Donald picked up a slice and took a huge bite.
    “Don’t you wrestlers have to watch your weight?” Calvin asked.
    “I’d like to watch it go up ,” Donald replied. “I could gain three pounds and still be in the same weight class. Mostly it’s the bigger guys who want to cut.”
    He had been thinking about trying to gain a bit of weight. Tavo was a lock to stay in the 90-pound weight class, so there wasn’t much chance Donald would be wresting varsity unless he moved up in weight. Donald had wrestled the 95-pounder, Jesse Nadel, in practice a few times. Despite the disadvantage in weight, Donald was more competitive with Jesse than with Tavo.
    Donald took a second slice of pizza and slid to a seated position on the floor between Anthony and Calvin. He kept his eyes on the door, watching who went in and out. A lot of the athletes hung out here, so he wasn’t too surprised when he saw Hector Mateo walk in. Hector was a senior and the standout on the high-school wrestling team. Watching him compete the year before, in fact, had been a big part of Donald’s inspiration to try the sport.
    What did surprise Donald was who Hector was with: Tavo. Hector was four years older than Tavo. Why would he be hanging out with him?
    Donald watched as Hector and Tavo joined a group of high-school guys at one of the tables. Hector took off his letterman’s jacket. Underneath he was wearing a blue soccer jersey that said PUERTO RICO. He had a thin chain around his neck, and his short hair was freshly styled.
    Donald felt a little uneasy. He and Tavo hadn’t had any run-ins since Donald had shoved him that day at practice, but they’d never quite resolved things, either. Tavo seemed very easygoing, but you never knew what might happen off school grounds.
    So Donald tensed a little when Tavo caught his eye and started walking over. He was dressed pretty well, and his hair was styled like Hector’s.
    “Jenkins,” Tavo said, nodding as he looked down at Donald.
    “Rivera,” Donald replied.
    “What’s up, Martin?” Tavo said, gripping Anthony’s hand and pumping it.
    Donald stood up. Tavo sent him to the floor so often in practice that he figured he didn’t need to be there now.
    “You wrestled pretty much all right today,” Tavo said. “The inexperience got to you, though.”
    “I shoulda won anyway. The guy just got lucky. It was probably his first match,