When I was 14, my only dream was to become the star in our football team. That meant beating out Tom, who was the best1at our school.
Football season started in September and I worked out all the summer. I carried my football everywhere for 2. Just before September, Tom was hit by a car and lost his right arm. I went to see him after he came back from 3. He looked very pale, but he didn't 4.
That season, I broke all of Tom's records while he 5 games on TV at home. We went 10-1 and I was named the best player, but I often had bad dreams that I was to blame for Tom's6.
One afternoon, I was crossing the field to go home and saw Tom stuck going over a fence(栅栏) — which wasn't 7 to climb if you had both arms. I'm sure I was the last person who he wanted to accept 8 from. But even that challenge he accepted. I helped him move slowly over the fence.
When we were finally 9 on the other side, he said to me, "You know, I didn't tell you this during the season, but you did 10. Thank you for filling in for 11."
His words freed me from my bad 12. I thought to myself, even without an arm he was more of a leader. Damaged but not defeated, he was 13 ahead of me. I was right to have14 him. From that day on, I grew 15 and a little more real.
