New story by "Dancing With The Pen II" Contributor Kevin Ham

Today we continue our Dancing With The Pen II blog tour with an exclusive extra story by young writer Kevin Ham, whose short story "Hot! Hot! Hot!" is featured in the book. Order a personalized copy of Dancing With The Pen II: a collection of today's youth writing here or on Amazon here.

The Story of a Basketball

By Kevin Ham

One day, the strangest thing happened: my basketball had a face on it! The ball started bouncing around. I put a basket in front of him. He jumped and landed right in the hoop! I tried bouncing him. I shot him, and he went in the hoop. The face disappeared. I set the ball down, and the face came back.

The next day, I went to the park with the strange ball. I went over to the basketball courts. Some teenagers were playing basketball. They laughed at me because they thought I was bad.

I would prove them wrong. I went all the way to the end of the court, and shot the basketball very softly. Surprisingly, the ball started arcing higher and faster, soaring all the way towards the hoop at the far end of the court. Then... swish!

The teenagers were shocked. Some of them had their mouths open. One said, "You're a legend!" Another asked, "Are you Stephen Curry?"

I became famous all around the world! The next morning, people were surrounding me. I said, "I only have time for one question. You. In the back."

"Is the ball super lightweight or something?"

"No, it isn't," I answered. "Do you want to carry it yourself and see?"

"Oh sure!" replied the man. I tossed the basketball to him and he said, "Yep, this is normal weight."

I went to the park to shoot some baskets, and everyone followed me. I thought it was pretty annoying. I shot and shot. I thought they would start getting bored, but more and more people kept coming. Soon news reporters showed up to talk to the crowd.

One audience member said, "I never saw him miss one."

Another person said, "He should join the NBA. He really should!"

I tried and tried to make my way home, but I couldn't escape through the mob of people. Finally, I slipped through some people's legs and got out. I ran as fast as I could to my house. I shut the door and caught my breath. I said to the basketball, "This was the worst day ever!" I ran around the house and shut every window and locked every door.

Then I plopped on my bed and hid the magic ball underneath it, way in the back. I guess being a regular basketball-playing kid is better than I thought it was!

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Kevin Ham is nine years old and goes to John Green Elementary School. He loves basketball and Minecraft. He lives with his mom, dad, grandma and sister. 

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