Black And White

Eddie leaves class and meets the rest of the basketball team for the game. When Coach Casey asks where he has been, Eddie simply says he had to be somewhere with his family. The team leaves to head for the train station. On the subway, a man is shouting violent anti-Black and antisemitic slurs at other passengers and harassing a young woman. The boys on the basketball team laugh at him, but Marcus and Eddie do not. The team arrives at Hillcrest High School for their game, and Eddie has to sit out the beginning of the game. He is allowed in midway through the game, but the team loses to Hillcrest. After the game, a news reporter attempts to ask Eddie questions about the charges against him and Marcus, and Eddie’s father pulls him away.

Before Marcus goes to school the next day, he reads the newspaper, which contains an article about Eddie and Marcus’s arrest. When he arrives at school, Eddie is not there. He talks to Moses and X during lunchtime, and X speculates that Eddie might be at the DA’s office working out a deal for himself, one that does not involve Marcus, but Marcus does not believe Eddie would do this.

After school, Marcus goes to the gym to shoot baskets by himself. Coach Casey comes to talk to him, telling him that the newspaper article has gained a lot of attention and college coaches will likely not give him a scholarship until he can prove himself. At home, Marcus’s mother says she talked to his lawyer, Ms. Torres, who claims Marcus has limited options: He would definitely be indicted by a grand jury, and his best option is to settle for a plea deal.

Eddie returns to school the next day, and he and Marcus walk home together after basketball practice. They talk about the case. Eddie seems unconcerned and says the DA cannot prove anything; his lawyer told the coach of St. John’s that Eddie was innocent and would still be there in September.

That evening, Marcus writes an essay for his English class. Thinking of the stickups, he writes that he wants to be remembered for “doing more good things than bad” (116). The next day after basketball practice, Coach Casey gives a speech about teamwork and supporting one another.

That night, Ms. Torres calls and says that Marcus has been indicted, and that if he agrees to a plea deal, he could be out of jail within two years. If he confesses who did the shooting, he could receive even less time. Marcus takes the plea without giving up the identity of the shooter.

Eddie is in the office of his lawyer, Mr. Golub, who talks about the case with Eddie’s father and how they plan to get Eddie off; the DA lacks sufficient evidence, Golub claims. He questions if they can trust Marcus not to reveal that Eddie was there, and Eddie’s dad remarks that no one would believe him anyway. Later on at home, Rose questions Eddie about the case and how it will ruin both Marcus and Eddie’s lives. Eddie only says that his lawyer is taking care of it.

Eddie goes out for a walk and returns home to a message on his answering machine from Rebecca; she says that her parents saw the article about him and Marcus and will not let her go out with him. The next morning, the coach from St. John’s calls, asking how Eddie is doing and if he is still going to school. He says that St. John’s supports him, but a felony conviction will cost him his scholarship. Eddie simply says his lawyer has everything under control, and he would be ready to start at St. John’s in the fall.

On Monday after practice, Eddie tries to give Marcus a “pep talk” about how the upcoming case will go. Marcus says he will not take the case to trial and needs to take whatever deal his lawyer can get for him; Sidney Parker is sure Marcus was there, and Ms. Torres doubts she can convince a jury otherwise. Eddie gets angry and says that if Marcus pleads guilty, it could hurt his own case. Marcus shouts at Eddie, furious that they both got into this situation, that only he is paying for it, and that Eddie is only concerned with himself. Eddie feels foolish. That night, Eddie’s lawyer calls to say he has been indicted by the grand jury. The next day after school, Marcus and Eddie walk home together, and Marcus says he is still going to take the plea deal. Eddie says Marcus is “quitting on [him]” and making him look worse (127).

Marcus wears his suit at school the next day, as he is going to the DA’s office afterward to sign the plea deal, which stipulates that he will be out of prison in 19 months. He has three weeks to report to jail. During English class, students read their essays about how they would like to be remembered. Eddie reads his, describing himself as someone dependable and willing to put himself on the line.