Forrest Gump by Winston Groom Read Free Book Online

runnin out fast. On the second play, he try to fake em out by handin me the ball, sted of thowin it, but bout two tons of Nebraska corn jackoff beef, black an white, fall on top of me right away. I lying there, flat on my back, thinkin what it must of been like when that netload of bananas fall on my daddy, an then I gone back in the huddle again.
    “Forrest,” Snake says, “I gonna fake a pass to Gwinn, but I am gonna thow the ball to you, so I want you to run down there to the cornerback an then turn right an the ball be right there.” Snake’s eyes are wild as a tiger’s. I nod my head, an do as I am tole.
    Sure enough, Snake heaves the ball into my hans an I be tearin toward the middle of the field with the goalposts straight ahead. But all of a sudden a giant man come flyin into me and slow me down, an then all the Nebraska corn jerkoff niggers an big ole dumb white boys in the world start grappin an gougin an stompin on me an I fall down. Damn! Weain’t got but a few yards to go fore winnin the game. When I git off my back, I see Snake got everbody line up already for the last play, on accounta we got no more time-outs. Soon as I git to my place, he calls for the snap an I run out, but he suddenly thowed the ball bout 20 feet over my head, outta bounds on purpose—to stop the clock I guess, which only has 2 or 3 seconts lef on it.
    Unfortunately tho, Snake done got confused about things, I spose he’s thinkin it third down an we got one more play lef, but in fact it were
forth
down, an so we lose the ball an also, of course, we lose the game. It sound like somethin I woulda done.
    Anyhow, it was extra sad for me, cause I kinda figgered Jenny Curran was probly watchin the game an maybe if I done got the ball and win the game, she try to forgive me for doin what I done to her. But that were not to be. Coach Bryant were mighty unhappy over what happen, but he suck it up an say, “Well, boys, there’s always nex year.”
    Cept for me, that is. That was not to be either.

After the Orange Bowl, the atheletic department get my grades for the first term, an it ain’t long before Coach Bryant send for me to come to his office. When I get there, he lookin bleak.
    “Forrest,” he say, “I can understan how you flunked remedial English, but it will mystify me to the end of my days how you managed to get an
A
in something called Intermediate Light, an then an
F
in phys-ed class—when you is jus been named the Most Valuable College Back in the Southeastern Conference!”
    It was a long story that I did not want to bore Coach Bryant with, but why in hell do I need to know the distance between goalposts on a soccer field anyway? Well, Coach Bryant lookin at me with a terrible sad expression on his face. “Forrest,” he say, “I regret awfully havin to tell you this, but you is done flunked out of school, an there is nothin I can do.”
    I jus stood there, twistin my hands, till it suddenly come tome what he is sayin—I ain’t gonna get to play no more football. I got to leave the University. Maybe I never see any of the other guys no more. Maybe I never see Jenny Curran no more either. I got to move outta my basement, an I won’t get to take Advanced Light nex term, like Professor Hooks have said I would. I didn’t realize it, but tears begun comin to my eyes. I ain’t sayin nothin. I jus standin there, head hangin down.
    Then Coach, he stand up hissef, an come over to me an he put his arm aroun me.
    He say, “Forrest, it okay, son. When you first come here, I expect somethin like this would happen. But I tole em then, I said, just give me that boy for one season—that is all I ask. Well, Forrest, we has had ourselfs one hell of a season. That is for sure. An it certainly weren’t your fault that Snake thowed the ball out of bounds on forth down.…”
    I look up then, an they is little tears in Coach’s eyes, too, an he is lookin at me real hard.
    “Forrest,” he say, “there has never been nobody like