Darnell

I lifted my hand off Darnells hot, sweaty back as he completed his 500th pushup of the afternoon. Darnell had just done five sets of 100 pushups, the first set without any resistance and the last four sets with me pressing my hand on his broad, muscular back as he pumped up and down. Darnell jumped to his feet and flexed his arms in front of me. Sweat was dripping from every pore on his black body and he was really breathing hard. The muscles of his chest, shoulders and arms were so pumped that the individual fibers looked like they would just burst through his thin, fat-free dark black skin. Darnell smiled confidently. His perfect white teeth contrasted with his black skin. Darnells face was round and strong looking. He had wide cheekbones, a broad nose, a strong jaw and a square chin. Just by looking at his face you could tell that this was one big, strong black dude. And he had a muscular neck which made him look even more powerful.
Feel my muscles now, Matt, said Darnell. Theyre big and pumped as hell! I feel as strong as a bull! I reached over and felt Darnells rippling, steel-corded biceps and triceps, his striated, melon-like delts and his bulging, round, incredibly pumped pecs. His muscles felt like hot, black steel. Throbbing, pulsating, alive, hot, black steel. Then I reached down and felt his rock-like washboard abs, which were so sweaty that my hand just glided over his smooth, black skin as my fingers felt every ripple of his corrugated muscles. Jesus, Darnell, I gasped, that was an incredible workout. Look what it did to your muscles. Theyre phenomenal. Yeah, I really like how my muscles feel when theyve gotten totally pumped from a hard workout. said Darnell. And I can just tell that theyre going to get bigger and stronger after all those intense pushups. I want to do a tough workout every day here at camp so by the time I go home Im going to be so much stronger that my brothers wont believe it! Will you help me, Matt? asked Darnell as he flexed his triceps in front of my eyes. He knew what my answer would be as I looked at his rippling triceps. You bet, Darnell! I said. Youre the man! Darnell and I gave each other high fives.
During the rest of the afternoon the other kids arrived in our cabin. There were eight of us altogether, all 10 years old, four whites, two Asians, one Latino and Darnell, the biggest, blackest, most muscular 10 year old athlete any of the kids had ever seen. Just like me, the other kids couldnt keep their eyes off Darnells muscular black body, and Darnell obliged their awe by letting them feel his muscles as much as they wanted. Darnell was used to having his body admired by other kids and he knew they wouldnt be satisfied until they had personally felt how big and hard his muscles really were. By unanimous vote we elected Darnell the leader of Lion Cabin. Darnells physical presence was so commanding and he was so outgoing and confident that he was a natural born leader. All the kids wanted to do what Darnell wanted to do.
The next day we learned that we were going to have a swimming test in the morning and a physical fitness test in the afternoon. The first part of the swimming test consisted of having to run about 50 feet down the beach, swim out to a raft that was anchored way out in the lake, swim back to shore and then do it again a second time. One kid in each cabin competed with a kid from each of the other cabins. All the different age groups competed at the same time, so we were competing with kids from 7 to 13 or 14 years old. There were about 30 cabins in the camp altogether. When it was my turn, I swam as hard as I could and managed to come in 13th place. I got beat by a lot of the older kids but I actually beat some of the 11, 12 and 13 year olds who were really dweebs. And there was one 9-year-old kid who was a great swimmer and beat me by 25 feet. But I was really happy with my performance - I didnt embarrass Lion Cabin.
Darnell went last. Most of the cabins had saved their best swimmers for last and we in Lion Cabin could tell just by looking at him that Darnell was our best swimmer. When the counselor said go, Darnells muscular legs sprang into action as he sprinted down the beach way ahead of the other kids. Then he dove into the water and without losing any speed started swimming with the most graceful, powerful strokes I have ever seen. His strong arms just zoomed through the water, propelling his muscular body forward incredibly fast. The water put up very little resistance to Darnells trained muscles and they were able to push it aside almost effortlessly. Darnells muscular legs kicked with incredible power, forcing his sleek body ahead even faster. He swam out to the raft and back to shore faster than some of the other kids could even swim out to the raft, and these kids were the best that their cabins could offer.
Then Darnell started his second lap and his body didnt slow down at all. Darnell was tireless. He just powered himself through the water with such muscular force and speed that he looked like a black jet ski in the middle of a bunch of white and brown rowboats. At the end of his second lap Darnell actually passed some of the kids who were just finishing their first lap. Darnell ran up to the finish line and the counselor clicked his stopwatch. Darnell had broken the camps swimming record by 20 seconds! The next closest kid, a 13 year old, was just starting to head back to shore from the raft. Darnell came over and gave me a high-five, his bright, white teeth glistening in a broad smile. All the kids from Lion Cabin raced over to congratulate Darnell. He was our hero. All the fibers of muscle of his wet, black body showed clearly under his thin skin. Darnell was absolutely radiant and his muscles were pumped. I guess this black dude showed those kids a thing or two about swimming, said Darnell proudly. A lot of folks think that us blacks cant swim worth shit, but I dont think theyve seen me! I didnt know myself that I could swim that good. I feel great.! Damn straight, Darnell, said one of the kids. Youre the king of the Lions!
The next part of the swim test was floating in the water for one minute. This was really easy for most of the kids. All you had to do was lay face up on the water with your hands and feet spread out and float. Well, for some reason, Darnell couldnt float! Every time he got himself into position and stretched out his arms and legs, he just sank into the water like a rock. The counselor, a guy named Pete who was 16 years old, started laughing at Darnell struggling in the water. OK, Darnell, youve had enough tries, yelled Pete. Looks like youre going to flunk the floating test. Darnell swam back to shore and I could tell he was really mad. He had never flunked a physical test in his life - in fact, he told me that he had always won every physical test against boys his own age - and he couldnt believe that he was about to flunk the floating test.
Jesus, Pete, said Darnell, I just dont know why I cant float. All the other kids just bob up and down on top of the water and I sink like Im made of concrete. Well I dont know either, said Pete. All I know is that you just flunked the floating test. Right then, a blond, blue-eyed, good looking young man in his mid 20s walked over to Darnell and Pete. It was Frank, the camp director. Frank had been watching everything as Darnell tried and tried to float without success. Frank was laughing.
Hey, whats the matter with you, Darnell? said Frank mockingly. Here you blow every other kid away in the swimming competition and you cant even float. Look over there, even Jimmy Thorpe, that little nerdy 12 year old who couldnt even finish the swim test, is floating like a cork. Whats wrong with you Darnell? Hey Frank, dont rub it in, said Pete. Darnells really upset that hes going to flunk the float test. Frank laughed again. Then he said Hey, Im just kidding, Darnell. Youre not going to flunk the float test. You see, youve got a physical condition, sort of like a disability, that absolutely prevents you from floating. And we cant flunk kids here at the YMCA camp because of their physical disabilities, now can we Pete?
What are you talking about? said Darnell. I dont have any physical disabilities! I have the opposite of disabilities! Look at my muscles! Im 95 pounds of nothing but bone and muscle! Im a jock! At that, Darnell flexed his big, round biceps so Frank could see just how big, strong and athletic he was (as if Frank hadnt already noticed). I said youve got a physical condition, Darnell, which is definitely a disability as far a floating is concerned, but believe me I totally agree that you absolutely are not a disabled kid. You have the kind of physical condition that most of us would give a million dollars to have ourselves. You see, Darnell, youre too muscular to float! Youve got so much dense, hard muscle with absolutely no fat on your young body that you are actually heavier than water, so naturally youre going to sink. Most of these other kids have flabby flesh and baby fat on their bodies. Flabby flesh and fat are lighter than water and float easily. And some of the skinny kids dont have any muscle at all so they can take a deep breath and float from the air in their lungs. Your whole body is packed with dense, solid, heavy hard muscle, and you have no fat at all. Really hard, dense, strong muscle like you have Darnell is a lot heavier than water and since you have so much muscle on your 10 year old body theres no way you could ever float.
But before I can let you pass the float test, I have to personally check out your muscles, Darnell, just to make sure they really are heavier than water, said Frank. Flex that big arm, Darnell. Darnell flexed his biceps again and they formed baseball-sized solid balls of rock hard muscle. Frank wrapped his hands around them and could feel the individual fibers tensing under Darnells paper-thin black skin. Frank squeezed his fingers and felt the incredible hardness of Darnells corded biceps. He couldnt make the slightest dent in Darnells muscle, which felt like warm, black marble. Very, nice, said Frank. Those are the hardest biceps Ive ever felt on a kid here a the Y camp.
I thought Frank would be done after he finished feeling Darnells biceps, but he wasnt. He proceeded to use both of his hands to touch and feel Darnells rippling triceps, his striated cannonball delts, his wing-like lats, his bulging, round pecs, his corrugated steel-washboard abs, his thick, cut thighs and his diamond shaped calves. Darnell was wearing a bright red swimsuit made of very thin nylon fabric. The suit looked like tight boxer shorts and because it was wet it clung to Darnells skin, revealing every muscle underneath. The bright red suit contrasted starkly with Darnells dark black skin. The wet suit just barely covered Darnells muscular ass and clung tightly to his two muscular globes of butt muscle. The round glute muscles forced themselves upwards and outwards, straining the thin wet fabric. The fabric was so tight against Darnells butt that you could see the crack between those solid balls of muscle in his ass, and every time Darnell moved you could see those powerful jock ass muscles bulge and flex under the thin fabric. Frank put his hands right on top of Darnells hard muscle butt and squeezed Darnells firm, young round muscle. Darnell flexed his glutes and they pushed out even further, forcing themselves against Franks squeezing fingers.
I could tell that Frank was very impressed with Darnells muscles. The whole time he was feeling them, Frank kept saying things like incredible, amazing, unbelievable. He was really getting into Darnells young, black muscular body. Darnell was very patient and let the camp director feel as much of his muscles as he wanted. He was proud of his body.
Finally Frank said, Well Darnell, those muscles are the biggest, densest, hardest muscles I have even seen or felt on a 10 year old. Those muscles are definitely much heavier than water and theres no way you could ever float. So you pass the test! I can hardly wait to see you perform in the physical fitness contest this afternoon. I think youre a very special kid - one in a million! Thanks, Frank, said Darnell. I wont let you down. Ive won every physical fitness contest Ive ever entered and Im going to win this one too! Darnells confidence was incredible, but he had the body and the muscles to back it up. Franks handsome face looked a little flush and he seemed to be sweating a little as he watched Darnell walk away. Darnells powerful, round glute muscles, showing right through the wet nylon swimsuit, moved up and down in his butt with each step. Frank watched every movement very closely.
After swimming, we went to the mess hall for lunch. I never saw a 10-year-old kid eat as much food as Darnell did. He went back for more food three times, each time piling his plate with lots of meat and some potatoes and vegetables. Darnell saw me looking at all the food he was wolfing down. My mom says I eat a lot more than my brothers did at my age. She says shes going to go bankrupt buying all the food we eat. My dad says that my muscles need a lot of food, especially meat, to keep growing bigger and he loves it when I eat four helpings. Funny thing, I can eat as much as I want but I never get any fat on my body. See? Darnell reached down as pinched the skin covering his abs. The black skin was so thin it was like paper. There wasnt a bit of fat between that dark skin and Darnells rippling abs. Dad says I have a really good metabolism, whatever that is. All I know is that Ive always had muscles and Ive always had a big appetite. My muscles just seem to keep getting bigger and stronger. Wow, I thought to myself.
After lunch we goofed around for awhile and then went over to the exercise field for the physical fitness test. The first test was pushups. The kids from our cabin got in a line and one by one each of us did as many pushups as we could. The kids from all the other cabins were also in lines doing this, so I could see how many pushups everyone was doing. Some of the real nerds were so weak that they could only do one or two pushups. Everyone had their shirts off so I could compare Darnells buff black body with the other kids. There was one 10 year old kid in the line next to me that couldnt do even pushup. His body looked pathetic, white and flabby, but skinny at the same time. For a moment, Darnell was standing next to him and the contrast between the two 10 year olds was incredible. Even though they were the same age, Darnell was about 4 inches taller and must have weighed 40 pounds more than the skinny weakling. Darnells bulging, muscular black chest looked like it was about twice as big as the pasty, emaciated skin and bones of the nerd. The nerds arms looked like little white pipestems while Darnells were big, black and rippling with muscle. Darnells narrow waist looked like a steel washboard while the weaklings looked soft and flabby - actually bigger than Darnells. I had never before seen such a contrast between strength and weakness, between absolute muscular superiority and abject physical inferiority. And the fact that Darnell was black and the nerd was white made the contrast even more striking. Here was the young black jock - the natural athlete whose body was just born to be big, muscular, strong and fast - next to the white wimp, the total loser whose body was born to be puny, soft and weak. Who said God was fair?
I did 21 pushups, which was actually better than most of the kids could do. But I knew that Darnell was going to blow everyone away. Darnell was the last in our cabin to do his pushups. Just before he started, he turned to me and said Hey Matt, my chest and arms really feel strong after that workout you gave me yesterday. Watch this! At that, Darnell leapt to the ground and started doing pushups. He cranked them out so fast that it seemed that he was doing almost two per second. I counted the reps out loud, and since I was so proud of Darnell I kind of yelled so all the kids could hear. After Darnell had finished about 50 pushups, all the other kids stopped what they were doing and stared at Darnell. His black body looked incredible as his muscular arms pumped up and down. You could see every fiber of muscle in his shoulders and arms. His delts were like muscular cannonballs, the heads of muscle flexing with each rep. His triceps looked like writhing snakes of muscle, coiling and uncoiling with each pushup. Veins were popping up everywhere. His back really looked wide and strong, and his lats were pumped and shredded. A thin layer of sweat appeared on his black skin, making the muscles stand out in even more relief.
After about 250 reps, Darnells pace slowed a little, but he was still pumping pretty fast. Now the sweat was beaded up all over his body and he was breathing kind of hard. His muscles looked like they were going to burst out of his skin. All the kids started screaming, urging Darnell to pump out more and more reps. Darnell seemed to get an extra shot of adrenaline when the kids started yelling. He forced himself beyond 350 reps, which he had told me was his old record. Finally, after 400 grueling pushups, his pace slowed way down and he struggled to do every rep. But Darnell was not a quitter and he pushed his muscular body to its absolute limit. I could just imagine Darnell lifting weights the same way --pushing those heavy weights for those final two or three reps when his body was telling him to stop. Darnell's incredible intensity and sheer will forced his muscles to their absolute limit. No pain, no gain, they say, and Darnell was certainly seeing some amazing gains.
Well, Darnell maxed out at 421 pushups. He had broken the camp record by over 200 pushups. After he did his last rep and fell on the ground, all the kids let out a huge scream. Several of the kids went over and patted Darnell on his hot, sweaty, muscular back. Way to go, man. Youre a total stud! said one. A couple of the kids not only patted Darnells back but also moved their hands over and felt his pumped delts and arms. Others moved their hands down Darnells back and felt the two massive ridges of muscle in his lower back. Darnells body felt like hot, black marble. The kids had never felt anything like it in their lives.
After pushups, we did pullups. There were six pullup bars, so we all waited in six lines. A lot of the kids couldnt do any pullups. Most kids could do three to five. The best kid before Darnell was a 12-year-old who did 24. He was really proud of himself and flexed his arms after he finished. He had really nice round biceps, pretty good for a kid, but only about 1⁄2 the size of Darnells. Then Darnell stepped up to the bar. He jumped up and grabbed the bar and hung motionless for a few seconds. His lats flared out like wings. The slabs of lat muscle were really shredded and from the front I could see veins under his black skin pulsating with blood. I could see the cords of muscle fibers straining in his biceps. Even with his arms fully extended, his biceps were taut and rippled with muscle, ready to do their young masters bidding, ready to hoist their 10- year old masters muscular body up and down at his command. Darnells waist and hips looked incredibly tiny underneath his wide shoulders and lats. Below that small, shredded waist, his thighs and calves bulged with solid muscle, looking pretty massive and muscular. I wondered how many times those powerful lats and arms were going to be able to pull up those big, muscular legs.
Then Darnell willed his lats and biceps to pull up his 95 pounds of bone and muscle, and they instantly obeyed his orders. His body zoomed up to the bar very quickly, much more quickly than I was expecting. He pumped out rep after rep, almost effortlessly. His lats bulged under his skin and seemed to get wider and wider. His biceps flexed into hard, muscular balls at the top of each pullup and as he lowered himself they gradually extended themselves but always remained totally corded and hard. His abs flexed and unflexed as he went up and down, the washboard of steel-like muscle undulating under his thin black skin. All the kids were looking at this incredible feat of strength and endurance. In all, Darnell did 101 pullups, more than four times as many as the 12-year old and breaking the camp record by 45 pullups. Darnell struggled during the last 10 reps to get to 100 and then powered out one more with sheer force of mind and incredibly strong and fit muscles that obeyed his command even though they were totally exhausted. He dropped to his feet, smiled and flexed his biceps in triumph. All the kids screamed in frenzy. Dozens of kids ran up to him and began feeling his biceps, lats and delts. Jesus, Darnell, I never saw anyone who could do more than 50 pullups, said one admiring nerdy kid as he tried to squeeze Darnells rock hard biceps. Your muscles are unbelievably big and strong. I cant believe how hard they are! Darnell just smiled at the admiring nerd and flexed his triceps for him. The kid felt those rock-hard, rippling heads of muscle and felt weak in the knees.
There were two more events in the physical fitness test: situps and the half-mile run. By now, every kid was waiting to see how many situps Darnell could do. Darnells abs were incredibly hard and ripped and the kids knew that those abs were obviously capable of a lot of situps. I held Darnells feet as he lifted his muscular torso up and down at a very fast pace. His ab muscles looked like solid black bricks under his paper-thin skin. As he did rep after rep, the abs flexed and moved under his skin. His thin skin just seemed to roll over those hard abs, exposing every ripple and ridge. Darnell held his arms under his head and of course his biceps flexed even though he wasnt trying. The massive mounds of muscle were covered with veins. His lats were spread out and looked incredibly wide compared to his very narrow waist and hips. Kneeling at Darnells feet, I got a great view of his big thighs tensing with every rep, the strands of muscle of his quads bulging out every time he lifted his torso up. His shorts revealed quite a bit of his muscular upper thigh and lower butt, which seemed just a little lighter than the rest of his black body.
Well, Darnell certainly didnt disappoint any of the kids. He did 1,250 situps - nonstop. The next best kid had done 250. Darnell had beat that kid by 1,000 situps and he beat the camp record by 650 situps. All the kids were screaming again as Darnell cranked out the last 50, which I could tell were very painful. The cuts in his abs looked like they had been carved with a knife. When Darnell finished, he jumped to his feet and said to me, Here Matt, feel my abs now. I reached over and placed my hand flat on Darnells hot, sweaty abs. They were incredibly rippled and hard. I could see veins crisscrossing under his skin, veins that had pumped huge quantities of blood into those ab muscles, enabling them to do situp after situp without fatigue. I tried to press down with my fingers, but the black ridges of muscle felt like iron. I ran my fingers up and down the corrugated iron, feeling every rock-like ridge and crevice. Because Darnells skin was covered with so much hot sweat, my fingers just glided over that fortress of muscle. Darnell smiled confidently and said Not too bad for a 10-year old, right Matt? I just stared at those abs in awe and said Darnell, any man would kill to have abs like yours.
The final event of the physical fitness test was the half-mile run. There were about 250 kids in the camp and we all gathered at the end of the field where a narrow one-lane road led off into the woods. We were going to run down that road which then came back to camp on the other side. Only about five or six kids could run abreast down the road at the same time so everyone was kind of packed up next to the starting line hoping to be in the first group to get on the road. Darnell, however, just stayed in the back of the pack of kids. He didnt seem to care if he started first or last. I was soon to find out why.
When the starting gun went off, the mass of kids started running down the narrow road and Darnell and I were near the back of the pack. I thought to myself that there would be no way for Darnell to pass all those kids who formed what seemed like a thick wall in front of us. Then Darnell turned to me and said, Watch this. He started running forward, much faster than the kids right in front of him. When he got to the first group of kids, there were six 12-year olds running side by side and there was no room for Darnell to pass. He yelled Coming through!, but the kids ignored him and held their position. This did not faze Darnell in the least. He just ran right through the six inches between the two kids in the middle. When he did this, his muscular shoulders bumped into the shoulders of the two kids on either side of him and pushed them aside like they were annoying insects. Darnells muscular legs powered his body through the kids and his torso stood straight and tall, not wavering at bit, as he muscled the other two kids out of his way like they were nothing. One of the kids fell down and the other stumbled as Darnell ran ahead like a cheetah, his eyes focused on the next group of kids in front of him. Every time he got to a group of kids, he would yell coming through and if they didnt move out of his way, which they usually didnt, he would just power his way through, knocking kid after kid down with his big, muscular shoulders. I think Darnell kind of liked the rush he felt when his strong, muscular body completely overpowered the other kids like that. Well, needless to say, Darnell won the half-mile race. At the end, he was about 100 yards ahead of the next fastest runners. And he had knocked down about 30 kids with his big shoulders and powerful body. I guess the kids learned that when Darnell yelled coming through he really meant it and had the muscle to do it, whether they liked it or not.
After the race, we had some free time. Darnell and I were walking around the field when we spotted a group of older white boys, probably about 13, standing around a big concrete block. They were trying to lift it off the ground, daring each other to lift it higher. Darnell and I walked over and watched. One boy lifted the block about six inches off the ground before giving up and dropping it with a thud. A couple other boys were able to lift the block about a foot. The strongest boy squatted down, grabbed the block and managed to lift it all the way to his waist. He then dropped the block, which crashed to the ground, and flexed his arms in triumph. He was the king of the group. Then Darnell walked over and said, Hey, man, youre really strong. Let me give it a try.
Darnell squatted down and placed his hands underneath the heavy concrete block. His quad muscles bulged and his muscular back widened as he prepared to challenge the heavy object. With a burst of power, Darnell straightened his legs and back, instantly pulling the block right up to his waist. The muscles of his lower back looked like thick ridges of iron as they pulled against the heavy weight. Then, rather than dropping the block, Darnell shifted his hands under the block, moved his right leg forward a bit and then muscled the block up another foot and positioned his body so that his hands and arms were actually underneath the heavy block. All this happened in a flash. Then, without hesitation, Darnell pushed the block up over his head with a phenomenal display of sheer muscular force. His back, shoulders and arms just rippled with power as he was doing this. Darnell held the block over his head for a few seconds, smiling at the 13-year old kids who were standing there in total shock. Then he threw the huge block of concrete several inches in the air and when it landed with a loud thud it made about a six-inch dent in the ground. Yeah, youre strong kid, but I guess Im a little stronger, said Darnell, almost casually. Darnell flexed his big biceps as the 13-year olds looked at his black body with complete awe. Darnells biceps were twice as big as the strong 13-year old kids.
Then Darnell looked at me with a look that said he was thinking about something strange. Hey Matt, said Darnell, didnt you tell me you weigh about 70 pounds? Yeah, Darnell, thats right, I said. What about it? Im a wimp compared to your 95 pounds of muscle. Come over here Matt and stand in front of me as stiff as you can. Im going to show these big 13-year olds whos strong and who isnt. I stood in front of Darnell and he reached under my armpit with one hand and under my inner thigh with the other. Then he jerked me off the ground with a burst of power and held me parallel to the ground at shoulder level, just like a barbell in the military press position. I could see Darnells right shoulder muscles bulging. Then he slowly raised me up and down, doing military presses with me as a human barbell. Darnells grip was so strong and he lifted me so easily that I felt like a giant muscleman, not a 10-year old boy, was pressing me up and down. With every rep, Darnells big, wide delts almost burst through his thin black skin. I could see the three heads of muscle in his cannonball delts, every fiber flexing and rearranging itself as he pumped his muscular arms up and down. His traps bulged out from his thick neck and his back muscles rippled as he pumped my humanity up and down like a toy. After 10 easy reps, Darnell was finished with the presses but he wasnt finished with his human barbell.
He lowered me to his waist, rearranged his hands to the curl position under my body and started curling me up and down. His strong, young biceps exploded from his arms, forming a perfect peak when they contracted and looking like a bunch of steel cords when they extended. I reached over and felt Darnells right bicep as he curled me up and down. It was incredibly big, pumped and hard. I kept my hand and fingers on the massive muscle as it powered Darnells arms up and down. I marveled at how hot and rock-solid that living flesh was and how it could easily change its form from extended steel cords to a solid, round ball of hot muscle. I put my other hand on one of Darnells massive pecs as they pushed out proudly from his chest. There were several inches of solid muscle in that thick pec, much more than I had ever seen in a kid. I looked at Darnells incredibly small and shredded waist. His ab muscles contracted with every curl and they looked like solid black bricks of muscle. Darnell cranked out an easy 10 curls with my 70-pound human barbell resistance. Then he gently set me down on my feet and flexed his biceps again.
All this time the 13-year olds were staring in disbelief. They had never seen a kid as strong as Darnell. They were speechless. Any of you big guys want to try that? said Darnell. The 13-year olds knew they couldnt even lift me off the ground to their shoulders let alone press or curl me, so they just shook their heads. Well, I guess we now know whos the strong kid in this camp, said Darnell confidently. I gave Darnell a high-five and we walked back to the field.
About an hour later Darnell and I were walking down an isolated trail to the lake. We didnt think there was anyone else around. Suddenly, three kids jumped out in front of us. These were the oldest and biggest kids in the camp. They were 14 years old and must have weighed about 125 pounds each. They looked pretty tough to me. Hey there, blackie, said one of the kids. I hear you think youre pretty hot stuff. Think youre stronger than us white kids. Think youre the strongest kid in this whole camp. Think youre better than us white kids. Well, my buddies and me are going to set you straight, black boy. Were going to teach you your place. And were going to teach you so good that youll never forget it.
At that, two of the bigot kids grabbed Darnells arms and held them to his side. Then their leader stood in front of Darnell and made a fist with his right hand. This is going to hurt you a lot more than its going to hurt me, the kid said and he laughed at his crude joke. The kid wound up his right arm and punched Darnell as hard as he could in the gut. There was a loud smacking sound as the kids fist hit the brick wall of Darnells tensed ab muscles. The kids eyes got big in disbelief and he grabbed his wrist, which was suddenly in great pain. He couldnt believe his punch hadnt made any impact at all on Darnells abs. Darnell just stood there, kind of smiling. This had never happened to the kid before. He was used to punching kids in the gut and having them buckle over in pain. He was used to bullying any kid he wanted to. No kid had ever taken one of his punches to the gut and smiled back at him. He thought that the punch was a fluke. So he made a fist with his left hand and punched Darnell as hard as he could again, this time aiming at Darnells big chest. Again there was a loud smacking sound as the kids fist hit Darnells thick, hard pec muscle. The fist bounced harmlessly off Darnells rock-hard, armor plated muscle and the kid grabbed his left wrist, which was now also hurting. Is that all youve got, honkey? said Darnell. I could hardly feel that. My little sister hits harder than that!
That really made the kid mad. He wound up his right arm again and was about to punch Darnell in the face. But before he could do it, Darnell pulled his two arms forward with an immense burst of power, literally throwing the other two kids on the ground. The two kids who were holding Darnells arms were no match for Darnells phenomenal strength. Now the bully was standing one-on-one in front of Darnell, without his two friends holding down Darnells arms. Darnell didnt waste any time. He punched the bully about six times with powerful lefts and rights to the gut and the chest. Darnell could have easily knocked the kid out with a punch to the head, but he chose to inflict bodily pain instead. The other two kids got up from the ground and Darnell attacked them with a combination of devastating punches and kicks. I remembered that Darnell told me that he had learned how to street fight when he was very young, and now I saw what he meant. He used a combination of his sheer muscular strength and amazingly quick street-fighting moves to totally brutalize the three bigoted bully kids who were going to teach him a lesson. He punched them in the gut until they started spitting up, he kicked them in the ribs (I think I heard one rib crack), he twisted their arms in painful wrestling holds. In short, he completely thrashed the three big 14-year old thugs. They were in so much pain that they finally started to beg Darnell for mercy, but he carried out his beating for several minutes more, just so they got the message loud and clear.
Finally Darnell stopped the punishment and kneeled on top of the vanquished leader thug, flexing his big, black, sweaty arms right in front of the kids face. So what were you going to teach me about the right place for us black kids, honkey? I like this place just fine! Then Darnell rubbed his big hard bulging bicep right in the kids face.