Jenny looked at her watch anxiously. She hated being late for anything and didn't want to be late for training. She heard some footsteps. Finally! Jenny breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm going straight to the point. You know what to do", Zac said.

"Where's the money?" Jenny asked.

"You only get the money after the job is done and be sure to get as close to Troy as possible", Zac responded and left.

Jenny didn't need to be told twice to get close to Troy. She already wanted to do that the first day she set her eyes on him. She wanted to run her fingers through his silky black hair and stare at his hazel eyes forever. She knew what she was doing was wrong but she really needed the money and this was a quick way of earning some money.

----------------------------------------------------------

Troy heard the doorbell ringing. Who was that? He wondered. He reluctantly got up his bed. He was not surprised to find Jenny at the door.

"Were you sleeping? I'm sorry if I disturbed you", Jenny said.

"Oh no. Come in", Troy told her.

Jenny entered and sat down.

"You were resting for your big day, weren't you?" Jenny asked.

"Yeah and I told the team to also rest. I don't want any injuries", Troy said.

"You can get injuries even while training?"

"Yeah."

"You guys truly deserve a break. You've worked really hard."

They both sat in silence for a few minutes and Troy decided to break it.

"I don't know why, but I feel like I can talk to you about anything", Troy told Jenny.

"I feel that way too", Jenny said.

"You might think this is weird but I'm more comfortable chatting with girls than guys. I don't know why."

"I feel the same way too. Girls are complicated. I think guys are much more fun. So do you have any female best friends?"

"Yeah, but we had an argument."

"So will you two be friends again?"

"I don't know. I have to apologise to her."

"Oh."

"Do I smell brownies?" Troy asked, inhaling the aroma of the food.

"Yeah. I brought some with me."

Troy and Jenny chatted some more while munching on brownies. When they were done, an idea popped into Troy's head.

"We're going to do something fun", Troy said.

"What?" Jenny asked, her eyes widening in excitement.

"A one-on-one basketball match with me", Troy said.

"It's not fair! I don't know how to play basketball."

"Don't worry. You'll learn from the very best."

"And who is that?" Jenny asked mockingly.

"Me. Come on, let's go", Troy said and grabbed Jenny's hand.

Troy had lots of fun teachong Jenny how to play basketball. He even let her win sometimes, just to see her smile. He didn't remember having this much fun with Brenda. Doing even the simplest things with Jenny made them thrilling.

As Troy watched Jenny making some free throws, he had the sudden urge to tickle her. Jenny was very ticklish and Troy knew all the right spots to make Jenny burst into laughter. He stealthily approached her and tickled her. She immediately burst into laughter and dropped the basketball. She laughed so hard that she fell down, pulling Troy down with her. A patch of grass broke their fall and Jenny's laughter subsided. They stared at each other for what seemed like ages.

Jenny knew she had to do something. She couldn't just stare into Troy's eyes for the rest of the day. Her gaxe quickly moved from Troy's eyes for his lips. She wondered how it would be like to kiss those lips. Maybe she could try. Jenny, you have to get a hold on yourself! She thought, scolding herself.

"I really need to go to the restroom", Jenny said.

"Oh ok", Troy said.

When Jenny returned from the restroom, she found Troy sitting on a bench and sat next to him. They chatted for some time when Jenny realised she hadn't asked him about his family.

"Can you tell me about your family?" Jenny asked hesitantly.

She knew that this topic was touchy and sensitive for some people. After some minutes of silence, Jenny was about to ask another question when Troy spoke up.

"My dad's an artist. He's in a wheelchair because he was involved in a car accident and my mum's ill with arthritis. She was a journalist before she became sick", Troy said, looking away from Jenny so that she would not see the tears glistening in his eyes.

"What about your siblings?" Jenny asked.

"I have an elder brother. He lives in Kentuncky and he's a civil engineer. He rarely visits and he doesn't even send any money", Troy said, anger building up in him with every word he spoke.

"I'm so sorry."

"It's okay."

"I have to go now. Goodbye."

"Bye."

_______________________

On her way home, thoughts of Troy filled Jenny's mind. She had never been captivated by any guy like this. What did Troy have that other guys didn't? She knew she didn't have any chance with him. He already had a female friend.

It was barely two weeks to the big game and Jenny still hadn't found any weakness. She knew there had to be a weakness in Troy. Everyone had one. She had to find what Troy's weakness was. If she didn't, she would have to kiss goodbye to the money Zac had promised her.

Realisation dawned on her. This was how Zac's team was able to win most of their matches. They would find look for the team's weakness and use it to their advantage. Wasn't this a form of cheating? What was she getting herself into?