Hi uh, it's been a while since I wrote a note but, I want to hear your thoughts about this story!!

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Chapter 10

"I know that you're practicing hard for your game tomorrow, but Hyunjin-ah, it's almost midnight," Hyunjin flinched upon hearing Yiyeon's voice. He looked around in the darkness, but all he could see was nothing. The light suddenly turned on, and he saw his cousin seated on the couch, near the light switches. "What a bad influence as an older cousin of mine, don't you think?" She raised a brow.

Hyunjin blinked several times as his sight was adjusting to the light. "What older cousin, I'm only six months older than you," he grunted.

"Yeah, whatever," she rolled her eyes. Then, she patted the space beside her. Hyunjin just sat beside her as he doesn't want to see Yiyeon mad. "I hope you do well tomorrow..." she sighed, then she continued, "The school you're battling tomorrow is your 3-year rival, right?"

He nods, "You'll watch tomorrow, right?" He asked and looked at the younger. "Jeno will be playing—"

"Of course, I'll watch tomorrow!" She snorted. "And no, not because Jeno is there, but because my friends will be playing, and you'll also be there. I never missed a game. Besides, I won't waste the front row seats you gave me," she nudged. "Do you want us to cheer for you guys that bad?" Yiyeon asked, chuckling.

Her cousin rolled his eyes, "Idiot. I just don't want you to fight someone else over a seat just like last season," he snorted. "Anyways, I'll be resting now. You?"

"I'll go upstairs after a short while," she shrugged. Hyunjin just nodded and proceeded to go upstairs. "You did well today, Hyunjin-ah!"

Without facing her, he replied, "Thanks," he smiled, even if she could not see it.

Hyunjin entered his room and placed his gym bag on the floor. He opened it and grabbed his dirty clothes, and threw them into the hamper. He lay on his bed and sighed, remembering what happened during their practice yesterday.

"Hyunjin-ah, can I talk to you for a second?" The mentioned boy looked at his teammate, who suddenly called him. Although baffled, he nodded and followed him to the other side of the court.

Not wanting the silence, he decided to talk. "What do you want to talk about," he asked, not wanting to spend more time who broke his younger cousin's heart.

Jeno fished something out of his pocket, to Hyunjin's surprise? "Could you please hand these over to Yiyeon? They're tickets for the game this Sunday, and I also bought tickets for Jeongmin, Sungchan, and Yejin..." he said, handing the pieces of paper to Yiyeon's cousin. "I know that I shouldn't be asking this kind of favor to you, especially that you're her brother, but I don't know another way to talk to her."

Hyunjin looked at the person in front of him. He was serious, to which he wonders why he and Yiyeon broke up. Jeno seems like a nice person. Hyunjin was confused.

"You might be thinking that I have no shame, but I want to do these things, Hyunjin..." he said, looking him in the eye.

The other boy took a deep breath and placed the tickets in his pocket, "I'll give these to her, don't worry," he smiled. "Do you want me to tell her that it's from you? Or should I tell her that it's from me instead?"

"Tell her it's from you," Jeno said. "She won't accept it if it's from me."

Hyunjin was still contemplating whether he did the right thing or not. He just closed his eyes and hoped that he made the right decision.

Besides, it wouldn't hurt if Yiyeon doesn't know, right? They're just tickets, after all.

***

"Woah, I've never seen a basketball game this close," Jeongmin said as they entered the arena.

Their eyes traveled inside the court. They were just seated behind their team.

"Daewon-hyung!" Sungchan yelled when some of the players came out from the locker room.

The boy who was mentioned waved at them and ran towards their direction, "Woah, I didn't know that you got VIP access..." he said, wide-eyed.

"Yeah, and it's all thanks to Yiyeon!" Yejin exclaimed, pointing at her friend who was seated beside her.

Daewon threw a glance at Yiyeon, suddenly recalling the times wherein she had to skip lunch just because the food prices at the cafeteria weren't student-friendly. Then here she is, suddenly availing gold tickets for her and her friends?

She shook her head and waved her hands as if saying no, "No, they were from Hyunjin," she explained, still shaking her head. "I can't even afford a single gold ticket for myself, and you'd expect me to buy some for all of you?" She snorted.

Although unconvinced, Daewon nodded, "We'd be staying at this area later on. So cheer of us, okay?" He asked.

The four nodded, "Of course!" Yejin said. "I do hope that you won't get tired of hearing our voices, though," she added.

"Where are the others? And why are you here?" Yiyeon asked.

"I wanted to jog around the court, but I saw that you guys are already here, so I came for a chat," he explained. "I figured that you guys were golden ticket holders otherwise you guys won't be able to come inside the arena this early."

They just nodded.

"I should be heading back now! Our captain might be wondering why I'm taking too long," Daewon said.

"Alright, say hi to Mark-hyung for us!" Sungchan said.

They watched the guy as he returned to the locker room.

"How the hell did Mark Lee became the captain?" Yiyeon snorted.

Mark was also a close friend of theirs. They know that he is not as good at scoring as his teammates.

They just chuckled.

***

Seven minutes into the ball game and Daewon's team were already showing signs of tiredness. They were behind by 11 points, with a score of 35-24.

Mark, Yangyang, Hyunjin, Chenle, and Minho played, and Yiyeon could not believe the current lineup. Chenle was playing even if he was limping, and during the timeout earlier, they heard that Minho has a fever.

"What the hell is happening with the Panthers?" Yiyeon raised a brow, referring to their school's basketball team—the Southwest Panthers. The players aren't in good shape, which makes her wonder why another player suddenly replaced Jeno and Daewon.

"Daewon-oppa," Jeongmin called.

The guy looked around to look at his friends, "Why?"

"Can't you play instead?" The younger asked.

Daewon just pressed his lips into a thin line and shrugged, pointing at the man who was busy signaling the team in front, "Coach's orders... we just have to wait."

"I can't stand watching the game knowing that two of the team's strongest players are just seated on the bench," Yiyeon sighed in frustration. "I mean, why are Jeno and Daewon just sitting there? Chenle and Minho are obviously in pain, but why can't they see that?!"

The others just sighed and agreed with Yiyeon.

"I don't know anything about basketball since I play soccer, but I can picture out why Yiyeon-noona is mad," Sungchan said, his eyes still glued on the ball game. "It's kinda obvious that something is lacking, but I don't know what that is..."

The whistle blows as a sign that the first quarter of the game had ended. The first ten minutes of the ball game ended with a landslide: 49-30, in favor of the opponents.

The team gathers in a circle to rethink their strategy. Obviously, their defense wasn't working.

"Coach, I would like to give it a try," Jeno said confidently.

The place where Yiyeon, Jeongmin, Yejin, and Sungchan were seated wasn't far from them, which is why they could somehow hear what they were talking about.

It was as if their coach was taken back, and it bugs Yiyeon.

Jeno wanted to play. Why is that such a shock?

Sighing, the coach nodded, "Minho and Chenle, sit for a while. Jeno and Daewon, in."

They placed their hands in the middle as they yelled their chant.

Yiyeon had her hands clasped together as her eyes were trailing Jeno to Daewon to Hyunjin.

"Oh my gosh, why is this so nerve-wracking?" She exclaimed and took a deep breath.

The game resumes.

***

"Lee Jeno, for three! He scores!" The commentator announces, which makes all of their supporters yell in glee. "7 more points, and they would be back in the lead. Everything went in their favor after the short break. As the rumors go by, nobody could indeed break the panthers."

Yiyeon smiled, "Go Daewon!" She yelled as her friend passed the ball to Hyunjin.

The person guarding his cousin wouldn't let go, and there were only a few seconds left for Hyunjin to pass the ball to avoid violation.

"Hyunjin-ah, fighting!" Yiyeon yelled. "Come on..." she was desperately praying as her eyes traveled to the shot clock.

5 seconds left.

The opponent was able to tap the ball out of Hyunjin's hands, causing it to fly towards Yiyeon's direction. Her eyes widened as she saw the ball flying in her direction.

She closed her eyes shut as she braced herself for the impact.

But she felt nothing.

The moment she opened her eyes, she saw Jeno towering over her. His face looked tired, and it was as if he ran from the other side of the court just to save her from the impact. The crowd roared as they saw Jeno and Yiyeon's position.

"Jeno, w-what—"

"Just... don't stop cheering for all of us..." he said and gave her a tired smile.

Her eyes traveled down to Jeno's foot, only to notice that they were angled in a weird position.

"Jeno, your foot!—"

"Don't mind it... I can play..." he said as he limped away.

"No, you don't look okay-"

"Jeno, sit down," their coach said. "Your foot's condition wasn't already good during the beginning of the game, that's why I didn't let you play, but you're stubborn as always!" He grunted.

Yiyeon's eyes widened.

"Hyung was already injured?" Sungchan asked, looking at Yiyeon.

The girl wore a shocked expression herself.

Why would he risk it all just to save me...

"Lucas, go and play in place of Jeno!" The coach said. He removed Jeno's shoes and saw that his left foot was already swollen. "Hold on, I'm getting the medics for you. No buts about this, Lee."

The game was halted due to what happened.

Jeno had his eyes closed, feeling all of his remaining strength crumbling.

I know that it's just a ball... but I wouldn't want Yiyeon to get hit even if it was just a ball...

"Mr. Seo," Jeno heard a familiar voice. It was Yiyeon, and she was standing beside the bench. "Can I please stay by Jeno? I mean, his injury became worse because of me..."

Their coach looked torn, as he knew the current strain between the two. But he could only sigh and nod. He can't just ditch the game nor Jeno.

The paramedics arrived with a stretcher where Jeno lied down.

The three just sat there, confused as to how Yiyeon was suddenly trailing with the paramedics.

"What just happened?" Jeongmin blinked, finding it hard to register the events that took place in just three minutes.

Yejin looked at Yangyang who was stupefied in his seat. He was clutching his water bottle, as his other hand was formed in a fist.

"Yah, Yangyang!" Yejin called. "I thought you were already making a move on her?! What is this, then? Why did you let her go that easily?" She raised a brow.

"It'll be okay," he said, voice soft, almost a whisper. "I'm always ranked second in her life. I would never be number one."

- tbc.