This is a lightly-edited, fun fic that was written for a friend on livejournal about two months ago. I suppose it could be considered a teaser for my upcoming story saga. Please comment and tell me what you think, and also ignore any mistakes in the text; maybe I'll fix them later.

The gym was quiet, fluorescent lights beaming down on the floor as the team sat huddled in center court. Some worked on tightening their shoelaces, pulling on kneepads and elbow pads. Others were stretching, muscles taut and elegant as they reached for their toes. They giggled and laughed, sharing secrets and rumors from the school day.

Mina stood to her knees and pulled Serena's hair into three separate strands. "I hate you sometimes, Sere. You have such beautiful hair." She twisted it into a thick braid, winding the elastic hair band around the end. "You have to tell me your shampoo brand. It's like silk."

Raye stood and straightened her sports bra. "Do my boobs look lopsided?"

Gazes lifted up, watching as she pulled at the straps. When nobody answered, Lita spoke up. "Yeah, the left looks a tad bit bigger than the right. But don't worry, it's barely noticeable."

"Gee, thanks."

They all settled back into their separate conversations. Serena teetered over towards Amy, holding her ankles. "Hey Ms. Team Manager? What time is it?"

She peered up from her notebook. "Ten after five."

She harrumphed and collapsed to the floor, arms and legs stretched out. "I hate practice on a Friday night." Then, as a second thought, she added, "Hey, anyone who wants to come over to my house and watch re-runs of Spongebob is welcome."

There was a barrage of grunts and snorts, and then the gym door banged open, followed by the obvious sound of the male species. All twelve heads swiveled over, eyes wide as the newcomers came to an awkward halt.

"Hey, this gym is reserved." Mina stood and picked up a basketball. "Private practice, so get out."

The boys' team was known for their cocky, egotistical, narcissist attitude, but Mina had never experienced such an act up front. And so, at the hoots of laughter and slaps of knees, and other crude, boorish remarks, she felt her blood boil.

"Sorry, sweetheart," Kennedy, the tall, slender, pale eyed captain smirked and pounded his own ball against the floor. "But we've scheduled a practice here first. So why don't you and your team scoot your petite little butts out of here."

Mina arched an eyebrow and stepped forward. "Do you want a review about my petite little butt can do, Ken?"

The guys behind him covered their mouths and made no attempt the stifle their laughter. Jake slung an arm around Kennedy's shoulder. "Dude, she just made you look like a pussy."

He snarled and shoved the ball against Jake's stomach. He gasped and stumbled back slightly. "Shut up, would you? I don't see you trying to get them out."

But Mina had already turned back to her group, pointing into various directions, ball poised against the sharp curve of her hip.

Serena tiptoed back over to Amy. "Hey Ms. Team Manager? Where's the coach?"

This time, she didn't even bother to look up. "Late."

"Serena! Get your petite little butt over on the three point line!"

"Aye-aye, Captain!" She saluted and scampered over to her destination. Turning, she blew a kiss to Darien, braid swinging around her waist.

"Serena!"

"Sorry, Mina!"

Darien bent towards Kennedy. "Maybe you should talk to her. You've got brains, use them. Tell her that they'd get half the court, and we'd get the other."

He sighed and snatched the ball from Zane, who had miraculously helped Jake stay on his feet. "Fine, but when she tries to kick me in the nuts, it'll be your fault." Jake flipped him an unkind gesture, face still unusually pale and breath shallow. Kennedy ignored him and shoved past the rest of the team, stomping his way over to center court.

If Mina heard him approach, she didn't say anything. She simply tossed the ball to Raye and ordered them to run a play. He admired Serena's shot for only a second.

"Hey. Let's make a deal."

Mina paused and turned around, eyes annoyed and lips pulled into a frown. "What kind of deal do you have in mind?"

It took him a minute to register her question, faced pulled taut as he examined her. Finally, after a good minute, he concluded that that expression didn't quite suit her features. Mina sighed heavily, body slouching.

"Any day now, Kennedy. We're trying to practice here."

If she considered Lita and Raye fighting over who would win in a game of war, sideline rookies heads tilted at what looked like an uncomfortable angle as they toyed with their cell phones, and Serena's inching across the floor towards Darien, practice, he considered giving her a bit more sympathy than intended.

But he needed just as much time as she did. "Can we split the court? We could use the practice."

Mina confirmed this by peaking over Kennedy's shoulder to watch Nathan shove Zane into Jake, who fell into the rest of the team, who fell back into the hallway. There was a string of curses, an awful sound of knuckles cracking, and then a, "Dude, I was just kidding." Serena had somehow managed to sneak her way over to Darien.

She shot a pained expression as Kennedy, brows furrowed. "I can't really understand how you must feel, because we're obviously so much better than you..."

He gave an exasperated sigh, head lolling to the side. "Fine. Then we'll play you for the court."

"What?"

His arm wrapped around the basketball. "You know, a scrimmage. First one to thirty gets practice time."

Her eyes narrowed, fingers pulling thoughtfully at the waistband of her shorts. Kennedy had to dig his nails into the flesh of his palm to control the sudden flaring of his anger. Mina chewed her lip for a moment, "Okay, fine. But no jump ball. And we get the ball first, and... Well, don't complain when we beat you. Got that?"

"Sure."

"Perfect." She dismissed him with a wave of a hand and twirled around, ignoring his grumbles. "Hey girls, come here." She clapped her hands and called them into a circle. "We're going to scrimmage these idiots, okay? So let's just make this quick and not painful at all." She looked at each girl's face. Then, with a sigh, she poked her head up. "Serena! When I said 'hey girls', that included you, too!"

Serena mumbled something, reluctantly shuffling back towards the group.

"Anyway," she rolled her eyes toward Serena, who clucked her tongue and crossed her arms, "since Amy got hurt, do we have a volunteer for the fifth starter?"

The girls gently pushed behind Lita, looking around at anything but the captain.

She groaned and rocked back on her feet, turning her body towards the large mass of boys at the other end of the court. "Hey, Ken? Can we do four-on-four?"

One pale eyebrow rose up slightly, lips pressing into a thin line. He could have easily used that notion against her, possibly for a set of free throws.

"I'll sit, Ken." Zane lifted a hand into the air and blew some curled bangs away from his eyes, drawing a sour mope to Kennedy's face. "I'm having some indigestion problems at the moment, anyway."

"Fine, go sit over there," he waved him off with a flick of the wrist. "Try not to crap your pants. That's the last thing we need."

Zane slipped past the team and headed over to the sidelines, where Amy was still – still – writing in her notebook. "Hey."

She peaked up slightly before lowering her gaze. Zane could have sworn he saw her blush. "Hi." Her pen paused momentarily, "If you have indigestion problems, I always carry around some Tums."

"Nah, that's alright. I don't really have indigestion." He flopped into the chair next to her. "Aren't you on the student council?"

Amy bit her lip, glancing over at him through thick eyelashes. "Yeah, I am."

"Cool. I'm Zane."

"Amy."

"I know."

Raye continued to fuss with her bra as Jake approached her, peeling off his shirt. "What's your foul shot percentage?"

"Shut up, Jake."

He put up his hands, "No, really, I want to know."

She pinned him with a narrow glance, tongue poking out from the side of her mouth. "Sixty."

He snorted. She punched him.

Lita was already fighting with Nathan, looking for positioning. She smirked at him. "Your hand's on my butt."

"Not on purpose."

She stepped away, watching with a wide grin as he tumbled to the floor.

Mina tried hard not to yell at Serena again, but she was getting really, really close, watching Darien flirt with her, nose nuzzling into the crook of her neck. It was all she could do not to gag.

Serena finally realized that they were waiting for her and fought Darien off, giggling as she tossed the ball in. "Stop it! You're embarrassing me!" And she shoved him away just in time to catch the ball that came whizzing at her head.

Lita fended Nathan off with an elbow to the ribs, arm extended, gladly excepting the basketball. She waited for him to recover; she was the type of girl who liked to take someone to the hoop old-school.

But what she didn't expect was Jake to slap the ball out of her hands. She didn't expect that hard pat to her bum either. Nathan only shrugged his shoulders, blatantly bemused, and darted to the other end of the court.

Jake turned a shoulder on Raye, glad to see her eyes darting from the ball to his stomach. "I do a hundred sit-ups every morning, then five hundred at night."

Raye glared at him and backed up a step, waiting for him to make a move. "Do I look like I care?" His shoulder bumped her breast. "Really, Jake? You're such a horndog."

"I can't help that. Damn hormones. They get me every time." He crossed the ball to his left hand, jabbed once, and shot off.

Raye wasn't an idiot, because she expected that coming, stuck out her foot, and snatched the ball as his face met the floor. "Thanks so much. Now I don't have to worry about chipping my nail."

Kennedy pulled Jake up from the ground. "Would you knock it off? She just made you look like a pussy!" And he pushed him in the other direction, running a hand through his hair. Mina snickered as she dribbled past.

"You're the one who wanted to have a scrimmage!"

Serena accepted Mina's pass with a small roll of her hips, lips pursed as she examined the court. Darien knew what that meant and stuck a hand into her face. He'd be damned to hell if she scored on him. But she was quicker then he expected, caught looking as she bounced the ball between the arch of his legs to a waiting Lita. He accepted her mocking laugh with a clenched jaw.

Lita wasted no time backing Nathan down, hair slapping him in the face. Her hook shot took him by surprise, and his reaction sent her tumbling to the floor. The ball rolled away from the rim.

"Foul!" Mina shouted from the top of the key, pointing a finger at Nathan. He mumbled an apology and helped her up from the floor.

"That's alright. I've taken harder hits."

He wasn't sure if that was a compliment or an insult.

Serena checked Darien with the side of her hip as they lined up, growling at the hand that inched, again, towards the small of her back. "Stop looking at me like that! There are people here!"

He shrugged. "You didn't mind me looking last night."

Chattering on the sidelines died down, gazes lifted, expressions shocked. Lita lowered the ball to her waist, eyes wide. "What was that?" Even Amy risked looked up; pen faltering and mouth opened slightly.

Mina placed a hand on her hip, nostrils flared as she pieced the words together. "You lost your virginity and you didn't tell me?"

Serena, cheeks and neck red, felt her bottom lip tremble as she stepped away. Everyone was looking at her, eyebrows arched, looking for more information. To talk behind her back? To spread a rumor about her? Would she have to leave the team due to humiliation? Her stomach dropped. "Oh my God, Darien! Now look at what you've done!" She stomped on his foot, looping away with a cry. "They think I'm a whore!"

"Serena!" Darien darted after her, limping only slightly. "I don't think you're a whore!" He chased her around the side of the bleachers. "You didn't act like a whore at all last night!"

"Shut up! Oh my god! Just shut up!"

Zane peered over at Amy, face taut as he controlled his laughter. He saw that she, too, was muffling some giggles. He couldn't help his smile.

Kennedy cleared his throat, motioning for Lita to continue. She nodded, readjusted her feet, her shoulders, her fingers, and made both. There was a muffled conversation from somewhere under the bleachers.

"What are you doing?"

"Just come here..."

A giggle, a squeal, and then a steady, resolute silence.

Kennedy dribbled down the court, eyes catching Mina's as she back peddled slowly, her face angry. "Can you believe that? It's ridiculous!"

"What? That Darien popped Serena's cherry?"

"No! Well, yes. But she didn't even tell me! I mean, when I lose my virginity, you can bet that she'd be the first person that I'd tell! That's what best friends are for!" Mina swatted lamely at the ball, a few wisps of hair falling from her ponytail.

Kennedy was about to mention that he did not, in fact, know that she was still a virgin, but the moment passed as the door slammed open and the girls' basketball coach stumbled in, clipboard in one hand and bag of basketballs clenched in the other.

"Sorry I'm late, girls! There was this horrible traffic jam and..." She trailed off as she looked at the boys. "Oh, I didn't know you guys would be here! We could've shared the court!"

Mina deliberately ignored Kennedy's harrumph of agreement.

She handed the bag of balls to Jake and told him to put them on the rack in the storage closet. Her eyes rolled over the boys' team first, then over at the girls. "Where's Serena at?"

Amy answered. "Probably making out underneath the bleachers."

"What?"

"Nothing, Coach Haruna. Amy's just in a particularly sarcastic mood this evening." She laughed and the subject dispersed with a shrug of the shoulder. "We were just scrimmaging the boys. That's okay, right?"

"It's perfect! They're the perfect match-up for you guys! But... Where's the tall boy with the black hair? He was a pretty good shooter. Might be able to teach you girls a few tricks."

"With Serena under the bleachers."

"What?"

"Nothing, Coach Haruna! Nothing! Sarcastic mood, remember?" She shot a glare at Amy, but she was too engrossed in her notes to notice. "Let's get on with that scrimmage!"

Zane stood and teetered behind Amy as the game continued, peering over her shoulder. She froze, arm curving around the edge of her notebook. Her head bobbed up. "No, I won't let you copy my calculus notes."

His astonishment was short lived, admiration for her growing a bit more. He moved to stand in front of her. Her eyes were amazingly blue when she looked up at him. "You know, there's this great pizza place that I think you'd really like and-."

Amy also stood, tucking her pen in between a few sheets of paper. "Zane, are you asking me out on a date?" She could have sworn she saws his cheeks redden, expression sheepish, eyes focusing on anything but her face; a smile began to tug at her lips. "If you are, than it's a yes."

Zane beamed, shoulders relaxing. "Fabulous." He allowed his gaze to drop to her notebook. "Now, about those calculus notes..."

She laughed and pulled out her cell phone. "Just give me your number, okay? We need to make arrangements."

Mina pouted as Raye threw the ball to her, upset that Kennedy had just beaten her to the basket. He winked and smiled, mouthing something that looked acutely profane. She only glared back. Then, from the corner of her eye, she saw Serena steal past, Darien right behind her. A sudden fit of laughter bubbled into her throat. Kennedy looked at her, confused, but she batted him away, tears forming in her eyes.

"It's nothing, I swear!" The ball rolled away from her hand. "It's just that..." The laughter won over her control, and she nearly doubled over, arms clutching her stomach.

Everyone else, after sharing quick looks of bewilderment, couldn't help but join in, laughter contagious as they, too, began to sense her humor. The basketball bounced over to the bleachers, hoping that someone would notice the pair of shoes, socks, and an elastic hair band thrown carelessly aside.

But then it began to roll in the other direction.

The next morning, as Serena searched for her bra beneath Darien's bed, she wondered what had happened to her shoes. But all she could seem to remember was that her boyfriend could give one hell of a foot massage.

And then she remembered that her socks were gone, too.