Here's the new chapter! Yay! I kind of like this one… I got to put in some Basketball… I play basketball and I absolutely adore the sport, so I'm sorry if it's not your thing and you hate this chapter.
Anywho… Please review! Pretty please with grapes on top? (I hate cherries)
KarleeRay
Three Months Later
"Mom! Mom have you seen my kneepads?" I yell, scampering down the stairs. God, I'm gonna be late, late for my very first game. Yeah, you heard that right, my first game. I play basketball now, and not too sound cocky or anything, but I was dang good at it.
I'm literally sprinting around downstairs in search of my kneepads, when I run directly into Fang and effectively not knock him down.
"Fang! Watch where you're going!" I retort over my shoulder, even though the collision was basically all my fault. I hear a low chuckle behind me but pay no attention to it. Kneepads. Kneepads. Kneepads.
"Looking for something?" I turn around to see Total trotting in with my kneepads in his mouth.
"Yes!" Reaching down, I snatch them out of his mouth. "And that's why you're my favorite, Total," I tell him and pat his head, before running up the stairs to my room.
I have my navy blue and white uniform on in less than a minute and then I'm heading back downstairs.
"Max! We'll be in the car! You don't want to be late, sweetie!" Mom calls and I quicken my pace.
Fang is sitting in the passenger seat of our enormous van, so I slide into the backseat beside Dylan.
He smiles at me. "You ready to play?"
"I was born ready," I say, seriously.
"ZOMG! Max I'm so excited to see you play for the first time! Are you good? I bet you are! You're gonna knock'em dead, I bet. You guys have to win… it's opening season! That would be really embarrassing to lose! Oh I bet there's gonna be so many people there! ZOMG! Good luck, Max! I'll be your loudest supporter!" Nudge chirps, rambling, and I shoot her a dark glare.
"We're not gonna lose," I tell her, confidently, though I'm not so sure on the inside. Butterflies are making their homes in the pit of my stomach. What if I mess up? Like really bad in front of everyone?
I take a deep breath. Stop this Max. Just go out there and play your game.
I walk into the gym with a little pep in my step. This really was exciting, though I would never admit it. The stands are full on both sides of the court and my team and the other team are already out there warming up. I hop the railing that surrounds the court, something that's against the rules, and join my team.
We quickly get through our stretches and form shots and then we work on lay ups and 3's. My shot is spot on. I'm easily a stand out on this team. Looking up at the score board, I'm startled to see that there's only thirty seconds left before the game starts.
"Alright, Oxford! Bring it in!" Coach Lance calls to us and we jog over to our bench.
"Listen, no holding back. I want us to get out there and start out with a bang. Play hard, play smart. Get down and play good defense. Work the ball on offence, don't take crazy shots. Be patient. Be smart. Play your game. This is our house… we will not lose, got it?"
I tap my leg impatiently, anxious to get out there. "Alright, starting five. I want Jessie, Chrissa, Lexi, Carter, and Max you jump. Team on three. One, Two, Three team!"
We walk out onto the court and I see who I'll be jumping against. She's taller than me, like way taller, but I can jump pretty high when I need to. Looking for an extra boost of courage, I scan the crowd for my family. I spot them in the top right corner. Nudge waves and gives me a thumbs-up and I smile back quickly before tuning back into the game. The ref blows the whistle and throws the ball up high. I bend my knees and then explode up as high as I possibly can. I come up just short of tipping the ball, but quickly recover and get back on defense.
I grab a man immediately. Their point guard begins to dribble down the floor and she attempts to pass it off to the right wing player. Bad choice. No one is going to get past me. I look at the point guard, reading her like an open book and see the pass coming from a mile away. The pass doesn't make it half way before I quickly steal it out of the air and head down the court for a breakaway lay-up. My shot goes in and that starts up the game.
The game was more of a battle than I thought it would be. The other school actually had some decent talents. I made good plays and I made mistakes, just like any other player. I got chewed out by my coach for bowing up to one of the girl players on the other team. What? She was doing some serious elbowing and the refs weren't calling! They stopped the game, even though there was no fight and Coach made me sit out for three minutes as punishment.
Anyway, we ended up winning the game 89-79, and I'm proud to say I scored a very good portion of those shots, more than anyone on my team.
The car ride home was filled with praises for me and Carter who was spending the night at our house. We took them like champs, working to be humble.
"I was very impressed girls," My mom says, beaming at me in the rearview mirror.
"Me too," Angel offers in her sweet little voice. "You were very good, Max."
"It really was exciting," Carter trills, coming into my room, dressed in only a towel. Her hair hangs wet down her back and she's dripping all over my floor.
"I have brothers, you know?" I snicker, referring to her lack of clothes.
"Yes, I know, but while their very hot, they're both extremely taken so it doesn't matter," She informs me, dropping her towel and rummaging through my drawers for something to sleep in. These past few months, Carter and I had grown extremely close. I guess you could say we were like best friends…. Well she was my second best friend. Fang would always be my number one. I just felt so comfortable around her and really I could and would tell her pretty much anything.
"How many times have I told you to stop flashing me?" I ask her.
"Enough times to know that I'll never listen to you." Carter pulls on one of my t- shirts and a pair of extremely short satin pajama shorts that Nudge had gotten me. "I'll be back," She tells me and leaves the room. I start to wonder where she's going and then realize I'm too tired to care.
I lie back on my bed and flip on the TV as Fang enters the room, and I try, unsuccessfully, to ignore the fact that he's dressed in only a pair of baggy sweat pants. I scratch the back of my neck and look away, trying to control my thoughts. God, his chest was just so perfect.
"Whatcha watching?" he asks, flopping down on my bed. I refuse to look at him and I swear I can see him smirking out of the corner of my eye.
"It's called a shirt Fang," I manage, sarcastically. "You should try one sometime."
After a moment, I feel his quiet laughter shake the bed. "Why? Am I making you uncomfortable Max?"
I huff, but say nothing. Suddenly, he grabs my hand and pulls me on top of him, pressing me against his bare abs in the process. I try to get up but he wraps his arms around me in a tight hold. Finally, I give up and just stare into his eyes. He leans up, kissing my neck, and I literally have to stop myself from jumping all over him.
"Breathe Max," he murmurs, into my skin and I obey, not realizing that I had been holding my breath.
Losing my control, I grab the back of his hair and yank him roughly off of my neck but only so I can have a way to his lips. I press mine down on his hungrily, and he immediately reciprocates, annoyingly pleased with himself. His hands roam up and down my back and dangerously close to my butt. His tongue traces over my teeth and I press my hands to his stomach, tracing the contours of his abs. He's perfect. I love him. I love him. I love him.
"I really prefer strawberry, but chocolate will-" Carter breaks off as she enters the room, and I quickly jump off of Fang. Fang, however, makes no attempt to move. He just lies there, wearing an annoyed expression on his face on having been interrupted. I swat his arm lightly and he receives the message, making his face impassive again.
Carter giggles, quickly recovering. "Hey Fang." She flops down on the bed beside us and hands me a huge ice cream sundae. "As I was saying, I prefer strawberry ice cream but chocolate will do." My ice cream is a considerable amount bigger than hers, and I grin. She knows me too well.
Strangely, I don't feel embarrassed at all about her walking in on us. I guess, that just goes to show how comfortable I am with her.
She grabs the remote off of my night stand and flicks through the channels, coming to a stop on Criminal Minds. Carter, Ella and I had an obsession with Criminal Minds. "Yay! It's a new one," I chirp, eyes gluing to the screen. Carter lies down beside me and soon we are in our "Criminal Minds trance" as Nudge and Iggy like to call it.
Fang quickly realizes that he's been excused and gets up. He plants a quick kiss on my forehead and murmurs a soft goodbye to Carter who isn't listening at all.
"Fang!" I call to him. "Tell Ella to come in here. She'll want to see this one."
He shakes his head, amused, and leaves the room.