Please read and review! You can be harsh in your reviews if you want, it'll help me become a better writer.
Edit: I've started uploading profiles of characters in the story starting from chapter 1! From now on, I'll probably post one per chapter.
I think about thirty seconds passed between us before she finally said something.
"Well?! Are you going to give your number or not? Stop staring and give me your number already!" She huffed.
Wait, she was serious? After everything that had just happened earlier...
"Wait...so just like that? You're just going to ask for my number?" I asked just to make sure she meant what she said earlier. I felt like there was something going on here...you don't just get riled up just so you can ask for a phone number. At least I don't think so.
"Look, if you're not gonna give me your number, just hurry and go away to avoid wasting my time. Otherwise get on with it already!" She then exasperatedly held out her hand as if expecting me to give her my phone.
"Alright fine, whatever." As I handed her my phone, she took a moment to examine it. Tossing it, looking at the brand, I also think I caught a smirk out of her.
"Oh look, people actually still use these." she whispered, although I could hear her very clearly.
I sighed. I couldn't believe this was happening right now.
"Catch." Right then, I saw my phone flying at me. In a little panic, I fumbled a little with it, desperately trying not to let it fall to the ground. My phone flipped a few times in between my hands before it finally securely landed in my palm. Once I finally got a secure grip on it, I exhaled, just realizing I was holding my breath.
"You know, this isn't yours! I'd appreciate it if you would handle it with more care and actually hand it to me instead of tossing it!" I yelled as she walked away.
Without even turning around, she waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, calm down. If your phone breaks all you have to do is buy a new one! In fact, why are you still keeping that thing? Hurry up and upgrade already! You're making yourself look poor by keeping it!"
I think I saw the guy named Francis bow as he walked away with her, but at that point I was too angry to care about that.
"You freaking…!"
"Ronnie!" Turning back, I saw Joe ushering me to come over. Behind him was a crowd of fellow students putting away the brooms and dustpans and gathering around Mar. Rushing back to where we first gathered, I stood by Joe and together we stood amongst the crowd for a final word from Mar.
"Alright everyone! Thank you so much for participating in this event! Mr. Brighton also gives you all his thanks for sweeping the streets and taking a huge load off of his back! For those of you who also signed up to volunteer in the carnival, don't forget that the carnival event is right around the corner so free up your schedules if you're going to go! Anyway with that said, you're free! Again, thank you so much and I'll see you all next week!"
After Mar's speech, I immediately texted dad to pick me up. Joe then tapped me on the shoulder and showed me his phone.
"Hey man, check it out! Preseason basketball and volleyball are over and Lapis and Beta just invited us to come to their first games! See?" Looking at the texts shown on his phone, I noticed that Joe was sent a redeemable code for a ticket.
"Well that's cool and all, but are you sure it's us? I think you're the only one here who received it."
"What? Nah man, they even said you specifically! Just check your phone!"
Sure enough, as soon as he said that, my phone vibrated and two unread text notifications appeared on the screen. Tapping on the first message, it read:
"Hey Aaron! Just in case you didn't know, my first basketball game is next thursday! Here's a code that you can use to get a ticket from the student bank instead of having to pay the regular fee."
Right under the text was a jumble of capital letters and numbers.
"Take this opportunity and use it while you can, this is the only time students will be getting free tickets."
Upon tapping on the second text, I found the contents to be more or less the same. An invite, a code, and encouragement, although this time it was from Beta and to be for a varsity volleyball game instead of basketball.
"So, you thinking of going?" he asked me.
"Well I wanna go, but...I have to make sure with my dad first." I replied.
"Ah right, you have curfew."
"I'm sure he'll say yes though. He usually encourages me to go to games anyway."
"I hope so. I hate watching games alone. It feels so weird. But anyway, what's up with curfew now? Back when we were in elementary school I'm sure your dad let us stay out until six or seven."
Joe was right. Back in elementary school dad allowed me to play outside for as long as I wanted as long as I had finished my homework. I scratched my head a little, trying to remember why it had become so.
Hmmm….
Ah...right.
"Well, some things happened in middle school and-ah!"
*HONK*
Before I could finish my sentence, dad pulled up near the sidewalk where we stood. Not wanting to keep him waiting, I said my goodbye to Joe.
Before he drove off, dad rolled down the window and called out to Joe. "Con có muốn chú chở con về không?" he asked. (Do you want me to take you home?)
"No thanks! My dad's already coming!" Joe replied.
Nodding, dad then rolled the window back up probably to prevent the polluted air from entering the car. He was always picky about keeping his car clean.
"I'll tell you the rest later!" I said, as I entered the car. After closing the door, dad immediately drove off.
"So, how was the event?" he asked.
"It was fine. Just cleaned up is all."
"Is that it? Có chuyện gì đặc biệt không?" (Did anything special happen?)
"Well, I was invited to go to some games next week. Basketball and Volleyball, and they're both on different days. May I?" I asked him.
"Hmm…" Despite it being a matter that could affect my curfew, dad's face made it seem like he didn't really care all that much about it. "Alright." he finally said, "But after you're done, con về liền. Hiểu chưa?" (...come home immediately. Understand?)
Whoo! And speaking of coming home after school hours...
"And since I'm in highschool now, can I not have a curfew? If I stay late I can just text you." I asked.
"No." He curtly replied.
Well, it was worth a shot.
(Tuesday)
Taking my two tickets from the cashier, I headed to the gym and sat in the third row from the bottom of the stadium where Alpha, Lapis, and Joe sat. Taking a glance at what they had, Alpha had a large box of popcorn most likely only for himself seeing as how it was already halfway empty and he grabbed handfuls after every few seconds of chewing. Lapis also had a lunch or dinner box set which contained a hotdog and a burger with chips and a drink while Joe only had a juice box.
Taking notice of me, Alpha and Joe waved while Lapis tapped on the empty seat next to his.
"No food for you, man?" he asked.
"Nah, I'm not hungry." I replied. Looking down on the court, I could already see both teams practising for the match which was scheduled to begin within half an hour. There were two nets which occupied two sides of the court. One side contained students in red and black while another side contained students in only dark blue. Seeing as how Beta, who was easily noticeable with her bright blonde hair, was in a black and red uniform, it was easy to tell that those were our school colors. As they practiced, I saw one girl bounce the ball with her forearm and another use her palms to pass the ball to Beta, who jumped high to perform a vicious spike. The ball connecting with her teammate's forearm emitted a large thumping sound. It was loud enough that it elicited gasps from members of of the audience.
"Whoo! Get 'em girl!" Lapis shouted as he clapped. As a result, Beta turned to us and gave a peace sign.
"Whoa there," Alpha said, "Whaddya think you're doing? Hands off my sister pal."
"Oh, chill out. I'll keep my hands completely clean of her." Lapis chuckled.
"Yeah, you better. Last thing she needs is another guy to be in her life. She only needs me, her awesome bro. Speaking of siblings, where's Lazuli? Is she not coming?" Alpha asked.
"She should be. She even has a ticket." Lapis replied.
"Lazuli?" I asked.
"Lapis's twin sister. Also his polar opposite." Joe chimed in. "She's not really used to talking to strangers, has a stuck-up attitude, and likes putting you down every opportunity she gets. I mean, I've known her for about two years, and I still don't think she likes me. Right Lapis?"
"Right. I think the only people she really ever talks to are me, Alpha and Beta. Don't worry if she gives you the cold shoulder. It's just Lazuli being Lazuli. Heck with that attitude, it's a miracle she made on the Varsity cheer squad, much less the cheering squad in general."
"Hey, shut up!"
"Hm?"
Looking behind Alpha, another girl took her seat beside him. Looking at her now, I think I recognized her. Yeah, an off-center ponytail and bluish-gray hair along with a book...I'm pretty sure she was the girl who sat next to me in math class.
"Oh look who decided to show up!" Lapis laughed.
"I only came because Beta gave me a free ticket!" the girl huffed, returning to her book.
"Really? Are you sure it's not because of A-oof!" before Lapis could finish, Lazuli hurled her book at him, which only made him laugh harder.
"Welp, there she is Aaron," Joe said to me. "Lazuli in the flesh."
It seemed like she heard Joe say my name since she looked in our direction. I think our eyes met as well, but if she was looking at me or recognized me, she didn't show it.
"Shut it, Emmie." she said. Welp, guess she really heard him.
"Aw geez, not that nickname…" he sighed.
After a few minutes, a whistle blew, and the two teams then regrouped to prepare for the very first volleyball game of the year. It was also at this time that I realized that the whole stadium was packed with a mixture of students, parents and whoever else. Looking around, I couldn't even find one chair that was unoccupied.
"Isn't this only the first game of the season?" I asked. "Why the heck is it so crowded? Do people really get excited for these as much as playoff or national games?"
"Well playoffs or not, we all want to show our support, right? And besides, one of our school's biggest strengths is our extracurricular activities. Sports especially." Alpha explained. "Our girl's volleyball team has often won national tournaments, so for newcomers like us, it makes sense that we all want to see what they're all about, right? I'm sure the same applies to everyone else here. Besides, it's not just students from our school. Students from other schools are also attending this game most likely to collect some data to improve their chances of winning."
"So we're really that good?"
"Basically, yeah."
Geez. How did I get into this school again?
"So who are we up against?" I asked.
"Based on the uniform colors, most likely Mabinogi High." Lapis replied. "They're not too shabby, actually. They're below us both in education and extracurriculars but they're not too far off. Those who can't afford to go here often go there. They often place either third or fourth in the league so this could be a good match."
Right after the whistle blew, the teams immediately got into their positions. Our team had their backs facing us so it was easy to see who was positioned where. The one in the right corner then tossed the ball up and performed a jump serve with the ball, causing it to bounce off the arms of an opposing player and out of the court. Because it had touched the opposing player's arms before it went out of bounds, the point then went to us.
"So what position does Beta play?" I asked, noticing her on the left side of the front row.
"Opposite hitter." Alpha replied, "She's the main scorer of the team, be it blocking or spiking. She also doesn't really have the passing or playmaking responsibilities as the others do. All she has to do is wait for the ball to come to her and rip it. Like right now."
Surely enough, I noticed one of the players pass the ball in Beta's direction. Once it was close enough, she leapt into the air and slammed the ball hard into the ground, creating a sound loud enough to resonate throughout the court. At the sound, the crowd jumped and cheered. I had to admit, even I thought itt was one hell of a spike.
The rallies, scores and cheers continued until the end. And by the time the game was over, we had won two straight sets. The scores were 25-20 and 25-18.Mabinogi High really put up a fight. When the match was over, the two teams shook hands with each other and left for the locker room.
"Whew! That was surprisingly intense." I said.
"Truth. For a team who often places fourth, they sure came close." Joe added.
"This also might be the best performance they put against us." Lapis said. "I don't think they've ever scored twenty points against us. Anyway, are you guys coming Thursday? That's when I have my first game."
"Yeah, of course! By the way, congrats on being on the varsity team!" we said.
"Heh, thanks! Make sure to get the best seats."
(Thursday)
All of us had gotten our tickets early to see Lapis's game right after school, only this time were joined with Beta instead of Lapis himself. I was actually a little more excited for this game, since I knew a lot more about basketball than volleyball. Heck all the information I had on volleyball came from a manga…
Maybe relying on manga isn't too good of an idea...
Taking seats in the middle row where we could have a better all-around view, we could see both teams within their respective locker rooms waiting to be introduced.
"So who are we up against today? Is it still Mabinogi High?" I asked.
"Nope it's actually Vindictus High." Beta said. "Their education is above average, but sports is what they take pride in the most, especially when it comes to basketball or football. Although I don't think they ever won against us, they've come close pretty often."
"I see. By the way, where did you get all that information?" I asked.
"I got bored so I did some research on them while we're waiting for the game to start. Most of the info is on their school's website anyway."
Suddenly, the lights in the stadium began to dim and our only sources of light were the thin, moving light beams that moved in a way similar to searchlights. Then, an announcer started introducing the players, stating their number, team, grade, position, and finally name. Soon after the first person was introduced, Lapis' name came up.
"AND NOW, NUMBER 2 FROM MAPLESTORY ACADEMY, GRADE NINE, SHOOTING GUARD, LAPIIIIIIIIISSSSS KESHOOOOO!"
All of us stood up and roared in applause as we saw Lapis emerging from the locker room in his warmups, doing the dougie and high-fiving his teammates as he passed them by and making his way to line up behind the half-court line. Noticing us, he held up a peace sign.
So he was a shooting guard, huh? In that case, he was most likely the main scorer of the team. Seeing him come up so early, he was also likely a starter on the team, the varsity team. The team composed of the school's best about it now, all of that nervousness and doubt towards making the varsity team and being a starter almost seemed like a lie. I guess this went to show how skilled and talented he really was. I think I'm feeling a little jealous here…
Looking back at our group, I noticed one more person was missing.
"Oh, Lazuli isn't here either. Is she busy?"
Beta giggled at that. "Yeah, you could say that."
When all of the players were introduced, the cheerleaders then took the court and started dancing and chanting while the players got ready. I was surprised to see that the cheerleading squad actually consisted of both boys and girls, but regardless, the cheers really had me hyped for the game.
"I SAID BRRR! IT'S COLD IN HERE! THERE MUST BE SOME MAPLERS IN THE ATMOSPHERE!..." they cheered.
Among the crowd I could see someone vaguely familiar...yeah with her bluish hair and off-center ponytail…
"Wait...so when you guys mentioned a Lazuli in the varsity cheering squad...you weren't talking about the Lazuli from two days ago were you?" I asked.
"Oh we definitely were." Beta said with a knowing smile. "Surprising, isn't it?"
Whaaaaat?! The girl who only focused on her book two days ago is a cheerleader in the varsity squad?!
"Don't worry Ronnie," Joe chimed in, "Alpha and I both were just as shocked as you were when we first found out."
Right when they said that, I noticed several members performing backflips at a rapid pace. With her short height and blue hair flipping wildly, I easily noticed Lazuli as one of them.
"Whoooo! Get 'em Laz!" Alpha cheered as Lazuli finished off with what looked like a triple somersault.
Geez...who would've known?
By then, the noise in the stadium had reached its peak as the players entered the court in uniform. Looking at them now, I realized that nearly all of them dwarfed Lapis save for a few players, who were most likely the point guards.
Finally, as the referee came to the center of the court in the middle of the tallest players from opposing teams, he tossed the ball up vertically, and both players jumped to reach the ball after it started falling.
We were more fortunate, since the tallest player on our team jumped earlier to reach the ball and pass it back to one of the players. As the ball moved closer toward the goal, he then passed it toward Lapis, who was open and shot the ball immediately.
Cheers erupted as we all saw the ball move down through the net, and because he was behind the three-point line, it counted for three points.
"Whoo! Nice one!"
The Vindictus High players then took the ball and attempted to pass it to one of their big men, only for it to be stolen by Lapis. We immediately stood up in suspense as he ran away with the ball and yelled at the top of our lungs when we saw him finish off by performing a vicious reverse dunk.
"OOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" the crowd's cheers were so loud that not even I could hear my own voice as I yelled.
Once more, the Vindictus High players took the ball and moved it towards their goal net, but this time with faster ball movement. Once one of the shorter players received the ball, he stalled a little bit and moved behind the three-point line before faking a shot, making one of our players jump up in an attempt to block it. Once he was in the air, the player immediately jumped up and drew contact with the blocker before shooting the ball.
The sound of the whistle was heard as the left the ball player's hand and circled around the rim before finally falling through the hoop. The basket counted and they were awarded one free throw. If the free throw went in, they would have scored four points, one point behind us.
As the players gathered around at the free throw line, the player who drew the foul was given the ball by the referee. He then bounced the ball a couple times before shooting it. After leaving his hands, the ball then bounced off the rim and went towards the side, away from the hoop.
"Yes! It didn't go in!" But it seemed like his teammates were prepared for that, as the tallest player, most likely their center, on their team immediately jumped up to grab the ball and slam back into the hoop. Because the ball was in the center's hand before it went through the hoop, the basket counted for two points. They were now tied with us.
"Dang, now that's some gutsy play right there. Can't tell if the miss was intentional or not but even then, it takes skill to pull off something like that." Joe said.
I had to agree. To make a shot while having your vision slightly obscured and perform a putback dunk took lots of skill and accurate timing. It was easy to tell Vindictus High really wanted to win against us.
Regardless of the play, we didn't seem to be letting up and the game continued without losing its intensity. After several time-outs, a halftime, and many free-throws, the game finally ended with the score being 65-57. With the 65 belonging to us. As we got up and left, I could also feel my throat becoming sore with all the shouting I had done.
As we saw him leave the locker room, we then went down to congratulate Lapis on the victory.
"Yo, congrats on the win, man!" Joe exclaimed, with a voice probably more hoarse than mine.
"Thanks man! Though it was still only the first game." he replied.
"So what was this about worrying about being a starter and getting some play time on the Varsity team?" I asked him. "You obviously were starting and it looked like you were on the court for about three quarters. You trying to humble yourself or something? You even dunked!"
Lapis chuckled nervously at that "Well, it IS still the first game though, I could still lose my starting spot. We'll see..."
I couldn't really tell whether or not he was being honest about his doubt and uncertainty, but even if he wasn't he still had a point. More often than not in sports, bench players were sometimes the ones who started in early games. Doing this lowered the risk of injury to starter players and gave the starters time to save energy and prepare themselves for future, tougher games. I would've been nervous as well if I were him.
"Alpha!"
From within the gym, Lazuli emerged with her hair let down and cheer uniform covered by warmups.
Latching onto Alpha's arm, she pulled him away from us and into the gym. I don't know if she was trying to have a private conversation, but if she was, she was doing a terrible job at it.
"Did you see them?! Did you see my flips?!" she asked him excitedly.
"Oh er...yeah! They were uh...great I guess?" he sheepishly responded.
Her eyebrows then furrowed as if she didn't believe him. She then dragged him elsewhere, possibly to scold him or something. Beta then chased after them probably to break it up.
"Heh. She really sucks at being subtle, even when she denies it." Joe said.
"Tell me about it. It's like he's the center of her life or something. Living with her makes it even more annoying." Lapis then added.
Seeing as how I had no idea about what they were talking about, I decided to ask. "Subtle about what?"
Both of them turned to me with incredulous looks.
"...What?" I asked again."
It took a few seconds, but they they then softened their expressions.
"Well, just hang around her a little longer and you'll get it." Lapis sighed.
"Yeah. I mean, assuming you didn't really know what just happened between them there." Joe added.
Not really knowing or caring about what they were talking about, I decided to drop the matter. It wasn't really my business and I'd probably figure it out along the way anyway.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lazuli emerge from within the gym, this time her arm wrapped tightly around Alpha's with Beta behind them.
Lapis! We're going!" She shouted, before dragging an unwilling Alpha along with her.
"Welp, that's my cue to go. I'll see you guys tomorrow!" Lapis then saluted before running after them. Joe and I waved back as we saw them go.
"My dad's picking me up again today. Do you want to hitch a ride?" I asked. "He wouldn't mind. He offered the other day too."
"Actually, could I? Nights are getting pretty chilly now."
"Hey you guys!"
Turning back to the source of the voice, not really sure if it was addressed to us, we saw someone in uniform chasing after us. As he got closer and his face was illuminated by the night lights, I recognized him as Cristiano of the soccer team.
Upon reaching us, he took a few breaths before talking. "Hey guys…*whew* Do ya'll remember me? I'm-"
"Cristiano. Captain of the soccer team." Joe finished for him.
"Oh so you do remember! Well that saves me time. Anyway listen, soccer tryouts are just in a few weeks. Have you guys made your decisions yet?" he asked.
"Oh yeah, totally! So when is tryouts again?" Joe asked.
"About two weeks."
"Awesome. What about you, Ronnie? You joining?" he asked me.
I scratched my head.
Aw man, I actually totally forgot about it…
"I uh...actually haven't decided yet...can the decision wait though?" I asked.
"Yeah sure! Just make sure you decide before tryouts start. Otherwise it'll be too late. I just talked to your other friend earlier and he gave me a thumbs up, so I then decided to check on you guys. Anyway, I'll be going now. Hope to see ya'll there!" Cristiano then ran off, most likely towards the parking lot seeing as how he had keys in his hand.
"So...you thinking of joining?" Joe asked as we resumed our walk towards the front of the school.
"I really want to join...but it all depends on whether or not dad lets me."
We soon reached the front gate along with several other students. Spotting dad's clean blue car from amongst the line of cars on the street, Joe and I ran down the sidewalk to where he was and immediately got ourselves in the back seats. There was no need to ask for dad's permission seeing as how he offered to take Joe almost every time, so he got in dad's car after me as if it was just like any other day.
"Dạ con chào chú!" he saluted to dad. (Formal greeting to a male adult. "Hello sir!")
"Oh! Chào con. Con khoẻ không?" dad replied.(Hello. How are you doing?)
"Pretty normal. Just like any other day. We just watched a basketball game, that's all."
"Really? That's neat. So did your team win?"
"Yup. It was pretty close too."
"I see. Trường, con có thấy vui không?" (Aaron, did you enjoy the game?)
"Yeah,con cũng thấy vui. It's nothing compared to watching professionals though." (I also enjoyed it.)
Noticing Rose in the front seat, Joe waved to her.
"Hi, An Nhiên." He said, "Do you remember me?"
"Mmmm…" Rose turned back and examined him, as if trying to remember, but then shook her head. "Mm-mm."
"Haha, She probably wouldn't remember you at all. She was only about three or four when we moved away." Dad then turned to Rose. "Con nhớ không? Joe là bạn của anh hai khi anh hai còn nhỏ. Một lần con thấy khi anh hai đi bộ về, và con cũng hỏi 'đó là ai?' nhớ không?" (Don't you remember? Joe is your big brother's childhood friend. You even asked who he was when we saw him walk home from school.)
"Ooohhh…" Although she said that, I didn't really think Rose remembered.
"Haha, don't worry. Maybe we can do some catching up later."
We then reached Joe's house and dropped him off. After waving goodbye, dad then took us home.
"Con có đói không? Ba mua đồ ăn nè." Dad said, grabbing out some burgers.
"Oh, thanks!" While watching the game, I hadn't realized how hungry I was and gobbled down two of them.
Looking at dad, he was across the table, scribbling down some notes most likely about his patients. For a while there was silence between us.
"Ba?" I asked.
"Hm?"
"Would you be willing to extend my curfew?"
He then stopped writing and tapped his pen on his chin.
"Tại sao con hỏi?" (Why do you ask?)
"Well, aside from wanting to hang out with friends, I was hoping to stay behind at school to do some club activities and you know...maybe join a sport."
"Hmm…"
…
"Hmmmmm…."
...
"Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm….."
…
"Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm…?"
…
"HMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM…..!"
…
Come on… come on...
"...Well alright. At least you're going out more. I'll extend your curfew. But you still have to come home at the designated time, alright?"
"Alright!"
I exhaled a breath I didn't know I was holding. I was surprised, seeing dad come to a decision so quickly regarding extending my curfew. No use doting on it now though, with dad's OK, I could finally come to a decision.
Should I join the Soccer team?
1. Yes. I enjoy playing soccer, Joe and Alpha are joining, and it's not like I do anything at home after I'm done with homework anyway. Plus, I'll be able to meet new people and make some new friends. It's a win-win situation.
2. No, I probably shouldn't. I like soccer and all, but joining the soccer team may jeopardize my grades. It's better not to play a sport when I could be using some of that time studying.
Name: Alpha Zero
Gender: Male
Birthday: January 1
Appearance: Blonde hair, red eyes, considered very attractive by his many peers.
Height: 5 feet 9 inches.
Interests: Sports, modeling, photography, music. (Don't ask him to sing though)
Hobbies: Soccer, basketball, volleyball, singing, surfing, free running, dancing, children's card games.
Dream Job: Model.
Interesting info: Born at exactly midnight on January first, while his sister is ten minutes younger than him. Despite his somewhat arrogant and cocky attitude, he still maintains a close relationship a lot of his peers. His mother is a high school principal, which is why both he and his sister have exceptional grades. Because of his looks, he is extremely popular with men and women and has received numerous love letters. Lapis has remarked that his appeal seemed to be a little too universal, as he seemed to attract people of all ages.
He joined a youth soccer club with Joe when he was younger, which is how developed his soccer skills. Thanks to Lazuli, he also knows how to do parkour and free running and perform several stunts. He, Beta, Lapis, and Lazuli sometimes go on free running sprees together.