A last goodbye

5 minutes later, he was sitting outside at the pool with Kobe and Miley. First of all, Kobe wanted to know how they were holding up after making their relationship public, and after talking for a couple of minutes, Hans wanted to know why his friend really showed up:

"Ok, tell me, why are you here? I'm sure you didn't come all the way up here just to have a cup of coffee and holding hands…"

"Oh really, you don't think I would? That's somehow disappointing. Oh well, actually, I just wanted to show you this" Kobe grabbed into his man-purse (another trend that Hans didn't quite get), and pulled out a couple of documents and handed them over to the Luxembourger.

Hans took a curious look at them and he was pretty surprised when he realized what it was. A so-called 10 day contract, offered by the Orlando Magic, which meant that they intended to put him in their roster for the next two weeks. Which didn't make any sense at all, since the season was almost over, there was only one game left and they had already missed the playoffs.

"Well, that's really nice…but what am I supposed to do with this?"

"Remember what you told me when we had lunch together after practice? The only regret you have about your career is that you never had the chance to get your farewell? Well, tomorrow evening, the Orlando Magic are going to play their last game of the season against the Lakers, and since both teams already missed the playoffs, I talked to the Magic board, and they agreed to give you the chance for one last game. The game might not be in Orlando, but LA is kind of your second home, so that should be fine."

"You're aware that I'm completely out of shape? And I don't really feel like stepping on the court only to get my ass kicked by these young guns…" Hans seemed rather skeptical about this idea.

"First of all, we practiced together last week, and I remember it being the other way around, we kicked their ass. And secondly, I know you, once you get on that court, you gonna be so motivated that nothing else matters. Come on, you earned this, and if it can't happen in Orlando, then this is the perfect place for that game. Trust me, I know from my own experience, if you had a career like yours, you simply need one last game to completely let go of your playing days"

"Oh man, just now where things are so messy…"

Hans still wasn't convinced, when suddenly Miley jumped into the conversation:

"Come on, just say yes. Kobe's right, you earned this. Besides, I've never seen you play, at least not live, and it would make me very happy to get the chance to do that"

"Sure, just go ahead and take his side…"

"Please…" Miley looked at him with her best impression of puppy eyes.

"Yes Hans, pleaaaaaase…" Kobe joined in.

„Ok, fine…but you know that it's not fair to give me that look", Hans responded to Miley.

He signed the contract, wondering what he got himself into. He had to admit that he was somehow happy and flattered that he got offered this unexpected farewell game, on the other hand, he knew that his body wasn't in the shape for a real competition, and the Orlando Magic changed at least half of their roster since he stopped playing. But he could see that it really meant a lot to Miley to get the chance to see him play, he just wished he would have had a couple of weeks to get ready for it. But things were like they were, and he would make the best out of it. He suddenly started to smile and said:

"Wouldn't it be funny if you make this happen, and in return, I'm gonna break your scoring record for a farewell game?"

"I dare you" Kobe threatened him jokingly. The former Laker was able to put up 61 points in his last game, and Hans didn't have any illusions of showing a similar performance.

After he had signed the contract, they were talking about the details of the following day, and shortly after, Kobe left and Miley and Hans laid down on the couch.

"So, I'm really going to see you play tomorrow. It feels like an eternity since I've last been to the Staples Center. It must have been during the last championship season."

"Well, that's really quite a while. But when did you plan to fly to Washington?"

"Actually, tomorrow evening, but in this case, I will postpone my flight to Saturday. Maybe we can even drive to the airport together."

"We'll see, my flight to Zurich leaves at 11am. Honestly, I can't wait for you coming to Luxembourg, then we might finally have a couple of peaceful days"

"I suppose that's relative, I can't imagine us doing much over there besides resting…"

"Why not?" Hans asked surprised.

"Well, paparazzi, selfie-hunters, journalists…"

"Haha, trust me, when it comes to these things, you will love Luxembourg"

"What do you mean?"

"You'll realize that as soon as you arrive at the airport. You just have to dress like a normal, young woman and not like a superstar, and nobody will pay any attention to you. I mean, why should an international popstar like Miley Cyrus come to Luxembourg?"

"Haha, we'll see. And what is that supposed to mean, dress like a normal, young woman? Am I not always doing that?"

Hans preferred not to answer anything to that…

Around 6pm, Luc and Sabrina came back from their sightseeing tour, and especially Luc was pretty disappointed when he heard the news that they didn't leave a day later.

"Well, I can ask if there are some free seats left at my flight?"

"Better not, I can imagine that the rebooking fees and extra charges would cost us a fortune"

"I'll ask them very politely, I'm sure we can figure something out"

Hans called his personal assistant from the Miles and More club, and 15 minutes later, she came up with a solution to book the 3 of them on the same flight. He only had to postpone his departure from 11 am to 3 pm and he would arrive in Luxembourg just a couple of hours later than originally planned.

"So, if it's ok with you, we could actually fly back together on Saturday. The only small problem is, there are only seats in the first class left"

"Hu? No way, we were happy to bring up the money for our economy tickets, there's no way we can afford first class tickets"

"Yes, right, please take care of the rebooking and send the tickets to my email address, you still have it I suppose? Ok, perfect, thank you, have a nice day" Hans looked at Luc and asked him with a big smile: "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"You're crazy" Luc said with a sigh.

"I know. And now stop worrying, I mean, you said you would like to see the game…"

At this moment, Sabrina interrupted them:

"Wait, does this really mean we're flying back first class? God, if anyone told me this two weeks ago…a big mansion and a beach house in L.A, I get to meet Miley Cyrus, I'm flying first class…I think I need a drink…"

So Hans got up and poured a couple of drinks for his friends while they were planning the rest of the evening. Going to a party was out of question, at least for Hans, if he had to play tomorrow, he would be as much prepared as possible, which meant for today, no alcohol and going to bed early.

After he was already asleep for 2 hours (which was a bit surprising since it was still so early, but his body didn't seem to have any problems to switch back into the basketball season mode), Miley came to the bedroom. She was trying really hard not to wake him, but Hans didn't mind that she didn't succeed.

He yawned as he said to her:

"Don't bother, I'm awake"

"Oh shit, I'm sorry, I really didn't want to wake you up. But if you prefer, I can drive back home so you can sleep more peacefully"

"Don't be stupid, just come to bed"

Miley went to bed and immediately put her head on his chest:

"So, are you excited for tomorrow?"

"That's the least you could say. I have been out for an entire year, and I still don't know if I can trust my injured knee again. But I guess I'm gonna find out tomorrow"

"Look, I really didn't want to push you into anything, if I had known all this, I would have kept my mouth shut."

"Haha, don't worry. I am very thankful for this opportunity and I would have accepted anyway. It's just too tempting to have this one last game, especially since it's in LA. And to be honest, knowing that you will sit on the courtside just makes this whole thing perfect"

"It makes me really happy to hear that" Miley said, gave Hans a kiss and a couple of minutes later, both of them had fallen asleep.

The next morning, Hans got up early. At 8am, he had himself a small breakfast, and he was supposed to meet the team at the Staples Center for a shoot around at 09.30 am. Afterwards, the coaches would give him a short briefing, to make him familiar with at least some of the new set plays, which was followed by team lunch, a short practice and finally he could get some rest before the game would start at 8 pm.

He turned on ESPN, and just like he had feared, the news had already reached the Sportscenter. Right now, they had two of their basketball experts discussing the question if his one game comeback was just an attempt to gain even more publicity after he and Miley made their relationship public, or if Hans really wanted to play one last serious and competitive game, which seemed rather improbable to them after his career ending knee injury. Their final conclusion was that he should have better stayed in retirement and enjoy his new life in California.

"Well, we'll see if you're right or not" Hans thought to himself and felt how his competitive spirit woke up again. No matter what anyone thought about this, he would prove tonight that he deserved his farewell game. Miley, who already noticed that her boyfriend had already kind of zoned out, didn't even try to talk too much to him (which was very unusual for her), and soon enough, he was in the car, heading to the arena of the Los Angeles Lakers.

When he arrived, he had no problems getting into the parking space, since most of the security guards remembered some of his performances against their team. One of his likeable attributes was the fact that he basically never forgot a face (which was rather surprising, since he was a pretty chaotic person) and so he recognized and greeted everyone who was already working in the arena when he was still an active player. Inside the arena, he first ran into Nick Anderson, a former player of the Orlando Magic and current assistant coach. He guided Hans to the locker room where his old coach, Scott Skiles, was already waiting for him.

"There's our star. How are you? "he was greeted by his old mentor.

"Ask me that again after the game is over…"

They both had to laugh as they gave each other a warm hug. They had been through a lot together, from ecstatic wins to heartbreaking losses. Scott was coaching the Magic for 7 years now, and with him being responsible for the team, Hans had the best years of his career. Scoring always came kind of naturally to him, but under the guidance of this old school coach, he also developed into one of the best defenders in the league.

After chatting for a few minutes, Hans was led into the locker room, where he met the rest of the team. He still knew some of them pretty well, like Serge Ibaka or Aaron Afflalo, and also his former rookie Aaron Gordon, who became the main attraction of the team (which actually said a lot about their quality, since all he had to offer was some crazy athleticism) greeted his old mentor:

"Hey Captain, you really came. I just couldn't believe it when they told us the news, but I'm thrilled to go out on the field with you one more time"

"Haha, let's see if you still think like this once the game's over"

He also introduced himself to each one of the new players, most of them were still pretty new in this league since the franchise was trying a complete rebuild, and they met him with a lot of respect and almost disbelief. After all, he was considered the greatest player in franchise history, even if, in his opinion, that should be Shaquille O'Neal, but the problem was that he only stayed in Orlando for 4 seasons before he signed with the Los Angeles Lakers and developed into probably the most dominating center player in the history of basketball.

A bit later, he finally stepped on the shiny court of the Staples Center, and something happened that he didn't expect…it felt like coming home. Until now, he hadn't completely realized how much he missed being out on the court, since he tried to stay away from basketball as much as possible after his injury. Ah, the sound of the sneakers and the dribbled balls, coaches were screaming, and of course, the best sound in the world, when the ball went through the basket, hitting nothing but net…Swish!

There were two ball boys that got assisted to him, and the thought that the easiest would be if he ran through his old routine, which consisted of some ball handling and a couple of shooting drills. It took about 3 minutes before the old automatisms took over again. But it was mainly the shooting drills that left a huge impression on the young players who never saw him in practice before. He missed the first 4 shots, but then proceeded to make 49 out of the next 50. As he was shooting, like he always did in his career, 100 3's at the end of the shoot around, he made 91 of them. A bit disappointing, Hans thought to himself, unbelievable was what the young guns were thinking. Evan Fournier, who played 4 seasons with Hans, only said:

"Welcome back"

During the team lunch, the talk shifted inevitably to Hans's new relationship. And it was kind of funny to be mocked by his former rookie:

"So, Miley Cyrus, hu? What were the words again that you used last year? First, I'm gonna recover from my knee injury, and afterwards I'm gonna enjoy my retirement for at least 5 years. I would be stupid to burden myself with a girlfriend now…" he was citing one of their last conversations.

"Well, life doesn't always go according to your plan…" Hans mumbled as he was eating his pasta.

"And, I mean, Miley Cyrus. I would have rather expected a model or an actress, considering your relation to the movie industry. So how is she in private, I mean she has done some crazy things over the last years…and, please tell me you gonna move to Nashville and start wearing a cowboy hat?"

"First of all, show a little respect to your old mentor"

Aaron stood up and bowed his head:

"Of course Sensai, I pledge for your forgiveness"

Hans had to laugh as he answered:

"Smartass. But seriously, she had a couple of rough years, but I think she's back on the right track again. And, what can I say, somehow this little girl managed to push all the right buttons."

"You can admit it, you just couldn't resist when it came to your childhood idol, the great Hannah Montana"

"Oh the young players of today, you really don't show any respect to the veterans anymore. But I can ask her to take a selfie with you tonight if you want."

"Well, that's the least you can do" Aaron said with a big smile in his face.

Hans started to realize how much he really missed this part of his former life. Practicing with the guys, spending time with them, the locker room banter, the friendships you built and the team spirit. But of course, our brain had the habit of saving mostly positive memories, and he knew that not everything was perfect in the life of an NBA player, like the preseason with the torture they called training camp, the constant travels, the pain or the permanent fatigue during the exhausting road trips. But all in all, it was an amazing life if you were able to make a lot of money and become a celebrity by living your dream.

After lunch, they went through a light practice, where they were trying to teach Hans some of the set plays. He was still able to run most of them in his sleep, but they also introduced a couple of new ones since the roster had changed a lot, and his old coach wasn't surprised that it took Hans only a couple of minutes to find scoring opportunities that the other players didn't even think about after running these plays for more than 6 months.

At 4pm, he was showered and dressed, and while the rest of the team would head back to the hotel to get a short rest, Hans was heading home to take a little nap. They were supposed to meet in the arena at 6.30 pm to prepare for the game.

When he arrived in the house, he had the impression that something was different, and it took him a few minutes to find out. It was empty and quiet. Miley was doing her first interviews while Luc and Sabrina went to explore the city one last time before flying back to Luxembourg. As much as he always enjoyed spending time for himself, he really got used to having other people around him during the last days. What surprised him the most was how fast he got used having to this Tasmanian Devil that Miley sometimes was, in the house. At first, she was still a little bit reserved cause she was a bit afraid that she would mess things up or drift back into her old habits, but once she was reassured that Hans was really committed to this relationship, she found back to her true self. Miley was like a mixture between that sweet Hannah Montana and a crazy wild (in a positive way) young woman. Full of energy, happy, passionate and with a big heart, she used every chance to start singing and she was basically never quiet. But from one moment to another, she could also become very serious, leading deep conversations and not being afraid of showing all kinds of emotions, and Hans just couldn't deny it anymore, he was completely crazy about this girl. And the worst of it all was…he just loved it.

He was back at the Staples Center 15 minutes before the scheduled meeting time and went straight to the locker room. He wasn't surprised at all to see that coach Skiles seemingly didn't go back to the hotel at all but stayed in the arena to prepare the game plan. Even if none of the two teams had a chance of making the playoffs anymore, and the game was a bit special anyway because of Hans farewell, he just couldn't go against his principles and wanted to finish the season with a win, no matter what. Hans didn't expect to get more than a couple of minutes in the garbage time anyway, and that the Lakers would let him take a shot or two so that the fans could celebrate him and give him a standing ovation in the end. And still, he was more than thankful to be able to enjoy that atmosphere and step on the court one more time, this time knowing it would be his last game and so he would enjoy every single second of it.

„Hey, how are you feeling son?"

"Honestly? I haven't been that nervous since my very first NBA game"

"Haha, I know what you mean. Look, before the rest of the team arrives, I just wanted to talk to you very shortly. My original plan was not to make too much fuss about you playing tonight, and giving you a couple of minutes towards the end of the game so the people can send you to your retirement in the way that you deserve it. But after the two practice sessions today, I decided that you gonna be my 6th man, and we'll take it from there. I somehow have this feeling that you have one last big game inside you, and tonight would be the perfect moment to let it out."

"Thank you coach" Hans said, even though he wasn't sure if that really was the case. He somehow doubted it.

Slowly, the rest of the team arrived in the locker room, most of them seemingly ready for the summer and thinking about their next holiday destination. Hans held himself back, but if he would have still been an active member of this team, he would have reminded the guys that there was a game to win first. On the other side, if he would have been part of this team, they would have to prepare for the playoffs and not the summer vacation, he thought with a smile.

They put on their uniforms and got ready for the game while the coach reminded them about the game plan and the strengths and weaknesses of their opponent. Just like the Magic, the Lakers were in the phase of a rebuild and found themselves at the bottom of their division, so that nobody really expected anything from the game tonight. And yet, as soon as the news were published that Hans would put on a uniform again, every single ticket available was sold and the arena would be packed.

It was time to go out on the court for the warm up, at least for the rest of the team, Hans kept to his old routine and warmed up on a cross trainer. He did so for almost 30 minutes and went back to the locker room where they received their final instructions and they went back out in the arena. They huddled together in the tunnel before stepping on the court, and to Hans surprise, it was his former rookie Aaron Gordon who was holding the team speech:

"Ok guys, you all know what today is about. We're blessed to have the opportunity to play side on side with the greatest player in franchise history. There's only one goal for us tonight, give this legend the goodbye he deserves, with a victory against the Lakers. Captain, it's an honor to go to battle with you one more time"

Hans had to smile, this speech was so typically pathetic like only Americans were able to come up with, and yet, he was very touched, because it was his old rookie holding it and he actually believed every word that the young player had said. The rest of the team was now fully focused and they wanted to give him a memorable game. A last hug with Aaron, and they stepped out on the court.

Hans immediately realized a couple of things. The arena was completely sold out, there would be 20.000 people in the stands and Miley and his friends were already sitting in their courtside seats. The two girls had treated themselves with a new Lakers hoodie while Luc was wearing an Orlando Magic t-shirt. Kobe was sitting next to Miley, and there were some other regulars, like Will, Jack Nicholson or Justin Timberlake. But he didn't react to any of these things, his mindset was already focused on the game.

A few minutes later, the introduction of the teams started, and you could tell that the spectators were not too pleased about the fact that Hans was sitting on the bench for the tip-off. Finally, the game started, and it would be a memorable evening for everyone in the arena.