A/N: What's up people? Not a lot of time to waste, so I'll get straight to my thank-you's:
Snow Weaver: Your reviews are much appreciated, and it's no big deal that you forgot about the fic…heck sometimes I forget I write the thing! But thanks especially for your review of "Angry People", which I shall continue!
Wolffie: Fear not….Anzu/Tea can be found starting in chapter 7. I promise more Anzu/Tea goodness in the future!
Shylyinthedark: Thanks again…You can be assured that I will keep up the good work, and I will try to update Angry People ASAP.
Telecoi: :frowns: Sorry about the cliffie…It's necessary! Glad you like the fic!
RoseGoddess874: Glad you think it's interesting…enjoy the update! And I will check out some of your work ASAP, so be looking for a review or two around Wednesday possibly.
Anime-Ruthless: Yep…seven free throws…that's one hell of a blow to overcome. But there is something I want you to keep in mind (you may catch this specific detail in particular before any other readers do): I'll be paying a little homage to one of my favorite coaches of all time this chapter. Can you tell me who it is? Thanks for your review!
The Broken Bow: Yes, ONLY I KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN:sweat drops: Umm…nevermind. As far as Tea's relationship with Bakura…that will be revealed probably in the next chapter.
Oh, and all you romance lovers: HANG IN THERE! There will be some of that coming up in the later chapters...Especially Seto/Serenity and Yugi/Tea.
Now that all that has been said…lets get on to the next chapter!
Quote: "If you're going to make every game a matter of life or death, you're going to have a lot of problems. For one thing, you'll be dead a lot." Dean Smith, former North Carolina Basketball Coach
Chapter 11: Aftermath and Consequence
Nathan stormed out of Rupp Arena in a very angry fashion. He could not believe what was happening. He could accept just losing, simply being the weaker team. But being cheated this way, having someone other than the players and coaches determining the outcome, to him that was just plain wrong…and on his way out he let everyone know how strongly he felt.
Jimmy: "Azubukie steps to the free throw line to shoot the technicals….what the hell? Nathan Colby just threw a chair onto the floor! This is just getting ridiculous! First the temper tantrum after the questionable call near the end of this great game, then the ejection, and now this? I smell a fine or a suspension coming on for this, maybe both!"
In his mind, Nathan had not seen exactly what he had done yet. He was still in a blind rage. His bitterness kept him from knowing the extent of the actions he had just taken. He cursed and kicked his way back to the visitors locker room, where he continued to take out his frustrations upon various objects.
"Nathan…what the hell just happened out there?" Ishizu walked in the locker room, closing the door behind her.
"Now is not a really good time…"
"I don't care! You being a coach should know that behaving like a bona-fide jackass doesn't change things that happen! Do you have any idea of what Pegasus will do with you? He's probably salivating at the chance to get rid of you right now!"
"Miss Ishizu….please leave me alone right now, this is not the time." Nathan still had his back turned to Ishizu, his voice dangerously low.
"Yes, it is. You really need to listen to me...I think…"
"GET THE HELL OUT! NOW!" Nathan turned and faced Ishizu with a look on his face that ranged somewhere between extremely angry and possibly insane.
Ishizu had jumped back slightly at the tone of his voice, then took a few moments to recollect herself. For a moment, she actually feared for her own life. "Fine…I'll probably inform you of your punishment in the next 24 hours."
With that, Ishizu stormed out of the locker room, slamming the door behind her.
Shit!
Meanwhile, Back at the game:
Jimmy: "Yugi's desperation three-ball was good, but that's pretty much irrelevant. The Kentucky Wildcats still manage to escape with a highly controversial 76-75 victory over the Domino City Saints…we'll be back with the post-game show after this brief station break."
The Domino City players walked back into their locker room in stunned silence. Even the usually good-natured Yugi was feeling down.
The team dressed without saying a word to each other. Everyone went about his own business. Then out of nowhere….
"DIS IS A BUNCH A BULL! WE WON DAT GAME!" Joey slammed his fist into the locker, his frustration apparent.
"Let it go Joey…it's finished." Yami stated in a subdued tone.
"It may be finished all right, but everybody in dis damn arena knew who was da better team tonight!"
"Wheeler…whining like a bitch won't solve anything….so stop it already." Bakura chimed in, a sour expression on his face.
"You shut up, Bakura! I had it up ta here wit you! First ya go and try to kill Yug, then you try to tell me what to do? I'll pummel ya!" Joey lunged at Bakura and caught him with a jab to the face. Bakura responded with a punch to Joey's gut, and the fight was on. Their teammates separated them as Joey and Bakura yelled numerous obscenities at one another.
"What's all this?"
The team looked up from the carnage that they had cause to see their coach standing before them. His jet black hair was in disarray, and his midnight blue tie hung loosely on his neck.
"Well…they say that a team is a reflection of their coach. You want to know what I see when I look in the mirror? A man full of doubt…full of rage…full of anger. A man searching for the answers, but only finding more questions. Are you boys my reflection You boys will probably be spending sometime without me as you continue this season...and when, or if, I return…I hope we can make things right. Now you boys get dressed."
Next Morning:
Nathan looked at his alarm clock, wondering if he had even slept at all.
Five in the morning…that means about two hours of sleep…damn.
Not really interested in sleeping any more, the coach pulled himself out of bed. He decided not to look at any game film this morning. He didn't care about his next opponent (Louisville, if your keeping score), hell he wanted to know if he still had a job!
Meanwhile…in a meeting room:
Ishizu sat uneasily in front of her boss. "So…that's what I recommend, Mr. Pegasus."
Pegasus stared a hole into Ishizu, studying her features. "Are you sure? This is a very risky proposal…for yourself and Nathan."
Her usually strong voice could only muster a meek "Yessir"
"Well…go ahead. I'll let you deliver the news. And Ishizu…if he crosses the line again, you'll be clearing out your things along with him. I'm assuming you already understand that, correct?"
She stood up, her body and mind exhausted from the long hearing. "I understand completely…now please excuse me."
Hmmm…this game gets even more interesting as we go along. Those foolish referees almost blew our cover…but no matter! We still made thousands by simply betting on Domino City to cover the spread! Ishizu…if you be a good little girl and keep your mouth shut…everything should be alright….
Back at Nathan's apartment:
Nathan looked over the various newspapers that had been printed that morning, and all of them had gone all out to bash him for his actions. There were pictures of his yelling and screaming, his throwing of the chair, anything that would add to the negativity.
Ain't that something…we play the fifth ranked team in the entire country down to the last second, but the only thing they'll talk about is my temper…
Nathan heard his phone ring and simply decided to let the answering machine take it.
Um…this is Ishizu, from the front office. I'm calling you to inform you that you will be suspended for the Louisville game and fined 10,000 dollars. Another such incident with you will cost you and I our positions at the university. You should be thankful…I stuck out my neck for you on this because I believe that you have a chance to accomplish some great things here. By some miracle, the Board of Directors decided to keep you around. Don't worry, I've already informed Tristan of this and he will be coaching your team this week. Oh, you have a press conference at noon, I'm sure you'll know what to say to the media. Good day.
"10,000 Dollars? That's a fifth of my salary! Oh well…act like an idiot, be treated like one." Nathan sighed as he read over the articles in the paper. He decided to turn on the television, and sure enough his little chair tossing incident was the talk of the sports world.
What this man did was a disgrace to the sport…
He should be fired immediately…
He completely crossed the line here…
"Nobody talks about the game….nobody gives a damn that these boys have gotten so much better since last year…it's a damn shame." Nathan turned off the TV in disgust and went to take his shower. He knew it was going to be a long, tiresome day.
Press Conference:
Nathan faced them as bravely as he could. Their cameras, their microphones, their pens, their ever-annoying questions, and their biased-ridden ideals never ceased in making him nauseous. Not as a player, definitely not now. However…he knew that what he had to say would have a lot of people listening.
" First of all, I want to apologize to the players, fans and coaches out there at the University of Kentucky as well as my own players, my assistant Tristan Taylor, our fans, and our administration. My actions not only overshadowed a great basketball game, but embarrassed myself and my team. For this, I apologize from the bottom of my heart. However, the situation that occurred at the end of the game should be examined closely. Although I respect the officials and their authority, I strongly disagree with the decisions they made towards the end of the game. They made some calls that I would call highly questionable at best. I would like to encourage the SEC to take a look at the game tape and see if there were any mistakes or misentrepretations of the rules. I'll take a few questions now."
Nathan breathed a sigh of relief on the inside; he knew the worst of it was over. Now came the boring part.
"Coach, I have received a statement from Domino University that you will be suspended for the upcoming game against Louisville, can you confirm that?"
"Yes…I have been suspended from that game, and will be back for our team's road game against Louisiana State."
"Coach, Neil Alfred from the New York Times. Did you speak to Coach Smith after the game?"
"I did speak with him after the game, I congratulated him for his team's victory and apologized for my actions. He was very kind to me.."
"Coach, Tea Gardner from The Domino News. How do you plan on spending your suspension?"
"Fishing probably, I haven't made up my mind yet."
The reporters laughed at this, and Nathan smiled slightly. He figured a little humor wouldn't hurt the situation.
"Coach, what do you think about Louisville? Do you think they are a top ten quality team?"
"Definitely! They took Illinois to the limit over the weekend, and they are usually strong in every aspect of the game. Coach Petino has done an excellent job there."
"How do think your team can beat them?"
"An all-around effort. You have to be absolutely perfect to beat them. They have improved significantly since last year."
Nathan continued to answer questions for about an hour, apologizing over and over for his actions. In his mind, he was already planning ahead for Louisiana State; Louisville was too good...
Seto and Joey's Appartment, Later that day:
Seto sat alone in the apartment he shared with his former nemesis, typing a research paper that wasn't due for another four weeks. His hard work had served him well as he currently held a perfect 4.0 grade point average; a rarity for any student, much less a student-athlete.
Well, that should about finish this...Great, now no more work until finals, only basketball to worry about. I only have to sit out one more game in this fraudulent suspension...then I can show everyone what I'm capable of!
Kaiba heard a knock on his door and shouted that it was open. To his surprise, it wasn't Joey, Mokuba, or even some insane fan-girl of his.
"Serenity?"
Next time: Nathan decides to clear his head and think about his past...what place to do that better than home sweet home? Will someone be waiting as he returns to Louisiana? Also, Seto and Serenity meet again. Will love blossom, or will Joey see to it that the two never become a couple? And...Domino City completes it's tour of Kentucky with a trip to face the Louisville Cardinals. Are they really that good?
Well...not sickness, the malfuctioning of my computer, writer's block, or life in general will not stop me from updating this fic! I promise that I'll try to have it updated by this Thursday or Friday, maybe sooner if I feel better. Thanks for reading, please review, and take care of yourself.
BigLos...out