Page 18 of Loving the Legend
Cash, baby!
The crowd explodes as the Stars call a timeout. I gesture for them to get louder, placing a hand to my ear and mouthing, “I can’t hear you.” A wave of chants booms through the arena. “Good Knight! Good Knight!” A rallying cry for us to put the game to sleep. I throw my hands in the air, egging them on. Realizing now’s as good a time as any to fulfill my end of the bet with Sid, I dip low and sway side to side.
The crowd goes ape!
I jump up, spin, and am about to hit a double Milly Rock when Kaleb backs into me, hitting a Reverse Running Man. I burst out laughing and join him, busting out the original Running Man. A thunder of cheers reverberates through the stadium. Bet fulfilled, I bow as Kaleb blows kisses at the crowd. Coach signals for us to get our asses over to the bench.
As we race over, I mentally pat myself on the back for not punking out. Sid won our bet by a slim margin. I’m still not convinced sweet potato pie is more popular than pumpkin, but a bet’s a bet.
The arena falls silent when Craig hits a center two-pointer, bringing the Stars back in the lead with under thirty seconds left in the game.
Coach calls a timeout. We huddle to confirm our next strategy, only once the game resumes, our plan goes to hell when Tevin is double-teamed while in possession of the ball. Hanson creates a screen, freeing up Tevin to pass the ball to Idris. Idrisdrives it down the lane and lobs an insane alley-oop to me as I’m in mid-air. I spin so my back’s facing the rim and hit a flawless reverse dunk.
Game over!
The crowd combusts as our bench spills onto the court. I jump on Idris as we’re swallowed up by our teammates. I rest a peace sign against my chest.The final score is 115–114.
After post-game interviews and our team meeting, most of my teammates rush out to travel home to be with loved ones for Christmas. I take my time getting dressed. Adam is on duty for the next few days. We plan to celebrate Christmas and the New Year together when he gets a break. I’m in desperate need of sleep. The nightmares are always bad this time of year, but this year takes the cake. They’ve jolted me awake almost every night this week, leaving me running on fumes. I shower and then dip into an ice bath before sitting in a compression suit.
I’m headed to my Porsche 911 GT3 RS when my phone vibrates. I don’t recognize the number, but I pick up since I’m Adam’s emergency contact. I try not to let my thoughts go there.
I clear my throat. “Hello?”
“So, you effortlessly hit reverse dunks and swishers from half-court, huh? That’s how you roll?”
I exhale, knowing Adam’s safe, then my face breaks into a wide grin.
“Liked that, did you?”
“It’s hard to hate.” I hear a smile coating Sid’s husky voice. “And then you threw a dagger with a smooth Running Man.”
I chuckle. “A bet’s a bet. Did you catch in the 2nd quarter—”
“Your wild double hesi against Lucas? Saaaaavage. He went flyin’ into the cameraman and lost a shoe. Why’d you do ol’ boy like that?”
I can’t help but laugh. “I can’t stand that dude,” I admit.
“No one in the league can! His team merely tolerates him. The refs are half-blind when it comes to him.”
“Seriously! It’s hella obvious. What’s with that?”
“I think he’d be fouled out in the first quarter if they called him on every foul.” He sighs because even discussing Lucas can make you feel exasperated.
“I’d be fine with that. Wait, didn’t you and him get into it on the court last season?”
“Yeah. Not my finest moment. Dude was spouting some homophobic BS. He's lucky I only shoved him.”
“What the fuck?” The thought makes my blood boil. I think of Adam, who's been out as long as I can remember. He’s ten times the man Lucas will ever be.
“Great game, though! At least three of your shots will make highlights.”
I grin. “Yeah, I know. Hey, what number is this? It’s different from the one you texted me from.”
“I’m calling from my house phone.”
“House phone. That’s old school.”
“Yeah, only a handful of people have it. I need a break from my cell sometimes. Especially during the holidays when I want to chill with my fam and keep it low-key.”
