𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐄 | 𝐃. 𝐃𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐙𝐎 |

CHAPTER 24.

London Lenae DiVincenzo
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Fourth Quarter. 87-87. We were tied.

I had the entire team playing our asses off like we were playing in a championship game or something, but we did have a few weak spots—like I knew we would, and that weak spot cost us our seven point lead and could possibly cost us our win because although we had been playing well, the opposing team was matching energy—every time we played hard, they came back harder which caused for us to the same.

I guess you would say that we matched each other's energies.

We were on our last 15.6 seconds on the clock and I guess everyone's nerves were up because for the past minute we had all been shooting bricks.

I had the ball, but the issue was, I wouldn't be able to make the shot because I had three people surrounding me, so I had to give it up. I caught Brianna's attention and passed the ball to her, but did she get the ball?

No. Because Jada came out of nowhere, snatched the ball and went up for a three, which I knew was a bad idea because it was off.

The other team got the rebound and practically dog walked us as they ran four deep down court and got the layup. When we tried to get the rebound, I got knocked backwards by one of the girls on the opposing team, I don't know what happened but when I fell down, I felt a twinge in my knee like a popping sound or sensation in my knee and my heart dropped into my stomach.

I knew that my mother told me that if I felt something wrong in my knee that I should let my coach know, but I didn't want to, plus I couldn't get up if I wanted to, I felt like I couldn't move my knee, and the pain was unbearable, the clock had winded down to 1.0 second and they went up for the shot, making it right on the buzzer.

87-91.

We lost.

"London!"

I didn't answer to whoever was calling my name, I just kept my hand pressed down on my knee and cried my eyes out like a baby. I was crying so hard that I felt like my chest was tight. I didn't know what in the world had happened to my knee, but this was the worst pain ever...I wouldn't wish this type of pain on my worst enemy.

"London, move your hand please," a voice that I recognized as my Uncle Steph says. "What hurts."

"My knee.." I mumbled through my tears. "My knee hurts!"

Uncle Steph tried to move my knee, but I quickly placed my hand on his hand let out a cough-like sob. "Stop! Stop!"

"London, what did I feel like when you hurt your knee?" Dad asked, giving me a worried look.

"It felt like..." I trailed off, trying to find the right word to describe what the feeling was. "like something in my knee had popped."

"Shit." Uncle Klay hissed.

"Uh...is her knee supposed to be swelling like that?" Landon asked, looking back and forth between our family to my coach and teammates.

Swelling?!

I glanced down at my knee and saw that my knee was, indeed, swelling and fast. My knee felt completely stiff. I knew something was extremely wrong. 

"Why is it swelling?! Why is my knee swelling?!" I asked frantically.

"Shit, shit, shit." Uncle Klay said, shaking his head. "She tore her ACL."