Shooting Guard

🏀TEAM MATES 🏀

The game started and well, Chrissa was in the hospital bed tending to her ankle and I made first five. We were playing the Shooting Stars and their girls were cute and all peng but then I was scared. What if I fucked up during the game? I know my teammates were angry with me and were sure not to pass the ball to me but we had a game to win. I felt my anxiety coming back and I stared at Nevaeh. She noticed I wasn't well and she looked worried. She brought out my pills and waved them to me. I was sweating on my palms and my legs already. It was finally here ... What I loathed most.
"You are point guard Aliya. Play chrissa's part." I heard the coach faintly as I started feeling dizzy. I couldn't back out now.. I needed to play this game now that Chrissa ain't here or we'd be dead. These girls didn't look like they came to play.. I just realized it's me again 9 people. My teammates were also my opponents cause they didn't like me.

"You had better call the plays well or you'd regret it" Luca threatened and I scoffed.  "Just do your own thing and make the shots" I retorted and she hissed. The game started off bad.... I had trouble getting the team together. They shouted and blamed me for not doing my job. I got angry and threw the ball to the baseline. I looked up at the scoreboard and we were down by 13. It read 21-8. My heart started racing at the end of the first quarter... Nevaeh gave coach my pills and I was benched. Luca stared at me with no expression in her face... I knew I should not have done what I did to Chrissa. I should have let her be and forget about their rubbish but I just let them get the better of me.

"You should sit this quarter out. Paige would sub in for you." Coach Martin said and I nodded. "You'd be good okay?" He said again and I forced a smile. I watched them get back on the court... They were tensed. Our opponents knew our weakness and they used it against us. My teammates didn't understand the play. They couldn't perform because of me. I caused all of this... I really hated myself right now. It would have been better riding the bench from the beginning. "I'm sorry Chrissa". I muttered under my breath and I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up and saw Melody. "It's fine... You're fine".  I was shocked.. why'd Melody be nice to me? Now I felt really bad. I looked up at the score board and it read 56-23. How could we recover from this? I needed to get my team. I needed to fix this.

"You know you caused this?" Luca screamed at me and I played with my hands. "How can a rookie team mess us up like this? If you had not hurt Chrissa, we'd have been on the upper side." It was true but Luca had no right talking to me like that.
We were in the change room after the second quarter. Coach Martin left to check on Chrissa and we waited for the third quarter. "I am sorry girls. I know I could have ignored y'all but y'all have no right to blame me for this. You caused it not me.. I was pushed to hurt Chrissa. Y'all could've cautioned yourselves earlier but you found solace in picking on me! How'd you expect me to feel? It's all thanks to y'all that I could not deliver properly in the first quarter. If you had not stressed me my anxiety would not come at that time!" I screamed back making everyone quiet. Luca seemed gentle so did the other girls.

"I am truly sorry for what I did to Chrissa and I could have done better but did you for once stop to think that we're teammates. I came here to play ball and not hate on y'all so why y'all hating on me?! If I did something that didn't sit right with y'all ur team captain could've called my attention to it. Did y'all think about the repercussions of hating on your teammate?!" I stopped trying to get my breath... "We all acting like kids and fighting amongst ourselves is uncalled for. Letting those kids play us and feel good about it. We all had a part in this shit so it's better we correct it cause we ain't loosing that game. I hate to be on a loosing team so we got to show some kids that we're boss and this is our territory. The can't just walk in here and beat us in our home.. things ain't done that way Yunno".

"Who's up to break some ankles?!" Luca says and they all clap. "We could save apologies for later but as PG has said we got a game to win so how about y'all show up and we win the game? After me Show up on three show up on me! 1! 2! 3!" Luca says again and we all put hands together and shout " Show up!".
"Aliya is PG, Luca is SG, Melody is SF, Linda is Center and Aisha you know your part. Y'all! we know what to do yeah?" The third quarter finally started and our team work and play boosted our game. I was happy calling the plays and the way my teammates played their parts. I looked at the score board and exchanged looks with Luca. "Way to go Luca! Make three points rain. Y'all should make space for her. Let's screen even if takes double or triple screen! Do it!" I yell and we reset the play.

"86-74... That was close" Melody snickers and I laugh. "It's their lucky day girls. Next time we ain't letting them score double digits. We show them how we do it here! After me Aces on three, Aces on me!" We put hands together and shout "Aces!!"
"Good game girls... I'm really proud of y'all. You showed everyone what it is to work as a team and I respect that. South Carolina here we come!!"

Thanks for reading guys. This chapter made me happy coz the same thing happened to me but with the power of team work, we can win any game. I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter.. reply in the comments ❤️❤️