We're Still Human

Chapter 34: Shadows of The Past

I stare straight ahead at the scoreboard, breathing heavy as our team moves into the finals spot. The past 3 days have been full of ups and downs, with Stacy, Nadia and I trying our hardest to get into the finals against Devington Private Institute. It worked, to our surprise, and now we're facing the biggest team ever this year.

If I'm being honest, I'm surprised at how well Nadia and I have been getting along recently. I thought staying in the same room would trigger unnecessary issues, but we've both used our words carefully around each other, acting as if this was some girl's trip. Times like these make me miss when we truly used to be each other's support system, and sometimes I wonder if she feels the same.

I kneel to fix my socks, checking on the slight bruise that I got a day ago. In the semi finals, I fell on a bad spot as I tried hitting a three from the half point line. I told coach I was fine and that I'd be able to compete anyway, just to make sure the chance of securing a scholarship would still be there. If I can't get most valuable player, I would be happy to get a gold medal from this tournament.

"Risking everything for a prize, aren't we?" Nadia asks, crouching beside me.

"I don't give up that easy, Nadia."

"You never do," she comments. "Look, for what it's worth, Stacy really looks up to you."

I chuckle, getting up and looking at Stacy stretching. "I'm not the captain though."

Nadia smiles. "You don't have to be captain to be influential, Yasmina. I watch you, and you're definitely an inspiration."

I look at her, confused. "Is this your form of motivation for the day?"

She shrugs. "I guess you could say that. Or maybe...maybe I'm just trying to compliment you. Ever thought of that?"

"I didn't know you had feelings," I lie, walking to the table full of bottles of water. I throw her one, which she catches with ease. "Good catch."

"Good aim, use it in this game." She grins. "You know, if we win this and the game tomorrow, we won't need to go to game 3."

"Not easy though, check the competition," Stacy joins us, pointing at our opponents. "That girl, the redhead, she's a natural shooter. I've watched her a few times during our down times. She trains at 4 in the morning."

I nod, winking at Stacy. "Is this still about the competition or is there a story behind you watching the girl?"

"We knew each other in middle school." Stacy looks down, embarrassed. "I can take her on the court, I'm so sure of that." With that, she scurries off, and we nudge each other.

"I don't think she meant the court," Nadia jokes, and I slap her arm. "What? I thought you of all people would love a good sports romance!"

"Maybe in books, but right now, she's our opponent, we don't need them falling in love on court, so you guard her and I'll guard the other two, Stacy loves shooting this week."

"And then you say you're not inspirational," Nadia chuckles, patting my back. "You don't have to be captain, like I told you, but if you want us to win, you're going to have to follow my lead."

"And what's your lead, captain?" I stand face to face with her.

She cocks her head to the side. "Mirror me on the court. Just like the good old days."

"I'm not doing that, not with my leg like this," I let her know. "What if you start doing stupid tricks?"

"Well then I think you'll just have to trust me this time, at least until your leg is better. If not, we can substitute you for–"

"Game in, Khumalo." I nod, walking onto the court.

***

The half time buzzer goes off, with us leading by only one point. I limp off the court and let the first aid team check on my foot. During the game, I sustaineda slight injury trying to do a jump shot, which backfired badly. Nadia and Stacy took over from then, and because of my fatal mistake, we're barely leading.

I wish I wasn't this careless.

Nadia sits by me, holding my hand. I try to pull it away, but she glares at me, leaving me to tend to my hand in defeat. "Listen, you did your best, you can sit this one out, Yas."

"I'm not, I have to—"

"Yasmina," Nadia interrupts me, her voice laced with care. "Sit this one out, I can't let you get hurt again."

As those words leave her mouth, I immediately try to get up, but my leg weighs me down, and I plop back onto the ground. Tears threaten to spill from my eyes, and Nadia looks away, her own eyes closed. We both know what this reminds us of.

The last official game we played together back in Sydney.

I had a habit of trying to show off. Back in Sydney though, I had a season ending injury, and ever since I movedthis side, I've been trying to work past it. Kendall knows very little about this injury of course, because I've been able to be injury free for a year now, and suddenly, this shit is coming back and I'm scared. I'm scared I won't be able to truly do what I do best, I'm scared that I'll be out for a while again, and I'm scared that I'll disappoint once again.

"Nadia, we aren't in Sydney anymore," I firmly state. "I can handle this."

She gathers the courage to look at me, her face stoic now. "You're right, we aren't in Sydney anymore, and as your captain you're sitting the rest of this game out, no exceptions."

My eyes widen. "Nadia—"

She ignores me. "Coach! We need to sub out Yasmina." She stands up, letting go of my hand. She mouths an apology before walking off, going to coach.

Stacy rushes to my side. "Yasmina, are you alright?"

I refuse to answer, my eyes focused on Nadia as she talks to Coach. Coach glances my way quickly, before nodding. She then calls one of our juniors, and Nadia walks towards Stacy and I again. I attempt to walk away, but Nadia pulls me by the wrist, forcing me to look at her again.

"I had to, Yasmina. I'm not letting your fucking ego get to the finals." Nadia explains. "I'm not letting you get hurt ag—"

"Fuck you," I seethe. "You don't get to decide for me."

"You're right, that's why coach decided you sit this one out. Once you're better tomorrow, we'll get you on the court to see if you can handle it. I can't let you fuck up what we tried so hard to build together, Yasmina. Not anymore," she whispers. "We're bringing gold home early, you and I, just as it should've been last time."

I stare at her, trying to see if she's trying to play me. A path of sweat smears her forehead, and she nods at me, holding my hands as I start to calm down. She's right; we're going to bring home gold this year, even if it means I have to sit this game out.

"It's coming home this time," I reaffirm, nodding at Nadia.