Chasing Blue

#18: Define Feelings.

Present

Isabella

The basketball misses the basket for the fourth time in a row now. I run and grab the ball immediately before it pitches on the ground. I dribble it to half court, watch the basket and take another layup shot as I scoop the ball with the basket in the target. The ball hits the board and falls down. I groan louder. 

"Are you aware that you're practicing the wrong sport?" Ashley hesitates but she enters the basketball court. 

I smile at her. I grab the ball and begin to dribble back to half court but I choose a different angle to approach the layup. 

"Seriously, we have volleyball finals in three hours, Bella," she says blocking my stance. 

I try dodging her and she comes forward, trying to grab the ball. I turn around and she lifts both her hands up to block my shot. I take a quick layup and shoot from the corner. I see the ball balancing on the rim of the ring and slowly slip inside the basket. 

I sigh. It's not the perfect shoot but at least I scored.

Ashley takes the ball and tucks it inside her arm and glares at me. I gasp for air as I take the support of my knees and watch her back. 

"Did something happen yesterday?" She asked me plainly. "With Jacob?" She adds as if I don't realize what she's referring to. 

I look down at my shoes and I wait there, not wanting to replay the events of yesterday. That's the whole point why I started playing basketball even though our coach told us to rest until the match. I can't keep my mind idle or it will go back into the red zone again. 

I decide to pull myself back and I shake my head at her. "Yeah, unnecessary drama." 

I begin to walk out of the court without giving her an explanation. Ashley knows everything that's happened in my life. Even though it's not me who's told her, she and I both know that she knows. Jacob and she shared the entire senior year of chemistry as lab partners. Although she makes it evident that she's not his biggest fan and she's on my team, I know he was the one who filled her in on the details that the rumors left out. 

As I said, the bin is the only group I communicate with but the team is something I know I can always rely on. 

"On a scale of 1 to 10, how serious of a drama was it?" She follows me out of the court. 

I close my eyes and exhale when I realize I'm knocking on the doors of the red zone again. It's not only the incident that was serious, it was also the events post the incident, the result of which, but I also haven't heard a word from my best friend yet. 

I take the towel out of my bag and dab it on my neck. "The incident, 8, after the incident 17." 

Ashley cusses. "Need I ask you to elaborate?" 

I shake my head at her as I throw the towel back into my bag and pull my sipper out. I swing the bag on my shoulders and begin to drink water so I don't have to answer her questions. Only, the water I drink is not just water, it has mint in it. I spit the entire water out and my face scrunches in disgust. 

I hear a burst of laughter as I look up. Chloe and Brittney are walking towards us from the other side. They're laughing so loudly in the empty field, that it almost sounds like an echo. 

"It was Chloe's idea, not mine. I played no part in this." Ashley chanted it to me, raising her hands in surrender. 

I glare at Chloe. "You literally just signed your own death warrant. Dumbass." 

"Seen yourself lately? You're in no position to challenge me when you look so defeated yourself." Chloe smiled at me with sealed lips. "It's embarrassing enough that you shot a basket after seven minutes, you shouldn't be talking about death warrants, Bella."