Hearts in Seoul ✧

vi

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Once Mi-Rae ran away to, perhaps, sulk, the door to the J-Alpha's dugout opened, as if on cue. Five men, except for Joseph, walked out, clad in their collegiate basketball uniform. The uniform, albeit new, was representative of each member — it showed the J-Alpha's domineering nature not only at the campus but also at court. To be quite frank, they all actually looked like they were strutting down a fashion runway, especially since all five of them had absolutely handsome faces and towering heights.

Kayleigh took a quick peek at the J-Alpha's dugout, while the door was slightly ajar. An Alpha wolf banner hung on one end, the same one plastered on their uniform. The door then closed off, as her focus shifted from the dugout to the men that owned it. Joseph, the only member of the J-Alpha who did not play any sports, proceeded to go to the music room, well, to play music.

Once again, the crowd paved a way for the five men to walk, each and everyone in the crowd in awe of the J-Alpha's visuals. Even the ever-hyper Roisin froze in her spot. He-Jin, on the other hand, was also in awe, but her gaze almost felt... empty.

The J-Alpha waved at their fans but proceeded to go to the indoor basketball court, a few metres adjacent from their dugout. Strategic planning, Kayleigh thought, since both were the J-Alpha's territory after all.

The rest of the day went by in a blur for Kayleigh. One after the other, her classes ended and then started again. When her day ended, she walked back to the court and noticed that the J-Alpha remained hyper-focused on their practice game. Most students had finished their classes and it was evident as the crowd started to fill up the seats of the indoor gymnasium.

He-Jin was nowhere to be found. She hasn't seen her until after Mi-Rae.

Kayleigh decided to call Roisin since this was the first time they'd watch Asia's kings play their game front seat, "Roh, where are you? I'm here at the gym."

Roisin sighed, "Kayleigh, I'm sorry. I really want to watch with you — trust me I really do — but my professor decided to give us a surprise quiz tomorrow. I'm staying in to study, and I'll probably pull an all-nighter since he said it'll be extremely hard. Sorry, Kayleigh."

"It's okay, Roh. I understand. Good luck!"

"Thank you, Kayleigh," she ended the call.

Kayleigh decided to ring He-Jin as well, but unfortunately, she did not pick up. Kayleigh was worried about He-Jin's whereabouts, especially since she needed someone who could speak English and Korean to be able to communicate with the others. But oh well, maybe He-Jin was busy with something else.

Kayleigh busied herself with homework, as she watched the J-Alpha play their game. The J-Alpha was playing against the other half of Hangkuk's collegiate team. Justin, albeit being an exchange student, was immediately chosen to be part of the team, knowing that having a strong player will further catapult their chances of winning the championship. Although Kayleigh had no idea how basketball worked, she could tell that the J-Alpha was really in their comfort zone, and they were, no doubt, amazing in the game.

Their point guard, played by the smartest man in the group, was Noah James Ishikawa. He looked so focused on the game that it was almost scary. Out of all of them, he looked like he had the desire to win, and it was obvious with how the rest of the team followed his lead. His ball-handling skills were exceptional, fuelling his advanced play-making. Noah was smart on and off the court, and it was obvious with the way he played. He had a high basketball IQ; he knew when to attack and when to play defence.

Their leader, Lucas John Hyun, played shooting guard. Lucas was exemplary in shooting, he was able to shoot from a three-point shooting and long-mid range shooting. He methodically circulated around the three-point line, with and without the ball, allowing himself to be open to receive the ball. Not only was he skilled in shooting, but he was also amazing at defending the opponent from shooting. Lucas, like Noah, also had exceptional ball-handling skills, albeit not being the primary ball-handler.

The small forward of the group was Justin Gabe Chen. Having grown up playing basketball, according to rumours, he was versatile in every single aspect of basketball; the perfect skill set for a small forward. Justin had the necessary ball-handling skills, and on top of that, he was good at defending the ball from opponents. One thing Justin excelled at as a small forward though, was his quickness and agility, thus being able to defend his team effectively and take on the shooter of the opposing team.

Kayleigh's old friend... or lover, Levi Javier Park, played power forward. He was the most physical, and perhaps the most powerful and most aggressive player of the five. He played close to the basket most of the time. Levi was a great power forward due to his strength as a rebounder; he could jump really high, and so he was able to retrieve the ball from high up whenever the enemy failed to shoot. On offence, Levi could also shoot from a long-range while on defence, Levi was able to guard taller players and smaller players from shooting.

Finally, Jacob Blake Lin, the big man of the six, played centre. Jacob albeit thin, was durable and was able to withstand pressure and being pushed over. He was best at shot-blocking, making it harder for shorter players to shoot. Like Levi, he excelled at rebounding and was exceptional at passing to the right player whenever they were open. He could shoot too, making the five even more dangerous than they already were.

When the opponent's shooting guard failed to shoot the ball, Jacob jumped high and went in for a rebound, consequently passing it to Noah. When he did pass the ball successfully, Jacob looked at the crowd, almost as if looking for someone.

And he was, as Kayleigh and Jacob locked eyes for a few moments. Kayleigh found it awkward and looked away, then looked back again, and saw Jacob wink at her as if to show off the amazing feat he'd accomplished on the court. He smiled at Kayleigh blushing, and then returned his focus on the game.

He-Jin was supposed to meet with Roisin and Kayleigh as soon as class ended, but she was caught up in so much work that she had to stay thirty minutes after class. They were all excited to watch J-Alpha's practice game. He-Jin was looking forward to seeing Joseph especially since he would probably be on the sidelines supporting his friends.

Running to the court, however, was her least favourite thing to do. She was clumsy and easily bruised. But because she knew Kayleigh and Roisin had been waiting for her, she made it an exception and sprinted as fast she could. Unfortunately, she stumbled upon a rock, causing her to fall hard on the concrete floor, bruising her arm and scratching her knee. She winced in pain — she was a wuss when it came to pain, and her pain tolerance was extremely low.

Since classes had ended thirty minutes ago, she wasn't expecting anyone to extend a helping hand to her. She slowly stood up and picked the books that fell to the floor. She noticed her phone cracked beyond recognition, and when she tried to turn it on, it wouldn't. She proceeded to pick the rest of her books and when she tried to do so, she saw that someone had already done so.

Joseph Edward Sato stood holding her books in his lean arms, extending his hand for her to take, concern painted on his face.

"Are you alright?" he mumbled, caressing her arm.

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