They’re all going to fucking hate me after tonight.
I’m standing at the three-point line and the defenders from the Houston Phoenixes have me surrounded.
Andrés is standing at the opposite end, waving his arms in the air and signaling for me to pass it to him. Ignoring him, I continue to fight off the defenders and purposely let the ball slip from my fingers.
“What the fuck, Kamado?” Coach shouts from the sideline, frustration evident on his face.
A player from the Phoenixes grabs the ball and makes a fast break across the court. He slam dunks the ball, and Houston now has a twenty-five point lead.
A collective groan passes through the crowd, and my gut wrenches seeing people rising from their seats and heading toward the exit.
Coach pulls me out of the game and subs in Marcus James—one of the bench players.
Chills race down my spine when I meet Coach’s eyes. He looks as though he wants to strangle me.
“Kamado, what the hell is going on with you?” he shouts, his voice shaking with rage. “You’re missing shots left and right and causing multiple turnovers!”
I exhale a shaky breath. “I’m sorry, Coach. I have a lot going on right now…”
This only pisses him off more. The heat of his fury is enough to incinerate the entire arena. “I don’t give a fuck what you have going on! Don’t bring your problems to the court.”
Unable to reply, I simply nod.
“The fourth quarter just started, and they may be in the lead, but it’s not impossible for us to beat them. I need you to get it together and show them who the MVP is!”
“Yes, Coach.”
After a couple of minutes pass, I jog back onto the court.
The ball is in Elijah’s hand, and he redirects us as he dribbles down the court.
Alex Hui—my old teammate—stands in front of me with a smug look on his face as he’s guarding me. We used to be good friends when I played for the Phoenixes, but once I signed with the Dragons, he started treating me like I’m his worst enemy.
I’m sure seeing me play like trash tonight fills him with satisfaction.
“Wow, Kamado. Even the benchwarmer is playing better than you tonight,” he snickers. “Guess your girlfriend’s pussy is so good that you can’t seem to focus on anything else.”
Heat surges through me as I clench my jaw, but I bite back the words and stay silent.
Peering over his shoulder, he licks his lips when he spots Annalise sitting courtside. “Maybe I’ll see for myself how good it is. It’ll be my reward when we eliminate your sorry-ass team from the playoffs.”
“Shut the fuck up!” I snarl, shoving my shoulder into him.
He lets out a laugh. “I bet she’ll dump your ass once she sees what a loser you are. That’s probably why your old man still isn’t showing up to your games. I bet he’s embarrassed to see what a failure you turned out to be.”
The single thread that has been holding me back from losing control finally snaps. I am already in a bad mood, and he hits me in my weakest spot. I confided in him about my situation with Otosan when we were friends, and he’s deciding to use it against me.
I strike him in the face and he crumbles to the ground, a sharp yelp escaping his lips as blood gushes from his nose.
The referee marches toward us, blowing his whistle. “Kamado, that’s a technical foul!”
A smile spreads across Alex’s lips.
“Exit the game now,” the referee says, pointing his finger toward the door on the left with a giant Exit sign looming above it.
I leave the arena feeling defeated as I catch a glimpse of thousands of eyes filled with disappointment. My coach, my team, the fans—I’ve let every single one of them down.
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
