Unusual for this time of the year, a sudden shower of rain had dampened the usually bone-dry city.
It left a distinct smell of wet concrete in the air, also lowering the temperatures by a lot.
.
"Alright, do you just want to do 1v1s to begin with? Are you good at those?", she asked, yet I assumed that she knew my answer to that already.
When she stepped on the court, I could feel my heart beating.
My eyes were stuck on hers, just waiting for her gaze to turn pitiful. To me, it was only a matter of time until she realised how pathetic I was, yet… I just wanted to live in this lie for a bit longer.
Standing in front of her, I quickly bend my knees and dribble the ball towards the left. And although it landed a bit too far, I could sprint fast enough to catch it again.
But she was ruthless, not allowing me to pass even once, so I resorted to simply shooting.
Realistically, shooting was my best bet at winning this 1v1, due to me being just a bit taller than Nicchi.
I also had no experience in actually laying the ball through the net, let alone dunking, while our classes actually taught us how to properly shoot.
Still, my form was poor, while my shooting itself was even poorer.
So as my ball falls, not even touching the rim, she quickly grabs it while starting to sprint towards the other net.
Caught in the game, I rush in front of her, blocking her path with only my arm.
Awkwardly, she doesn't notice my arm, crashing right into it. As we both fall from the impact, the ball slips from her hands, rolling into a muddy ditch near the field.
And as we meet gazes on the ground, Nicchi breaks out in a raspy laughter, sill lying on my arm.
"What a mess, haha. You know, maybe we should stick to shooting.", she exclaimed, lying on the wet floor, that had already covered us in filth.
I was left mesmerised, yet I couldn't stop myself from bursting out in laughter at the absurdity of the situation.
Feeling my face drown in a mind-numbing heat, our eyes meet for a single moment.
.
.
'If it was with her, maybe I could forget my worries.'
"Is there something on my face?", the young girl expressed, surprised by Marin's stare.
Usually, he would look away or break away, yet here he was: left mesmerised.
So, a blush appearing on her face, Nicchi puts up her arms and rolls over on her stomach.
With a struggling push, she stands up, heading for the ball.
.
'What a shame.'
Left in the mud, the ball was covered in dirt.
'I'm unsure if we want to even continue playing when it's like this?'
"Hey Marin, do you want to stop here for today?"
Also pushing himself up from the damp ground, Marin raises his eyebrows,
"Sure, if that's what you want."
Joining Nicchi next to the muddy pit to judge the severity of the situation, he continues, "With the ball like that, we should probably go and wash it before returning it to the sports hall."
Though, when Marin faced Nicchi, her sweaty strawberry-blonde hair flying with the breeze, she pulled up her hands.
As she put up her finger in front of her mouth, a smile spread through her face.
Surprised, Marin quickly understood her gesture, "You're seriously gonna return it like that?!"
"It's not me who is gonna return it like this."
And before Marin could ask what she meant by that, she added, " We are going to return it like this."
.
First surprised by her carelessness, eventually a desperate smile fills Marin's face,
"Alright, but I'll push all the blame on you if anyone accuses us."
"How shameless!", Nicchi responded, yet clearly pleased by Marin's reaction.
"No problem then? Let's just leave it in front of the door for the janitor to clean up.", he proposed, met with reluctant agreeance from Nicchi.
.
.
Heading over to the hall, the two of them unknowingly attract the attention of an orange haired boy, sitting in a circle with his friends.
'Is that Marin?', he realised, causing him to clench his teeth in anger.
'And that fucking whore is there with him too! I knew there was something going on between them!'
"You good, man?", his friend asked, noticing his distracted stare.
"You remember my ex? It seems like she lost her mind after I dumped her ass."
Continuing, a smile spreads through his annoyed expression, "i mean, why else would someone hang around someone like that."
Yet his friend was left irritated by his words, "Bro, you're still hung up on that girl? Why did you even break up with her if you're gonna be all jealous now."
Standing up and slowly heading away, he responds, "It's not her: It's that Marin loser who's pissing me off."
.
Following the two, he suddenly comes to a stop,
'A basketball?'