We often hear about legends… prodigies in the world of sports, players who were so dominant that they had shook everyone around them to their core, unbelievable talent and indomitable aura. What if I tell you there was a player who wasn't even comparable to these other prodigies? A player who was in a league of his own? A generational talent? A player feared by his whole state? An unstoppable middle schooler whom even high-school and some college players feared to go up against… an aura so frightening and game that was spine-chilling, earned him the nickname of THE REAPER.

Willow Creek, a beautiful town covered in the cloak of alluring mountains, was the new hometown of Alex Carter. Alex is a 16-year-old teenager who just entered high-school and was exhilarated and gleeful to meet new people and start his thrilling life as a highschooler.

"Holy shit! I can't wait for the sun to rise... my first day of high school!" Alex thought to himself as he couldn't sleep even after endeavoring to. As the sun rose, the alarm started to burst at its finest note, jolting Alex up from his bed. "Alex! Breakfast's ready honey!" shouted Alex's aunt, Lily. "Yeah, Lily I will be there in a sec!" yelled Alex from a far.

 Alex went to the washroom, brushed his teeth, freshened up and started wearing his uniform. Alex had a great physique, his abs were as hard as rocks in a mine shaft, he had broad shoulders and well-built chest muscles. His Biceps and Triceps were detailed, and his Quads and Calf muscles were that of an Olympic runner. He had a very athletic build, one glance at Alex and one would go as far as saying that he is a professional athlete.

Alex had been living with his aunt Lily ever since his parents died in a car accident 11 years ago. Lily had just entered in her 30s but she still looked stunning, as if she was still in her early 20s. She works as a sports journalist and single-handedly pays the bills and also takes care of Alex. After Alex had lost his parents, Lily had become the most important person in his life, he treats her as his mother and also a friend he can comfortably share anything with, whatever it may be.

 As Alex made his way down to the dining room, the aromatic smell of deliciously cooked omurice reached his nostrils. "Oh, you're here! Come on now let's eat, you don't want to be late on your first day, do you?" chuckled Lily. "Haha, you're right… by the way this is absolutely delicious!" said Alex.

As Alex finished his meal, he rushed out of the door in excitement. "Bye Lily! Thanks for the meal!" said Alex, hurriedly. "All the best Alex!" yelled Lily as Alex was long gone.

Alex had finally reached his new high-school, Blazewood High, a school which was once known for its quality sports performance but now since a few years, it has been dead last in sports and the school doesn't even try to provide facilities or spend money on their school teams. "Damn this school is huge… I definitely made the right choice transferring here! No sports, good environment and cute girls, this is literally the dream school for me!" said Alex as he wandered around the school glancing at its sheer beauty.

As Alex was roaming around the school, he heard the sound of squeaking of shoes on hardwood, he glanced at the Basketball gym, school team members performing drills, chucking up shots and having fun while practicing. Alex tensed up a bit, gritting his teeth, "Tch... people still enjoy this stupid game huh...". As Alex was going to leave, his eyes stumbled upon A girl. She had beautiful silver hair, blue eyes that could captivate a soul at any given moment, an hourglass figure and fair skin comparable to the glow of clouds in the sky. "Woah…" was all his mouth could utter after creeping a glance at her. The sound of the bell helped Alex snap back to reality. "Shit! I'll be late for the class!" said Alex as he ran through the corridor in search of his homeroom.

 As Alex reached his homeroom, the homeroom teacher asked Alex to introduce himself to the class. "Hello everyone! I am Alex Carter! My hobbies are working out and studying and also, I hate sports! I look forward to spending my high-school years with you all!" said Alex in a sharp voice. "Great! Everyone! Be good to Alex and help him in his studies and get along. Alex, you can sit there at the back." said his homeroom teacher, Miss Natasha.

As Alex was going towards his seat, he could hear his classmates whispering about him to each other. "Wait… he looks familiar…", "What? Do you know him?". "He has a strange resemblance to the REAPER of Riverstone Middle school.". "I don't know about all that, but he seems hot!" says the girl.

Alex clenched his fists and ignored the gossips about him and got seated. He sat beside a guy with red hair, he was pretty thin and was between 5'11 to 6 ft in height. "Hey, don't worry, I know you're not the Reaper, I've always idolized him and no offence, but I refuse to believe he is as you know… average as you… he was the greatest basketball player in the whole state for fuck's sake." said the guy. The guy was kind of a dumb headed person, regarding Alex as "simple" when he was literally anything but that.

Alex relaxes a bit and then says "Who the hell is this 'Reaper' anyway? And why are they mistaking me with him?". "He was a Basketball prodigy, a myth, he only played In his first and second year of middle school and dominated it completely, carrying his bum ass team to the nationals both the years and became the reigning MVP of the state in both those years." Said the guy with a smile of admiration on his face. "Dude, you're just glazing him at this point, he couldn't have been THAT good." said Alex. "It's the truth! He really was THAT good" the guy pressed again. "Haha, you seem like a fun guy, what's your name?" enquired Alex. "I am Jake.".

 The school was finally over, as Alex was about to exit the building, he heard it again, the squeaking of shoes on hardwood and the sound of the rhythmic pounding of the ball on the wood. He saw the girl whom he had seen in the morning. "She really is pretty huh…" he thought to himself as he was building up the courage to go and speak to her. Suddenly Jake notices Alex staring at the girl. "Hey creep! I am betting 50$ that you can't speak to her." Says Jake making fun of Alex. "Huh Jake? What are you doing here?" asks Alex. "Practicing with the team, I joined the basketball team today!" answered Jake. "So, you also like this stupid game?" said Alex in a disapproving tone. "Hey, a quick tip! DO NOT SAY THAT WHEN YOU GO AND TALK TO HER, SHE REALLY MIGHT JUST KILL YOU." Said Jake in a concerning tone. "Well! It's now or never." Alex gulped and went all in to approach her as she was having a sip of water from her water bottle. "Hey Jake! You better get that 50$ bill ready!".

As Alex went over to the girl, he had absolutely NO CLUE about what to say to her, sweat dripping off his chin due to extensive nervousness, he gathered up the courage and said "Hey! I am Alex, I saw you from a far and I got absolutely mesmerized by your skills with the basketball! You know the way you dribble it and your perfect release of the ball while shooting, it really touched me!".

 Alex, in his mind was applauding the way he started this conversation, "Holy shit that was perfect! I really know how to charm girls huh! I'm thinking I should start giving out tuitions on this!". Alex's appreciation for himself was quite short-lived, as the girl replied, "You do know that today is conditioning day, right? And that I haven't even touched the ball yet?". Alex turned pale when he heard her reply, he wanted to start the conversation with such perfection that he had forgotten about the fact that he didn't see her play with the basketball yet. After realizing how bad of a first impression he emitted, only one word pondered in his mind.

"Fuck."

The girl smiled, thinking it was funny. "Shit! I have to get this conversation back on track!" Alex thought to himself and then blurted out, "O-Oh, I uh- actually uh- YEAH I SAW YOU IN THE MORNING… PRACTICING, I was talking about that time actually…". Alex tried his best to get this conversation on the right track, the girl smiling as she saw Alex struggle. "Anyways! Let's skip through towards introductions. I am Alex!". "It's nice to meet you Alex, I am Emma.". At this point Alex had no clue about what to say next, he was completely lost.

 "Uh so… what's uh- ". As Alex was about to finish his sentence, a basketball flew towards them with intense velocity, coming from the direction where Alex's back was exposed. Emma noticed it a bit too late, as it was about to hit her in the face. Emma flinched, closing her eyes and throwing her hands up with the intention of reducing the damage. She stayed in that position for a moment… but nothing happened… as she slowly opened her eyes, she could see Alex, his hand extended towards the side, palming the basketball without even looking at it… protecting Emma. It looked as if Alex had eyes on the back of his head because no normal human would ever be able to sense the ball coming… let alone stopping it in its tracks.

Alex threw a highly accurate, pinpoint no look pass straight in the hands of the coach of the Boys' team… the way he threw it was too smooth, and he had made it look easy. "Be careful while playing, idiots." said Alex and then began to walk away from the gym. The coach of the boys' team was Riley Lawrence, a pretty woman in her 20s with a lean and fit build, her looks were similar to that of Emma, as if they were related. "That pass… is he really who I think he is? I had my suspicions when I saw him for the first time today but… now I am almost a 100% sure that… it's HIM…". Riley thought to herself.

As Alex was walking away from the gym, he could hear people buzzing off, "Man, did you see that?", "what was that whole sequence?", "his reaction speed and that pass was crazy!", "Is he an athlete? Has he joined any clubs yet?". "Dude! We should definitely persuade him to join our team!". Jake, as a point guard himself, saw the pass as something that can have two explanations. One, it could be a complete fluke and everyone's making a huge fuss about it for no reason… or two… Alex… has played Basketball before… "What the fuck was that… Alex…" remarked Jake as he saw Alex leaving.

Once again, only one word was pondering in Alex's mind as he was leaving the gym with his head down, fist clinched.

"Fuck."

To be continued…

NEXT CHAPTER – CH 2. DRAGGED BACK IN