บท 20: Message of the Captain
"Line up," Yuze coldly said, and Kai quickly followed. He stood next to the shortest guy among the applicants, making him stand out even more.
Jinping glanced at Kai from his position and clicked his tongue.
"Why is he even here?" he muttered.
Yuze stood at the very center, but his gaze was focused on Kai.
"As I was saying, I do not tolerate latecomers during practices, matches, and tryouts…especially tryouts," he emphasized.
Kai pursed his lips and kept his gaze to the front. If it weren't for that old man and his dirty car, Kai would have been able to make it on time!
"I believe that those who are punctual will get the most blessings. With that in mind, I will now be relaying the mechanics for this tryout."
"Today, you'll be facing the current first-string players of our team in three sets," he started off.
The six current members, cockily sitting on their seats like eagles surveying their prey, waved at the newbies. The newcomers exchanged glances, already feeling nervous about the upcoming challenge.
Yuze walked to the front of the line—where the people who arrived first were standing.
"The first five people who came will be the starters of the first set."
Then, he slowly walked to the middle before speaking. "The next five will take the court for the second set, and the final five will ride it out in the third."
Kai tilted his head to the side in confusion when he realized he was the sixteenth applicant on the line.
He raised his hands, causing Yuze to focus his attention on him.
"How about me?" Kai asked.
Yuze smirked, walking toward the latecomer. They stood face to face, and Kai had to lift his chin a bit to hold the captain's gaze.
"You'll be the substitute," Yuze smiled. "You can play when one of the applicants gets extremely tired."
"And if that doesn't happen?" Kai asked. "Then, you can try out next year," Yuze simply answered, walking away from Kai before he could ask another question.
Lina gulped as she watched their exchange.
"Why is Yuze on edge?" she whispered to Kun.
"I think his dad talked to him again," Kun whispered back.
Lina pursed her lips and nodded in understanding. "That explains it," she muttered.
"I think it's also because of the rumors surrounding that guy," Kun pointed out.
Lina frowned in confusion. "Rumors? What rumors?"
"You don't know?" Kun asked.
Lina shook her head. As far as she knew, she had never even seen him in their town…or maybe it was because she was a crippling introvert who didn't like interacting with people she wasn't close with.
"I thought he looked a bit familiar when we first saw him, and now I realized that I have seen him before. He's Mad Dog," Kun explained.
"Well, that's a silly little name," Lina said.
Kun shook his head, looking Lina in the eyes.
"It's not. I'm telling you—it's far from being silly."
"Now, let's start," Yuze said, gesturing to the five first-string players from the back. They quickly jogged to the front, looking as confident as ever.
"To the others who aren't playing, come here first!" Kun exclaimed in a friendly tone, waving the remaining applicants to the empty seats next to him and Lina.
The others quickly scrambled to sit next to the friendly player (as well as the pretty girl next to him). In the end, Kai was left with the seat at the very end.
"I can't believe you really came," Jinping scoffed in disbelief as he passed him. "Just because you played one game of basketball, you feel like you can enter the team now?"
"Ah, so noisy," Kai muttered, causing Jinping to frown.
"What did you just say?" Jinping asked.
"You should learn how to keep your mouth shut sometimes," Kai said, having had enough.
"Maybe then, your girlfriend wouldn't leave you."
"You—"
Jinping was about to argue with him but was interrupted by the sound of the whistle.
"It's starting," Kai said, focusing his gaze on the court.
Captain Yuze served as the referee, while Kun and Lina were in charge of the scoreboard.
Kai's heart pounded inside his chest as he watched the Centers of the two teams engage in a scuffle to get the ball. Unsurprisingly, the varsity players were able to get the ball, effortlessly making the team play against the anxious applicants.
"Come on, Jet!" Kun exclaimed from the side, urging the second-year player to show the applicants the skills of Shizi High's basketball team.
Jet smirked as he glanced at Kun, even throwing him a wink before landing a lay-up.
"Two points for the varsity team!" Kun exclaimed.
The applicants gulped, glancing nervously at each other. Some of them even wanted to go back home and complain to their mothers. They stared at their seniors, hoping they could give them some mercy.
But alas, the varsity team continued to destroy the newbie team with simple plays.
"We have a ten-point lead for the varsity team!" Kun happily chimed as the set loomed to the end.
Lina gently slapped his shoulder, causing Kun to look at her with raised eyebrows.
"Don't act so happy," Lina whispered. "We haven't gotten a proper play from the applicants yet!"
Kun scratched the back of his head. "You're right. I hope we get to see some good talents today."
The hopefuls continued to give their all on the court. However, the current varsity team effortlessly dismantled their attempts every single time.
Kai leaned his elbows against his thighs and assessed the game more thoroughly. As he watched the newbie players run around the court, a thought crossed his mind—they lacked a leader.
The team moved slowly, and there was a noticeable absence of someone directing the flow.
It seemed like they didn't set their positions well, so they all just scrambled to get to the ball, leaving many positions open.
"Ah, these guys are useless," Jinping muttered, looking at the timer with furrowed eyebrows.
Just then, the whistle sounded, and the exhausted applicants made their way to the bleachers. They all had disappointed expressions, while those on the varsity team seemed more relaxed than ever.
With a 25-point gap, it was definitely difficult for the newbie team to catch up and win the game.
Cracking his knuckles, Jinping stood from his seat, glaring at the people in his team.
"We better turn this game around."
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