She sat alone in the dark shadows of the locker room, elbows resting on her knees as she leaned foward to take a deep breath. Her fingers crept around the Ace bandage wrapped around her wrist and began to tug at it absent-mindedly. The right heel of her Jordans kicked at the floor and the other foot tapped at irregular beats. Outside, she could hear the crowd growing restless and impatient.

"TAEUN! TAEUN!"

She tipped her head and a small smile flickered across her lips. Yes, she liked the way they cheered her name. The girl, Taeun, stood up and straightened her blue jersey, turning from side to side as she admired the large, bond white numbers printed on the front and back of the jersey. Number 23, Yoon Taeun. With a quick wink at her reflection in the mirror, Taeun slammed her locker door shut and pressed her palms against the cool metal.

"Yo, Taeun," Yoongi called, stepping into the shadowy aisle. She looked at him simply and he nodded. "It's time."

Taeun managed a laugh and skipped over to one of her best friends. She threw her arm around his shoulder and her other hand sprang out to give him a high-five. "Let's kick the #2 out of Daedong High!" Taeun declared confidently, punching the air as the two headed out of the locker room. Yoongi rolled his eyes but secretly shared her fierce determination. After all, everyone in their school knew Yoon Taeun's thirst for victory on the basketball courts.

As soon as the pair entered the noisy gymnasium, all heads snapped towards their direction and the crowd erupted into cheers and whistles. Several posters and banners flashed in the air, many saying YOON TAEUN IS NUMBER #1 or Face the fury of YoonTae! Taeun couldn't help but grin broadly at her admirers and wave. Sometimes she felt more like a celebrity than a basketball captain. Then again, she was one of the main reasons why Gwangju High dominated the other schools in the district in basketball.

A blur of blue suddenly attacked her. "Noona!" Jungkook and Taehyung, the small forward and center of the team, greeted her with tight hugs. "Are you ready?" Jungkook asked, hopping on one foot excitedly.

"You don't have to ask twice," Taeun replied while straightening the waistband of her basketball shorts. "Let's bring Gwangju some victory, yeah? It is our home game after all."

Taehyung folded his arms and smirked. "With you as our captain, we don't have to worry," he stated. The four basketball players laughed and walked over to the rest of their team, where Coach Yoon stood with a clipboard in his hands and eyebrows furrowed deep in thought. "Coach!" they chorused and he glanced up wearily at them.

"Yoongi, Taehyung, Jungkook," he said. "Go warm up, the game starts in two minutes. I'd like to speak to Taeun alone."

The boys nodded respectfully and went to sit next to Hoseok, who was slowly stretching his arms. Coach Yoon squeezed Taeun's shoulder gently and led her to the far end of the court, where no one could hear the conversation between them. "Listen Taeun," the basketball coach quietly said.  He reached out to tuck a stray lock of hair from Taeun's ponytail behind her ear. "This may not seem like a great deal to you, but be careful. These Daedong boys are known for their ferocity on the court. People even compare them to tigers! I just want you to -"

"Coach, I'm fine!" Taeun insisted, pushing off his hand. "Really, you've seen me play before. I've been playing basketball since I started walking. Heck, even basketballs were my first toy as a baby. You, out of all people, would understand."

Coach Yoon exhaled, and for a minute Taeun saw a different side of him. She always thought of Coach Yoon as a young, active man, but as he stared at her, she noticed how old and weary he looked at the moment. "Appa," she began in a low tone, and he gave her a curious look. She rarely called Coach Yoon her father out in public. "Trust me. I'll lead the boys to victory without getting hurt."

He shook his head. "I may be your coach in school, but let's not forget I'm a protective father who doesn't like to see his little girl get hurt."

"Then why did you even put me as - " Before Taeun could even finished her sentence, the crowd let out a roar as the boys of Daedong High came striding into the court. They were all tall and burly, but that didn't intimidate Taeun. She'd seen worse. Taeun immediately drew away from her father and returned to her teammates, where they were already making a tight huddle. She slipped an arm around Jungkook's shoulder and the other at Hoseok's neck.

"This is it, boys," she said. "The big one, the one we've been waiting for -"

"Excuse me, captain," Hoseok interrupted, "but can we skip the speech? You say the same one at every game."

Taeun scowled while the other three teammates howled with laughter. She jammed her elbow into Hoseok's side and he yelped. "Don't interrupt the captain, you peasant," she snapped. "Or do you volunteer to do the team's jerseys for this week's Laundry Day? I heard Taehyung has two week's worth of jerseys stuffed under his bed. Just think of the stench collected from those two weeks!"

The said boy flushed and Hoseok made a face. "Fair enough. Continue, captain." Taeun smirked triumphantly and nodded.

"Right. Ever since we got Jungkook this year - " Taeun paused to beam at the golden maknae. "- we've been unstoppable. We've won a fair amount of games, and I know that we're going to win this one. And I definitely know you boys are going to do amazing! Just be light on your feet, and don't let those big, bad players intimidate you. We may be smaller in size, and people have laughed at us, but hey, we shut them up with our basketball skills!"

Yoongi wrapped his arm at Taeun's waist and pulled her close to him. "And let's not forgot our beautiful, y captain," he said greasily. He dodged Taeun's kick. "No, really! You've been our captain for almost two years now, and even though you're a girl, you've proved you're better than half of us. We alone may be good, but under your leadership, we've improved at the sport."

Taeun pretended to wipe away a tear from her eyes. "Aww Yoongi," she cooed, "that's one of the nicest things you've ever said to me. Still, that doesn't get you out of basketball-polishing duty next week."

She grinned brightly at her team and stuck her right foot in. "Alright then, good luck, all of you. Remember, if we win, you're all invited to my house after for hot pot. Feet in, everyone, and on three. One, two, three..."

"BREAK! GO GWANGJU GRIFFINS!"

"Seriously, who even came up with that mascot?" Yoongi demanded. Taeun rolled her eyes and walked over to the center of the court to meet the captain of the opposing team. He was a buff, dark eyed boy who towered over her easily. Taeun puffed out her chest and stuck her shoulder blades back to make herself appear taller.

"I wasn't aware that we were playing against a coed group," the opposing captain muttered, narrowing his eyes at the sight of Taeun. Taeun fluttered her eyelashes innocently at him and he turned red. "I don't want to play against a girl," he added, emphasizing the word while staring challengingly at her. To his surprise, Taeun tipped her head back and let out a soft laugh.

"You're not playing against a coed group," she cheerfully answered. "I'm the only girl on the team. In fact, I'm the captain." She moved directly in front of him and reached for his hand to give him a firm handshake. "Yoon Taeun of Gwangju High. Pleased to meet you," she added, enjoying the look of pure shock on the boy's face. He was too stunned to return her handshake and only gaped.

"No foul play," the referee drawled, eyes darting between the two captains. "I want a clean game without yelling at everyone, okay?"

"You got it," Taeun happily said. She bounced on her heels, eager to show these Daedong boys what she was worth. With a loud shrill of the whistle, the basketball was thrown in the air. The Daedong captain immediately lunged for the ball, but Taeun was quicker. She snatched the ball and began dribbling down towards the opposing side.

"And the ball is immediately snagged by Yoon Taeun of the Gwangju team," the commentor of the match announced, his head whipping around as he struggled to keep up with the game's fast action. "No surpise there! She passes it off to Jung Hoseok, who takes it towards the net. Daedong center Nam Minsu blocks, he misses, and - SCORE!"

The Gwangju cheer team leapt from the bleachers, cheering wildy as Hoseok lifted his arms and grinned. "Go J-Hope!" the crowd shouted, calling him the nickname he had earned in his first year of high school. He blew a kiss to his admirers and waved with a charming smile. Taeun listened to the sound of groans from the Daedong team and smirked. As usual, Gwangju scored the first point.

Within an hour, Daedong caught up to Gwangju; they were three points away from a tie game. The competition was getting fierce, and some of the Daedong teammates even resorted to cheating. One was given a foul for roughly shoving Jungkook when the latter tried to pass the ball to Taeun. As the refree bellowed at the Daedong boy, Taeun panted and wiped her forehead. She surveyed the court, silently calculating strategies in her head. The Gwangju team needed to score one more point before the time was over. She glanced at Coach Yoon, and he nodded as if he knew what she was thinking.

The whistle screeched, and the two teams were off.

Yoongi was the first to steal the ball and dribbled it furiously to the net. The Daedong boys immediately surrounded him, smashing all hopes of a quick escape. "Yoongi!" Taeun yelled, sprinting over. She gracefully dodged a player blocking her and hurried to her teammate, who was on the verge of having the ball stolen. "I'm open! Pass, pass!"

"Bring it home, captain!" Yoongi bellowed. He pretended to go to his right, and two of the Daedong boys were tricked into following him. But Yoongi swiftly jumped up and passed the ball in Taeun's direction. The basketball soared through the air before Taeun caught it in her hands and dribbled to the free throw line of the court.

"TAEUN! TAEUN!" In the chaos, she heard a voice calling her name. The Gwangju cheer team picked up the chant and it slowly grew into a deafening roar. "TAEUN! TAEUN!"

Don't mess this up, Tae. Taeun took a deep breath and almost crashed into the Daedong center player, Minsu. Before he could knock the ball out of her hands, Taeun jumped off the floor and stretched her wrists. With a light push of her palms, the ball entered the net. However, it slid dangerously on the edge of the rim. Taeun was so nervous she could barely breathe.

The commentor was just as tense as the crowd was. "It's...it's..."

Swoosh!

And so went Taeun's heart.

In basketball, there are five positions. Credits to Yahoo! Voices for definitions for the basketball position roles xD

> Center - generally plays closest to the basket on both offense and defense,  needs to be able to defend against and block shots from inside. Out of all the players, the center is the tallest. As Taehyung is the tallest of the five, he is the center.

> Power forward - most often the second tallest player on the team. He is expected to also have the ability to hit shots from a little farther out than from where the center would typically shoot. Hoseok plays this position.

> Small forward - usually the second best outside shooter. The small forward must have enough height and ability to do center and power forward type things, while having the speed and athleticism to do guard. Jungkook, the 'golden maknae,' is the small forward.

> Shooting guard - usually the player that takes the most shots and handles the ball second most on the team, just behind the point guard. It is crucial for the shooting guard to have top ball handling and passing skills as the point guard. Yoongi plays this position.

> Point guard - Taeun is the point guard of the team. He (in this case, she) handles the ball the most and needs to be the best ball handler, dribbler, and passer on the team. Point guards are typically smaller than the average basketball player, occasionally smaller than the average person.

In this story, I'll be addressing the Bangtan Boys by their real names, not their stage names. I will only call them by their stage names if it fits within the story (such as the school calling Hoseok by his 'nickname,' J-Hope). Oh, and do feel free to leave some constructive criticism  and opinions!! :) I'd like to hear what you have to say about this first chapter!